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In case your body was a rock band, your triceps could be the bass player. Your legs could be on drums, biceps could be lead guitar, and calves could be the roadie, but that’s all irrelevant. Few people appear to concentrate to the triceps, but they’re hard at work in nearly every lift, they usually’re essential for nearly every goal.

Often neglected and underappreciated, your triceps can dramatically impact your physique and your performance. It doesn’t take much work to construct greater, stronger tris, but it surely does take some intelligent training. Listed here are the perfect movements to place this muscular background player on centerstage.

Best Triceps Exercises

Close-Grip Bench Press

The classic flat bench press is a staple in lots of lifters’ chest workouts. While you bring your grip barely inwards, you possibly can shift the emphasis away out of your chest muscles and make your triceps the first mover. (1)

Pressing with a better grip increases triceps recruitment and reduces relative chest activation. It may also reduce strain in your shoulder joints because they’re placed in a stronger mechanical position with less stretching. This makes it an efficient bench press alternative for lifters coping with joint pain.

The way to Do the Close-Grip Bench Press 

Lie on a flat bench with the barbell in line above your eyes. Grab the bar using a palms-down (pronated) grip together with your hands and wrists directly above your shoulders. Gripping extremely close doesn’t significantly affect triceps recruitment and might increase strain on the wrist and elbow joints.

Plant each feet flat on the bottom. Squeeze your shoulder blades together and grip the bar tightly. Press straight as much as unrack the bar from the support pins. Lower the bar while keeping your elbows near your body, not flaring out to the edges. In the underside position, the bar ought to be near your lower chest. Pause briefly before pressing straight as much as lockout. Keep your glutes touching the bench throughout the whole repetition.

Advantages of the Close-Grip Bench Press

• This bench press variation allows the triceps to be worked with potentially heavy weights, making it ideal for constructing triceps strength.
• The general joint position of this exercise allows lifters to coach the bench press movement pattern with reduced shoulder joint stress.

EZ-Bar Skull Crusher

The skull crusher is a basic and effective exercise for isolating the triceps with limited activation of the chest or shoulders. Using an EZ-bar changes your hand position and allows a semi-supinated, or angled, grip. This makes the exercise more accommodating for lifters with poor wrist mobility who can’t maintain a totally supinated (palms-down) grip, and it helps to cut back strain on the wrist and elbow joints.

The EZ-bar skull crusher is one of the fundamental triceps exercises, requiring only a flat bench and an EZ-bar. This makes it a great option for lifters with limited equipment, corresponding to training in a basic home gym.

The way to Do the EZ-Bar Skull Crusher 

Sit on a flat bench while holding an EZ-bar with a moderate-width, palms-down grip on the angled handles. Lie back while “kicking” the bar right into a straight-arm position above your face. To maximise muscular tension, your arms ought to be angled barely toward your head, not completely vertical.

Place each feet flat on the ground and tense your abs as you stabilize the load in a locked-out position. Bend at your elbows to lower the load towards your brow. Keep your elbows stationary while reducing the load. Straighten your arms to lock the load above your head.

Advantages of the EZ-Bar Skull Crusher

• The EZ-bar reduces wrist and elbow joint strain, making it a very good triceps exercise for lifters with joint pain.
• You possibly can increase the intensity of the exercise by increasing the range of motion. Lower the load to the bench at the highest of your head as a substitute of stopping near your brow. While this can require moving your elbows, the longer range of motion can increase overall muscle activation.
• The EZ-Bar skull crusher may be superset with a close-grip bench press using the identical bar for a fast and effective high-intensity technique.

Barbell Kickback

This old-school bodybuilding exercise has seen a resurgence in popularity in recent times. Once considered a high-tension triceps-builder, it fell out of favor for no valid reason. The triceps undergo a protracted time under tension using only free weights, with no cable stations crucial.

While the exercise is usually performed with a rather rounded back, the spine isn’t under direct stress because the load is supported through the arms. In case your hamstring mobility needs improvement, maintaining the bent-over position could also be uncomfortable, and chances are you’ll must bend at a better angle or select an alternate exercise.

The way to Do the Barbell Kickback

Begin standing while holding a barbell with a palms-down grip behind your back. Bend forward on the waist and permit the bar to slip down the back of your legs. Pull your elbows up near your ribs. The bar ought to be near your knees or upper calves, depending in your arm and leg length.

Straighten your arms by pressing your hands backward. Keep your elbows pinned in place in the course of the exercise. Along with your arms locked out, the bar often ends above your tailbone. It’s not unusual to feel your triceps cramping hard within the locked-out position when the muscle tension is biggest. Lower the load under control and avoid hitting yourself behind the knees with the bar.

Advantages of the Barbell Kickback

• The barbell kickback delivers a major muscle-building stimulus with relatively light weight, making it ideal for lifters using limited equipment or those unable to lift heavy weights.
• The triceps are put through a protracted time under tension, specifically with a protracted peak contraction, which creates a major muscle-building stimulus. (2)
• This exercise is certainly one of relatively few isolation (single-joint) triceps exercises that may be performed with a barbell, making it a beneficial addition for lifters with limited equipment.

Dumbbell Overhead Extension

Performing triceps exercises together with your arms overhead is crucial for optimum triceps growth on account of the unique positioning of the triceps heads across the shoulder joints. The separate muscle heads are activated in another way as you raise your arms to work the triceps. (3) The dumbbell overhead extension is one of the basic exercises to handle this sort of exercise.

The dumbbell overhead extension may be performed standing together with your feet together, standing in a split or staggered stance, tall kneeling, half-kneeling, seated with an unsupported back, or seated with a back support. Each of those variations will work the triceps the identical. The one difference is descending levels of core and lower back recruitment, so select the stance that most closely fits your body.

The way to Do the Dumbbell Overhead Extension

Hold one dumbbell with two hands, placing the pinkies of every hand against the within the highest weight plate. Extend the dumbbell directly overhead with straight arms. Bend your arms to lower the load behind your head. Keep your elbows pointed up as the load moves, don’t allow them to sink towards your shoulders.

Resist the temptation to nod your head forward “out of the best way” of the dumbbell. Lower the load under control to avoid contacting your head or neck. Return to the overhead position while you feel a major stretch on the triceps.

Advantages of the Dumbbell Overhead Extension

• The overhead extension is an efficient method to recruit all heads of the triceps muscle.
• Since you’re lifting with each hands, you possibly can move heavier weight than training unilaterally (one arm at a time). This makes it a useful exercise for constructing strength.
• This exercise emphasizes the stretched position, which has been shown to enhance muscle-building. (4)

Two-Dumbbell Kickback

While the single-arm kickback is more commonly related to “toning”-type workouts, the two-dumbbell kickback combines the focused muscular tension of the single-arm kickback with improved coordination and total-body tension of a two-arm movement.

The 2-dumbbell kickback also allows lifters to rotate their wrists in the course of the movement for a more natural range of motion with less stress on the wrist and elbow joints. 

The way to Do the Two-Dumbbell Kickback

Stand upright while holding a dumbbell in each hand. Bend as far forward on the waist as is comfortable and barely bend your knees. Pull each elbows to your ribs and bend your arms to a roughly 90-degree angle. Keep your elbows pinned to your sides during the whole set.

Using a comparatively slow speed to attenuate momentum, straighten your arms by driving your pinkies towards the ceiling. Within the locked-out position, your arms ought to be in a straight line pointed toward the wall behind you. Experiment with a neutral grip (palms facing your body), a pronated grip (palms facing the wall behind you), and a supinated grip (palms facing your shoulders) to find out which feels most comfortable.

Advantages of the Two-Dumbbell Kickback

• The 2-dumbbell kickback allows significant triceps tension with relatively light weights, making it ideal for lifters with joint pain or limited equipment.
• This movement simulates a cable triceps pushdown with no need a cable pulley station.

Neutral-Grip Dumbbell Bench Press

Very similar to the close-grip bench press is a triceps-dominant version of the classic movement, the neutral-grip dumbbell bench press is a triceps-dominant variation of the usual flat dumbbell bench press.

The neutral grip allows the elbows to stay near the body, reducing shoulder joint stress while increasing triceps muscle recruitment. (5) The pressing position also allows the usage of relatively heavy weights. Many individuals will press as much or more weight as with a chest-focused dumbbell bench press grip, making the movement a superb option for constructing size and strength.

The way to Do the Neutral-Grip Dumbbell Bench Press

Sit on a flat bench while holding a pair of dumbbells resting in your thighs. Lie back while kicking the weights right into a straight-arm position locked above your chest. Plant your feet flat and slowly rotate your hands to face one another.

Stabilize the load and lower the dumbbells towards the surface of your chest. Slide your upper arms along your ribs and keep your elbows pointed towards your feet. When your hands are at chest-level, press straight as much as lockout. 

Advantages of the Neutral-Grip Dumbbell Bench Press

• This dumbbell press variation allows the usage of fairly heavy weights with reduced joint strain.
• The unique hand position makes the neutral-grip dumbbell bench press certainly one of the few dumbbell exercises to soundly and efficiently train the triceps with heavy weight.
• The exercise is effective for lifters who cannot perform the flat dumbbell bench press on account of shoulder or elbow joint pain.

Single-Arm Skull Crusher

This exercise is sort of similar to the barbell or EZ-bar skull crusher, with the apparent exception that it’s performed using one arm at a time. This unilateral focus allows lifters to handle development discrepancies and muscular imbalances between sides.

The only-arm skull crusher also allows lifters to control their wrist more freely by rotating in the course of the movement, which may alleviate wrist discomfort attributable to maintaining a pronated (palm-down) grip on a barbell.

The way to Do the Single-Arm Skull Crusher

Begin lying with one dumbbell locked out above your chest. Use your non-working hand to softly hold the triceps of the working arm. This could increase the mind-muscle connection and improve growth. (6)

Lower the dumbbell towards the same-side ear at a slow and controlled pace. Keep your elbow aimed toward the ceiling, and don’t allow it to maneuver. When your arm has reached its maximum stretched position, reverse direction and lockout your arm.

Advantages of the Single-Arm Skull Crusher

• This exercise allows extremely focused training on the triceps of every arm.
• The only-arm skull crusher delivers a major muscle-building stimulus with relatively light weight.
• The unilateral performance allows lifters to handle common muscle imbalances between arms.

Dip

The dip is one of the effective body weight exercises to coach the triceps since it permits you to lift a major amount of weight with no need a full gym setup. Whether it’s wearing a weighted vest, a dip belt with random weight plates, or a backpack filled with soup cans, the weighted dip permits you to emphasize the triceps while working the whole upper body.

Dips will also be performed to emphasise the chest as a substitute of the triceps, but straightforward technique adjustments can keep the triceps prioritized.

The way to Do the Dip

Hold a set of dip handles together with your hands barely outside shoulder width. Jump into the highest position and lock your arms out straight. Stabilize your upper body and eliminate any lower-body swinging. Bend your arms while aiming your elbows on the wall behind you.

Maintain an upright torso position together with your head and shoulders consistent with your hands. Lower your body at a controlled speed until you are feeling a maximum stretch in your shoulders. Pause briefly in the underside position before pressing as much as lockout.

Advantages of the Dip

• The dip is certainly one of the few body weight exercises that enables the addition of serious load for long-term progression.
• You possibly can begin a set with the triceps-emphasizing technique and, when muscular fatigue sets in, change focus to include the chest muscles — in the course of the descent, lean your upper body forward and permit your elbows to flare out to the edges. It is a high-intensity technique to extend overall muscle stimulus.

Close-Grip Push-Up

While the usual push-up is usually the primary body weight exercise — and even the primary exercise, generally — many lifters perform. Nevertheless, the close-grip variation is an efficient method to emphasize the triceps with none training equipment in any respect.

The close-grip push-up, much like the close-grip bench press, shifts the main focus away from the chest muscles and makes the triceps the predominant muscle group.

The way to Do the Close-Grip Push-Up

Start together with your hands planted on the bottom roughly chest-width apart. Straighten your legs and maintain a stable line out of your neck to your feet. Lower your entire body until your chest nearly touches your hands.

As you descend, keep your elbows tight to your body and aimed towards your feet. Pause briefly in the underside position before returning to full lockout.

Advantages of the Close-Grip Push-Up

• The close-grip push-up has been shown to activate the triceps significantly greater than the usual push-up technique. (7)
• This exercise may be performed anywhere, at any time, with no need any special equipment.

Medicine Ball Push-Up

Medicine balls are sometimes for throwing or adding resistance during workouts. With this push-up variation, it’s doing neither. The medication ball is used as a support on your hands and encourages a close-grip position.

The medication ball also barely elevates your upper body, which alters your leverage and reduces the quantity of body weight lifted in the course of the exercise. This will sound prefer it makes the exercise “easier,” but it surely’s offset by the increased challenge from the grip width and instability.

The way to Do the Medicine Ball Push-Up

Place a sturdy medicine ball on the bottom — the load of the ball doesn’t affect the exercise. Place each hands on the ball and support your body with straight legs and arms. Stabilize your entire body, and don’t allow the ball to roll or wobble.

Lower your chest towards the ball, being sure to regulate any instability provided by the ball. When your chest contacts the ball, press up at a controlled pace until your arms are locked.

Advantages of the Medicine Ball Push-Up

• The instability from the medication ball is an efficient method to strengthen shoulder stabilizing muscles.
• The medication ball provides a consistent reference point for grip-width, moderately than specializing in chest-width or closer-than-shoulder-width, making the exercise more simplified and effective.
• Medicine ball push-ups may be quickly superset with medicine ball throws for a power-building workout.

Tiger Bend Push-Up

At first glance, the tiger bend push-up might look like some form of yoga-meets-gymnastics combination. In point of fact, it’s a comparatively advanced push-up variation that emphasizes the triceps by requiring an extension-type movement greater than an actual push-up.

The tiger bend push-up is taken into account a somewhat advanced exercise because your triceps are required to maneuver nearly all of your body weight without assistance out of your shoulders or chest. Nevertheless, there are specific regressions to regulate the challenge for any lifter.

The way to Do the Tiger Bend Push-Up

Kneel on the bottom with only your forearms, elbows, knees, and shins supporting your body. Place your palms on the bottom. Set your elbows beneath your shoulders and your knees directly under your hips. Lift your body by pressing through your palms. Maintain a neutral spine as you progress.

To make the exercise tougher, move your knees farther out of your elbows and eventually support yourself off your knees, with a straight line out of your shoulders to your feet. To make the exercise less difficult, set your knees wider.

Advantages of the Tiger Bend Push-Up

• This exercise is certainly one of the few isolation (single-joint) body weight exercises to work the triceps, which adds to overall exercise variety.
• It provides a major challenge without added weight, making it ideal for skilled lifters with limited equipment.

Rope Pushdown

The triceps pushdown, sometimes called a pressdown, could also be one of the common exercises seen in any gym. It’s easy to perform, effective at targeting the triceps, and adaptable to beginners in addition to probably the most experienced lifters.

Using a rope handle allows a neutral (palms-facing) grip which may reduce wrist strain in comparison with a straight bar which requires a palms-down grip. The rope will also be manipulated throughout the set, by bringing the handles apart in the underside position to extend the range of motion or keeping the handles touching for improved leverage to perform additional reps. 

The way to Do the Rope Pushdown

Begin with a rope handle attached to a high-cable pulley. Grab the rope with each hands and convey your elbows next to your ribs. Within the starting position, your hands ought to be near chest-level.

Without moving your elbows, straighten your arms. Pause briefly within the locked out position before returning your hands to the highest.

Advantages of the Rope Pushdown

• The pushdown may be performed by lifters of any experience or strength level.
• This cable exercise offers continuous tension, which increases the whole time under tension and improves the muscle-building stimulus.
• The rope pushdown helps to cut back joint strain by allowing more comfortable joint angles. 

Single-Arm Pushdown

The only-arm pushdown combines the focused advantages of unilateral training with the high-tension muscle-building of cable training. By working each arm individually, you’re in a position to address discrepancies in muscular development and strength without compromising any muscle-building stimulus.

This intense pushdown variation may be performed with a wide range of handles and grip positions. Using a single “D” handle is most typical, either with a palm-up or palm-down grip. Experiment with using a rope handle (holding one or each side of the rope in a single hand) as well. The several hand and wrist positions may feel more comfortable and won’t affect the triceps recruitment significantly.

The way to Do the Single-Arm Pushdown

Attach a handle to a high-cable pulley. Grab it with one hand and convey it into the starting position together with your elbow near your ribs and your working hand near chest-level. Your free hand can brace against the pulley station away from the cable.

Straighten your arm and press all the way down to full lockout. Don’t allow your elbow to maneuver and don’t allow your torso to lean sideways towards the working hand. Pause briefly in the underside position before returning to the highest.

Advantages of the Single-Arm Pushdown

• The only-arm pushdown emphasizes each individual arm without significant core work on account of the soundness of the cable station, making it ideal for lifters with lower back pain.
• The exercise may be performed with a wide range of grips to accommodate lifters with grip strength issues or wrist pain.
• This pressdown variation will also be performed “crossbody-style” — standing sideways to the cable stack, with the non-working side of the body closest to the cable, and bringing the working hand from the alternative shoulder to the same-side hip. The unique angle changes the range of motion and will reduce shoulder joint strain. 

Single-Arm Standing Cable Skull Crusher

This unique exercise uses a cable pulley to mimic the motion of a single-arm dumbbell skull crusher. The increased tension from the cable allows a robust muscle-building stimulus with relatively light weight and fewer overall joint strain.

Whether it’s simply for training variety or as a high-intensity triceps finisher at the top of any workout, this movement zones in on the triceps with maximum efficiency and no assistance from other muscle groups.

The way to Do the Single-Arm Standing Cable Skull Crusher

Grab a single handle attached to a high-cable pulley. Face away from the load stack and press the load straight in front of you. Use your non-working arm to support the working-side elbow, which should remain stationary throughout the set. Slowly bend your arm and convey your hand back towards your face. While you feel a maximum stretch, slowly extend your arm to full lockout.

Advantages of the Single-Arm Standing Cable Skull Crusher

• This exercise delivers a major time under tension, which is helpful for muscle growth.
• The only-arm standing cable skull crusher allows the triceps to be trained with minimal strain on the shoulder and elbow joints.

The Triceps Muscles

Understanding the triceps muscle and its related joints will result in a greater understanding of how and why certain exercises and training methods are effective.

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Here’s a better take a look at this critical arm muscle and the way it really works.

Triceps Brachii

The “tri” in triceps refers to a few separate but related heads of the muscle. The medial head and lateral head each attach on the upper arm bone and elbow joint. The long head attaches on the elbow and shoulder blade.

All three heads work to straighten the arm on the elbow. Nevertheless, since the long head runs over and across the shoulder joint, it is usually activated when the upper arm moves. (8) That is why triceps exercises performed at a wide range of angles — together with your arms overhead and/or perpendicular to your body — are essential for overall muscle activation and development.

How Often Should You Train the Triceps

Because all three heads of the triceps attach on the elbow joint, excessive training volume or frequency may aggravate (or create) joint pain or tendonitis. The triceps are significantly worked in the course of the majority of chest and shoulder exercises, which must be an element when programming triceps training.

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Generally, directly training the triceps one to 2 days per week with relatively low volume per workout (five to 10 sets split up between one to a few exercises) may be sufficient for constructing size and strength. The general details of your training program corresponding to exercise selection, training intensity, and volume (total sets and reps) will probably be aspects in designing a triceps workout.

To make your triceps a training priority, reduce the frequency and volume of pressing in your chest and shoulder workouts. This can help to cut back the general stress on the triceps muscle and related joints. Training your triceps and biceps in a single workout is one other highly effective method, especially when using alternating sets or supersets, which have been shown to enhance power and strength while reducing overall fatigue. (9)

The way to Progress Your Triceps Training

Triceps workouts may be approached and progressed like all other body part. Work consistently and regularly increase the training volume (more repetitions) and/or increase the training load (more weight). The choice to extend volume or load will probably be determined by your goal, in addition to the particular exercises getting used.

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Isolation (single-joint) exercises just like the two-dumbbell kickback or single-arm pushdown don’t typically accommodate very heavy loads because proper technique becomes unmanageable. A deal with increasing volume is often more practical for those forms of exercises.

Compound (multi-joint) exercises just like the close-grip bench press and dip do will let you safely and efficiently work as much as heavier loads eventually, so long as you never sacrifice form for the sake of more weight.

The way to Warm-Up Your Triceps

Warming up the triceps is about preparing the muscle for the stimulus of the workout. It’s also about preparing the joints, specifically the elbow joints, because they will probably be significantly worked in each exercise.

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Light weight, high-rep isolation exercises are one effective method to prepare your elbows for intense triceps training. Concentrate on warming up with exercises which don’t put the arms into an excessive stretch. Because the warm-up progresses and your arms are higher prepared, regularly increase the range of motion and number of exercises.

For instance, warming up with rope pushdowns for one to 2 sets of 20 reps may be safer and more joint-friendly than performing the dumbbell overhead extension for a similar sets and reps.

Don’t Tri Too Hard

Triceps training shouldn’t overwhelm your workout program, it should complement it, like a solid bass line in any great song. It may be understated and straightforward, but it surely delivers the products and keeps you heading in the right direction. Should you dial things up too hard and hit the tri’s with an excessive amount of work, you’ll invite potential injury, compromise the remainder of your plan, and your name might as well be Mud.

References

1. Lockie, Robert & Moreno, Matthew. (2017). The Close-Grip Bench Press. Strength and Conditioning Journal. 39. 1. 10.1519/SSC.0000000000000307. 
2. Burd, N. A., Andrews, R. J., West, D. W., Little, J. P., Cochran, A. J., Hector, A. J., Cashaback, J. G., Gibala, M. J., Potvin, J. R., Baker, S. K., & Phillips, S. M. (2012). Muscle time under tension during resistance exercise stimulates differential muscle protein sub-fractional synthetic responses in men. The Journal of physiology, 590(2), 351–362. https://doi.org/10.1113/jphysiol.2011.221200
3. Kholinne, E., Zulkarnain, R. F., Sun, Y. C., Lim, S., Chun, J. M., & Jeon, I. H. (2018). The several role of every head of the triceps brachii muscle in elbow extension. Acta orthopaedica et traumatologica turcica, 52(3), 201–205. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aott.2018.02.005
4. Oranchuk, D. J., Storey, A. G., Nelson, A. R., & Cronin, J. B. (2019). Isometric training and long-term adaptations: Effects of muscle length, intensity, and intent: A scientific review. Scandinavian journal of drugs & science in sports, 29(4), 484–503. https://doi.org/10.1111/sms.13375
5. Lehman G. J. (2005). The influence of grip width and forearm pronation/supination on upper-body myoelectric activity in the course of the flat bench press. Journal of strength and conditioning research, 19(3), 587–591. https://doi.org/10.1519/R-15024.1
6. Oshita, Kazushige. (2021). Effect of internal focus of attention with touching cue on the agonist muscle activity during exercise. 10.14198/jhse.2021.16.Proc2.04. 
7. Kim, Y. S., Kim, D. Y., & Ha, M. S. (2016). Effect of the push-up exercise at different palmar width on muscle activities. Journal of physical therapy science, 28(2), 446–449. https://doi.org/10.1589/jpts.28.446
8. Tiwana MS, Sinkler MA, Bordoni B. Anatomy, Shoulder and Upper Limb, Triceps Muscle. [Updated 2021 Aug 6]. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2022 Jan-. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK536996
9. Robbins, Daniel W; Young, Warren B; Behm, David G; Payne, Warren R Agonist-Antagonist Paired Set Resistance Training: A Temporary Review, Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research: October 2010 – Volume 24 – Issue 10 – p 2873-2882 doi: 10.1519/JSC.0b013e3181f00bfc

Featured Image: MDV Edwards / Shutterstock