Weak wrists/forearms hampering progress

incisor71

Hi people,

Do you have any suggestions for building up strength in chronically weak forearms/wrists? (and please refrain from any allusions to ****!)

In brief, I'm experiencing sharp pains on the outside edge of my forearm and in my fingers after (typically) 10-12 reps of lifting/pushing/pulling a weight. The overall effect of this is that my wrists and pain tolerance falter long before the muscle for which I'm doing the exercise reaches failure.

Now that wouldn't be so bad if I only wanted to do exercise on the wrists themselves, but for all other weight-bearing movements involving the arms it's very frustrating. For one thing, I've lost hope of ever being capable of accomplishing a bench press of several hundred pounds, or some similarly frightening mass, with this problem in place. A superficial goal, perhaps, but this fitness regime is about trying to improve my lot, not impressing the other gym clients.

The personal trainer I've been consulting lately has suggested that I "lock out" the wrist joint during the exercises that put it under stress... I still can't figure out how that is possible, as there isn't much muscle in that area. I understand that the circumference of the wrist itself is genetically determined, so nothing can change that (sadly, they're disproportionately thin - another example of genetic freakishness rearing its ugly head). However, surely this shouldn't mean that I'm doomed from the outset?

Suggestions/ideas/observations all welcome!

pwd

You can get weight-lifting gloves to help you grip the bar. They won't tackle the root of the problem though.
It sounds odd that you're experiencing that during bench press. Unless you are absolutely sure that the problem is that the wrists just aren't strong enough, I would tentatively suggest consulting a physio to make sure it is not some other problem.

Otherwise, there are established exercises for strengthening grip and forearms, since a strong grip is needed to perform heavy deadlifts.
These include forearm curls and reverse forearm curls with dumbells. Hanging from a chinup bar by your finger tips seems effective too. (possibly while weighted or with one hand only)

incisor71

pwd wrote:

Unless you are absolutely sure that the problem is that the wrists just aren't strong enough, I would tentatively suggest consulting a physio to make sure it is not some other problem.

Did quite a few sessions of physio before for this problem and it didn't help one iota - and because I was between jobs until 6 months ago, I couldn't possibly afford €45 for a visit every week.

Enter the Powerball - I bought one last week and it arrived on Friday, so I started using it there and then. The benefits were beyond belief in that short time. On Friday morning's weights session I had wrist pains with most every movement involving the arms. This morning - little or no pain, which meant I was able to concentrate on the burn in the target muscle.

I was dead chuffed with the result - and most impressed with Powerball!

joejoem

Great, Im buying one tomorrow, Ive been "himming and hawing" over it for weeks even though its thirty euro I just dont want to be sucked in by all the ab roller crap.


P.s. I still love your sig. She is sexy for a phyco.

zAbbo

What exactly is a powerball?

How do you use it? / Where did you get it

drunkenfool

I have similar pains down the side of my forearms after particular exercices, as well my elbows would have a kind of sharp pain on the bench press and it stoped me from going to the gym for the past week or so.... is this due to weak forearms, because comared to the rest of my body my forearms are rather weak, as I am quite lazy doing exercices on them, as I hate forearm exercices.
The pain down my forearm was only after doing bicep curls really, but i put it down to the way i put the bar back on the bench (i do them on thoses seat bicep curl things, dont know what you call them)
And my elbows, particularly my right elbow last week had pains when i was doing certain exercices which puts stress on it(ie bench press ect), is this due to technique, or weak forearms? I havnt had this problem before and ive been lifting on and off for a couple of years now without any injury or sharp pains like theses, but as i said above ive been neglecting my forarms in the past few months. Could this be the problem?
Cheers for your help.
Also I used to have theses devices in which you do squeeze them and it strengthens your forearms, but i lost them, does anyone know what they're called or where to buy them. They're similar to say stress balls, but they put a resistance against you when you sqeeze, theres a spring on them, like scissors almost, with a grip on each side. Not sure if im describing them very well.

incisor71

bazH wrote:

What exactly is a powerball?

How do you use it? / Where did you get it

It's a gyroscope in a plastic shell which you activate using circular wrist motion. You can get a better picture of its operation from the demo video; this is the order form. I paid slightly over €35 which covered the cost of the ball itself and priority postage.

Actually, they're despatched from Thurles, Co. Tipperary, just in case you happen to be passing through.

zAbbo

Looks interesting, those video's look like serious 'hand' action

Rabies

incisor71 wrote:

Actually, they're despatched from Thurles, Co. Tipperary, just in case you happen to be passing through.

Do you know the name of the stockist in Thurles. I live in there. Would be easier to walk in and pick one up.

sinjin_smythe

Hang on a sec so these powerballs work out the muscles in your arms (lower arms) and also your wrist, yeah ??

incisor71

Rabies wrote:

Do you know the name of the stockist in Thurles. I live in there. Would be easier to walk in and pick one up.

It's Rory McLoughney on the Nenagh Rd. I'd have driven down there myself to see the full range, except the postage cost a lot less than the mileage!

zAbbo

Which one did you end up getting?, whats the story with the starter thingies?

Rabies

incisor71 wrote:

It's Rory McLoughney on the Nenagh Rd. I'd have driven down there myself to see the full range, except the postage cost a lot less than the mileage!

Thanks incisor. Its on my way to work. Prob pick one up tomorrow.

incisor71

bazH wrote:

Which one did you end up getting?, whats the story with the starter thingies?

Assuming that you're referring to me.....

I bought the Neon Blue model (about €33) - I quite like that particular colour, and it completes the primary colour triangle as I have red and green lava lamps in my room

The starter cords give the initial spin to the gyroscope's rotor, and your wrist action takes it from there (as long as you move your wrist in synchronisation with the rotating pressure). There is a "finger-flick" technique for starting without the cord, which the demo video shows, but I haven't mastered that as of yet.

joejoem

I bought one this morning, so much fun. A bit sore now though!

MisterAnarchy

I have had one of those Powerball's for the last 12 years or so.
My uncle gave me one years ago and said they would be popular in the future.
They are very good allright.

tk123

Ah this is a great post!! People ask abt these every now again and we never find out if they're any good. I'm going to try one of these before opting for physio!!They're on special offer on VHI'S site - €22.95!!!!!!

Prior Of Taize

another handy way of strengthening your forearms (i find) is to do lat machines. most of the back machins you pull down (along with chin ups) add a serious amount of strength to your forearms which can seriously speed up muscle development in your forearms and wrists when added to that powerball thingy™.
I used to wear gloves a lot but found that they assist too much.

when you do exercises like bicep curls and chin ups clenching your fists gets the blood into the muscles involved and gives you that extra few atoms of strength to push/pull the weight. so i find that not wearing gloves makes it hard for me to grip in that way.

if your wrists hurt when benching then stop benching. i dont feel that its something you will get used to. i have never heard anyone who strengthened their wrists by benching (not when it originally hurt them).

if you still want to bench then a lot of the squat cages often have guide rails for the weights and when you add a flat bench to them they make assisted bench machines. i know thats what i do for barbell chest presses and i have seen people do it with benching with good results so it cant be that bad an idea.

incisor71

Prior Of Taize wrote:

if you still want to bench then a lot of the squat cages often have guide rails for the weights and when you add a flat bench to them they make assisted bench machines.

Squat cage... I presume you mean the Smith machine? I was doing assisted bench presses with the equipment exactly as you described. Mind you, I've been taken off that particular exercise for the last three weeks, but it may well be reinstated in a future workout programme.

And your experience of using gloves is something I share. Some of the dumbbell/barbell bars in my gym are coarsely milled and it's more comfortable to wear gloves and make life easier for the skin on the palms. However they do take away the "feel" for the bar you're gripping, so I've stopped using them.

So instead of using gloves, lately I've been gripping the bar really tightly a couple of times, loosening the grip slightly and then lifting/pushing/pulling the bar. It seems to help take the wrists out of the equation... up to a point!

Farls

To the OP, I used to have the same problem, if i done arm curls or any half decent bicep work i would be killed with a pain right down the forearm like on the bone at the back...used to kill me like, what i done was rest and had a re-think.

I took about 5/6 weeks off doing bicep work, till the pain cleared completely then i started using small weights...like i could lift them no problem i think it was about 8kg or that...stuck to them for 2 weeks then went upto 10kg for 2 weeks and kept going like that. Along with working the forearms as much as possible and its worked so far for me...no pain since. Now i was killed with pain, felt like i had cracked a bone in my arm or something.

I still have small wrists, that will never change but my forearms are building up nicely and i'm back to a decent weight on the arm curls.

Farlz

BrianD3

Haven't been following the thread but here's a tip for strengthening grip - try deadlifting with a thick bar eg 2-3 inches diameter as opposed to normal bars which are 1" diameter. I have done this by slipping a length of heavy duty pipe over my barbell. Work fine and increases the thickness from 1" to around 2.4". That might not sound like a lot but it makes gripping the bar a fair bit harder.

Another one to consider would be farmer's walks. Very simple - basically you walk around with a weight in each hand. Weight could be a plate pinched between your fingers, a loaded barbell or dumbbell or a kettlebell.