Wrist Curl
Muscles worked: Forearms.
How to do it
- Start out by placing a flat bench in front of a low pulley cable that has a straight bar attachment.
- Use your arms to grab the cable bar with a narrow to shoulder width supinated grip (palms up) and bring them up so that your forearms are resting against the top of your thighs.
- Start out by curling your wrist upwards and exhaling.
- Slowly lower your wrists back down to the starting position while inhaling.
- Your forearms should be stationary as your wrist is the only movement needed to perform this exercise.
Coaching cues
The two cues IronPack shows on this exercise's card mid-workout:
- Forearms on the bench, hands off the edge
- Full roll down to the fingers, curl back up
Logging it
IronPack suggests working in the 12 to 20 rep range, progressing in 2.5 kg jumps when you own the top of the range. Records are tracked automatically at every rep count from 1 to 12. Check your estimated 1RM from any hard set.
Related exercises
- Hammer Curl - biceps, forearms
- Reverse Curl - forearms
- Farmer's Carry - forearms, traps
- Zottman Curl - biceps, forearms
Track the wrist curl properly
IronPack logs every set, tracks your records at every rep count, shows these form photos mid-workout, and turns the training into a card game you play with your mates.
Get IronPack free on the App StoreFree download, iPhone. Currently on the New Zealand App Store, wider rollout to follow.
Photos and steps: free-exercise-db (public domain). Cues, muscle weighting and logging guidance are IronPack's own app data. Last generated 2026-07-17.