Wrist Roller

What you'll gain

• Trains wrist flexion and extension continuously through a full winding range.

• Builds grip endurance that transfers to heavy pulling work.

• One set loads both the flexor and extensor sides of the forearm.

Step-by-Step Instructions

1. 1

   Load a plate on the roller rope and let the rope hang fully unwound.

2. 2

   Stand with your feet about shoulder width and grip the roller with your palms facing down.

3. 3

   Hold the roller in front of your upper chest with both elbows bent.

4. 4

   Wind the rope up by rotating one wrist at a time, keeping the arms and body still.

5. 5

   Continue winding as the plate rises from shin height toward your upper abdomen.

6. 6

   Finish with the plate at upper-abdomen height, still hanging below the roller.

Common Mistakes

• Rocking the body or swinging the arms to help the wind, which takes the work off the wrists.

• Letting the plate drop on the way down, which skips half the available work.

• Dropping the arms toward the hips, which shortens the lever and makes the set easier than intended.

• Loading heavy enough that the shoulders fail before the forearms do.

About This Exercise

The wrist roller is a handle with a rope and a hanging plate. You hold it in front of your upper chest with the elbows bent, then wind the rope up one wrist at a time until the plate reaches upper-abdomen height, still below the bar. It is beginner-level isolation for the forearms and nothing should move but the wrists. The wrist flexors and brachioradialis are the prime movers with the extensors and pronators supporting, which is why one set covers both sides of the forearm. As a licensed clip this fills a gap most libraries leave open. Grip and forearm accessory blocks, armwrestling content and deadlift support programs all want it, and the winding action cannot be communicated with a still image.

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