Q:  I’ve got decent looking biceps (17 inches) but my forearms and wrists are out of proportion – in fact they’re down right wimpy. What can I do to bring them up?

A:  Some guys can develop awesome forearms, as a side effect of working the upper arms and back – and some can’t. You’re clearly in the second camp, but don’t despair – the forearms and wrists generally respond well to specific training. Being smaller muscles that get well utilized in everyday activities, they generally respond best to high reps (in the 15-20 range). The best exercise to strengthen and develop the wrists is the wrist curl. Rather than performing this exercise over the edge of a bench, however, it is far more productive to perform the behind the back version as this allows you to roll the bar more easily down your fingers. This allows you to get a much fuller contraction and a better forearm burn. Perform two sets of wrist curls once per week. Those wrist crushers who have been on the market for eons are also worthwhile aides to more manly wrists.

To hit the forearms, incorporate reverse curls and hammer curls into your workout. Not only will these movements give you great looking forearms, they’ll also develop the brachialis, upon which the biceps sit, making your upper arms look far more impressive. Reverse curls are done exactly like regular barbell curls, except the palms are facing down. Remember to keep your elbows locked in to your sides. Do two sets of 8-12 reps. Perform hammer curls by grabbing a pair of dumbbells and standing with them at your sides, palms facing forward. Tense your biceps then rotate your palms so the weights turn in towards your body. Now curl them up as high as you can, one arm at a time. The movement should simulate the action a hammer makes when you strike it up and down. Keep your upper arms in the same plane as your torso throughout the movement.  Go heavier on this one – two sets of 6-8 reps.

The forearms are similar to the calves in that they are a hardy, resilient muscle group. That means that they’ll respond well to a lot of work. With this in mind, there’s a simple piece of equipment that you can construct to enable you to have an awesome forearm workout at home whenever you get the urge. Simply cut a piece of inch thick doweling to a length of 18 inches. Attach a piece of rope to the center of the doweling with a screw. The rope should reach to the floor from waist height. Now secure a 5-pound weight to the end of the rope. With the doweling at waist height, hands about four inches apart, start rolling up the rope, focusing on wrist action. At the top simply reverse the procedure. Rolling and then unrolling the rope counts as one rep. Do five of them and your forearms will be on fire.