Working the forearms helps develop the muscles between your elbow and wrist and might help improve your grip, enhance hand and arm strength and stamina, and promote range of motion. A few simple exercises performed once a day or a few times a week will promote development of lower arm muscles so that carrying objects, doing yard work or playing sports causes less muscle fatigue.
Reverse Curl
Reverse curl exercises help develop the brachialis, the muscle found at the distal end of the biceps muscle near the elbow. Grasp a low-weight barbell or dumbbells, and stand with your feet shoulder distance apart, toes pointing forward. Hold the weights with an overhand grip, your hands resting at your hips. Slowly lift the weights or barbell to your chest, pausing at the top of the move for several seconds. At this point, the weights should be shoulder height. Lower and repeat the exercise 10 times.
Dumbbell Flexion
Hold an adjustable dumbbell with only one side weighted. This exercise works the flexors and extensors in your forearm, suggests exrx.net. The flexors and extensors enable the fingers to extend and contract or roll inward, and it offers range of motion and strength and stability for the wrist. Hold the dumbbell so that the weighted side is on the pinkie-finger side of your hand. Tilt the hand upward, moving only at the wrist joint so that the weighted end of the dumbbell raises. Next, flex your hand in a downward motion, pushing the heel of your hand toward the floor.
Fingertip Curls
Fingertip curls help strengthen the fingers and wrist, enhancing function and strength for grasping, rock climbing, taking out the trash or typing. Sit holding a dumbbell in your hand, palm side up. Loosely grasp the dumbbell in your hand, then open your fingers slightly and let the dumbbell roll down to the fingertips, grasping it before it drops from your hand, suggests IndoorClimbing.com. Once the dumbbell reaches the fingertips, roll it back into your palm. Repeat this move for one minute, gradually working up to five minutes' duration.
Dumbbell Wrist Curl
Dumbbell wrist curls strengthen all muscles in the wrist, forearm and elbow, offering increased stability, strength and range of motion. Sit with a dumbbell in your right hand, forearm on a bench or table, palm side up. Place your left hand against the right forearm, just below the elbow for support, suggests bodybuilder Lee Hayward. Using only the wrist, curl the right hand inward. Do this exercise five to 10 times, and then work the left side.
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