{"id":50565,"date":"2025-08-07T15:09:16","date_gmt":"2025-08-07T15:09:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/50565\/"},"modified":"2025-08-07T15:09:16","modified_gmt":"2025-08-07T15:09:16","slug":"5-exercises-to-build-your-flat-triceps-according-to-a-strength-coach","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/50565\/","title":{"rendered":"5 exercises to build your \u2018flat triceps\u2019, according to a strength coach"},"content":{"rendered":"

When it comes to building bigger arms, most people just do more bicep exercises<\/a>. But it\u2019s actually the triceps that are your secret weapon for filling out your shirt sleeves. They make up two-thirds of your upper arm size. The issue, according to Strength Coach and Physical Therapist, Jeff Cavaliere, is that many people don\u2019t train them effectively.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen we\u2019re talking about filling in those shirt sleeves, you\u2019ve got to target the long head, because this is the head of the triceps that provides the most width, and it’s the one responsible for that big gap or flatness that you\u2019re seeing right now,\u201d he explains in his latest YouTube video<\/a>.<\/p>\n

So, how do you do it?<\/p>\n

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\u201cYou\u2019ve got to find exercises that put it [the tricep] in that shortened position, where your arm is going to finish back behind your body. And then you also have to find exercises that put your shoulder in flexion and your elbow up over head, to put that stretch on that long head of the tricep.\u201d<\/p>\n

These are five tricep exercises that Cavaliere\u00a0recommends to help hit your triceps in both of these positions. You\u2019ll probably recognise a lot of them, and may even be doing a few already in your workouts. But, with a few tweaks from Cavaliere, they\u2019ll help take your triceps from looking flat to full.<\/p>\n

1. Skull crusher<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

(Image credit: Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Stretch position: hits the long head in the lengthened position<\/p>\n

A classic for the triceps that can be performed with dumbbells<\/a>, a barbell, cables, and even resistance bands. But, instead of lowering the bar down towards your forehead, Cavaliere\u00a0says you need to focus on bringing the bar behind your head. \u201cThis will create a greater stretch on the long head of the triceps,\u201d says Cavaliere. \u201cAgain, when I straighten out my elbows, I never allow the arm to drift or travel towards the torso. Once you\u2019ve set this angle back behind you, now it\u2019s just about opening and closing the elbow joint, keeping that arm pointed backwards the entire time, and that\u2019s the way you\u2019ll turn that exercise into a more effective one for building your triceps.\u201d<\/p>\n

Get all the latest news, reviews, deals and buying guides on gorgeous tech, home and active products from the T3 experts<\/p>\n

2. Step through push aways<\/p>\n

Stretch position: hits the long head in the lengthened position<\/p>\n

This is like a tricep push away (more commonly known as a high overhead extension), but better \u2013 according to Cavaliere. Why? Because it allows you to use your body for a little more momentum, so you can push more weight. Perform it just as you would a high overhead extension \u2013 with your arms bent back behind you holding on to a rope or straight bar \u2013 then step forwards with one foot and extend your arms high. By keeping your hands high, Cavaliere\u00a0says more tension is placed on the triceps. Then, as you bring your arms back, step your foot back too and control the eccentric.<\/p>\n

3. Dumbbell overhead extension<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

(Image credit: Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Stretch position: hits the long head in the lengthened position<\/p>\n

A great exercise, but one Cavaliere\u00a0says people struggle with due to their lack of shoulder mobility, which can cause the elbows to flare out to the side, taking the tension off the triceps. To help keep your elbows tucked in, Cavaliere\u00a0suggests using an inclined weight bench<\/a>. \u201cThis actually fixes whatever biomechanical limitations you’re inadvertently avoiding at this moment,\u201d he says. Not only does it offer an insane stretch to the triceps, but it also angles your arms slightly in front of your body, relieving some tension on the shoulders.<\/p>\n

4. The wolverine pull down<\/p>\n

Stretch position: hits the long head in the shortened position<\/p>\n

We wouldn\u2019t blame you if you hadn\u2019t ever heard of this exercise, and it\u2019s because it\u2019s a Cavaliere special. \u201cWhat you do is take a hand-over-hand grip here on the cable machine, then you pull until your elbows are close to your body. After you pull, you extend the backs of your hands as far back behind you as possible. It\u2019s one of the best contractions you\u2019ll get.\u201d Even better, you\u2019ll also be working all the muscles on the back of your body, which is a bonus.<\/p>\n

5. The drag kickback <\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

(Image credit: Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Stretch position: hits the long head in the shortened position<\/p>\n

This exercise is essentially a tricep kickback using dumbbells, but with your chest supported on an incline bench. Cavaliere says the bench is key for three reasons. \u201cNumber one, it gives me a counterforce; I can push down into the bench to drive the dumbbells up more effectively. The second thing, pretty obviously, is it fixes the posture. You\u2019re never going to have to worry again about the lower back fatiguing and tearing apart the mechanics of the exercise. The third thing, is it allows me to perform a \u2018drag\u2019 on the exercise.\u201d When Cavaliere says \u2018drag\u2019 he\u2019s referring to a row; so you\u2019ll first row your arms up, then extend them behind you. \u201cThat ensures I\u2019m getting my elbow as far back into extension so I can maximise the contraction on that long head,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"When it comes to building bigger arms, most people just do more bicep exercises. But it\u2019s actually the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":50566,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[46],"tags":[6647,102,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-50565","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-fitness","8":"tag-fitness","9":"tag-health","10":"tag-uk","11":"tag-united-kingdom","12":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50565","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=50565"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50565\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/50566"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=50565"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=50565"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=50565"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}