7 Best Tricep Exercises and Workouts for Bigger, Stronger Arms

May 20, 2026 11 min read

TL;DR

Triceps make up two-thirds of your arm mass. Most people obsess over bicep workouts while their triceps stay small and soft. The triceps brachii has three separate heads - long, lateral, and medial - and they respond to different stimuli. If your goal is to build arms that look impressive, then you need to know how to target all 3 tricep heads. Overhead work hits the long head hard, dips and pressing variations build the lateral head of tricep and isolation work adds polish. This tricep workout guide walks you through the seven best tricep exercises for beginners as well as pros, how to structure tricep workouts that work, and which movements matter most for your goals.

Understanding Your Triceps — The Three Heads of The Tricep

The triceps brachii isn't a single muscle that does a single job. You've got three heads of the tricep, each with different attachment points, and each responding differently to different movements. You ignore this, you plateau. You learn how to target all 3 tricep heads properly, you build arms.

Long Head (Biggest, Most Visible, Needs Overhead Work)

The long head starts at your shoulder blade and runs down the back of your arm. Because it crosses the shoulder joint, it's the only tricep head that gets fully stretched when your arm goes overhead. This is important. If you want bigger arms (and most people do), the long head is where you build that size. It's the largest of the three heads of the tricep. Train it heavy, train it often, and your arms grow. Neglect it, and you'll chase tiny isolation exercises forever without real results.

Lateral Head Of Tricep (Outer Sweep, Most Visible From the Side)

The lateral head of tricep sits on the outside of your arm and creates that horseshoe shape when you flex. It's what people notice first when you wear a tank top. Dips, pushdowns, and pressing movements target it well. Build the lateral head, and your arms will look defined from every angle.

Medial Head (Deepest, Underlies the Other Two, Stabilises Elbow)

The medial head runs deep underneath the other two. It doesn't add much visual size, but it's important for elbow stability and pressing strength. Most heavy compound movements hit it naturally. You don't need to obsess over it, but know that it's working during your main lifts.

The 7 Best Tricep Exercises (Ranked by Head Targeted)

Close-Grip Bench Press (Compound, Medial + Lateral Head)

This is heavy, it's compound, and it builds strength fast. When your hands are closer together on the bar, your triceps do more work than they would on a standard bench press. Your chest still gets hit, but the triceps are the primary movers.

How to do it:

Lie on a bench with feet flat on the floor
Grip the barbell with hands about shoulder-width apart (or slightly narrower)
Lower the bar to your mid-chest, keeping elbows tucked close to your body
Press it back up hard, feeling your triceps do the work
Don't lock out completely - keep slight tension in the muscle

Common mistakes:

Gripping too wide. If your hands are wide, you're doing chest, not triceps.
Elbows flaring out. Keep them in. This is non-negotiable.
Using a weight that's too heavy and losing form. Drop the ego, keep the form.

Coaching cue: Think about pressing with your triceps, not your chest. Feel them work through the entire movement.

Image source: Inspire USA Foundation

Tricep Dips (Compound, Lateral + Medial Head)

Dips are one of the best tricep exercises for building strength and size. You're moving your entire body weight, which is always a good stimulus for growth.

How to do it:

Use a dip station or bench
Lower yourself by bending your elbows until they hit roughly 90 degrees
Keep your torso as upright as possible (leaning forward turns it into a chest exercise)
Push back up without fully locking out your elbows at the top
Feel your triceps contract at the top of each rep

Common mistakes:

Dipping too low and straining your shoulders
Leaning too far forward
Letting your shoulders move up toward your ears

Coaching cue: Straight up, straight down, don't lean. Lock your shoulders back and down before you start, and keep them there.

Image source: Burn the Fat Inner Circle

Skull Crushers / Lying Tricep Extension (Isolation, Long Head)

This exercise is named "skull crushers" because you lower the weight toward your head. Don't actually crush your skull. Use a weight you can control. This is one of the best tricep exercises with dumbbells at home or in the gym because you only need a bench and a dumbbell.

How to do it:

Lie on a bench holding a dumbbell or barbell above your chest
Keep your upper arms still and angle them slightly back (not straight up)
Bend your elbows and lower the weight behind your head, not toward your face
Feel the stretch in your triceps at the bottom
Extend back up without locking out

Common mistakes:

Lowering toward your forehead instead of behind your head (you miss the long head stretch)
Moving your upper arms (only your forearms should move)
Using momentum instead of control

Coaching cue: Keep your upper arms locked in place. Lower slow - 2 to 3 seconds on the way down. Pause at the bottom where you feel the stretch, then extend back up hard.

Image source: Burn the Fat Inner Circle

Overhead Tricep Extension (Isolation, Long Head — Best for Size)

If you want bigger arms, this is the single best tricep exercise to add to your routine. The overhead position puts your long head under maximum stretch, and the long head is where the size comes from. This tricep exercise with dumbbells can be done anywhere.

How to do it:

Stand holding a dumbbell with both hands, cupped at the top
Press it overhead with arms nearly extended (don't lock them out)
Bend your elbows and lower the dumbbell behind your head
Lower until you feel a real stretch, then extend back up
Keep your elbows pointed forward and close to your head the entire time

Common mistakes:

Elbows flaring out to the sides (keeps tension off the triceps)
Arching your lower back (use your core, not your spine)
Not lowering far enough to feel the stretch
Using a weight that's too heavy and forcing momentum

Coaching cue: This is all about the stretch. Lower slowly, feel it deeply, then drive back up. Remember: quality over weight every single time.

Image source: Inspire USA Foundation

Tricep Pushdown / Cable Pushdown (Isolation, Lateral + Medial)

Cable tricep exercises give you constant tension throughout the movement because the cable resists even at the top. Cable tricep exercises are different from free weights, where tension drops at lockout.

How to do it:

Stand at a cable machine with the pulley high
Grab the attachment (rope, V-bar, or straight bar) with elbows bent and at your sides
Push down hard until your arms are nearly straight
Control the weight coming back up (don't let it snap back)
Keep elbows locked in place - only your forearms move during the cable tricep exercises

Common mistakes:

Using your shoulders and back to generate momentum
Not extending all the way to full elbow extension
Letting elbows drift away from your sides
Bringing the attachment too high on the eccentric

Coaching cue: Keep your elbows glued to your sides. Push hard and squeeze at the bottom, control them on the way back. That's the entire movement.

Image source: Inspire USA Foundation

Tricep Kickbacks (Isolation, Long + Lateral Head)

Kickbacks might look easy, but they're brutal when done right. They're one of the best tricep exercises for beginners because they force strict form - you can't cheat with momentum. These tricep exercises with dumbbells require nothing but proper technique.

How to do it:

Hold a dumbbell in each hand, feet hip-width apart
Hinge forward at the hips until your torso is nearly parallel to the floor
Keep your back straight and your core tight
Bend your elbows to 90 degrees, dumbbells at hip level
Extend your arms backward hard, squeezing your triceps
Lower back down with control

Common mistakes:

Using momentum or swinging the weight
Rounding your back
Letting your upper arms drop
Using a weight that's too heavy

Coaching cue: Your elbows are the hinge, everything else stays still. Move slowly and feel your triceps the entire time.

Image source: Inspire USA Foundation

Diamond Push-Ups (Bodyweight, All Heads — Best Home Option)

No equipment? Do diamond push-ups. Your hands form a diamond shape (thumbs and index fingers touching) directly under your chest, which shifts the work hard onto your triceps. This is also one of the most ideal tricep exercises for beginners since it doesn’t require any equipment.

How to do it:

Get into a plank with hands positioned under your chest, fingers touching to form a diamond
Lower your body by bending your elbows, keeping them tight to your torso
Lower until your chest nearly touches your hands
Push back up and squeeze your triceps at the top
Keep your body in a straight line - don't let your hips sag

Common mistakes:

Placing hands too far forward or too wide (ruins the tricep emphasis)
Letting your hips drop
Flaring elbows outward
Going too low and straining your wrists

Coaching cue: Keep your elbows tight. Maintain a straight line from head to heels and squeeze hard at the top.

Image source: Inspire USA Foundation

Long Head Tricep Exercises — Why They Matter Most

If you're serious about building bigger arms, you need to understand this: the long head of the tricep is the largest of the three heads. Training the long head properly is what creates visible arm size. Most people who say "my arms won't grow" skip overhead work entirely. They do pushdowns and dips, never touch an overhead tricep extension, and then act confused when their arms stay small.

Here’s the thing: the long head of tricep only gets fully stretched when your arm is overhead or significantly behind your torso. Pushdowns and dips don’t fully train it in that position. If you want to build the long head of tricep properly, you need movements like overhead tricep extensions or skull crushers. Train at least one of them once a week - twice is even better. Just don’t skip them altogether.

How to Structure Your Tricep Workout

For Pure Strength (1-5 Reps, Heavy Compound Focus)

Go for heavy and low reps. Use the close-grip bench press or dips as your main lift. Do 4-6 sets of 1-5 reps with 2-3 minutes rest between sets. The weight should be heavy. Add one isolation movement after for higher reps to build some volume. That's it.

For Muscle Size / Hypertrophy (6-12 Reps, Compound + Isolation)

This is where most people should train. Start with a heavy compound (close-grip bench or dips), then move into isolation work (overhead extensions, pushdowns). Do 3-4 sets of 6-12 reps per exercise with 60-90 seconds rest. Train triceps twice per week. This approach builds strength and size without burning you out.

For Muscular Endurance (13-20 Reps, Lighter Weight)

Use lighter weights and shorter rest (30-60 seconds between sets). Do 2-3 sets of 13-20 reps per exercise. This is useful for cutting phases or injury prevention, but won't build maximum size.

Sample Tricep Workout — Gym

EXERCISE	SETS	REPS	REST
Close-Grip Bench Press	4	6-8	2 min
Skull Crushers (Dumbbells)	3	8-10	90 sec
Tricep Dips	3	8-12	90 sec
Cable Pushdown	3	12-15	60 sec

This hits all three heads of the tricep with heavy compound work first, then isolation for volume.

Sample Tricep Workout — Home / No Equipment

EXERCISE	SETS	REPS	REST
Diamond Push-Ups	3	8-12	90 sec
Bench Dips	3	8-15	90 sec
Diamond Push-Ups (Slow Tempo)	2	6-10	60 sec

Tricep exercises at home don't necessarily need a gym. These work well. You can make tricep exercises at home even more challenging by elevating your feet, slowing your tempo, or pausing at the bottom.

How to Train Triceps With Chest, Shoulders, or on Their Own

Chest and Tricep Workout — How to Pair Them

Tricep workouts pair naturally with chest workouts because both involve pressing. Train chest first (you're fresh), then hit triceps. This way, you do your heavy pressing first, then move into direct tricep work.

A typical split looks like: barbell bench → incline press → dips (hits both) → skull crushers → pushdowns.

Push Day — Where Triceps Fit in a Push/Pull/Legs Split

Triceps go on your push day with chest and shoulders. Horizontal pressing first, then vertical pressing, then direct tricep work. This keeps triceps fresh enough for heavy overhead extensions while using them as secondary movers on chest and shoulder lifts.

The order matters: bench press → overhead press → close-grip bench or dips → overhead extensions → pushdowns.

Tricep-Only Arm Day

Train heavy compounds first (dips, close-grip bench), then move into isolation work (overhead extensions, pushdowns, kickbacks). A full arm day means 12-16 sets for triceps and 12-16 sets for biceps. This isn't something you do every week - maybe once per week if you're dedicated to arm growth.

Pair proper tricep workouts and bicep workouts together, and you build balanced arms.

Common Tricep Training Mistakes to Avoid

Elbows flaring: When your elbows flare out, your shoulders take the load. So keep them in, during every single rep.
Chasing weight instead of quality: You might see someone throwing heavy weights around with terrible form and think that's impressive. It's not. Controlled reps build muscle, sloppy reps often lead to injuries.
Skipping overhead work: This is the biggest mistake. A lot of people focus only on pushdown movements and wonder why they don’t see results. You need to perform overhead tricep exercises to build the long head of the tricep. Period.
Ignoring compounds: Isolation exercises are fine, but they're finishing touches. Build your foundation with heavy compound movements first.
Not enough volume: Aim for 12-15 sets of direct tricep work per week across 2-3 sessions. Less than that and you're not doing enough stimulus for growth.

Fuel Your Tricep Training Right

You can train hard in the gym and perform challenging tricep workouts and bicep workouts, but without proper recovery and nutrition, muscle growth is limited. Your triceps need protein after training to repair damaged muscle tissue and grow back stronger.

After a tough tricep session, your muscles become highly responsive to amino acids. Consuming around 25-30g of high-quality protein within the next few hours helps stimulate muscle protein synthesis (the process your body uses to build new muscle tissue). Leucine is especially important here, as it acts like a signal that tells your body it’s time to start rebuilding.VPA's Whey Protein Isolate (WPI) delivers 27g of protein per serving with 4.2g of leucine. It absorbs fast and gives your triceps exactly what they need to recover and grow.

But recovery is only half the equation. Strength and performance matter just as much. Your muscles run on ATP during heavy sets, but those stores deplete fast. This is why muscle recovery supplements paired with whey protein and creatine work so well together.

VPA's Creatine Monohydrate increases your muscles' phosphocreatine stores, which regenerate ATP faster during high-intensity work. This means more reps before fatigue and more stimulus for growth. It's one of the best supplements to increase strength and power output - exactly what you need to progress on close-grip bench and dips. Take 5g daily before training.

Bottom Line

Your triceps make up half your arm, so stop treating them like an afterthought. Focus on heavy compound movements like dips and close-grip bench presses to build strength and overall size. Add overhead exercises in your tricep workout plan, like overhead extensions and skull crushers to target the long head (the part that contributes most to arm mass). Finish with isolation work like pushdowns and kickbacks for extra volume and detail. Train triceps twice per week, keep most of your reps in the 6-12 range, and add weight when you can. Hit all three heads of the tricep consistently, follow this tricep workout guide with tricep exercises for beginners, and arm growth will follow.

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