Best Triceps Exercises

Strong triceps are essential for improving your chest and shoulder workouts because they play a key role in all pushing movements. Also, since triceps make up about two-thirds of your upper arm, building them will make your arms look bigger and more defined, something beginners often overlook.

This guide wont go into specific training programs, as those depend on individual needs and should be designed by a personal trainer. Instead, it highlights the most effective exercises for triceps, helping you choose the ones that suit you best.

How to Pick the Right Triceps Exercises

When choosing a triceps exercise, make sure it:

Feels comfortable to perform.
Can be done with full, smooth movement (no rushing or slowing down).
Doesnt cause pain in your elbows.
Doesnt feel mentally difficult or frustrating.
Allows you to gradually increase the weight while maintaining proper form.

Best Triceps Exercises

French Press

The French press is one of the best exercises for triceps because of how it targets the muscles. Its done with a barbell, usually lying on a bench, and the key is how far your elbows are positioned from your body. The further your arms are from your torso, the less your back muscles help, so more of the load is placed on your triceps.

For this exercise, its best to use an EZ bar (a bar with a slight bend) and keep the weight light to focus on correct form. A helpful tip: when you start the exercise, move your elbows slightly toward your head instead of keeping them directly perpendicular to your body. This increases the activation of your triceps.

Seated Dumbbell Overhead Press

This is a common exercise thats easy to learn, but proper form is key. When doing this movement, try to keep your triceps almost parallel to your body, avoiding the tendency to let your elbow move outward. Imagine youre trying to bring the dumbbell across your body, towards the opposite shoulder. This helps you keep your arm in the right position.

Dont rush through the movementfocus on slow, controlled motions. Using a lighter weight and perfecting the movement is more important than lifting heavy. Also, try doing this without the back support of a bench. This forces your core muscles to engage more, preventing you from using bad form.

Tate Press

This is a less common exercise, but its great for beginners, especially those who want to work on both their triceps and chest at the same time. The Tate press looks like a mix between a chest press and a triceps extension.

One benefit of this exercise is that it doesnt put as much stress on your elbows, making it a good option for people who experience elbow pain with other pressing exercises. When doing this, avoid letting your elbows drop toward your torso. Instead, keep your triceps at a right angle to your body, so your arms form a cross shape rather than a triangle.

Push-Ups

Push-ups are often overlooked for triceps training, but theyre a great bodyweight exercise with natural movement mechanics. While some people argue that hand placement affects how much the triceps are worked, the reality is that your triceps will engage no matter what.

If you can already do 1015 push-ups easily, dont add extra weight. Doing push-ups after a triceps-focused exercise, like the French press, can push your triceps to fatigue in a safe way. This technique, called "pre-exhaustion," ensures your muscles are fully worked without the risk of injury.

Final Thoughts

While exercises like the bench press also work the triceps along with the chest and shoulders, the exercises mentioned above should be your main focus when targeting the triceps specifically. Machines and cable exercises can be added to your routine but shouldnt replace these core movements, as its harder to progressively increase the weight with those.

Keep your routine simple and effective. Instead of doing 3-4 different triceps exercises every workout, try them all and stick to the ones that work best for you. This way, you can focus on quality rather than quantity and make steady progress.