Tricep Workout: 3 Routines, Exercises, Sets and Reps

The best tricep exercises

Your triceps sit on the back of your arm and their job is to straighten your elbow. They have three parts, and one of them, the long head, also crosses your shoulder. That is why arm position matters: with your arm overhead, that part works more stretched than with your arm at your side.

One study compared the two positions. The extension with the arm overhead grew the triceps about 1.4 times more than the same extension with the arm at the side (Maeo et al., 2023). It is one study, but it is enough for every session in this guide to include one.

Overhead extension. The first one worth adding. At the gym, the cable overhead tricep extension. At home, the loop band overhead tricep extension.
Tricep pushdown. The tricep pushdown is easy to learn and lets you add sets without tiring the rest of your body. It also works with a V bar.
Skullcrusher. You do it lying down, with your elbows pointing up, and it puts your arm in an in-between position. It works with dumbbells or a cable. If it bothers your elbows, switch to the cable.
Close grip bench press. The close grip bench press is the tricep exercise where you will move the most weight, and it also works your chest. It is useful for tracking your progress.
Dips. The tricep dip loads your triceps with your own bodyweight. If you cannot do several reps yet, use the assisted dip.

To pick others, see the full list of tricep exercises, each with a photo and step-by-step instructions.

Tricep workout at the gym

Start with the close grip bench press, because it is the heaviest and the one done first gains the most strength (Nunes et al., 2021). The overhead extension comes next, and the cable exercises with your arm lower come last.

Full tricep workout: 4 exercises and 13 sets. Each card shows sets × reps and rest.

That is 13 direct sets, so it suits a day when your triceps arrive rested. If you do it after training chest, keep only the overhead extension and the pushdown: that is 7 sets, and the press already did part of the work. That pairing is ready in the chest and tricep workout, and a full arm day is in the arm workout.

Dumbbell tricep workout

Dumbbells and a bench are enough. All these exercises only move your elbow, so you do not need much weight. The session starts with the dumbbell tricep extension, done with a single dumbbell held in both hands.

On the dumbbell kickback it is easy for your arm to drop as you tire. Keep your elbow high and still for the whole set, even if you need less weight. The single arm dumbbell tricep extension shows whether one side is falling behind. When the dumbbells you have stop being enough, add reps or lower more slowly before changing the weight.

Tricep workout at home, without machines

Without weights, you train your triceps with narrow push-ups and a resistance band. Muscle grows similarly with light or heavy loads when the sets are hard (Schoenfeld et al., 2017), so the rep ranges are higher here and each set should end close to failure. You only need a band and a sturdy place to anchor it.

Tricep workout at home: 4 exercises and 13 sets.

Still struggling with the diamond push up? Start with the close grip push up, with your hands a little narrower than your shoulders, and move to the diamond when you reach 15 reps. If you reach 20 reps with the band without effort, use a stronger one or hold it shorter.

How many tricep sets to do per week

To build muscle, what matters most is how many hard sets each muscle does per week (Schoenfeld, Ogborn and Krieger, 2017). The ACSM links the greatest hypertrophy to 10 or more sets per muscle per week and sees gains level off around 18 to 20 (Currier et al., 2026). You can also build muscle with fewer sets (Currier et al., 2023), which is a good starting point if you are just beginning.

Your triceps have a finding of their own. Comparing 12 to 20 weekly sets with more than 20, a review saw no differences in quadriceps or biceps, although the triceps did grow more with high volume (Baz-Valle et al., 2022). That does not mean you should go past 20. It means that if your triceps lag and you recover well, adding sets is reasonable to try.

Direct tricep sets per week by level
Level	Sets per week	Sessions	How to split them
Beginner	Fewer than 10	1 or 2	2 exercises per session
Intermediate	10 to 16	2	5 to 8 sets per session
Advanced	Up to 20 or a bit more	2 or 3	More sessions if they do not fit with good form

The table counts direct sets only. Chest and shoulder presses also work your triceps, so if your week already has a lot of pressing, you can stay at the low end of the range. Training a muscle once or twice a week gives similar hypertrophy when the volume is the same (Schoenfeld, Grgic and Krieger, 2019). If you already follow a push pull legs routine, your triceps already have their place on push day.

Common tricep training mistakes

Only doing pushdowns. It is the most common exercise, but it keeps your arm at your side. Add an overhead extension, which grew the triceps more in one study (Maeo et al., 2023).
Moving your shoulders on the pushdown. If you lean over the bar and your elbows drift forward, your chest and shoulders help push. Keep your elbows close to your body and move only your forearm.
Expecting the same weights after chest. If you just pressed, your triceps arrive tired. Compare each exercise with the same session the week before, not with what you lift when they are rested.
Going to failure on every set. Reaching failure does not build more muscle than stopping close to it (Refalo et al., 2023). Leave 1 to 3 reps in reserve on most sets, especially on the close grip bench press and dips.
Resting too little. Resting more than 60 seconds has a small benefit, and beyond 90 it barely changes (Singer et al., 2024). That is why almost all the rests in this guide are 90 seconds. There is more detail in the guide on rest between sets.
Changing exercises every week. Rotating at random or very often can hurt (Kassiano et al., 2022). Repeating the same session lets you see whether you are improving.

How to progress on your tricep workout

Log every set. Weight and reps for each exercise. Without that number you do not know what to beat next session.
Add reps first. When you reach the top of the range on every set, for example 12 reps, raise the weight by the smallest step you can.
If the weight jump is big, keep adding reps. On a cable, the next plate can be a lot for this muscle. Adding load and adding reps both worked over 8 weeks in trained people (Plotkin et al., 2022).
Keep your form. If going up means moving your shoulders or cutting the range short, it is not time yet.
Check the big picture. If you stall for several sessions in a row, look at sleep and food before adding sets.

The full rule is in the progressive overload guide, and choosing your reps is covered in sets and reps for hypertrophy. You can estimate your max on the close grip bench press with the 1RM calculator.

Questions

How many tricep exercises should I do per session?

2 to 4. After chest or shoulders, 2 is enough, because your triceps already worked on the presses. On a day dedicated to arms, you can do 3 or 4.

What is the best tricep exercise?

No single one is enough. If you have to pick one, start with the extension with your arm overhead, which in one study grew the triceps about 1.4 times more than with the arm at the side (Maeo et al., 2023).

How many times a week should I train triceps?

Once or twice with direct work is the most convenient. With the same weekly volume the results are similar, so choose based on how many days you can train.

Can you train triceps at home?

Yes. The diamond push up, the floor tricep extension and a resistance band are enough if each set ends close to failure and you keep making them harder.

Should I train triceps with chest?

It is the most common choice, because pressing already works them. There is a ready-made session in the chest and tricep workout. If you prefer to train them rested, do them on another day or in the arm workout.

Sources

This guide is for information only and does not replace advice from a health professional.

Tricep workout: the best exercises, sets and reps

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