Triceps Exercises

Below you will find gifs of the most popular and effective triceps exercises. There are triceps exercises for specifically targeting the Lateral Head, Medial Head or Long Head. If you want more bang for your buck, pick ones that hit all three heads.

Lateral Head

These triceps exercises target the Lateral Head, which runs across the upper arm and creates the “horseshoe” shape. It mainly consists of type IIb fibres and responds to heavy, low rep work.

Medial Head

These triceps exercises target the Medial Head, a slow twitch muscle which loves high rep work. It’s deeper lying but adds to overall triceps size.

Long Head

These triceps exercises target the Long Head, which as you’ve guessed is the longest of the three muscles on the back of the arm. It contains a blend of fast and slow twitch fibres, and works best with arms overhead.

All Three Heads

These triceps exercises target all three heads, so for those just looking to build overall arm size it’s best to start here.

Barbell Exercises

Close Grip Bench Press

  • Have the elbows out to hit the Lateral Head.
  • Keep the elbows in to hit the Medial/Long Heads.
  • Straighten the arms each rep to hit the triceps fully.
  • Lower it slowly under control.
  • Try a pause at the bottom of the movement.

French Press

  • The French Press hits the Long Head of the triceps.
  • To make it easier on elbow and wrist joints, use an E-Z Curl Bar.
  • Palms face forward, lower behind the head and extend to straight arm.
  • You can also do this from a standing position.

french press

Skull Crushers

  • This works all three triceps heads.
  • Lower it behind the head for a fuller range of motion.
  • Come back to straight arms every rep to hit the triceps.
  • Best for higher rep work (10-15 reps) with 2 mins rest or less.
  • Try a false grip (don’t wrap thumb round bar).

Dumbbell Exercises

Dumbbell Kickback

  • The dumbbell kickback hits the Lateral Head of the triceps.
  • Full extension is important, so don’t go too heavy.
  • To increase the contraction, hold at full extension for 1 second.
  • Keep the elbow high for all reps.
  • If you have access to a cable machine, that is a better alternative.

Dumbbell Tricep Extension

  • A variation of the French Press.
  • This can hit all three triceps heads.
  • You can also do this exercise from standing.
  • For added focus, try the movement with one arm.
  • Extend the arms straight overhead, keep the body stiff.

PJR Pullover

  • This hits the Long Head of the triceps.
  • Rest the upper back on a bench, keep the core tight.
  • The movement comes from shoulder extension, not the elbows.
  • Don’t lower too far as the back will hyper-extend.

Single Arm Dumbbell Extension

  • This can hit all three tricep heads.
  • You can also do this exercise seated.
  • Keep the core engaged.
  • Lower behind the head and return to full extension.

Body-weight / Other Exercises

Bench Dips

  • This primarily hits the Lateral Head.
  • To make it harder, place a weight in your lap.
  • To make it easier, use straight legs and place them on the floor.
  • Keep the back straight.

Cable Kickback

  • This hits the Lateral Head of the triceps.
  • Full extension is important, so don’t go too heavy.
  • Pause briefly when the arm is fully extended to make it more effective.
  • Keep the body tight and initiate movement through the elbow.
  • This can be done standing or with a forward lean
Image Credit: @PJPTPerformance

Cable Kickback

  • This hits the Lateral Head of the triceps.
  • Full extension is important, so don’t go too heavy.
  • Pause briefly when the arm is fully extended to make it more effective.
  • Keep the body tight and initiate movement through the elbow.
  • This can be done standing or with a forward lean
Image Credit: @PJPTPerformance

Cable Tricep Pushdown

  • This primarily hits the Lateral and Medial Heads.
  • Initiate the movement with elbow flexion and extension.
  • Make sure you straighten the arms fully to hit the triceps best.
  • Good finisher exercise to end a session.
  • Keep elbows at the side, abs tight, body upright.

Cable Tricep Pushdown (Reverse Grip)

  • This primarily hits the Long and Medial Heads.
  • Elbows in but slightly in front of the body. Slight forward lean.
  • Use a lighter weight as there is more elbow stress.
  • Pause at full extension.
  • This is a good finisher with 15-20 reps.
Image Credit: @PJPTPerformance

Dip Machine

  • The dip machine hits all three triceps heads.
  • Make sure the arms go fully straight.
  • Hold for a count of one with arms extended.
  • Focus on feeling the triceps working.

dip machine

Tricep Dips

  • This works all three triceps heads.
  • Watch this to understand how to hit the triceps more.
  • Avoid too much forward lean, as that hits chest more.
  • Lower until shoulders are slightly below the elbow.
  • Head in line with spine.

Thanks for reading!