Tricep Extensions: 3 Variations Of This Killer Triceps Exercise

Any smart trainer will always emphasise the importance of developing the triceps to his or her clients trainees. An even smarter trainer will know the best kind of exercises to develop the triceps with. I learned early on from the very best that various tricep extensions are the way to go — and I’ve not found out otherwise, yet.

Rather than being a singular exercise tricep extensions are more of a group of exercises which can be performed in a variety of ways.

If you are working out with dumbbells for instance, you may wish to do single arm tricep extensions. This is particularly useful if you have a weak or a smaller tricep you need to isolate and bring up to par.

Or, you may wish to use 2 handed tricep extensions use in a variety of bars from EZ-Curl bars to tricep extension bars to straight barbells. Variety is always good!

Anyway. Here are 3 different ways for you to perform tricep extensions (I’ll assume you are using a barbell):

#1: Seated

1. In an upright seated position take hold of the barbell with an overhand grip of around shoulder width.
2. Press the bar directly up ahead, just as you would a shoulder press, with your elbows locked out.
3. Keeping your upper arms perfectly still and vertical, bend at the elbows and use the resistance of the triceps to slowly lower the bar to the back of the neck.
4. Again using the triceps, bring and bar back up to a lockout overhead.

#2: Flat (Skull Crushers)

1. Laying on your back on a flat bench, grip the barbell with an overhand grip of around shoulder width.
2. And over the bar into a position over the shoulders/chest area as if you were in a lockout in bench press.
3. Keeping the upper arms perfectly still and vertical once more, bend at the elbows taking the weight of the bar on the triceps until the bar is brought down to your forehead.
4. After lightly touching your forehead or near enough, use the power of the triceps to manoeuvre the bar back into a bench press-like lockout — all the while being sure to keep those upper arms in the same position.

#3: Decline (French Curls)

I feel that after a describing Skull crushers there is little need for a step-by-step breakdown of how to perform French curls. The fundamental difference between French curls and skull crushers is that in French curls the arms follow the backwards tilting of the body, which means the bar at lockout ends up backwards from the top of the head rather than above the shoulders.

This variation on the skull crushers is in fact known to be more effective because the pressure is kept on the triceps are all times due to the fact the angle the arm support the weight is not vertical, so the bone structure of a arms are less involved and the muscles more involved.