Triceps Exercises 32 Moves With How-To Steps

All 32 triceps exercises 32

• 

  Banded Tricep Pushdown

  Band

  Steps and tips

  Pushing a band down from chest height to your thighs with your elbows pinned at your sides. Works the triceps anywhere.

  How to do it

  1. Anchor a band overhead and hold it with both hands at chest height, elbows at your sides.
  2. Keep your upper arms still and your elbows tucked.
  3. Push your hands down until your arms are straight.
  4. Return slowly to chest height.

  Keep in mind

  • Elbows stay pinned. If they drift forward, the shoulders are pushing.
  • Squeeze at the bottom of every rep.
  • The demo shows the cable version. With a band the movement is the same.
• 

  Bench Dips

  Bodyweight

  Steps and tips

  Also works shoulders and chest.

  Dips with your hands on a bench behind you and your feet on the floor or another bench. Works the triceps with your body weight.

  How to do it

  1. Sit on the edge of a bench, put your hands beside your hips, and walk your feet out so your hips are off the bench.
  2. Keep your back close to the bench and your elbows pointing straight back.
  3. Bend your elbows to lower your hips until your upper arms are about level with the floor.
  4. Press back up until your arms are straight.

  Keep in mind

  • Stay close to the bench. Drifting forward puts the strain on the front of your shoulders.
  • Straight legs or feet on another bench makes it harder.
• 

  Cable Overhead Tricep Extension

  Cable

  Steps and tips

  Pressing a rope overhead on a low cable while facing away from the stack. Works the triceps in their stretched position.

  How to do it

  1. Set the pulley low with a rope attachment, hold an end in each hand, and turn to face away from the stack.
  2. Bring the rope up behind your head and step forward into a split stance, elbows bent and pointing forward.
  3. Keep your upper arms still, close to your head.
  4. Straighten your arms to press the rope up and forward overhead.
  5. Return slowly until your hands are back behind your head.

  Keep in mind

  • Elbows stay close to your head. Flaring takes the stretch away.
  • Lean forward a little from the ankles and keep your ribs down.
• 

  Close-Grip Bench Press

  Barbell

  Steps and tips

  Also works chest and shoulders.

  A bench press with your hands set about shoulder width apart. Works the triceps hard, with the chest and shoulders helping.

  How to do it

  1. Lie on the bench with your eyes under the bar and pull your shoulder blades back and down.
  2. Grip the bar about shoulder width apart, no narrower.
  3. Lower the bar to your lower chest with your elbows tucked close to your sides.
  4. Press it back up until your arms are straight.

  Keep in mind

  • Shoulder width is close enough. Hands touching each other strains the wrists for no benefit.
  • Elbows tucked the whole way.
• 

  Close-Grip Dumbbell Bench Press

  Dumbbell

  Steps and tips

  Also works shoulders and chest.

  A dumbbell bench press with the dumbbells held close together and your elbows tucked. Works the triceps with the chest helping.

  How to do it

  1. Lie on a flat bench holding a dumbbell in each hand over your chest, palms facing each other and the dumbbells touching.
  2. Lower them to your chest with your elbows tucked close to your sides.
  3. Press back up until your arms are straight, keeping the dumbbells together.

  Keep in mind

  • Elbows stay close to your body. Flaring them makes it a chest press.
  • Log the weight of one dumbbell. SetLift counts both.
• 

  Close-Grip Incline Bench Press

  Barbell

  Steps and tips

  Also works shoulders and chest.

  A close-grip bench press on an incline bench. Works the triceps with the upper chest and shoulders helping.

  How to do it

  1. Set the bench to about 30 degrees and lie back with your eyes under the bar.
  2. Grip the bar about shoulder width apart and pull your shoulder blades back and down.
  3. Lower the bar to your upper chest with your elbows tucked close to your sides.
  4. Press it back up until your arms are straight.

  Keep in mind

  • Elbows tucked the whole way.
  • Touch high on the chest, just below the collarbones.
• 

  Crab Dips

  Bodyweight

  Steps and tips

  Also works shoulders, glutes and chest.

  Dips from a reverse tabletop position, hands and feet on the floor with your hips up. Works the triceps and the back of the shoulders.

  How to do it

  1. Sit on the floor, place your hands behind you with your fingers pointing forward, and lift your hips so you are in a tabletop with your knees bent.
  2. Keep your hips up and your elbows pointing straight back.
  3. Bend your elbows to lower your hips a short way toward the floor.
  4. Press back up until your arms are straight.

  Keep in mind

  • Hips stay up. Sitting down between reps removes the load.
  • Elbows point back, not out to the sides.
• 

  Diamond Push-Up

  Bodyweight

  Steps and tips

  Also works chest.

  A push-up with your hands together under your chest, thumbs and index fingers forming a diamond. Works the triceps hard.

  How to do it

  1. Set your hands together under your chest with your thumbs and index fingers touching.
  2. Set your body in one straight line and keep your elbows pointing back along your body.
  3. Lower your chest to your hands.
  4. Press back up until your arms are straight.

  Keep in mind

  • Elbows tucked, not flared. Flaring strains the wrists and shoulders.
  • Do it from your knees if the full version is not there yet.
• 

  Dumbbell Kickback

  Dumbbell

  Steps and tips

  Straightening your arm behind you while bent over with a dumbbell. Works the triceps at the top of their range.

  How to do it

  1. Put one hand and knee on a bench, or hinge forward with your free hand on your thigh, holding a dumbbell in the other hand.
  2. Raise your upper arm until it is level with your back and keep it there.
  3. Straighten your arm behind you until it is fully extended.
  4. Lower slowly to a bent elbow. Finish the set, then switch arms.

  Keep in mind

  • The upper arm does not move. Only the forearm swings.
  • Light weight and a squeeze at the top. Log reps for one side, and SetLift counts the other.
• 

  Dumbbell Skull Crusher

  Dumbbell

  Steps and tips

  Lowering dumbbells toward your forehead while lying on a bench, then pressing back up. Works the triceps through a long range.

  How to do it

  1. Lie on a flat bench holding a dumbbell in each hand over your shoulders, palms facing each other.
  2. Keep your upper arms still and pointing at the ceiling.
  3. Bend your elbows to lower the dumbbells beside your head.
  4. Straighten your arms to press them back up.

  Keep in mind

  • Upper arms stay still. If they swing back, the lats are helping.
  • Lower to beside the head, not onto it.
• 

  EZ-Bar Overhead Tricep Extension

  Barbell

  Steps and tips

  Lowering an EZ bar behind your head with both hands and pressing it back up. Works the triceps in their stretched position.

  How to do it

  1. Sit or stand holding an EZ bar straight overhead with a close grip.
  2. Keep your upper arms still, pointing at the ceiling and close to your head.
  3. Bend your elbows to lower the bar behind your head.
  4. Straighten your arms to press it back up.

  Keep in mind

  • Elbows point forward and stay close to your head. Flaring them takes the stretch away.
  • Keep your ribs down. Do not arch your back as the bar goes back.
• 

  JM Press

  Barbell

  Steps and tips

  Also works chest.

  A cross between a close-grip bench press and a skull crusher, lowering the bar toward your chin with the elbows tucked. A triceps exercise from powerlifting.

  How to do it

  1. Lie on the bench holding a barbell over your shoulders with a shoulder-width grip.
  2. Lower the bar toward your chin and upper chest, letting your elbows bend and tuck in front of you.
  3. Stop when your forearms touch your biceps.
  4. Press back up until your arms are straight.

  Keep in mind

  • Keep the bar over your chin, not your chest. Lower toward the face than a bench press.
  • Light weight and strict form. It is an accessory, not a max lift.

  Watch a demo on YouTube

• 

  Kettlebell Overhead Tricep Extension

  Kettlebell

  Steps and tips

  Lowering a kettlebell behind your head with both hands and pressing it back up. Works the triceps in their stretched position.

  How to do it

  1. Hold a kettlebell by the horns straight overhead with both hands.
  2. Keep your upper arms still, close to your head and pointing at the ceiling.
  3. Bend your elbows to lower the bell behind your head.
  4. Straighten your arms to press it back up.

  Keep in mind

  • Elbows stay close to your head.
  • Keep your ribs down and your core braced.
• 

  Kettlebell Skull Crusher

  Kettlebell

  Steps and tips

  Lowering a kettlebell toward your forehead while lying on a bench, holding it by the horns, then pressing back up. Works the triceps.

  How to do it

  1. Lie on a flat bench holding a kettlebell by the horns over your shoulders.
  2. Keep your upper arms still and pointing at the ceiling.
  3. Bend your elbows to lower the bell toward your forehead or just behind it.
  4. Straighten your arms to press it back up.

  Keep in mind

  • Upper arms stay still.
  • Lower to beside the head, not onto it.
• 

  Machine Tricep Extension

  Machine

  Steps and tips

  Straightening your arms against the pads of the triceps machine with your upper arms supported. Works the triceps on a fixed path.

  How to do it

  1. Set the seat so your upper arms rest on the pad with your elbows at the pivot.
  2. Grip the handles with your elbows bent.
  3. Straighten your arms fully, squeezing the triceps at the end.
  4. Return slowly to bent elbows.

  Keep in mind

  • Keep your upper arms on the pad and your shoulders down.
  • Full lockout at the end of every rep.
• 

  Overhead Tricep Extension

  Dumbbell

  Steps and tips

  Lowering one dumbbell behind your head with both hands and pressing it back up. Works the triceps in their stretched position.

  How to do it

  1. Hold one dumbbell straight overhead with both hands under the top plate.
  2. Keep your upper arms still, close to your head and pointing at the ceiling.
  3. Bend your elbows to lower the dumbbell behind your head.
  4. Straighten your arms to press it back up.

  Keep in mind

  • Elbows stay close to your head. Flaring takes the stretch away.
  • Keep your ribs down and your core braced.
  • It works the same seated on a bench with a back rest.
• 

  Plate-Loaded Seated Dip Machine

  MachinePlate-Loaded

  Steps and tips

  Also works chest and shoulders.

  The seated dip machine loaded with plates: you press a lever down from beside your chest to straight arms. Works the triceps, with the seat taking your body weight.

  How to do it

  1. Load the plates on the sleeve and set the seat so the handles sit beside your chest when you sit down.
  2. Sit upright with your back against the pad and grip the handles with your elbows bent.
  3. Press the handles down until your arms are straight at your sides, squeezing your triceps.
  4. Let the handles rise slowly until your elbows are bent to about 90 degrees.

  Keep in mind

  • Keep your elbows close to your sides and your back against the pad.
  • Start light. If the handles stop short of straight arms, take a plate off.
  • Let the lever settle on its stop before you stand up.
• 

  Reverse Plank Dips

  Bodyweight

  Steps and tips

  Also works lower back, glutes and rear delts.

  Holding a reverse plank with your hands behind you and dipping by bending the elbows. Works the triceps and the whole back of the body.

  How to do it

  1. Sit with your legs straight and your hands on the floor behind your hips, fingers pointing forward.
  2. Press into your hands and heels and lift your hips into a straight line from shoulders to heels.
  3. Bend your elbows straight back to lower your hips a short way toward the floor.
  4. Press back up to straight arms, keeping your hips high, and continue for the set time.

  Keep in mind

  • Hips stay high. Sitting down between dips removes the load.
  • Elbows point straight back, never out to the sides. Bend your knees if your hamstrings cramp.
• 

  Ring Dips

  Suspension

  Steps and tips

  Also works chest and shoulders.

  Dips on gymnastic rings. The rings move, so the triceps, chest and shoulders have to stabilise as well as press.

  How to do it

  1. Jump up to a support position on the rings with your arms straight and the rings turned slightly out.
  2. Lower yourself by bending your elbows, keeping the rings close to your body.
  3. Go until your upper arms are about level with the floor.
  4. Press back up to straight arms and turn the rings out at the top.

  Keep in mind

  • Keep the rings tight to your body. Letting them drift out is how they get away from you.
  • Own a steady support hold before adding the dip.
• 

  Rope Pushdown

  Cable

  Steps and tips

  Pushing a rope attachment down on a high cable with your elbows at your sides. Works the triceps with a squeeze at the bottom.

  How to do it

  1. Set the pulley high with a rope attachment and hold an end in each hand at chest height.
  2. Keep your elbows pinned at your sides and your upper arms still.
  3. Push the rope down until your arms are straight, pulling the ends apart at the bottom.
  4. Return slowly to chest height.

  Keep in mind

  • Elbows stay at your sides. If they drift forward, the shoulders are pushing.
  • Spread the rope at the bottom for a harder squeeze.

  Watch a demo on YouTube

• 

  Seated Dip Machine

  Machine

  Steps and tips

  Also works chest and shoulders.

  Pressing two handles down beside you on the seated dip machine. The dip for the triceps, with the seat taking your body weight.

  How to do it

  1. Set the weight on the stack and the seat so the handles sit beside your chest when you sit down.
  2. Sit upright with your back against the pad and grip the handles with your elbows bent.
  3. Press the handles down until your arms are straight at your sides, squeezing your triceps.
  4. Let the handles rise slowly until your elbows are bent to about 90 degrees.

  Keep in mind

  • Keep your elbows close to your sides and your back against the pad.
  • Keep your shoulders down as the handles rise, and stop where the stretch feels comfortable.
• 

  Single Arm Overhead Extension

  DumbbellCable

  Steps and tips

  Lowering a dumbbell or cable handle behind your head with one hand and pressing it back up. Works each triceps on its own.

  How to do it

  1. Hold a dumbbell or a low cable handle straight overhead in one hand.
  2. Keep your upper arm still, close to your head and pointing at the ceiling.
  3. Bend your elbow to lower the weight behind your head.
  4. Straighten your arm to press it back up. Finish the set, then switch arms.

  Keep in mind

  • Support the working elbow with your free hand if it drifts.
  • Log reps for one side. SetLift counts the other side for you.
• 

  Single Arm Tricep Pushdown

  Cable

  Steps and tips

  Pushing a single handle down on a high cable with one hand and your elbow at your side. Works each triceps on its own.

  How to do it

  1. Set the pulley high with a single handle and hold it in one hand at chest height.
  2. Keep your elbow pinned at your side and your upper arm still.
  3. Push the handle down until your arm is straight.
  4. Return slowly to chest height. Finish the set, then switch arms.

  Keep in mind

  • Elbow stays at your side. If it drifts forward, the shoulder is pushing.
  • Log reps for one side. SetLift counts the other side for you.
• 

  Skull Crusher

  Barbell

  Steps and tips

  Lowering a barbell or EZ bar toward your forehead while lying on a bench, then pressing back up. The classic triceps builder.

  How to do it

  1. Lie on a flat bench holding the bar over your shoulders with a close grip.
  2. Keep your upper arms still and pointing at the ceiling, or tilted slightly back.
  3. Bend your elbows to lower the bar toward your forehead or just behind it.
  4. Straighten your arms to press it back up.

  Keep in mind

  • Upper arms stay still. If they swing, the lats are helping.
  • Lower to just behind the head to spare the elbows and add stretch.
• 

  Straight Bar Dips

  Bodyweight

  Steps and tips

  Also works chest.

  Dips on a single straight bar, with both hands on it and your body leaning forward over it. Works the triceps and chest.

  How to do it

  1. Jump up to a support position on the bar with your arms straight and your hips against or just behind the bar.
  2. Lean forward slightly and bend your elbows to lower yourself, keeping the bar close to your body.
  3. Go until your upper arms are about level with the bar.
  4. Press back up to straight arms.

  Keep in mind

  • Keep your shoulders down and your chest up.
  • A slight forward lean keeps you balanced over the bar.
• 

  Tate Press

  Dumbbell

  Steps and tips

  A dumbbell press lying down where the elbows flare out and the dumbbells lower to the middle of your chest. A triceps exercise from powerlifting.

  How to do it

  1. Lie on a flat bench holding a dumbbell in each hand over your chest with your palms facing forward.
  2. Flare your elbows out to the sides and bend them to lower the dumbbells toward the middle of your chest, ends touching.
  3. Stop when the dumbbells touch your chest.
  4. Straighten your arms to press them back up.

  Keep in mind

  • Elbows stay out to the sides. That is what makes it different from a press.
  • Light weight. The elbows are in an unusual position.

  Watch a demo on YouTube

• 

  Tricep Dips

  Bodyweight

  Steps and tips

  Also works chest.

  Dips on parallel bars with an upright torso, so the triceps do most of the work.

  How to do it

  1. Grip the dip bars and press yourself up to straight arms with your torso upright.
  2. Bend your elbows to lower yourself, keeping them pointing back rather than flaring out.
  3. Go until your upper arms are about level with the floor.
  4. Press back up to straight arms.

  Keep in mind

  • Stay upright. Leaning forward makes it a chest dip.
  • Do not sink into your shoulders at the bottom.
• 

  Tricep Pushdown

  Cable

  Steps and tips

  Pushing a straight bar down on a high cable with your elbows at your sides. The basic cable triceps exercise.

  How to do it

  1. Set the pulley high with a straight or angled bar and hold it at chest height with your palms down.
  2. Keep your elbows pinned at your sides and your upper arms still.
  3. Push the bar down until your arms are straight.
  4. Return slowly to chest height.

  Keep in mind

  • Elbows stay at your sides. If they drift forward, you are pushing with your shoulders.
  • Stand tall. Leaning over the bar is momentum.
• 

  Triceps Kickback

  Cable

  Steps and tips

  Straightening your arm behind you against a low cable while bent over. Works the triceps at the top of their range with steady tension.

  How to do it

  1. Set the pulley low, hold the handle in one hand, and hinge forward with your free hand on your thigh.
  2. Raise your upper arm until it is level with your back and keep it there.
  3. Straighten your arm behind you until it is fully extended.
  4. Return slowly to a bent elbow. Finish the set, then switch arms.

  Keep in mind

  • The upper arm does not move.
  • Log reps for one side. SetLift counts the other side for you.
• 

  TRX Tricep Extension

  Suspension

  Steps and tips

  A triceps extension on suspension straps, facing away from the anchor and lowering your head between your hands. A bodyweight skull crusher.

  How to do it

  1. Face away from the anchor holding a handle in each hand with your arms straight overhead and lean forward into the straps.
  2. Keep your body in one straight line from head to heels.
  3. Bend your elbows to lower your head between your hands, keeping your upper arms still.
  4. Straighten your arms to press back up.

  Keep in mind

  • Upper arms stay still. Only the forearms move.
  • Walk your feet back to make it harder.
• 

  V-Bar Tricep Pushdown

  Cable

  Steps and tips

  A pushdown on a high cable with a V-shaped bar. Works the triceps with a comfortable angled grip.

  How to do it

  1. Set the pulley high with a V bar and hold it at chest height with your palms down.
  2. Keep your elbows pinned at your sides and your upper arms still.
  3. Push the bar down until your arms are straight.
  4. Return slowly to chest height.

  Keep in mind

  • Elbows stay at your sides.
  • Squeeze at the bottom of every rep.
• 

  Weighted Dips

  Bodyweight

  Steps and tips

  Also works chest and shoulders.

  Dips on parallel bars with extra weight on a belt or in a vest. The way to keep dips building strength once bodyweight is easy.

  How to do it

  1. Hang the weight from a dip belt or put on a vest, grip the bars, and press up to straight arms.
  2. Bend your elbows to lower yourself under control.
  3. Go until your upper arms are about level with the floor.
  4. Press back up to straight arms.

  Keep in mind

  • Upright for triceps, leaning forward for chest.
  • Log the added weight. SetLift counts your body weight for you.