In the strength-training world, triceps are as important as its close cousin, the biceps and they are as important to anyone who is trying to get stronger to a bodybuilder, especially if they are looking at adding mass to their arms.
If you are a novice to the world of fitness and strength-training, you may feel a little clueless about how to put together a perfect triceps routine by keeping in mind the choice and order, rep ranges, volumes, intensity and rest periods. So,we thought we will do it for you, we’ve found out the perfect triceps workout routine which can give you the kind of triceps you have always worked hard for but never thought would get.
Everybody is different, and everybody’s requirement is different;based on their body and body goals. Pick a routine which you like, then continue to do it for 4-5 weeks and then switch it up, this way your body will be kept guessing and you can go back to your regular workout. Before you go, if you are working your triceps for a specific goal, then here are a few pointers to enable you reach your goals.
Aiming for Overall Triceps Mass
Okay, you need to get one thing straight, your training strategy for your arms is not going to change. As you train for your chest, legs, back, or shoulder to gain mass, so you should train for your triceps. Start training with your most difficult moves and then you can slowly push more and start adding more to the heaviest weights.
If you want to have a long-head development, all you have got to rememberis to include different kind of arm-overhead movements into your routine.
Oh,and before we forget, whenever you do triceps exercises, keep your elbows stuck tight to your sides as much as you can; and this holds true of all exercises. Before we tell you about some of the exercises, follow these tips and you will be pretty much good to go!
Tips for Triceps-building
- Always remember to include warm-up sets to your exercise routine; do as many as you require, do not stretch it to muscle failure.
- Always choose the right weight, not too heavy and not too light, but one that lets you reach your goal once you reach your target exercise list.
- Another tip that works just fine with triceps workouts is that youneed to go heavy with your first working set, every first two sets of the first two exercises and reduce the weight as you increase slightly higher reps on the successive sets.
- Include high-rep sets, cable and machine exercises in your triceps workouts, but remember that does not mean that they can act as a substitute for heavy free weight movements.
- Do not repeat the heavy-duty triceps exercises more than once a week as you may risk over-training.
The Triceps-training Workouts you should Never Forget to do
We know you love poring on those muscle magazines which advice you to spend most of your waking hours in the gym and just do hundreds of different kinds of exercises, but are you really up for it? Even if you are, you just don’t need to nail hundreds of different kinds of triceps workouts.
A handful of them can do the job just as well, if not better. So, grab a sip of water and kill it!
1. Triceps Dips
Triceps run on the backside of your upper arm right from your shoulder to your elbow. Since it is a body-weight exercise for triceps and does not require much equipment, also you can always do them on the ground too, if you do not have a bench.
Method
- Place your hands shoulder-width apart on either a stable chair or a non-wobbly bench.
- Bring your butt off the front of the bench and extend your legs right in front of you.
- Lengthen your arms, bend your elbows to maintain the tension on your triceps and off your elbow joints.
- Keep your elbows bent while you lower your body toward the floor until your elbows are angled at about 90-degrees. Ensure that your back lies close to the bench.
- When you reach the bottom of the movement, press yourself down into the bench and straighten your elbows just as you return to the starting position. This completes one rep.
- While you lower and raise your body, try and keep your shoulders down. You can also bend your legs to modify the exercise.
- Do at least 15 to 20 reps per set and aim to dotwo to three sets.
2. Dumbbell Overhead Triceps Press
The dumbbell overhead triceps press is an isolation exercise; the movement is a one-joint exercise and hits one muscle group.
This again helps you to focus your efforts on triceps muscles only. Other exercises target the triceps as secondary muscles, some examples in this regard are the chest press or push-up.
Method
- Place one dumbbell overhead with both your hands positioned under inner plate. Hold it in a heart-shaped grip.
- While you keep your elbows overhead, lower your forearm and keep it behind your upper arm by contracting your elbows.
- Flex your wrists at the bottom so that you can avoid hitting the dumbbell on back of your neck.
- Raise the dumbbell over head by stretching your elbows and hyperextending wrists. Return to the former position and repeat the exercise.
3. Skull Crushers
It does have a scary name, does it not? But ominous though it sounds, it’s just a triceps isolation exercise that includes the elbow extension movement which is part of every other triceps isolation exercise.
Method
- Lie on the bench with and grip your barbell with a narrow overhand. Place the barbell over your shoulders and keep your arms extended.
- Lower the bar towards your forehead and bendyour Extend the arms and repeat.
4. Close-grip bench press
You may think, what’s your favourite chest workout doing in this list? The truth is, close-grip bench press is indeed a great exercise to expand your chest and core. But a just a teeny-weeny change in your grip and you can build the mass in your arms you always wanted!
Method
- Go grab a barbell and hold it with a firm overhand grip, keep it shoulder-width apart, and hold it just above your sternum while you keep your arms completely straight.
- Lower the bar straight down, pause just for a moment and then press and push the bar back up to the original position.
5. Kettle bell Floor Press
This classic variation of the bench press enhances the lockout portion of the lift, which engages your triceps and works on it like no other workout.
Method
- Lie on the ground with kettle bells or dumbbells on your chest and your knees bent.
- Push one then another up to the ceiling as you roll onto the opposite shoulder as far as you can.
- Make sure you keep your head up and off the ground.
- This exercise not only works on your chest and arms, but is a killer for your cores as well.
6. Dumbbell lying Triceps Extensions
The dumbbell-lying triceps extension is a single-joint exercise that hits your triceps. The chief benefit of the triceps extension exercise is actually its isolation effect, the convenience it provides and also its variety.
Method
- Lie on the bench and place your dumbbells right over your head with extended arms.
- Lower the dumbbells as you bend your elbow until they are at two sides of your Extend your arm and repeat the entire procedure.
7. The Rope Triceps Press Down
Triceps push downs are a great way to strengthen the three muscles right on the backs of your upper arms, which extends or straightens your arm.
Method
- Stand before an adjustable cable machine.
- Grasp the rope attachment from the high setting by gripping the rope.
- Bring your elbows beside you so that your forearms lie parallel to the floor.
- Extend your forearms straight down while you twist the rope inward, so when your arms are fully extended, your knuckles face the floor.
- Rest momentarily and then return to the start position.
8. Close Grip Barbell Bench Press
This is a staple upper-body exercise, and the barbell bench press can be performed with the hands slightly wider than shoulder-width apart. This is a tried and true move to enhance your triceps.
Method
- Lie on the bench and grasp the barbell from the rack with shoulder width grip.
- Lower the weight towards your chest with the elbows stuck to your body.
- Push the barbell back up until your arms are fully straight. Repeat the exercise.
9. Triceps Dumbbell Kickback
The triceps can be trained effectively with a move called the dumbbell kickback. This exercise for arms can be done from a bent over position with one arm resting on your thigh or a workout bench. This move can not only help you build muscle, it also helps tone your arms.
Method
- Kneel over the bench while your arm supports the body. Grasp the dumbbell and position your upper arm parallel to the floor.
- Extend your arm until it is straight. Return and repeat, and continue with the opposite arm.
10. Cable Lying Triceps Extension
The cable lying triceps extension is a kind of isolation exercise that strengthens the triceps.
Method
- Place a flat bench in line with a cable machine.
- Attach a straight bar right to the bottom part of the cable machine.
- Lie down flat on your back on the bench.
- While you are lying down, the best thing you have someonedo is to hand you the straight bar, but if you are training alone, reach back and get hold of the straight bar from the cable machine
- Grab the straight bar with your palms up and place the bar right above your head with your elbow in.
- Gradually extend your arms upwards, and keep your elbows in while flexing your triceps at the top of the movement.
- Now lower the bar back to its starting position while you still keep your elbows in.
Tips to Beef up your Triceps
These are some of the tips for triceps training which will certainly help you beef up the back of your arms in the shortest time possible.
- Warm up to avoid injuries- Elbow joints and triceps are commonly injured areas, so warm them up thoroughly
- Target different areas- The triceps is a deceptively simple muscle group if you concentrate only on one basic function,to extend the arm. But it is quite complex, as it has three separate heads and different exercises works on these muscles in a different way.
- The right form is important- The secret to every triceps exercise is to keep your elbows as still as possible. Your elbow joints are only capable of moving one way.
- The contraction is important- You should stop hitting your push downs and extensions without trying to lock out. Remember, whenever you include a triceps lift you have to include a lockout.
- Increase the sets as you go- You have to gradually increase the weights and then decrease the reps for each subsequent set. As you warm up your triceps, you make them get used to heavier weights.
- Include changes in your workouts- If you are trying to increase the muscle in your triceps, add two different triceps workouts, throw in a moderate session with a heavier session, and keep alternating them from one week to another.
So, if you are only doing press-downs at the gym, it is now time to change your routine. Is sore the new strong? Not always, working your triceps to the death aren’t going to give you the kind of muscles you want.
Look beyond the press downs to find the best exercises for triceps that work for you, and soon you will have the kind of triceps that you can be proud of.