The Top 5 Exercises For Increasing Triceps Mass

The Top 5 Exercises for Increasing Triceps – The Breakdown

There are a number of exercises that will work the triceps, with many focusing on a broad range of muscles in the arm. There are however a number of specific exercises that will target primarily the triceps and deliver the best results.

While this article focuses primarily on using free-weights in the top 5 exercises for increasing triceps, there is some use of a machine within.  Keep in mind that you can alter your own exercises to use the appropriate machines and weights, provided you understand the form and function of the muscle groups within the triceps.

Weighted Dips

Top Triceps Exercise #1 – Weighted Dips
Muscle is improved by providing resistance. The primary source of resistance is by adding weight. Weighted dips rely primarily on your own body weight, though additional weight can be added in your lap to increase the resistance on the muscles.

Use two benches, placed approximately 3-5 feet apart. Sit on one bench with your heels resting on the other; you may need to adjust the distance between the benches depending on your height. Place your palms on the bench you’re sitting on and slide forward, using your arms to support your weight. Now, slowly lower yourself until the bend of your elbows reaches a 90 degree angle. Maintain tension and push yourself back up until your arms are completed extended.

Top Triceps Exercise #2 – Close Grip Bench Press

This press keeps the elbows close to the body, with the hands no more than a foot apart – they should not extend out beyond your shoulders. The focus of the close grip bench press is on the muscle groups of the triceps however the mechanics of the bench press will supply some additional workout to the pectoral muscles as well the muscle groups of the biceps.

As you un-rack the weight bar, begin with arms fully extended and lower the weight toward the lower part of the chest slowly while keeping the elbows tucked in. Bring the weight back just before you touch the bar to your chest and return your arms to a fully-extended position.

Seated Triceps Extension 

 Top Triceps Exercise #3 – Seated Triceps Extension

This position places a great deal of emphasis on the triceps equally. For this exercise, it’s important to use a seat or weight bench of some kind with an adjustable seat to aid in back support. Choose an appropriate dumbbell weight and hold it with both hands. Raise the weight up and behind the head.

While holding the dumbbell, carefully lower it behind your head. Lower the weight behind your head so that it is even with the lower part of the back of your head – try not to let the weight fall too far to avoid over-exertion of the triceps during this exercise. Raise the dumbbell back overhead so that arms are fully extended and repeat.

Clapping Diamond Pushups

Top Triceps Exercise #4 – Clapping Diamond Pushups

We talk a lot about how resistance will bring on muscle gain. If you want your muscles to increase in mass then you have to use them. You need to use them a lot, from different angles and in different ways. This may seem a little unorthodox but this method will definitely push triceps to the limit.

Position your hands under chest like a push up but bring your hands together so that your index fingers and your thumbs are touching, forming a diamond shape. Perform 10 pushups like this. In order to get the clap in between each push up, you’ll need to push yourself with enough force to leave the floor, gaining enough height to insert the clap and still bring your hands back to a diamond form.

Rope Pushdowns

Top Triceps Exercise #5 – Rope Pushdowns

This can be easily done with a number of machines. When using a machine, try to balance the weight so you can fit it a set of approximately 10 reps easily while still feeling the proper burn in the triceps. This top triceps exercise requires a bit more form than others. When pulling the weight with the rope, it’s important to keep your upper arms locked at your sides while keeping your back straight.

If you release your arms, twist or bend your back you’ll start using your shoulders and back to take the brunt of the weight, giving little gain to your triceps.

Beginner Workout
•Close Grip Bench Press - 3 Sets of 10 Reps
•Weighted Dips - 2 Sets of 12 Reps
•Rope Pushdowns - 2 Set of 15 Reps

Intermediate Workout•Close Grip Bench Press - 3 Sets of 8 Reps
•Weighted Dips - 3 Sets of 12/10/8 Reps
•Seated Triceps Extensions - 2 Sets of 12 Reps
•Rope Pushdowns - 2 Sets of 12 Reps

Advanced Workout•Rope Extensions - 2 Sets of 15 Reps
•Close Grip Bench Press - 3 Sets of 6 Reps
•Seated Triceps Extensions - 3 Sets of 8 Reps
• Weighted Drops - 2 Drop Sets* - Perform 8 Reps to failure then drop all weight and perform as many reps to failure
• Clapping Diamond Push-Ups - 2 Sets to Failure

You’ll see the best results by adding the top exercises to build your triceps to your usual workout routine. When working on increasing muscle mass in triceps, remember that it’s important to take in the proper amount of nutrients and protein to sustain your exercises

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5 Ways to Torch Your Triceps

Triceps account for roughly two-thirds of your upper arm mass. So why in the name of Arnold do you spend so much more time blasting your biceps? If your true aim is to start using more tape measure around your arms, then you’re going to need to attack your tri’s with greater intensity. And once you’ve made that commitment, it’s time to refine your strategy.

Our expert panel offers its collective wisdom on coaxing the most growth out of this muscle group. But you can forget about hearing another cozy prescription for a few extra sets of pressdowns – these guys are going to help you push your triceps to their breaking point so you can get the bulbous, sickly-striated finish that you’ve always wanted.

Down Shift

1. DOWN SHIFT

Have you ever seen John Cena’s triceps? Well, if you haven’t, “tiny” is not a word that would be used to describe them. And though Cena is one of the hardest working men in show biz, he’s taken a fair share of his cues from WWE coach Rob MacIntyre, CSCS. When it comes to triceps specifically, MacIntyre likes to have his clients slow things down a bit.

“I like to use slow reps when training triceps especially on the eccentric portion of the lift,” he says. “Most of the time, the athletes I work with are training triceps explosively as part of other movements. However, when it is time to be pretty and get the big guns, I like to slow the reps down for isolations exercises. It is easy to develop tendonitis by trying to use fast, explosive heavy movements during isolation work due to the stress on the elbow joint. A triceps extension with a 5-10 second eccentric phase changes the game in terms of getting a pump. If you’re new to this type of training, be careful as the triceps tend to give out suddenly.”


TRY THIS: Lead off your triceps routine with 3-4 sets of triceps pressdowns or skullcrushers. Select a weight you’d use for 10-12 reps but use a 5-10 second negative on each rep – followed by an explosive concentric, or positive lift – and shoot for eight solid reps.

close grip bench presses

2. GET MECHANICAL

Josh Bryant, MFS, PES, CSCS, is a performance-first kinda guy. As such, he sees the triceps as a primarily as a supporting player in pressing movements. But when big presses lead to mind-boggling poundages and a superhero-like torso, training them hard makes sense..

“One of my favorite triceps tactics involves using mechanical advantage on the close-grip bench press with boards,” he says. “To do this, complete five, full range of motion close grip bench presses. Don’t rack the weight. Hold the bar pressed out at full extension. Next, have your spotter place one board lengthwise on your torso, so that the board runs from your belly to the middle of your chest. Repeat the exercise for another five reps, lowering the barbell until it touches the board. After each five reps, your partner will add one board to the stack. Little by little, this shortens your range of motion, working your triceps in different ways until you finish with four boards stacked on your chest. That’s 25 reps. It’s also just one set.” Bryant likes using this tactic because, he says, it combines aspects of rest-pause training, partial reps, cheating and drop sets.

TRY THIS: Bryant recommends using the system outlined above with your 10-5-rep max weight for 3-5 sets, with three minutes of rest between sets. This can be a stand-alone triceps workout, or you can follow it up with 1-2 isolation exercises for a more intense session.

tricep pressdown

 

3. FINISH WITH FAILURE

 

If your routine already consists of a challenging battery of close-grip bench presses, dips and skullcrushers, you’re on the right track. But how you finish is just as important as how you start. David Sandler, MS, CSCS, believes in getting a skin-stretching pump because of its effect on protein synthesis (read: it increases it).

 

“I love hitting the triceps pressdown at the end of the routine and doing drops on each set and finishing with some close-grip push-ups,” he says. “I try to hit eight reps on the pressdown set working at max, then the I drop about 25 percent and continue until I cannot get another full rep on my own. Immediately after, I drop to the ground, keep my hands no wider than shoulder-width, and bang out as many pushups as possible. I give myself a generous 90-second rest and do the whole thing again for a second and then third set. Your tri’s get so jacked with a pump, when you leave the gym, everyone knows it.”

 

TRY THIS: After 3-4 exercises worth of heavy triceps work, wrap your day up at the triceps pressdown station with three supersets combining pressdowns and close-grip push-ups. On the pressdowns, use a weight that brings about failure at eight reps, then drop the weight by 20-30 percent and continue on to failure once more before hitting the deck for a set of close-grip push-ups to failure. Rest 90 seconds and repeat for three total sets.

lying dumbbell triceps

5. VOLUMIZE

Why do 10 reps when 20 will do? This is a favorite refrain of the high-volume training crowd, which believes that muscles thrive on high-rep, high-set challenges. Justin Grinnell, CSCS, isn’t so single-minded in his approach but thinks that “more is better” is a philosophy that your triceps can benefit from.

“My favorite training intensity technique for triceps are high-rep supersets,” he says. “Since the triceps get a ton of heavy work from overhead presses, dips and bench presses, I like to get as much blood into the muscle as possible with isolation movements done back-to-back. Doing this will tap into some other muscle fibers that were not hit during the heavy work. I like lying dumbbell triceps extensions superset with overhead rope extensions for four sets of 15 reps. Make sure to keep continuous tension – don’t pause at the bottom of any rep. You want to force as much blood into the muscle as possible, and create as much time under tension as possible to maximize muscle tissue breakdown.”

TRY THIS: Finish off your next triceps workout with an isolation-themed superset. For max results, as Grinnell describes, try pairing two exercises that hit different parts of your triceps by varying arm positioning. An overhead extension paired with a pressdown, for example. Grinnell suggests four sets of 15 for each superset.


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