Incline Barbell Triceps Extension
Trains the Triceps.
- Equipment
- An adjustable bench and either a barbell or an EZ bar
- Mechanic
- Isolation
- Force
- Push
- Level
- Intermediate
How to do it
- Set an incline bench to about forty-five degrees and lie back with an EZ or straight bar.
- Press the bar up until the arms are straight above your shoulders.
- Set the upper arms so they point up and slightly back, and keep them there.
- Bend the elbows to lower the bar behind your head, following the bench angle.
- Go down until you feel the stretch along the back of the upper arms.
- Straighten the arms back to the start without letting the elbows flare.
Common mistakes
- Letting the upper arms travel forward. The incline puts the arms behind the torso, which is what stretches the long head at the shoulder; bringing them forward gives that up.
- Letting the elbows flare out. They point forward and stay there; flaring shortens the range and brings the chest in.
- Sitting the bench too upright. Past about sixty degrees the arms hang nearly vertical and it becomes a seated overhead extension.
- Going heavy behind the head. The bar travels behind your skull on a bent elbow, and the load has to be one you can stop as well as one you can lift.