20 Best Triceps Workouts for Men

In this article:

Warm-up
Difficulty Level: Beginner 
Difficulty Level: Intermediate 
Difficulty Level: Advanced 

Building super-sized arms may be difficult if you don’t use specific workouts that target every part of your arm. If you want a good-looking set of triceps, now is the time to begin your tricep workout regimen.

Even though triceps are often overlooked in favor of biceps when building bulky arms, they are just as important for a good look. While it appears that biceps are the most important muscle group to focus on when trying to build big arms, did you know that triceps are a larger muscle group? As a result, if you want sleeve-busting arms, you must work on strengthening your triceps.

The key is to begin your triceps journey as soon as you feel ready, even if it takes a few workouts to see results! These tricep exercises will benefit hustlers at all levels, from beginners to experts.

Warm-up

Doing warm-ups is always recommended before getting into your session. Stretching your arms will help loosen your muscles and relieve their tension.

There are numerous advantages to warming up before working out, including increased flexibility and mobility, reduced risk of injury, and better circulation. Thus, we give you these two different types of arm stretches you can conduct for a warm-up.

Tricep Towel Stretch

• Procedure: Begin by hanging a rolled-up towel from your right hand like you would for an overhead tricep stretch. Bring your left hand behind your back and out to the side as you do this. Left-handedly grab the towel’s lower end at the corner. Stretch your left arm by pulling on the towel while keeping your right elbow steady. Do this for 10 to 15 seconds, depending on how comfortable you are withholding the stretch.

Horizontal Tricep Stretch

• Procedure:  First, stride tall, arms straight across your chest, right arm across your right torso. Then, with your left arm, squeeze the right side of your chest. To get the most out of your triceps, hold the stretch for 10 to 15 seconds. Do the same with your other arm.

Difficulty Level: Beginner 

Standing Triceps Kickbacks

This exercise targets the triceps. This exercise will require the use of a dumbbell. To prevent injury, start with a 5 to 10-pound dumbbell. When your muscles are ready and strong enough to lift more weight, you can use heavier dumbbells.

Procedure:

1.  As you begin, stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, your knees bent to about a 25-degree angle, and your elbows bent to 90 degrees in front of your body.
2. To work your triceps, squat down and place the dumbbells parallel to your thighs. Then slowly raise them back up to your shoulders.
3. Once the count is complete, return to the beginning position.
4. Do as many repetitions and sets as you like.

Rope Pushdown

A great way to build bigger triceps is to perform triceps pushdowns. You can use a pushdown or cable machine at the gym if you wish. Using a resistance band is an option if you’re on the fly. 

You can make this a beginner’s exercise by lowering the weights.

Procedure: 

1. To begin, stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, your abs tight, and your elbows tucked in.
2. Push down until your elbows are fully extended but not in a square position. Inhale slowly and slowly push down.
3. When bending your knees, keep your elbows close to your body.
4. You may have the urge to bend forward but resist the urge. During the pushdown, make sure your back is straight.
5. Take a deep breath and come back to your starting position.

Overhead Extensions

This is an isolation exercise for your triceps that’s done with a dumbbell. Holding a pair of dumbbells shoulder-width apart, performing overhead tricep extensions will help you build more muscular arms.

Procedure:

1. Maintain an even stance and a tight core while holding a dumbbell in both hands.
2. Raise the dumbbell until your elbows are pointing forward and your palms are facing the roof.
3. While flexing your elbows and tightening your triceps, lower the dumbbell slowly behind your back.
4. Taking your time, slowly return to the starting position and then repeat this procedure.

Narrow Push-up

Pushups that have their hands closer together put tremendous strain on their triceps than a typical pushup.

Procedure:

1. To target your triceps more, use a narrower grip while lying facedown on the floor, shoulder-width apart. Straighten your legs and plant your toes firmly on the floor. 
2. Focus on the floor and keep your back straight. Engage your abs and keep your body straight.
3. Raise your body off the floor by exerting force with your hands through your press. 
4. Before gently returning to the beginning, perform a full squeeze of the chest, shoulders, and triceps for a count.
5.  Avoid letting your body rest on the floor; instead, halt and repeat when you’re an inch or two from it.

Bench Dip

Bodyweight tricep extensions target the back of the triceps, and the front of the shoulder, called your anterior deltoid.

As long as you have a raised surface nearby, this exercise is accessible to people of all fitness levels.

Procedure:

1. Place your hands next to your thighs and sit on a bench with your feet flat on the ground.
2. Get off the bench with your feet and extend your legs. Keep your arms out in front of you while you do this for balance.
3. Lower your body as much as possible, or until your arms make a 90-degree angle while hinging at the elbow.

Standard Push-up

With only your bodyweight as a requirement, a push-up has become a go-to upper-body workout for people of all fitness levels. Pushups have the advantage of being difficult to adapt to for both you and your body. There are numerous types, and each one targets a distinct set of muscles.

Procedure:

1. Put your hands flat on the floor in a high plank position with your arms shoulder-width apart, your shoulders directly above your wrists, and your legs extended behind you. 
2. Keep your abs and glutes engaged throughout the exercise.
3. Starting with bent elbows, drop yourself to the floor until your chest touches the floor while keeping your core strong and back flat. Keep your elbows tucked in close to your body to prevent a hunching-over position.
4. Using your triceps and chest, flex your elbows and press yourself back up to standing.
5. Try to get in as many reps and sets as you can.

Difficulty Level: Intermediate 

Renegade Row

One hand holds your body in a plank posture while the other has a dumbbell. This is an advanced row version. Rogue rows work the entire body simultaneously, working the obliques, the rhomboids, and the triceps, all at the same time. Renegade rows, when done correctly, can help build upper-body strength while also stabilizing the body.

Procedure:

1. Put two dumbbells shoulder-width apart on the floor.
2.  Start in a plank position, your feet wider than shoulder distance away from one another.
3. Maintain a neutral wrist position while holding the dumbbells with your hands elevated off the floor. 
4. To row, drive your right arm through the dumbbell and down to the floor, stiffening your entire body as you do so. Your elbow should be directed up and back as you row.
5.  As you carefully descend the dumbbell to the floor, keep your body steady. 
6. Do it all over again on the other side of your body.

Landmine Press

The standing landmine press targets the chest and shoulders while also working with other muscular groups. It’s a complex workout that’s both safe and effective for exercising the entire body.

You’ll need a barbell set before you can perform the landmine press. Attach the barbell to a landmine or a wall corner (with a 25 or 45-pound plate on end). After that, place a plate on the handle you’ll be using to pick it up.

One or two arms can press a landmine. Take a small step back, so you have to bend forward and activate your core muscles instead of placing yourself strictly under the bar.

Procedure:

1. To begin, place your feet shoulder-width apart.
2. Lean slightly forward and use a neutral grip on the bar’s other end.
3. Keep your elbows flexed and your shoulders up on the bar when using this exercise.
4. Keep the bar in line with your shoulders while extending your elbows and pushing it up and forward.
5. Do not lock your elbows when you reach the top of the exercise. Then gently and steadily return to the starting position.

Dumbbell Bench Press

The dumbbell chest press closely mimics the bench press — the favorite exercise among serious weightlifters everywhere. This exercise works your chest muscles, shoulders, and triceps. 

Procedure:

1. Using a medium-weight dumbbell in each hand, sit on a bench with your thighs resting on the back of the bench.
2. Hold dumbbells in front of shoulders while squeezing elbows tight to ribs. Slowly lower body onto the bench. Hold dumbbells slightly wider than shoulder-width with palms towards feet while opening elbows, so triceps are perpendicular to the body. As a starting point, plant your feet firmly on the ground and tighten your core.
3. After exhaling, push the dumbbells away from your chest while keeping your arms straight, so the dumbbells are squarely over your shoulders. D.
4. To return to the beginning position, carefully inhale and drop the dumbbells until they are just over shoulder height.

Diamond Push-Ups

Triangle push-ups, also called diamond push-ups, are a more complex version of the traditional push-up exercise. The diamond push-up is a great upper-body exercise that works your triceps as well as your other muscles.

Procedure:

1. In the plank posture, your hands and feet should be precisely beneath the shoulders.
2. Spread your index fingers out in a diamond pattern to form a palm diamond.
3. While maintaining your back flat, begin lowering your chest to the floor.
4. Repeat the movement, this time pressing up to a full arm extension.

Dumbbell JM Press

During JM Blakley’s bench press training at Westside Barbell, where he was crushing everyone in his path, the guys noticed he was also performing this unusual lift as an add-on.

An excellent triceps exercise is unquestionably the J.M Press. With the J.M. Press, you get all the benefits of a close-grip bench press with the added benefit of a skull crusher.

Procedure:

1. Place your feet on the floor and your back on a bench.
2. Extend each hand toward the ceiling while holding a dumbbell in each hand.
3. Bend your elbows and shoulders to bring the dumbbells to your shoulders.
4. Take a slight pause before extending your arm straight back up in front of you.
5. Keep going until you’ve completed the specified amount of repetitions.

Cable Rope Overhead Triceps Extension

An effective way to bulk up the upper arm’s back muscles is with the cable overhead triceps extension, including a rope attachment to the cable.

Procedure:

1. To begin, stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, your back straight, and your abs taut.
2. As your starting position, grab and grip a rope extension with your palms facing up and hoist the rope above your head.
3. Slowly lower the rope connection behind your head in an arcing motion to isolate your tricep muscles. Feel the strain as you reduce it.
4. Slowly lift the rope back to the starting position after holding this position for several reps.
5. Repeat the exercise

 Incline Dumbbell Chest Press

The incline press is a chest builder that may be just as effective as the well-known bench press. The workout targets your chest’s most significant muscle, the pectoralis major, for a satisfying upper chest workout.

Procedure:

1. Lift the dumbbells with a neutral grip from the floor (palms facing in). Sit on the edge of an incline bench with your feet flat on the floor and your dumbbells at your hip crease.
2. Start by lying on your back and holding the weights at your chest. Take a deep breath, and then push the dumbbells to the top to lock them out.
3. Slowly drop the dumbbells as far as you’re able while maintaining control (the handles should be about level with your chest).
4. To return to the beginning position, contract your chest and raise the dumbbells back to their original positions.
5. Then repeat as many times as you want.

Difficulty Level: Advanced 

Machine Dip

With the dip machine, you can execute bodyweight exercises on parallel bars or a pull-up and dip station, which simulate triceps dips. However, it also works your triceps while stretching and strengthening your chest and shoulders.

Procedure:

1. Take a seat on a dipping machine. Pick a weight that feels comfortable to you and hold onto the handles with both hands.
2. Strive to keep your elbows near your body at all times. When bending them, make sure to turn them at a sharp 90-degree angle.
3. Exhale while tightening your triceps and spreading your arms wide. Exhale while squeezing your triceps and extending your arms downward.
4. As you inhale, slowly return your arms to their starting positions.
5. Then repeat as many times as you like.

Rings Dip

With a set of rings, you can execute an even more dramatic plunge. Assisted dips require you to lift your entire body weight while only using your arms for assistance.

Procedure:

1. Place gymnastics rings at a chest or shoulder height that’s comfortable for you.
2. Jump into a supported posture while holding the rings firmly in your hands.
3. Lower yourself while keeping your hands at your sides, palms facing in.
4. Bring your hands to your chest until they are almost in line with your shoulders.
5. Return to the support posture by pushing yourself back up.
6. Continue until you’ve completed the necessary number of repetitions.

Close-Grip Bench Press

When performing a close grip bench press, the emphasis is on the triceps instead of the shoulders. It aids with chest activation and triceps strength development.

Procedure:

1. Set up a flat bench and place the barbell on the rack at a comfortable height for you to lift it. A spotter is highly advised for beginners.
2. Load the barbell to your desired weight. Avoid injuries by not going too far.
3. Lift the bar from the rack while lying flat on the bench with your arms fully extended.
4. With your arms straight in front of you, carefully lower the bar towards your chest while taking deep breaths.
5. Your elbows should be positioned such that they are near to your sides.
6. Hold for a count of two, and then exhale while pushing the bar up to your chest and locking your arms at the top. While performing this, expect your triceps to get a little sore.
7. Use a spotter to help you return the barbell to its rack after you’ve completed the exercise.

Clap Press-up

Clapping push-ups, also known as plyometric push-ups, are bodyweight exercises that target upper-body strength and power. Low reps for power and strength or high reps for conditioning are effective ways to train the chest, triceps, and shoulders.

Procedure:

1. Push-ups are performed with the arms outstretched, the back and neck in line, and the core contracted. This is where you’ll begin.
2. Flex your elbows until they are at a 90-degree angle before lowering yourself into the bottom position of the push-up.
3. To lift yourself off the ground and into the air, use as much force as possible while you push upward with your hands.
4. Clap your hands together in unison while holding them in the air. After completing the previous repetition, go back to the starting position and begin the next one right away.
5. Repeat as many times as necessary to achieve the desired result.

 Skull crusher

When it comes to increasing the size and strength of your arms, nothing beats doing “skull crushers,” a high-intensity triceps extension workout. 

Procedure:

1. Place a set of dumbbells on a bench or the floor and place your palms facing each other directly above your chest. Put your feet flat on the ground.
2. Slowly lower the weights to your sides while keeping your arms bent at the elbows. Be careful not to flex your elbows excessively.
3. To get back to where you were before, simply do the opposite of what you just did.

 One Arm Tricep Extension

The One Arm Tricep Extension works all three triceps heads, but when done with the arms overhead, it’s exceptionally beneficial at developing the long triceps.

Procedure:

1. Pick up a light dumbbell and use a neutral grip to lift it over your head.
2. Put a little pressure on your elbow to tuck it in, then break your elbow to lessen the weight.
3. Bring your forearm close to your biceps and then lower yourself (or until you feel an intense triceps stretch).
4. Strenuously flex your triceps to revert the motion.
5. As you continue to push yourself, be sure that your elbow is fully extended.
6. Execute 3 to 5 sets of 10 to 20 reps on each side.

 Physioball Pushup

This exercise is more difficult because numerous stabilizing muscles are engaged to maintain balance. The pushup is a more advanced standard pushup that targets the chest, shoulders, and triceps.

Procedure:

1. Walk your hands forward till the ball lies beneath your legs while lying on your belly on the ball.
2. Put your hands right underneath your shoulders on the floor. This is your starting position.
3. Take a deep breath in and descend your upper body toward the floor, bending your elbows out to the side as you go.
4. Be sure to maintain a firm core to assist you in staying upright and balanced when standing or walking.
5. You’re going to exhale and straighten your elbows as you press yourself back up to the beginning position.
6. Strive to maintain a straight back that is in sync with your torso and head. Perform ten repetitions in a row.

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