Single Arm Bench Dumbbell Reverse Wrist Curl
In SetGrip: Dumbbell Reverse Wrist Curl (Single Arm, Bench)
- Secondary muscles
- Biceps, Brachialis
- Body part
- Forearms
- Position
- Standing
- Laterality
- Unilateral (one arm at a time)
- Category
- Strength
Track this exercise in SetGrip — no account needed
Working one wrist at a time over a bench, palms down, exists mainly to fix an imbalance the two-dumbbell version reveals: you can give the weaker extensors extra sets without overworking the strong side. The free hand can brace your forearm flat so it cannot lift off the pad. Precision, not load, is what this variant offers.
How to do the Single Arm Bench Dumbbell Reverse Wrist Curl
- Kneel beside a flat bench and rest one forearm on it, palm facing down, with your hand past the edge.
- Hold a dumbbell and let your wrist bend toward the floor.
- Raise the back of your hand as high as you can, moving only at the wrist.
- Lower slowly, finish the set, then switch arms.
Tip: Use higher reps, 15 to 25, and lower the weight through a full three-second descent.
Muscles worked
Common mistakes
- Using the whole arm — the forearms should rest on a bench or your thighs with only the hands moving; if the elbows lift, you are cheating.
- Gripping hard on the descent — let the bar roll down to the fingertips at the bottom of a wrist curl for the full range before curling back up.
- Reverse curls too heavy — the wrist extensors are small, so use about half of what you use for regular wrist curls.
- Fast, short reps — go slowly through the full range and feel the stretch at the bottom, since jerky reps with a heavy weight are how wrists get irritated.
Where it fits in a workout
Wrist curls go last in a session after all the pulling and gripping work is done. Superset regular and reverse wrist curls back to back.
How many sets, how heavy and how hard: see what the ACSM position stands support.
Variations and alternatives
Similar exercises
Without dumbbell
Easier and harder
When to talk to someone
- Chest discomfort, feeling faint or lightheaded, or trouble breathing during or after exercise can be signs of a heart attack. In the US, call 911 right away; elsewhere, call your local emergency number.
- Heart, metabolic or kidney disease, or symptoms like these when you are active: talk to your doctor before you start or step up training.
- Pregnant: ask your obstetric care provider which exercise suits you.
Track the Single Arm Bench Dumbbell Reverse Wrist Curl in SetGrip
All 1,100+ exercises with animations are in the app. No account, no sign-up — your history stays on your iPhone and in your private iCloud. Works with Apple Watch.
More exercises
Sources
- ACSM position stand on exercise quantity and quality (Garber et al., 2011)
- ACSM preparticipation health screening (Riebe et al., 2015)
- ACOG Committee Opinion No. 804 on exercise in pregnancy (2020)
- CDC: About Heart Attack Symptoms, Risk, and Recovery (2024)
Sources checked on October 17, 2026. Full citations are in the exercise library.
Animation and exercise data: ExerciseDB, licensed to SetGrip. General information, not medical or coaching advice.