Plate Ulnar Deviation
Ulnar deviation tilts the hand toward its little-finger side, lifting a weight that sits behind the hand, and the muscle that drives it is a key stabilizer for anything you grip and swing, from a kettlebell to a golf club. This under-trained action often gets blamed when the outer wrist starts aching. Use a plate held like a hammer to load it directly and shore up a common weak spot.
- Equipment
- Plate
- Body part
- Forearms
- Type
- Strength
- Browse by muscle
- Extensor Carpi Ulnaris
- Browse by movement
- Wrist Deviation
- Target
- Extensor Carpi Ulnaris
- Secondary
- Extensors
- Tertiary
- Brachioradialis
How to do it
- 1
Stand holding a light plate by its rim with a neutral grip, thumb pointing forward.
- 2
Let the arm hang so the plate points down like a hammer at your side.
- 3
Keep a slight bend in the elbow and lock the upper arm to your torso.
- 4
Raise the back of the plate by tilting your wrist so the little-finger side travels up toward the back of the forearm.
- 5
Lower it back to level under control, then repeat.
- 6
Complete the set and switch hands.
Tips
- Use a small load. This is a stability muscle, not a strength show-off lift.
- Isolate the wrist and keep the forearm still throughout.
- Slow the lowering phase to build tendon resilience on the outer wrist.
- If your outer wrist has nagged you during heavy grip work, this move helps balance it.
Variations
Common mistakes
- The plate is allowed to fall to the bottom and then snatched back, so the tissue this move exists to toughen gets a yank at the end of the range instead of a slow load.
- Wrist starts each rep already tilted back toward the little finger, so most of the range being counted is the top half. Begin level with the forearm.
- The face of the plate catches the outside of the leg on the way down and the rep stops there. Stand with the arm clear of the hip, or turn the plate so it passes the leg.
- Ulnar deviation gets the same plate and the same reps as its thumb-side partner, but this direction has a much larger range and is the stronger of the two, so it usually wants more of both.
- The wrist bends into flexion as it tilts and the plate ends up in front of the leg rather than beside it, which turns a side-to-side movement into a small wrist curl.
Frequently asked
- How should I program the plate ulnar deviation?
- Two or three sets of 12 to 15 per hand with a 5 pound plate to start, at the end of an arm or pull day. Take three seconds down and one up, since the lowering is what builds tolerance on the outside of the wrist. Progress the tempo first, then the reps to 20, then the plate. If you also train the thumb-side version, run the two back to back for the same number of sets so both directions stay in step.
- What can I use instead of a plate for ulnar deviation?
- A hammer held near the end of the handle is the most convenient version and changes difficulty as you slide your grip. A dumbbell gripped by one end, a light band anchored underfoot, or a low cable all do the job. At home, a full bottle held by the neck or a bag of shopping held out at your side works for slow, deliberate reps. The only requirement is that the weight sits away from the hand rather than balanced in it.
- What is the plate ulnar deviation good for, and when should you not do it?
- It loads the muscle running down the little-finger side of the forearm, which steadies the wrist in anything you grip and swing, from a kettlebell to a golf club, and that direction gets almost nothing from ordinary curls and rows. Treat it as stability work rather than a strength lift. It is a poor choice while the outside of the wrist is actually painful, which is worth having assessed rather than loaded, and unnecessary if your training already includes plenty of varied grip work and nothing is complaining.
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