7 Best Tricep Exercises for Insane Muscle Mass

Working your triceps can be a bit tricky, as there isn’t a single muscle that’s the 'triceps muscle'.

Instead, the triceps consists of three different muscles: the lateral, medial and long heads of the triceps brachii. Activate all three, and you’ll have some firm guns in no time.

Adding mass to your triceps isn’t as simple as just doing a bunch of tricep extensions.

Tricep Exercises for Muscle Mass and Strength

If you want increased muscle mass, you need to focus on exercises that target the long and lateral heads of your triceps. Here are seven effective workouts for massive triceps:

1) Close-Grip Barbell Bench Press

This bench press variation puts your hands shoulder-width apart. This hand placement shifts the load more to your triceps, making it easier on your shoulders. The move also targets your triceps directly for more growth and strength.

Here's how you do this exercise:

Set yourself up as if you were going to do a flat bench press.
Put your hands inside shoulder-width, and tuck your elbows into the body.
When you have the bar in the rack, pull it out; keep your elbows close to your body, and stabilise it over your chest.
As you lower the weight to your chest, pull in on your elbows so that they touch or almost touch.
Once the bar touches your chest, push through your palms, and feel the triceps engage. Lift back up.

2) Parallel Bar Dip

You can work your triceps more deeply when you perform dips on parallel bars instead of angled bars or rings.

Your arms will be tucked in, not flared out. You can do triceps push-ups with just your bodyweight. When you put your arms closer together, you'll be able to work your triceps more effectively.

To do this move:

Stand on the parallel bars with your torso upright, as if you're leaning forward slightly.
Straighten your elbows, and keep them almost fully extended to support this position.
With your chest up and shoulder blades squeezed together, bend at the elbows as you lower yourself downward till your arms are almost straight.
Press yourself upwards till you fully extend your elbows and repeat.

3) Tricep Pushdown

You can isolate your triceps with this exercise by pushing down on a barbell and bringing it towards your chest. This is a popular bodybuilding movement, as it allows you to feel each muscle contracting, which leads to great pumps and more activation.

Here's how you do it:

Grab a resistance band or cable machine, and face it with your feet together and elbows to your sides (by your ribs).
To keep your balance, tuck your chin; keep your chest high and straight, and lean slightly forward from the hips.
Fully extend your arms to push the handles down, keeping your elbows slightly in front of your shoulders.

4) Skull Crusher

This triceps exercise requires you to lower a barbell, dumbbell or cable pulley to your forehead to stretch your triceps muscles. The skull crusher is a versatile move, as you can use any of several tools for this exercise.

To do this exercise:

To execute a triceps pushdown, lie on a bench with your hips and back in contact with the bench.
Grasp a barbell or other weight with an overhand grip, and bring it down to your forehead while keeping your elbows slightly bent.
The upper arms should be nearly straight when the bar touches your forehead.
Push the bar back up to complete one repetition.

5) Floor Press

When you press a barbell from the floor, you’re limiting the range of motion of your arms. You can typically press more weight, which means you'll be able to lift a heavier barbell when you do a bench press.

Here's how you do it:

Stand in front of a power rack, facing the hooks for the barbell.
Make sure the hook clears your hands, and adjust it so that the barbell sits just below your hands.
Get under the loaded barbell; squat down, and place your feet firmly on the floor.
Place your hands on the bar in a typical bench press grip.
Lift it out of the rack; lower it to your chest, and push back up.

6) Standing Landmine Press

If you’re experiencing elbow or shoulder pain while training your triceps, the standing landmine press is a great alternative. The stability of the implement and grip position allow you to continue training without any discomfort.

To do a standing barbell bench press:

Stand with your feet hip-width apart, and hold the end of the barbell just in front of your shoulder.
Grip the barbell tightly, and brace your core and lats.
Extend your elbow and reach forward at the end of the movement to lock out.
Slowly lower back down, and repeat.

7) Diamond Push-Up

Diamond push-ups place more emphasis on the triceps than a standard push-up, but they also call on your core muscles for stability. That makes it a great chest and shoulder exercise.

To do this exercise:

You don't have to make a perfect diamond with your hands, but you can keep your hands close to your body to focus on the triceps.
Try moving your hands around to find a more comfortable position.
Keep your elbows tucked alongside your ribcage without flaring outward during the entire movement.
When you do push-ups, keep your core and glutes tight to keep your spine neutral.

Takeaway

The key to increasing muscle tone is a combination of strength training and weight loss.

You can dramatically improve the shape of your arms by combining the right exercise for your upper body with a healthy diet. You'll also see improvement in your strength and stamina, which are integral in your physical fitness programme.