Mariposas
Best Triceps Exercises
By Zachary, builder of Mariposas · Reviewed against published exercise-science sources (references)
· Last updated June 2026
The triceps make up roughly two-thirds of your upper arm, so if arm size is a goal, programming them thoughtfully matters far more than most people expect. The three heads (long, medial, and lateral) each get recruited differently depending on elbow position and whether the shoulder is flexed, which is exactly why a routine built around one or two cable pushdown variations misses most of the muscle. Effective triceps training means selecting exercises that stress the long head under a stretch, not just exercises that feel easy to load. Junk volume here tends to come from moves done at the end of a session with sloppy lockout mechanics and no tracking. Log every set free in Mariposas, earn pets for your progress, and you'll quickly spot which exercises are actually moving the needle versus which ones are just making you tired.
Barbell Bench Press
Incline Bench Press
Decline Bench Press
Dumbbell Bench Press
Incline Dumbbell Press
Push-Up
Machine Chest Press
Overhead Press
Dumbbell Shoulder Press
Machine Shoulder Press
Tricep Pushdown
Skull Crusher
Overhead Tricep Extension
Dips
Thruster
Close-Grip Bench Press
Cable Tricep Kickback
How to train your triceps
Triceps respond well to a mix of overhead movements (which put the long head on stretch) and pressing or extension work done with the arm at the side, and many coaches program both within the same week rather than picking one style. Volume tends to be distributed across two or three sessions rather than hammered in one session, partly because triceps already accumulate indirect work during any chest or shoulder pressing day. Rep ranges across published hypertrophy literature vary widely, but you'll often see overhead extensions programmed in moderate rep ranges where a full stretch is achievable, while closer-grip pressing variations are loaded heavier. Technique cues like keeping the upper arm still during extensions and achieving full elbow lockout (without hyperextending) consistently separate lifters who see arm growth from those spinning their wheels.
FAQ
- Why do my triceps feel fine but my elbows ache during overhead extensions?
- Overhead extensions place the long head of the triceps in a fully lengthened position, which also puts traction stress on the distal triceps tendon and the tissues around the olecranon. A very common culprit is flaring the elbows wide under load, which shifts stress away from the muscle and onto the joint. Narrowing elbow width, reducing the load, and controlling the eccentric (lowering) phase rather than letting the weight drop and yank the joint tend to resolve mild irritation. Persistent elbow pain that doesn't respond to a week or two of load reduction is worth getting checked out by a sports medicine professional.
- How different is the lateral head versus the long head, and does it change exercise selection?
- The lateral head sits on the outer arm and doesn't cross the shoulder joint, so it gets recruited hard during pressing and pushdown patterns regardless of shoulder position. The long head does cross the shoulder and is significantly more stretched when the arm is raised overhead, which is why skull crushers done flat produce less long-head stretch than the same movement done on a decline or overhead. If your triceps look decent from the front but the muscle belly looks short or thin when viewed from the side, long-head work is usually the gap. Lateral head development tends to take care of itself via bench pressing and dips.
- Can I train triceps on the same day as biceps, or should they be on opposite days?
- Both approaches work, and each has a practical case. Pairing them on an arm day keeps the joint (elbow) warm and allows for supersets that save time without compromising either muscle. Training them on opposite days can work if your programming already puts heavy chest pressing (indirect triceps work) on one day and heavy pulling (indirect biceps work) on another, since you'd essentially be doubling up fatigue. The more important variable is whether you're arriving at triceps work with enough energy to train them hard, which is harder to do if they've already been hammered by two hours of chest pressing immediately before.
- Is close-grip bench press really a triceps exercise, or is it just a bench press variation?
- It's genuinely both, and that's part of what makes it useful. Narrowing grip width on a bench press reduces pectoral contribution and shifts more demand to the triceps, particularly during the lockout portion of the lift. The catch is that grip width matters less than elbow tuck: keeping the elbows tucked toward the torso, rather than flared, is what actually changes muscle recruitment. Many lifters find they can load close-grip bench meaningfully heavier than isolation extensions, which makes it a practical choice for adding progressive overload to triceps training without relying entirely on isolation work.