16 Forearm Exercises And Workouts To Strengthen Grip

First on this list is pull ups, one of the toughest yet fantastic exercises to build powerful forearms. You just need a bar to perform this workout.

As we pull our body up, the forearm muscles are vigorously engaged, which ultimately helps build grip strength. Try using a thicker bar to work the grip even harder.

Steps To Do:

• Get under a pull up bar and put your hands overhead. 
• The palms should face away from you. However, you can add a challenge by making it face toward you. 
• Grab the pull up bar and start pulling your weight upwards. Engage the core and squeeze the shoulder blades during the process.
• Continue pulling till your chin reaches over the bar. 
• Now, lower the body gently, feeling a good stretch in the forearms. 
• Pull up back again, and repeat this workout for desired number of reps.

Exercising your forearm with a dumbbell is a great option. You might start with an easier move, like the palms-up wrist curl.

Just sit back in a relaxing chair and engage your forearms gently with two dumbbells. Do this exercise daily and over time, you'll see a real boost in your grip strength.

Steps To Do:

• Get seated comfortably in a chair. 
• Hold a dumbbell in each hand. Go for a lighter weight if you’re just starting out. 
• Keep the feet hip width apart. 
• Rest both wrists on your knees, with your palms facing up toward your head.
• Now, lift the wrists without moving your upper arms, but don’t let them rise all the way.
• Hold this raised pose for 10-20 seconds.
• Return to the original position and continue practicing for 10-12 reps.

Similar to the palms-up wrist curl, this is a simple variant that features the wrist facing down instead of up. It is better to incorporate both versions in your workout routine to build finer forearm muscles.

Steps To Do:

• Sit comfortably on a chair with relaxed shoulders.
• Take two dumbbells, one in each hand. Remember to keep the feet hip width apart. 
• Place the wrists on your knees, with your palms facing down toward the lower body.
• Next, raise the wrists without moving your upper arms, just like the palms-up version.
• When you reach the top, stay there for 10-20 seconds.
• Return back to the initial position and repeat for 10-12 reps.

The Farmer's Walk is another powerful exercise to strengthen our grip. In simple terms, it’s considered as walking with weights - like barbells - in hand. 

As we walk, the added weight naturally challenges our grip, forcing us to hold on tight with every step. Likewise, it is also regarded as a full-body exercise - targeting the legs, core, and shoulders. 

Steps To Do:

• Grab a dumbbell in each hand firmly. Keep the back straight and shoulders back and down.
• Puff the chest out like Superman. Then, walk with the weights at your sides.
• While walking, don’t bend the spine or slouch the shoulders.
• Walk for 10-20 steps and then lower the weights to the floor.
• Take a brief rest and then pick the weights back up again.
• Repeat this process for 5-7 times.

Do you want to try a plank variation that effectively works your forearm with intensity? Enter side plank, a popular workout for many athletes. This exercise is simple to learn for a beginner, and it also engages those obliques and core muscles. 

Steps To Do:

• Get into a plank position with your arms under your shoulders.
• Now, raise your left arm and twist your body to the side, pointing the raised hand toward the ceiling.
• At the same time, move your left leg so it stacks over your right leg.
• This way, the pressure will increase on your left arm.
• Hold the left arm steady, feeling a deep stretch in the forearm muscles.
• Remain in the side plank pose for 30 seconds.
• After feeling fatigued, return back to the plank position and switch the arms.

Hammer Curl is among the top forearm workout exercises that efficiently targets the brachioradialis, an often overlooked forearm muscle. 

When we practice hammer curls with the palms facing each other, it engages the forearms much better compared to a standard curl. It is also wonderful for people who seek to improve their wrist stability.

Steps To Do:

• Stand tall by holding a dumbbell in each hand.
• Keep the arms to your sides. Remember to place the palms facing each other. 
• The feet should be at a hip width distance and the back flat. 
• Now, start lifting the left dumbbell upwards toward your shoulder.
• Remember to keep the elbows glued to the side. 
• Lower the dumbbell slowly after reaching the top. 
• Repeat the exercise for the other hand and go for 10-15 reps.

While doing this exercise, be careful not to overarch your back, which can happen when extending the leg behind. Although Bird Dog engages various muscle groups, balancing on one arm helps stabilize the forearm muscles and wrist.

Steps To Do:

• Start by laying on a tabletop position. Keep the shoulders over the arms and knees aligned with the hips. 
• Engage the core and extend the left arm and right leg. The left arm should be extended forward while the right leg goes backward. 
• While doing the extensions, maintain a stable hip. 
• Once you have extended fully, hold this position for 30-40 seconds. 
• The right arm that is supporting the upper body will get a good stretch, which is fantastic for strengthening the forearms. 
• Lower back down to the tabletop pose and continue 10-12 times.

This is another plank variation in this list that may help develop a powerful grip strength with daily practice. It is also useful for promoting a better posture, flexibility, and range of motion. 

Steps To Do:

• Get into a high plank position with the arms under the shoulders and feet shoulder width apart.
• Spread your fingers wide and engage the abdominal muscles. 
• Shift your weight to the right hand as you lift the left hand. 
• With the left hand, lightly tap the right shoulder. Then bring the left hand back.
• Now, repeat the same process for the right hand, lightly tapping the left shoulder.
• Alternate between the arms, counting 8 reps for each side.

Crab walk is a fun exercise that everyone should try at least once in their fitness routine. It’s basically walking but with a twist!

Make sure to keep your arms and legs moving in sync; otherwise, it could lead to an injury like a sprain or muscle tear.

Steps To Do:

• To do this exercise, begin by sitting in a reverse tabletop position. The feet should be under the knees.
• Place the hands under the shoulders. 
• Once you are in position, start walking forward, maintaining good coordination between the hands and feet.
• Walk for 10-12 steps and then take a brief pause. 
• Repeat this wonderful exercise for 5-7 times.

If you want to focus solely on your forearms without engaging other body parts, then forearm squeeze is the way to go. To do this workout, you’ll need a good hand-grip strengthener.

Grab one and practice at home with ease. You can also substitute the strengthener with a tennis ball.

Steps To Do:

• Hold a hand-grip strengthener in your hand and extend it in front of you. 
• Flexing the fingers, squeeze the tool slowly and steadily. Fast movements may actually render the workout less effective. 
• When you squeeze to the maximum point, stay like that for 5-10 seconds. 
• Now, slowly release the grip and return to original position. 
• Continue squeezing and releasing 20 times to feel that power growing in the wrist and forearms.

Do you want to add a serious challenge to a classic push-up? The fingertip version is one of the best ways to put extra stress on your forearm muscles, building grip strength in the process.

Steps To Do:

• Get into the plank position, but instead of supporting yourself on your palms, only use your fingers.
• Be cautious when holding your upper body weight with just your fingers - if it feels too uncomfortable, stop right away.
• Slowly bring the chest toward the ground by bending the elbows. Avoid momentum as it could injure the delicate fingers. 
• When you reach as low as comfortably possible, lift back up with the support of the fingers. 
• Do this exercise for 8-10 reps and incorporate 2-4 sets.

Dumbbell halo is a fun way to strengthen the forearm muscles through rotational movement of the arms. It is great for working out the shoulder muscles as well. 

Steps To Do:

• Stand tall with the feet at hip width distance and back flat. 
• Grab a heavier dumbbell with both hands.
• Now, bring the dumbbell in front of your forehead with bent elbows. 
• Start circling the dumbbell from the left side, go back of the head, and return it back to the front from the right side. 
• Repeat this fantastic exercise of forearm 10 to 12 times to get the most out of it.

A workout that requires a pull up bar, dead hang is an easy alternative to pull ups since we don’t need to lift ourselves for successful reps. We simply hang from the bar for a brief period, making the dead hang one of the best exercises for forearms and a quick way to boost grip strength.

Steps To Do:

• Get under the pull up bar and grab it with a strong grip.
• Pull your body up so that the legs are lifted from the ground completely.
• Now, remain hanging with your arms outstretched for as long as possible.
• Squeeze your shoulder blades down and together once you feel physically stressed. This aids to target the latissimus dorsi muscle.
• It is important to remain in the dead hang pose for 30 seconds to get a good forearm stretch.

Through consistent practice of this exercise, we can engage two important forearm muscles, i.e. pronator teres and brachioradialis. It is similar to the hammer curl, but here, both the palms would be facing away from you.

Steps To Do:

• Stand upright with an erect spine, and place the feet firmly on the ground at a hip width distance. 
• Grab the barbell firmly with your palms facing away from your body.
• Gripping the metal bar, lift the weight upward via bending the elbows. Keep them tucked as you raise them to a 90-degree angle. 
• Once you reach the top of the movement, lower the weights back down gently till you return to the starting pose.
• Repeat this workout for 15-20 reps.

As the name suggests, this plank variation specifically focuses on supporting the upper body with the forearms rather than just the wrists. It’s generally easier to hold this pose compared to the traditional plank as well.

Steps To Do:

• Get down into plank position with your legs extended behind you and the arms directly under your shoulders.
• Lower yourself onto your forearms to support your upper body in the plank. You can also bring your wrists together if you’d like.
• Make sure your back and legs form a straight line.
• Engage your core and hold this forearm plank pose for 45 seconds to a minute.
• Lower the body, take some rest, and repeat the same procedure 3-5 times.

Last but not least, let’s add a cable exercise to this list that’s great for building forearm muscles and enhancing grip strength. Behind-the-back cable curl is exactly the workout you need to develop stronger forearms over time. 

Steps To Do:

• Grab the handle of low pulley with your right hand while the back should be facing the machine.
• Step slightly away from it, placing your left leg slightly in front of your right.
• Now, gently pull with your right arm, bringing your hand toward your shoulder.
• Repeat this back-and-forth movement for 10 to 20 reps.
• Once you finish the reps on the right hand, switch to your left hand and repeat.