Best Tricep Exercises & Workout Routine You Might Not Be Doing
Table of Contents
What Are Tricep Exercises
Tricep exercises are workouts specifically designed to target the Triceps Brachii muscle, which is located at the back of the upper arm. This muscle is responsible for the extension of the elbow joint and hence plays a significant role in your arm's strength and function.
How the Triceps Muscle Works During Tricep Exercises
The triceps are muscles that function through the extension of the elbow; in other words, your triceps assist in straightening your arm. Why is this significant? It's the principle we employ to increase their size.
The "Pop" Effect in the Arms While Doing Tricep Exercises
When evaluating a well-rounded, muscular upper arm, we focus on the three main resident muscles: the deltoids (shoulders), biceps, and triceps. Well-defined triceps contribute to the prominence of the shoulders by bulging on the sides, thereby presenting a larger and fuller-looking arm even when viewed from the front.
The Most Important Part of a Tricep Exercise
Without a doubt, the eccentric phase of a lift is the most crucial for muscle building. You may be wondering, what is an eccentric phase? A lift is composed of two main parts. There's a phase where the muscles are shortened and fully contracted, known as the concentric phase. In a tricep pushdown, this would be the bottom portion where your elbows are locked out.
The phase where you slowly return to your starting position is called the eccentric phase. This is where the muscle lengthens and where most micro-trauma is observed. This is beneficial as it's precisely what we want to happen: our muscles repair the tears and grow larger.
Best Tricep Exercises
Elbows Tucked Push Up
Assume a bottom push-up position, thumbs underneath the nipples, fingers slightly angled out, elbows touching your ribs. Push up through palms keeping a straight back and lower slowly.
Tricep Dips
Get an even grip on the dip bar, chest as upright as possible. Cross legs. Lower with control and push through palms back up.
Dips (Bench)
Place your hands shoulder-width apart on the edge of the bench, your legs extended in front of you with your heels on the floor. Lower your body by bending your elbows until your upper arms are parallel to the floor. Push through your palms and chest to come up.
Modified Dips (Bench)
Place your hands shoulder-width apart on the edge of the bench, drop your hips, bend your knees and have your feet on the ground. Lower your body by bending your elbows until your upper arms parallel the floor. Push through your palms and chest to come up.
Standing Dumbbell Skull Crushers
Get a dumbbell you are able to lift over head, place both hands, under the higher side of the dumbbell. Tuck elbows close to head, extend straight over head and lower with control.
Tricep Rope Extensions
Grab both ends of the rope, get a slight bend in your knees with a slight lean forward of your upper body. Extend straight down with a slight outward curve at the bottom. Control the way up.
Tricep Kickbacks
One leg kneels on the bench, and one hand is placed on the bench for support. Grab a dumbbell with your other hand and bring the upper arm close to the side of your body, forming a 90-degree angle with your forearm. Straighten your arm by extending your elbow and contracting your triceps. Slowly return to the starting position. Engage your core to maintain a neutral back and avoid lateral bending or twisting.
Close Grip Bench Press
Lie on a bench with the barbell at eye level. Grab the bar closer than shoulder-width apart, engage your core, and lift the bar to the mid-low chest level. Lower the bar to lower chest while keeping the tension on the triceps and chest. Press up the bar with elbows close your body.
Overhead Cable Tricep Extensions
Facing away from the cable machine, grab the rope with both hands. Extend your elbows and contract your triceps to push the rope. Return to the starting position by slowly bending your elbows, keeping tension on the triceps. Keep your upper arms stationary throughout the exercise.
Single Arm Cable Tricep Extension
Stand facing the cable machine. Grab the cable with one hand, with your shoulders down and upper arm close to your body. Extend your elbows to pull the cable down toward your hips. Slowly return the weight while maintaining the upper arm position and keeping the tension on the triceps.
Dumbbell Shoulder Press
Stand with feet shoulder-width apart, and hold the dumbbells close to your shoulders with palms facing forward. Engage your core and push the dumbbells up by contracting your deltoids and triceps. Slowly lower the dumbbells back to starting position.
Best Tricep Workout Routine
Workout Routine 1: Bodyweight Focus
Push Up - 3 sets of 10-15 reps
Tricep Dips - 3 sets of 10-15 reps
Dips (Bench) - 3 sets of 10-15 reps
Modified Dips (Bench) - 3 sets of 10-15 reps
Cool down with a 5-minute stretch.
Workout Routine 2: Dumbbell and Barbell
Close Grip Bench Press - 3 sets of 8-12 reps
Skull Crushers - 3 sets of 8-12 reps
Tricep Kickbacks - 3 sets of 10-15 reps per arm
Shoulder Press - 3 sets of 8-12 reps
Cool down with a 5-minute stretch.
Workout Routine 3: Cable Machine
Overhead Cable Tricep Extensions - 3 sets of 10-15 reps
Single Arm Cable Tricep Extension - 3 sets of 10-15 reps per arm
Tricep Extensions (using cable machine) - 3 sets of 10-15 reps
Shoulder Press (using cable machine if available) - 3 sets of 8-12 reps
Cool down with a 5-minute stretch.
Frequency of Tricep Exercises & Workout Routine
Sets and Reps
As a starting point, it's common to perform 3 sets of 8-12 repetitions for each exercise. This range is often recommended for muscle growth and strength. If your goal is muscle endurance, you might do more reps with lighter weight, such as 2-3 sets of 15-20 reps. For muscle strength and mass, you could perform fewer reps (6-8) with heavier weight across 3-5 sets.
Rest Time
Rest periods between sets are important for muscle recovery and subsequent performance. For high-intensity, lower-rep sets (strength focus), rest periods of 2-3 minutes are generally suggested. For moderate-intensity, higher-rep sets (endurance or hypertrophy focus), a shorter rest period of 60-90 seconds might be appropriate.
Frequency
As for frequency, you should aim to work out each muscle group 2-3 times a week for balanced development. This frequency allows for a day of rest between workouts, which is critical for muscle recovery and growth.
For example, if you are following a "split" routine (where you target specific muscle groups each workout), you might do tricep exercises as part of your "push" day (alongside chest and shoulder exercises), and ensure to leave a rest day or a "pull" day (back and biceps exercises) in between.
Best At Home Tricep Exercises
Here are some of the best at home tricep exercises that require little or no equipment:
Push Ups: Traditional push-ups engage your triceps greatly. For an increased focus on the triceps, you could try diamond push-ups where your hands make a diamond shape beneath your chest.
Tricep Dips: These can be performed on the floor or with a chair. You should position your hands shoulder-width apart on the chair or floor, move your bottom off the chair or floor, and then lower your body by bending at the elbows.
Bench Dips: If you have a bench or a sturdy low table at home, you can perform bench dips. Similar to tricep dips, you place your hands on the bench with fingers pointing towards your feet, and lower your body by bending your elbows.
Tricep Kickbacks: This exercise requires dumbbells or any suitable weight substitute you can find at home. You bend over at the waist, keep your back straight, and extend your arms behind you, focusing on squeezing the tricep muscles.
Overhead Tricep Extensions: Another exercise that requires a dumbbell or a makeshift weight. Hold the weight with both hands, raise it overhead, then lower it behind your head by bending your elbows. Raise the weight back to the start position and repeat.
