What Exercises Work All The Parts Of The Triceps?

Extending your forearm through a full range of motion uses every part of the triceps. Some exercises work the muscle harder than others, some activate more of the long head of the triceps, and some do very little. You cannot use only one- or two-thirds of your triceps because all three parts of the muscle work together. Consult your physician before beginning any diet or exercise programs.

The Triceps

Your triceps are large muscles on the back of your upper arm, and they function to straighten out your arm. Any exercise that involves straightening out the elbow uses your triceps, from heavy bench pressing to cable kick backs. There are ways to increase the activity of the triceps, including increasing the weight, increasing the range of motion, or increasing the stretch of the triceps through position. For best results, incorporate all three aspects into your program.

Increasing the Weight

Exercises such as close-grip bench presses and dips are great power builders for the triceps, and use all three heads of the muscle. These exercises can be trained in a low rep range to build power and strength. The close-grip bench press works your triceps more than a conventional bench press because of the increase in the range of motion. Dips not only allow you to use a great deal of weight by adding weight to your own body, they also allow you to exercise through an extreme range of motion. When going into the bottom of the dip, go no lower than your shoulder will comfortably tolerate. These exercises allow you to generate a great deal of force, which increases the activation of the triceps.

Increasing the Range of Motion

Decline extensions done with a barbell or dumbbells can provide an additional stretch and increase the range of motion when compared to extensions done on a flat bench. By lowering a barbell to your forehead when you are on a 30-degree decline, you can add several inches to the range of motion of the exercise. You can perform extensions with a dumbbell in both hands by lowering the dumbbells until the top of the dumbbell lightly touches the top of your shoulder. This gives you an excellent stretch in your triceps as well. These exercises can be performed in a dynamic manner, which can serve to increase explosive power.

Increasing the Stretch

The long head of the triceps closest to your body is active on all triceps exercises, but it is capable of stretching farther than the other two heads. This portion of the triceps crosses the shoulder joint and is only fully stretched when the arms are extended overhead. Exercises such as the French press where, when seated, you lower a barbell from full extension overhead to as low as you can without straining your shoulders or elbows, achieve a beneficial stretch of your triceps. This exercise can be performed with a dumbbell.