The Best Dumbbell Triceps Exercises and Workout

When it comes to training, whether it’s a push, pull, or leg day, there are always accessory muscles that assist in the larger muscle groups when performing compound (multi-muscle group) movements. These accessory muscles also need to be trained independently to maximize strength and muscle gains for the larger muscles. When we’re training our chest, one accessory muscle that is critical in training is the Triceps. 

The Triceps

The triceps are located on the back of the upper arm and are responsible for extending the arm at the elbow joint. It assists the pecs in bench presses and the deltoids in shoulder presses. There are three heads to the triceps, but to isolate the triceps, you only need to perform two movement paths to fully train them. As per the name, the Triceps has three heads: The long head, the lateral head, and the medial head. 

The Long Head

The long head of the triceps is located on the portion of your arm that touches your torso. The long head of the triceps gets the most attention when we extend our elbow with our arm above our head. This puts the long head in its most stretched position. 

The Lateral Head

The Lateral head of the triceps is located on the outside portion of the arm. The lateral head of the triceps gets the most attention with exercises where your elbows stay close to your body and your upper arms are more out in front of you, not overhead or flared out. This can be done by doing a lying triceps extension. 

The Medial Head

The Medial Head of the Triceps is located behind the long head and the lateral head. The medial head gets the most attention when the arms are tucked closely to the body. This is primarily done when performing a close-grip bench press with a barbell or a hexagonal dumbbell press. 

The Best Triceps Exercises

Now that we have a better understanding of how the triceps work, we can dive into the movements that work the triceps the best. Although there are two main movement paths to dull work the triceps, we’re going to complete three movements to target the triceps for the most possible growth. All of these movements can be easily done with your set of PowerBlock Adjustable Dumbbells at your strength level. 

Single Arm Overhead Triceps Extension

The single arm overhead triceps extension is a great isolation move that stretches the triceps and builds strength overhead.

• Hold a dumbbell overhead with your arm straight, keeping your upper arm close to your head.
  
  

• Slowly bend your elbow, lowering the dumbbell behind your head while keeping your upper arm steady.
  
  

• Press the dumbbell back up until your arm is fully extended, then repeat.

Dumbbell Skull Crushers

The dumbbell Skull crusher is an oldie but a goodie when it comes to triceps building that targets all three heads of the muscle.

• Lie flat on a bench or floor with dumbbells pressed straight up, arms extended.
  
  

• Bend your elbows, lowering the dumbbells toward the sides of your head (slightly behind it).
  
  

• Extend your arms back to the starting position without moving your upper arms.

JM Press

The JM Press is a hybrid of a skull crusher and close-grip press that emphasizes the triceps.

• Start in the same position as a skull crusher, lying down with dumbbells extended overhead.
  
  

• Lower the dumbbells toward your shoulders by bringing your upper arms closer to your torso and bending your elbows.
  
  

• Press the dumbbells back up like a bench press, finishing with arms straight.

Your at-Home Triceps Workout

Add this simple triceps workout to your programming to optimize the growth of your triceps. Within the table below, you’ll find both warm-up and working sets so that you can get the most out of each set and movement. 

Warm-Up Set

Think of your warm-up sets as the runway that gets you ready for takeoff with your heavier lifts.

• Perform 2 sets of 5 reps, gradually adding weight with each set.
  
  

• Use just enough weight to “wake up” your muscles without draining your energy.
  
  

• With PowerBlock Adjustable Dumbbells, easily switch between warm-up and working weights without interrupting your flow and needing to return to the Dumbbell Stand. 

Working Set

Your working sets are where the real strength-building happens.

• Push to failure, or close to it, so your muscles adapt and grow stronger.
  
  

• Beginners should log weights and reps to discover their true working weight.
  
  

• If failure feels intimidating, choose a weight that makes the final rep tough but doable

This simple triceps workout can be performed 1-2 times per week. It can be a stand alone workout or you can add it to your general push day or chest specific day.