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Exercise library · Forearms

Dumbbell wrist curl

Wrist work for the forearms with dumbbells.

How to do it

1 of 4

Forearms on your thighs, palms up

  1. Starting position

    Sit with your forearms on your thighs, palms up, wrists past your knees and a dumbbell in each hand.

  2. The movement

    Lower the dumbbells by bending your wrists back, then curl them up by bending your wrists toward you.

Most common mistake

Don't lift your forearms off your thighs, keep them still and move only your wrists.

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Muscle group
Forearms
Equipment
Dumbbells
Where
Home or gym
Logged as
Weight × reps

Muscles worked

The dumbbell wrist curl trains the same muscles as the barbell version: the flexors on the inside of the forearm do the work, and the finger flexors hold the dumbbell. The difference is that each hand works on its own. No bar sets your grip width, so your hand can sit at whatever angle feels natural, and a stronger side cannot carry a weaker one. That makes it a good choice if one forearm is weaker than the other, or if you train at home without a bar.

Common mistakes

  • The weaker hand cheats. With both hands moving at once, the weaker side can shorten its range without you noticing. Let the weaker hand decide when the set ends, even if the stronger one could do more.
  • Your hand tilts to the side. As the dumbbell gets heavy, your hand tends to drift towards the thumb or the little finger. Keep your palm facing straight up and the dumbbell level throughout.
  • The movement shrinks towards the end of the set. Forearms burn quickly, and the last reps often cover only a few centimetres. End the set when you can no longer reach as high as on the first rep.

Variations and alternatives

  • The wrist curl with a barbell lets you add weight in smaller steps.
  • The dumbbell reverse wrist curl uses the same dumbbells and seated position for the back of the forearm, so the two are easy to do back to back.
  • The hammer curl trains the top of the forearm and the elbow flexors, also with dumbbells.

Sets and reps

Two to three sets of 12 to 15 reps suit most people looking to build muscle, and with light dumbbells at home you can go up to 20. You will find the basics in the guide to sets and reps.

Dumbbells usually go up one or two kilos at a time, which is a big jump for such a short movement. So build up your reps over several sessions before moving to the next dumbbell, and start again at the bottom of the range with the new one. That is progressive overload when you only have a few dumbbells to choose from.

Swap for

Taken, or missing the equipment? The same movement with something else.

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