Is calisthenics 🤸 an excellent way to build triceps? What exercises should you do? ☝️
✨This article will help you identify the best calisthenics exercises for triceps development and provide a program to get you started.
📌 Calisthenics is one of the best and most effective ways to train your triceps. Using bodyweight as your resistance, you can do various exercises to target all three heads of the triceps muscle.
What is Calisthenics?🤔
🤜Calisthenics is a form of bodyweight training that emphasizes resistance exercises to develop strength, endurance, and flexibility. It was created in ancient Greece to improve overall fitness and athleticism.
Today, calisthenics is used by athletes and everyday people alike to improve fitness and health. Benefits include increased strength, endurance, agility, balance, better posture, and coordination.
🏆Calisthenics doesn’t only improve your workout performance. You also get stronger and better in the real world for every day living. This means free movement that’s free from aches and pains!
Calisthenics is for EVERYONE. You should try out calisthenics the RIGHT WAY if you haven’t already. And when we say, everyone, we mean everyone even at any age. If you’re unsure, read this: 📍 Am I Too Old for Calisthenics?
🧐Why is Calisthenics Good for Triceps?
Calisthenics is an excellent way to train your triceps because it allows you to use your body weight as resistance that’s free of charge. 🎯 This is also beneficial because calisthenics exercises can target all three heads of the muscle (long head, lateral head, and medial head) with various movement patterns.
At the same time, your triceps are used in conjunction with other muscle groups simulating how the human body should actually move: in unison and synergistically facilitating movement.
💪Strength and muscle development from calisthenics tricep training transfer to other calisthenics movement and everyday tasks. Expect making gains in anything you do that involves your triceps.
🏆The Benefits of Doing Calisthenics
Unlike traditional weight training, calisthenics requires no equipment. This makes it a perfect choice for people who want to get in shape but don’t have access to a gym or weight machines.🤛
Calisthenics is also a great way to improve overall fitness and athleticism. It develops strength, endurance, agility, balance, and coordination.
⭐️Affordable
As calisthenics require no equipment, it is affordable to train. Therefore, you can train whenever and wherever you want, without having to pay for a gym membership or expensive equipment.
⭐️Time-Saving
Calisthenics exercises can be done anywhere and at any time. This makes it a convenient and time-saving option for busy people. In addition, bodyweight calisthenics exercises are relatively short and can be done in circuits to save even more time.
⭐️Variety
Calisthenics offers a lot of variety. There are endless exercises you can do with your bodyweight alone. This keeps your workouts exciting and prevents boredom.
There are a lot more reasons why training calisthenics is an excellent option for developing a strong, health body. You can read more on the advantages of calisthenics training in this article: Is Calisthenics Really A Better Way to Train?
How do you get stronger in calisthenics?💪💪
👉There are tons of myths and misconceptions surrounding calisthenics. Bodyweight training has existed for thousands of years. It’s an effective training approach to gain strength which many people fail to see because of the wrong perception mainstream media and “gym bros” have associated to it.
🏋🏼♀️ Weight lifting has always been a more popular method of strength simply because it’s more straight forward to induce progressive overload and man multi-million corporation capitalizes on its heavy reliance on equipment. They tend to market it as “more effective” so you can go to gym’s or purchase their equipment.
HOWEVER, through proper implementation of protocols, you can achieve a progressive calisthenics approach that can deliver the same (if not, more) result as any other popular resistance training.🔥
👊Calisthenics can be adjusted to induce progressive overload so you can also build muscle, gain strength, and lose fat using only your bodyweight.
Many people fail to make calisthenics harder and only rely on adding reps and sets. 👉While this is STILL effective for building muscle, it’s suboptimal for building strength. This is when progressive calisthenics kicks by making the exercise scale into a more stimulating challenge to build strength and muscle.💪
You can grow stronger and build muscle with calisthenics.
💥7 Best Calisthenics Exercises For Your Triceps
Now that you know the benefits of calisthenics for triceps let’s look at how to do some of the best exercises.
1. ✅ Dips
🤜Beginners can first study the dip progression to get the basic movement pathway, strength, and mobility for the exercise.
For more experienced athletes, you can proceed to the ring dip which is a lot more challenging but opens up more potential for your triceps growth. Here’s the 📍 Ultimate Guide for Ring Dips.
TAKE NOTE: You need to have full mastery of the regular dips before moving on the gymnastics rings.
How to perform:
- To do a dip, hop into a dip station or a place two high chars shoulder-width apart from each other.
- Push down on the surface and elevate your feet to begin in the support hold position with locked out arms.
- Slowly lower your bodyweight down until your elbows are at a 90-degree angle.
- Pause for a second, and then press yourself back up to the starting position.
- Repeat for reps.
Coaching Pointers:
- Scapula retracted and depressed at all times
- Posterior pelvic tilt
- Engage core
- Keep your elbows tucked close to your body
- Keep your upper body upright
- Lean backward a bit to put the emphasis on your triceps
2. ✅ Triceps Extension
🤜This exercise is the bodyweight counterpart of the dumbbell tricep extension. It’s perfect for “isolating” the triceps and adding more volume to your training.
How to perform:
- Begin in a regular push-up position.
- From there, lower down your elbows to the floor while keeping it tucked close to your body.
- Push from your triceps to get back into the starting position.
- Repeat for reps.
Coaching Pointers:
- You can move your hands upwards further away from the center to further challenge your triceps and core
- Beginners can perform this with your hands on an elevated surface
- For advanced athletes, proceed to the gymnastics rings for some added instability
- Core engaged at all times
- Posterior pelvic tilt
- Visualize your triceps facilitating the movement for more core activation
3. ✅ Close-Grip Push-Up
🤜The close-grip or diamond push-ups put more emphasis on your triceps which is perfect for our current goal. It’s also a compound movement pattern that will help you progress towards the one-arm push-up in the future.
How to perform:
- Start in a plank position with your hands closer together than usual to do a close-grip push-up.
- Lower your body down until your chest touches the floor.
- Pause for a second, and then press yourself back up to the starting position.
- Repeat for reps.
Coaching Pointers:
- Core engaged at all times
- Posterior pelvic tilt
- Shoulders depressed and retracted
- Elbows tucked close to your body
- Body straight throughout the movement
4. ✅ Triceps Dips
🤜This dip variation lessens the demand from your chest and puts it more into your triceps. Excellent for beginners to advanced. More advanced athletes can opt for a higher rep range.
How to perform:
- To do a triceps dip, place your hands on the edge of a bench or chair with your feet out in front of you.
- Slowly lower your bodyweight down until your elbows are at a 90-degree angle.
- Pause for a second, and then press yourself back up to the starting position.
- Repeat for reps.
Coaching pointers:
- Elbows bent until 90 degrees or slightly deeper if mobility permits
- Shoulders fully depressed and retracted at all times
- Core engaged
- Don’t let your elbows flare outwards
- Fully body tension
5. ✅ Bench Dip with Elevated Legs
🤜By elevating the legs, the assistance from your feet is lessened making this exercise perfect for more experienced calisthenics athletes.
How to perform:
- To do a triceps dip, place your hands on the edge of a bench or chair with your feet out in front of you placed also on an elevated surface.
- Slowly lower your bodyweight down until your elbows are at a 90-degree angle.
- Pause for a second, and then press yourself back up to the starting position.
- Repeat for reps.
Coaching pointers:
- Elbows bent until 90 degrees or slightly deeper if mobility permits
- Shoulders fully depressed and retracted at all times
- Core engaged
- Don’t let your elbows flare outwards
- Fully body tension
6. ✅ Narrow Inclined Bench Push-ups
🤜Higher rep ranges work wonders for this exercise variation. The elevated hands lets you lessen the load on your chest so you can primarily focus your efforts towards your triceps.
How to perform:
- Start in a plank position with your hands closer together on an elevated surface.
- Lower your body down until your chest touches the elevated surface.
- Pause for a second, and then press yourself back up to the starting position.
- Repeat for reps.
Coaching pointers:
- Core engaged at all times
- Posterior pelvic tilt
- Shoulders depressed and retracted
- Elbows tucked close to your body
- Body straight throughout the movement
- Adjust the difficulty of the push-up by moving through different height. The lower, the harder. The higher, the easier.
7. ✅ Tricep ring dips
🤜Tricep ring dips’ added instability increases the difficulty of the exercise. You need to exert more effort with your shoulders, chest, and triceps to maintain control of your rings while performing the movement.
How to perform:
- Start in a support hold position on the rings with the feet planted on the floor in front of you.
- Lower your body down until your arms are at a 90-degree angle.
- Pause for a second, and then press yourself back up to the starting position.
- Repeat for reps.
Coaching pointers:
- Elbows bent until 90 degrees or slightly deeper if mobility permits
- Shoulders fully depressed and retracted at all times
- Core engaged
- Don’t let your elbows flare outwards
- Fully body tension
These exercises are doable inside the comfort of your own home, with very little equipment required. All you need is a chair or bench, gymnastics rings (very accessible and affordable), and some weights (if you want to add resistance). But, of course, you can also do these exercises outside, at the park, or on the beach.
If you even need some calisthenics equipment, keep in mind that they are very accessible or you can always find an alternative. More help regarding calisthenics equipment in this article: 📍 The Ultimate Guide to Calisthenics Equipment & Cheap Way to Replace Them
🔎How do you work the long head of your triceps with calisthenics?
As the largest muscle group in your upper arm, your triceps are crucial to adding both size and strength. 💯
Calisthenics for the triceps is a great way to target this muscle group. calisthenics for triceps exercises include:
- Push-ups
- Dips
- Tricep extensions
- Close-grip push-ups
- Bench dips
While all of these exercises will work your triceps to some degree, some are better than others for targeting specific areas.
For example, push-ups are great for working the long head of your triceps, while dips target all three heads equally. Likewise, tricep extensions and the overhead tricep press emphasize the lateral and medial heads.
⚡️ No matter which exercises you choose, focus on proper form and technique. Start with a lightweight and gradually increase the load as you get stronger. Remember, quality over quantity!
get a personalised calisthenics training plan
🧐Do pushups work triceps?
Push-ups are among the most popular calisthenics exercises and work for various muscle groups in the upper body, including the triceps. To work the long head of your triceps, do pushups with your hands close together so that your elbows are close to your body. According to a recent study, you can also point your hands outwards to further hit the triceps even in the normal position.
Here are some of the commonly known push-up forms:
- Diamond Pushups or the Triangle Push-up – strengthens the zipper body and core with more focus on the triceps.
- Wide-Grip Pushups – targets the chest and triceps more than regular pushups.
- Clap Pushups – for explosive strength and power.
- Eccentric ( negative ) pushups – slows the descent to increase the time under tension, adding resistance and working muscles harder.
- Spiderman Pushups – targets your chest and triceps, as well as your shoulders, abs, and lower back.
😱How do you hit all three heads of the triceps?
The three heads of the triceps, the long head, medial head, and lateral head, can be targeted with different exercises. For example, the long head is targeted with dips, push-ups, and triceps extensions.
The medial head is targeted with exercises such as skull crushers and a close grip bench press. The lateral head is targeted with cable pressdowns and reverse grip bench presses.
🎯Calisthenics is a versatile form of exercise that can target all three heads of the triceps. By manipulating body positions, you can ensure that all three heads are being worked on and that your triceps are getting a well-rounded workout.
😲How many calisthenics tricep exercises should I do?
This highly depends on your fitness level. If you are a beginner, start with 2-3 exercises and work your way up. If you are more advanced, you can do 4-5 exercises. Just make sure to target all three heads of the triceps with various exercises.
A 2017 meta-analysis recommended a range of 10-20 sets per muscle group to maximize muscle growth. However, trained athletes can potentially use more sets considering other factors involved such as skill level, recovery rate, nutrition, and goals.
But the best way to train your triceps is by implementing a PERSONALISED approach to calisthenics. Cookie-cutter workouts or one-size-fits-all workouts can actually be sabotaging the progress you SHOULD be making in your training journey.
That’s why we’re an advocate of PERSONALISED, ADAPTIVE, and PROGRESSIVE Calisthenics training. These three key attributes of training ensures your safe, efficient, and highly effective progress thanks to accommodation to your current skill level, needs, and goals.
If you want to begin your personalised calisthenics training, then identifying your body’s strengths and weaknesses are the first step.
TAKE THE ASSESSMENT NOW!
📌Final Thoughts on Calisthenics Exercises for Triceps
Calisthenics is a great alternative to weights when targeting the triceps. In addition, calisthenics offers many ways to train multiple muscles by just using your body weight.
This is a great way to build strength and muscle size. When performing calisthenics exercises, make sure to use proper form and technique to get the most out of the exercise and avoid any injuries. Start with a lightweight and gradually increase the weight as you get stronger. Achieve your triceps goals with calisthenics! 💪