Bodybuilding Tips and Tricks

I was very partial to this exercise when I first started training. I felt that my chest was slow to develop and this exercise allowed me to give my chest a little extra boost on Arm day. Make no mistake though, these are a great way to pump up your triceps as well. Close-grip bench presses can be performed with either a barbell or on the Smith machine. You may want to try them both ways and see which is more comfortable for you or perhaps alternate between the barbell and the Smith for different workouts. Be sure to use less weight than you normally would for standard barbell bench presses…at least until you have a feel for the exercise.

Start by lying faceup on a flat bench with a barbell rack (or under the Smith Machine). Grasp the barbell with your hands 6-12 inches apart. Unrack the bar and lower it slowly, keeping your elbows as close to your sides as possible throughout the movement. At the bottom of the movement, your elbows should be slightly lower than your shoulders. Next, press the bar smoothly upward, keeping it directly over your chest as you would for a normal barbell press. Repeat for reps. This exercise only takes a short while to get the hang of (I think it requires a bit more balance than the traditional barbell press), but it’s a great way to pump up your tri’s. I have used it both at the front of my workout with heavy weight and lower reps and as a finisher (usually on the Smith machine) with lighter weight and high reps to really burn out the muscle. Enjoy the pump!

Performance: Sit on a low-backed chair or bench and lift a dumbbell over your head, holding it with both hands, palms cupped against the upper inside plates. Keep your upper arms in place next to your head and, in a slow continuous motion, lower the dumbbell behind your head. Feel the stretch in your triceps and then, using an equally slow and controlled motion, press the weight back up to full extension. Repeat for reps.

It’s possible to injure your neck when performing this move so be sure to stretch out a bit before hand with some neck rolls or similar neck/trap loosening moves and be sure (as always) to maintain proper form when performing the exercise. This exercise targets the long head of the triceps and can also be performed with a cambered bar (although I find the dumbbell to be easier). You should always try to include some sort of overhead move in your tricep training as overhead movements are the only way to effectively train the long head.

I like to perform dumbbell kickbacks late in my triceps workout, after my heavier moves like skull crushers or tricep pressdowns. They’re a great isolation move that can really fry the triceps.

Performance: Grasp a dumbbell and put one knee up on a weight bench. Bend over until your torso is roughly parallel to the floor and place the hand of your non-working arm on the bench for support. Pin your working arm to your side so that your upper arm is parallel to the floor. Bend your arm at a right angle. This is your starting position. From here, slowly straighten your arm, hold the contraction at the top of the movement for a moment, then lower back to the starting position and reapeat for reps.

Muscle Emphasis: outer and medial head of the triceps

Skull Crushers (or lying French presses) are probably my favorite triceps exercise (definitely the one with the coolest name, at least) and one of the best ways to pump up your tri’s. You can do these with a straight barbell or the E-Z curl (cambered) bar, but the E-Z curl is definitely easier on your wrists. For me, I seem to “feel” French presses better when I use the E-Z curl bar, but try them both out and see what you think. Try to lift as heavy as you can when performing skull crushers, but (as usual) not so heavy that you go out of form. Perform the movement slowly and smoothly, focusing on feeling the contraction in your triceps. I like to pause a bit at the top and bottom of each rep (at the bottom to feel the stretch in my tri’s, at the top to give the little buggers a firm squeeze). Triceps are great because you can definitely “feel the burn” when they’re worked correctly. Do this one right and fry those babies.

Performance: Lie faceup on a weight bench, holding a barbell or an E-Z Curl bar at arms’ length above you. Keeping your upper arms stable and hinging just at your elbows, slowly bring the bar down in an arc towards your forehead, then return to the starting position. If possible, use a spotter for safety so this exercise doesn’t live up to its skull-crushing nickname.

Muscle Emphasis: primary emphasis is on the inner and medial heads of the tricep

Tricep pressdowns are another fundamental movement in your triceps routine. They can be done with a straight bar attachment, a V-bar attachment, or a rope attachment. I find the rope attachment to be more difficult as it requires you to add a bit more stabilization when performing the exercise, so pop on the rope if you want an extra challenge. Once again, form and focus is crucial here. I see many people (usually because they are trying to move too much weight) flare their elbows out to the side and turn the tricep pressdown into some sort of inverted bench pressing movement (it looks like they’re pressing down on the plunger of one of those cartoon dynamite detonators lol). To prevent this error in form (which will work your shoulders and chest more than your triceps), be sure to keep your elbows tight at your side and press your hands down in an arc, not straight up and down to the floor. Focus on contracting your triceps and feel the burn.

Muscle Emphasis: outer head of the triceps brachii, secondary emphasis is placed on the medial and innder heads.