The triceps brachii is a three-headed muscle that works in opposition to the biceps brachii. It also attaches underneath the deltoids and below the elbow. The basic fucntion of the triceps is to straighten the arm and supinate (twist upward) the wrist.
The triceps are a larger muscle than the biceps and needs more training from more angles. Many beginning bodybuilders ignore the triceps, or downplay them because they are not as visible as the biceps, however the tricep is two-thirds of the mass of the upper arm when properly developed. The tricep is the muscle that makes your arm look large and impressive even when you are not flexing, and is visible in one form or another no matter what direction your arm is viewed from, since it wraps further around your arm bone. A properly developed tricep muscle will have each of its' three heads visible in the shape of a horseshoe.
The triceps is the muscle on Stan's left arm which is below the deltoid and above the elbow, seen here flexed. Note the horseshoe shape of the three evenly developed heads of the muscle.
PURPOSE OF EXERCISE:To work the triceps through a full range of motion.
EXECUTION:
(1)Hook a short bar to an overhead cable and pulley, stand close to the bar and grasp it with an overhand grip, hands about 10 inches apart. Keep your elbows locked in close to your body and stationary. Keep your whole body steady--don't lean forward to press down with your body weight.
(2)Press the bar down as far as possible, locking out your arms and feeling the triceps contract fully. Release and let the bar come up as far as possible wihtout moving your elbows. For variety, you can vary your grip, the type of bar you use, how close you stand to the bar, or the width between your hands; or you can do a three-quarter movement, going from all the way up to three-quarters of the way down in order to work the lower triceps more directly.
PURPOSE OF EXERCISE:To isolate the triceps and develop the horseshoe shape of the muscle. This exercise is especially good for contest or weak point training because by using a cable you can work each arm separately in isolation.
EXECUTION:
(1)Using an overhead cable and pulley, take hold of the handle with a reverse grip, palm up.
(2)Keeping your elbow fixed and unmoving, straighten your arm until it is locked out and extended straight down. Flex the triceps in this position for extra contraction. Still not moving the elbow, let your hand come up as far as possible until the forearm approaches the biceps, feeling a complete stretch in the triceps. Finish your repetitions, then repeat with the other arm.
PURPOSE OF EXERCISE:To hit all three triceps heads, especially the long head.
EXECUTION:Grasp a barbell with an overhand grip, hands close together.
(1)Sit on a bench and raise the bar straight up overhead, arms locked out.
(2)Keeping your elbows stationary and close to your head, lower the weight down in an arc behind your head until your triceps are as stretched as possible. Only the forearms should move in this exerceise. From this position, using only your triceps, press the weight back up overhead to full extension. Lock your arms out and flex your triceps. You might prefer doing this exercise using an E-Z curl bar or on an incline bench.
PURPOSE OF EXERCISE:To develop the full sweep of the triceps. Doing this movement gives your triceps a full look to complement the biceps when doing a double-biceps pose. Performing triceps presses standing instead of seated allows you to do a cheating movement and thus use more weight. This exercise can also be done with a cable and rope through a floor-level pulley, which puts greater pmphasis on the long head of the triceps.
EXECUTION:
(1)Grip a straight or E-Z curl bar with an overhand grip, hands about 10 inches apart. Stand upright and hold the bar extended straight overhead.
(2)Keeping your elbows stationary and close to your head, lower the weight down behind your head as far as possible, then press it back up to the starting position through a semicircular arc.
PURPOSE OF EXERCISE:To work the triceps all the way from teh elbow down to the lats.
EXECUTION:
(1)Lie along a bench, your head just off the end with knees bent and feet flat on the bench. Take hold of a barbell (preferably an E-Z curl bar) with an overhand grip, hands about 10 inches apart.
(2)Press the weight up until your arms are locked out, but not straight up over your face. Instead, the weight should be back behind the top of your head, with your triceps doing the work of holding it there. Keeping your elbows stationary, lower the weight down past your forehead, then press it back up to the starting position, stopping short of the vertical to keep the triceps under constant tension. Keep control of the weight at all times in this movement to avoid banging yourself on the head with the bar. When you can't do another rep, you can still force the triceps to keep working by repping out with some close-grip presses
PURPOSE OF EXERCISE:To work the triceps
EXECUTION:
(1)Lie on a bench, head even with the end, knees bent, feet flat on the bench. Hold one dumbbell in each hand overhead, arms straight, palms facing each other.
(2)Hold your elbows stationary and lower the dumbbells down on either side of your head until your triceps are fully stretched and the weights almost touch your shoulders. Press them back up through a sweeping arc, but lock your elbows out before your arms are pointed straight up overhead and flex your triceps.
PURPOSE OF EXERCISE:To work the triceps
EXECUTION:This is a variation fo the lying dumbbel extensions, done with one dumbbell at a time. Rather than lowering the dumbbells over your shoulders, you lower the dumbbell across your body to the opposite shoulder. When you finish your reps with one arm, repeat with the opposite one. Changing the angle changes the feel in your triceps.
PURPOSE OF EXERCISE:To develpo the triceps, especially the upper area.
EXECUTION:
(1)Stand with knees bent, one foot in front of the other, putting one hand on a low bench for balance. Take a dumbbell in the opposite hand, bend your arm and raise your elbow back and up to about shoulder height, elbow close to your side and letting the dumbbell hang straight down below it.
(2)Keeping your elbow stationary, press the weight back until your forearm is about parallel to the floor. Hold here for a moment and give the triceps an extra flex, then slowly come back to the starting position. For added triceps development, twist your hand slightly as you lift the weight, bringing the thumb up, and twist back the other way as you come down. Finish your set, then repeat the movement using the other arm. Make sure that only your forearm moves in this exercise, not the upper arm. This exercise can also be done with cable pulleys.
PURPOSE OF EXERCISE:To work the entire triceps and separate the three triceps heads.
EXECUTION:
(1)Sitting on a bench, take a dumbbell in one hand and hold it extended overhead.
(2)Keeping your elbow stationary and close to your head, lower the dumbbell down in an arc behind your head (not behind the shoulder) as far as you can. Feel the triceps stretch to their fullest, then press the weight back up to the starting position. It is essential to do this as strictly as possible. Looking in the mirror helps you check your form. Finish your set, then repeat the movement with the other arm. Be sure to go back and forth from one hand to the other without stopping to rest in between.
VARIATION:Various machines allow you to do triceps extensions with one arm at a time or both together, and many give you the opportunity to work the full range of motion of the triceps under constant resistance. Use these machines for variety in your workout or to allow your training partner to help you with forced reps and forced negatives when you feel like working extra heavy.
PURPOSE OF EXERCISE:To develop the thickness of the triceps, espcially around the elbow. Dips are often thought of as a lower chest exercise, but they can be done in such a way as to hit the triceps really hard as well.
EXECUTION:
(1)Taking hold of the parallel bars, raise yourself up and lock out your arms.
(2)As you bend your elbows and lower yourself between the bars, try to stay as upright as possible--the more you lean back, the more you work the triceps; the more you bend forward, the more you work the pectorals. From the bottom of hte movement, press yourself back up until your arms are locked out, then give an extra flex of the triceps to increase the contraction. You can also increase the effort involved in this exercise by using a weight hooked around your waist and by coming up only about three-quarters of the way rather than locking out the movement and taking the tension off the triceps.
PURPOSE OF EXERCISE:To develop the thickness of the triceps. This movement is also known as bench dips, or reverse push-ups.
EXECUTION:
(1)Place a bench or bar behind your back and hold onto the bench at its edge, hands about shoulder width apart. Place your heels on a bar or another bench, preferably at a level higher than the bench your are holding on to. Bending your elbows, lower your body as far as you can toward the floor.
(2)Then push back up, locking out your arms to work the upper triceps. To work the lower triceps, stop just short of locking out. If your own body weight is not enough, try doing the movement by having a training partner place a plate on your lap.
PURPOSE OF EXERCISE:To fully stretch and develop the triceps.
EXECUTION:
(1)Using a fixed horizontal bar positioned at about waist height, grasp the bar with an overhand grip, hands about shoulder width apart. Lock your arms out to support your weight, then move your feet back until you are in a semi-push-up position above the bar.
(2)Bend your arms and lower your body so that your head comes down below and under the bar as far as possible. When you feel the maximum stretch in your triceps, press forward with your arms and raise yourself back to the starting position, arms locked out.