The 6 Best Triceps Exercises for Bigger Arms

If you want big arms, then you cannot neglect your triceps.

The fact of the matter is they make up about two-thirds of your total arm size, so if you’re purely focusing on bicep curls and hoping to be able to fill your t-shirt sleeves then you won’t get there.

You must also focus specifically on building bigger triceps as well as biceps and shoulders. It’s through this combination that you can achieve the size and muscle definition you need to build an enviable set of arms.

What Are the Triceps?

What Are the Functions of the Triceps?

The primary function of the triceps is to extend the elbow, think of straightening your arm, but they also play a role in shoulder extension and adduction. Here’s how the responsibilities are split between the different heads of the triceps:

• Long Head: the inner head of the triceps it is responsible for elbow extension, shoulder extension and shoulder adduction
• Lateral Head: the outer head of the triceps it is also responsible for elbow extension
• Medial Head: the middle head of the triceps it is mostly beneath the long and lateral heads and is also responsible for elbow extension

Due to their different roles and positions each head of the triceps can be emphasised by using a range of different exercises.

The 6 Best Triceps Exercises

To truly build big triceps you need to train them directly in addition to the stimulus they get from other exerciseslike the bench press and shoulder press.

It’s this combination of compound and isolationmovements that will bring the results you want. However, this doesn’t mean you need to use 20 different triceps exercises to make this work.

You can use just a handful of the best ones and it is more than enough to get results.

I’ll show you.

#1: Close Grip Bench Press

Arguably one of the best triceps exercises around, the close grip bench press is a must-have in your training plan if you want to build muscle.

Part of the reason it’s so great is that it’s a compound movement, this means you’re training multiple muscle groups with movement at multiple joints. In this case, that’s the chest, shoulder and triceps with movement at the shoulder and elbow.

This allows you to lift a lot more weight than if you were using the triceps alone, thus allowing you to more effectively overloadthe triceps to build more muscle and strength.

When performing the close grip bench press you want to avoid going too narrow with your grip with research (1) showing that a shoulder-width grip on a flat bench provides the best results.

Here’s how you do it:

#2: Weighted Dips

When we talk about dips, we’re referring to upright dips performed on the parallel bars, preferably weighted too.

Like the close grip bench press, the dip is a compound exercise that works the chest, shoulders and triceps. The key to making these exercise a fantastic triceps builder is to maintain an upright posture with a narrow (hands by sides) grip as this put more emphasis on your triceps.

When performing the dip, you want to avoid leaning forwards or widening your grip too much as this shifts the emphasis to the chest.

Here’s how you do it:

#3: Dumbbell Overhead Extensions

Another great exercise that moves us away from the compound movements and into the realm of isolation exercises. Isolation exercises are ones that train a single muscle with movement at a single joint.

The overhead dumbbell extension is a perfect example of this, as it’s an exercise that works the triceps with movement at the elbow.

This exercise is particularly good at targeting the long head of the muscle and can be done one-handed or two-handed.

The one-handed version allowing you to work each arm independently and prevent muscle imbalanceswhereas the two-handed version allows you to lift more weight.

Here’s how you do both:

#4: Cable Pushdowns

You’ve undoubtedly seen and probably done this one yourself. It seems to be the go-to triceps exercise for most gym-goers.

Turns out it’s for good reason too. Not only is it more comfortable and therefore safer than the overhead or lying triceps extensions for most people, but this also makes it easier to progress on too.

It can be performed with either the rope, v-bar or straight bar with the only real difference being that you’ll be able to lift a bit more with the bars compared to the rope.

Here’s how you do it:

#5: Barbell Skulls

Also referred to as the lying triceps extension or the skull crusher, this exercise is one of my favourites as using the barbell allows you to use more weight and really hammer the triceps.

When doing this exercise, you want to try and avoid letting your elbows flare out too much as this makes it easier for the triceps but harder for the chest i.e. not what we want.

Here’s how you do it:

#6: Cable Kickbacks

Another common exercise to see in the gym, the triceps kickback is a staple for many and it’s perfect for higher rep work at the end of your workouts or as a substitution for any of the other isolation exercises you might have stalled on.

You can also do this exercise using dumbbells, but if you have cables available, they’re the better option as they make it harder to use momentum to complete the lift and keep tension on your triceps throughout the movement.

Here’s how you do it:

The 4 Keys to Building Bigger Triceps

Now you know which exercises you should be using, it’s time to take a look at the 4 things you must do to build bigger triceps.

You see, choosing the right exercise alone isn’t enough you also need to;

• Get enough training volume
• Eat a small calorie surplus
• Apply progressive overload
• Use the same exercises

To make sure you’re doing the right thing, build up those triceps and fill out your t-shirts, let’s cover each one in turn.

#1: Get Enough Training Volume

Doing enough training is key to being able to build muscle, as if you the stimulus you provide to your body is not adequate, you’ll struggle to gain any size.

Current research (2) that measured the effect of trained men performing either 6, 18 or 30 weekly sets for the biceps and triceps found that more volume leads to a faster increase in arm size.

For the triceps specifically, they found the difference in muscle mass gained between the 6 sets and 18 sets groups significant but the different between the 18 and 30 sets groups not so large.

This means if you’re looking to build big triceps you want to get about 18 weekly sets for the best results.

Now it’s worth noting that the study counted any exercise that worked the triceps towards the weekly set count. This means that any sets of bench press or shoulder press you do would add to your weekly total.

#2: Eat A Small Calorie Surplus

All this training means nothing if you don’t give your body the energy it needs to turn it into muscle. However, this doesn’t mean you want to eat everything in sight, this is a really bad idea.

Instead, you want to be in a small calorie surplus of 100 – 400 calories, this will be enough to help you build muscle without gaining loads of unwanted fat.

#3: Apply Progressive Overload

You want to be trying to get stronger in every session you do. It’s this steady increase in stimulus over time combined with the other factors in this list that helps you pack on size.

To do this you want to focus on doing 2 things over and over again:

• Increasing the amount of weight on the bar
• Increasing the number of reps you’re doing

Remember it’s important to do this slowly as you cannot lift as much with isolation exercises (skulls, overhead extensions, pushdowns) than you can with compound exercises (close grip bench and dips) which means your rate of progress will be slower.

To make this work you want to increase the number of reps you’re doing until you’ve built enough strength to increase the weight, alternating in this fashion to continue progressing over time.

For example, if you start off doing 3 sets of 8 reps with 20kg on barbell skulls, then you might start by bumping this up to 3 sets of 10 reps, then 12 reps before increasing the weight to 22.5kg and dropping the reps back down to 8.

You’d then build it back up before increasing the weight again.

#4: Use the Same Exercises

A big mistake a lot of people make when trying to build muscle is either using too many exercises or switching exercises too often.

All this does is add unnecessary confusion and make it more difficult for you to apply progressive overload and make the progress you need to build bigger triceps.

What you need to do is stick with the same exercises for as long as you continue to make progress with them, only switching exercises out for a suitable alternative when your progress has stagnated.

Summing up

The key to big, t-shirt filling arms is to build bigger triceps. This horseshoe-shaped muscle is responsible for two-thirds of your arm size, which means if you’re only focusing on your biceps, you’re leaving progress on the table.

To successfully add mass to your triceps you need to not only pick the correct exercises, but you also need to consistently do these 4 keys things:

1. Get enough training volume: aim for about 18 weekly sets including any compound movements you do that also work the triceps
2. Eat a small calorie surplus: to maximise muscle growth and minimise fat gain aim for a 100 – 400 calorie surplus
3. Apply progressive overload: consistently build strength over time by slowly increasing the number of reps you’re performing and the amount of weight you’re lifting in an alternating fashion
4. Stick with the same exercise: don’t short change your progress by constantly switching exercises. Only switch exercises out once you’ve stalled for at least 2 weeks

If you can do these things, you’ll have no problem building bigger triceps.

What next?

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