Bodyweight Triceps Workout
Template
| Parts | Exercises | Sets | Reps/Duration | Rest Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Warm-Up | Light Mobility - Joint # | 1 - 2 | 5 - 30 | none - 2 min |
| Warm-Up Set/s | 1 - 2 | 1 - 8 | 2 - 5 min | |
| Primary | Long/Medial-Lateral Triceps Bias | 2 - 3 | 4 - 8 / near failure | 3 - 5 mins |
| Secondary | Long/Medial-Lateral Triceps Bias | 1 - 2 | 4 - 8 / near failure | 3 - 5 mins |
Workout Sample 1
| Parts | Exercises | Sets | Reps/Duration | Rest Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Warm-Up | Light Mobility Drill | 1 | 10 - 20 | none - 2 min |
| Warm-Up Set | 1 | 1 - 8 | 2 - 5 mins | |
| Primary | Diamond Push Ups | 2 | 4 - 8 / near failure | 3 - 5 mins |
Workout Sample 2
| Parts | Exercises | Sets | Reps/Duration | Rest Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Warm-Up | Light Mobility Drill | 1 | 10 - 20 | none - 2 min |
| Warm-Up Set | 1 | 1 - 8 | 2 - 5 mins | |
| Primary | Diamond Push Ups | 2 | 4 - 8 / near failure | 3 - 5 mins |
| Secondary | Bodyweight Triceps Extensions | 1 | 4 - 8 / near failure | 3 - 5 mins |
Workout Sample 3
| Parts | Exercises | Sets | Reps/Duration | Rest Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Warm-Up | Light Mobility Drill | 1 | 10 - 20 | none - 2 min |
| Warm-Up Set | 1 | 1 - 8 | 2 - 5 mins | |
| Primary | Sphinx Push Ups | 2 | 4 - 8 / near failure | 3 - 5 mins |
| Secondary | Diamond Push Ups | 1 | 4 - 8 / near failure | 3 - 5 mins |
Workout Information:
Description:
This workout routine is designed to primarily work the triceps brachii, or simply triceps. Although all heads of the triceps work together in all elbow extension exercises, there are ways to bias them. This routine provides the ability to focus on a particular head of the triceps, such as the long head or the medial and lateral heads.
Most importantly, this routine prioritizes stimulus and fatigue management, ensuring you can recover for the next training session while removing unnecessary work and further limiting fatigue.
Warm-Up
To properly warm up for this routine, you simply need to warm up the muscles around the shoulder, elbow, and wrist joints by moving them around with intent or doing some named mobility movements. Then, do some warm-up sets for the main exercise. For example:
Light Mobility Drill: Shoulder Circles -> Elbow Circles -> Wrist Circles for a round or two with enough reps for you to feel them working.
Warm-Up Set/s: You can either do an easier variation or modified version of your first exercise, or do your exercise with some reps far from failure.
Just make sure that whatever you do is just enough to work and warm up your muscles, not tire them, so you can perform your best in your working sets.
Exercise Selection
Above all, make sure that the exercise is primarily working the triceps. Then, determine if you can perform the exercise and go near or until failure within the recommended rep range, while also considering the stability aspect of the exercise. While it is okay to use an exercise where you can perform higher rep ranges, it's not advisable nor efficient if your goal is hypertrophy—a major limitation of purely bodyweight training.
If you're strong enough to go far beyond the recommended rep range and you don't have a choice at the moment to change the exercise or simply prefer not changing it, you can continue using it and go near or until failure, just like when performing it within the specified rep range. Just know that there will be some unwanted differences in terms of growth stimulus and fatigue.
When multiple options meet the criteria, prefer the simpler one — no need to add complexity where it doesn't serve a purpose.
Proximity to Failure
While it is okay to go until failure, especially at the start when you don't yet know what that feels like and want to avoid undertraining, it's generally recommended to use it sparingly and instead leave 1-2 repetitions in reserve (RIR). This is especially true for exercises earlier in the session — conserving energy and limiting fatigue there helps you maintain good performance on the exercises that follow.
Training Frequency
Depending on your recovery rate, you can perform this routine 2-3 times per week.
Short Guide: Customize it depending on your goals and needs
Exercise Selection
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