Arm goals: 4 of the best dumbbell tricep exercises

Biceps may get all the hype, but when it comes to the upper body, your triceps actually do a lot of heavy lifting.

And that’s why you should be making tricep dumbbell exercises a regular part of your workout routine.

That’s right. You don’t need a gym to drill down on the back of your arms with isolation exercises – all you need is a set of dumbbells.

Let’s take a look at why you should be working this muscle and get started with 4 of the best dumbbell exercises for triceps.

How to do it:

1. Lie on your back, knees bent and feet on the floor. Hold a dumbbell in each hand, and bring them together above your chest, palms facing each other.

2. Keeping the dumbbells close together, press the weights upward until your arms are fully extended.

3. Lower the dumbbells back to the starting position with control. Keep your elbows up off the mat throughout.

4. You can also perform this exercise on a flat bench.

2. Dumbbell overhead tricep extension

Why this move? This targets the largest part of your triceps – the long head. It will be working against gravity in every rep to control the lowering of the dumbbell.

How to do it:

1. Stand with your feet in a staggered position – one foot a small step back from the other. (You can go with whichever side feels most comfortable.) Hold a dumbbell in each hand and bring them together above your head.

2. Keep your upper arms close to your ears, your shoulders down and your core tight.

3. Lower the dumbbells behind your head by bending at the elbows. Keep your elbows pointing up toward the ceiling.

4. Extend your arms back up to the starting position.

5. You can regress this move by holding one lighter dumbbell with both hands.

3. Dumbbell reverse chest press

Why this move? The reverse grip places more emphasis on the triceps, so you’re getting maximum muscle engagement as you press upward.

How to do it:

1. Lie on your back, knees bent and feet on the floor, with a dumbbell in each hand in a pronated grip (palms facing your body). Your elbows should be on the floor at around a 45-degree angle to your torso, with the dumbbells held up at either side.

2. Press the dumbbells up until your arms are fully extended above your chest.

3. Slowly bring the dumbbells back to the starting position, maintaining control.

4. This grip can be harder to control than a standard chest press, so start with a lighter dumbbell weight.

4. Dumbbell tricep kickbacks

Why this move? Kickbacks isolate the triceps as your arms fully extend behind your torso. The constant tension throughout also maximizes tricep muscle engagement.

How to do it:

1. Stand with your feet hip-width apart and a dumbbell in each hand. Your elbows should be at 90 degrees and tucked into your sides.

2. Hinge at the hips, lowering your chest to face the floor while keeping your back straight.

3. Drive your fists straight back until your arms are fully extended.

4. Hold the extended position for a moment, feeling the squeeze of your contracted triceps.

5. Bring the dumbbells back to the starting position at a slow and controlled tempo.

6. You can kick both arms back at once or alternate one arm at a time.

Common questions about tricep workouts with dumbbells

You’ve got your dumbbells and now you’ve got the moves. Anything else you need to know about working your triceps? We’ve got the answers.

What’s the best exercise I can do for my triceps?
The four exercises we’ve shown you above are all top tier for targeting triceps. Although we have to say, we asked around our Centr experts and they all have a soft spot for tricep kickbacks as they’re a direct route to pumped up arms.

If you want to get more from your arms in a shorter space of time, we also recommend workout stacking with 28 Days of Arms. This is where you add a short (5-7 minute) workout to the end of your regular workout to work muscles you’ve missed or double down on your target area.

Don’t have time for a full workout? You can also “snack” on the short 28 Days of Arms sessions to make sure you’re still getting that tricep work in.

How do I properly work my triceps with dumbbells?
Firstly, make sure to pick the correct dumbbell weight – this will often be lighter than your usual bicep curl weight. Next, maximize time under tension – don’t rush your reps, make those muscles work for it. And keep your form tight all the way – no swinging your arms or cheating the movement.

What tricep exercise hits all three tricep heads?
Remember how we said we loved tricep kickbacks? That’s because it hits all three heads – the long, lateral and medial head – of the tricep muscle.

If you want to isolate the individual heads by doing triceps exercises with dumbbells, here’s what we recommend:

• Long head – dumbbell overhead tricep extension

• Lateral head – close-grip chest press

• Medial head – reverse-grip chest press

Don’t forget you can work your triceps with bodyweight moves, too. The diamond push-up variation puts more emphasis on the triceps, particularly the medial head. Check out Luke Zocchi’s push-up workout guide for tips on nailing it.

How do you build triceps fast?
Just like building any other muscle, you need to train with good form and regularly challenge your muscles with progressive overload (increasing weight and/or reps) to encourage muscle growth.

Proper nutrition is also essential to getting results. Our guide to building muscle mass will help you get this side of your workout routine on track.

Want more movement advice from the experts?

• 5 fat-burning functional dumbbell exercises
• 5 slam ball exercises to build functional strength
• 4 of the best resistance band core exercises
• 10 surprising benefits of strength training