Many women struggle with good triceps development. This can
be due to many reasons. One, your triceps are located on
the back of your arms and for many people if they don't see
the muscle they don't train it fully. Second, the triceps
can be a hard muscle to develop on many levels. For most
people, the training difficulty lies in the fact that it's
underdeveloped and training them means you must use forms
of training your triceps are not use to.
Now, I'm not going to fill your head with all the intricate
details of the triceps, such as its exact location,
function, insertion point and all that other jazz. You can
actually find all that kind of detailed information in Iron
Dolls.
In this article I'm going to drive the focus on what you
need to do to master your triceps training by including
skulls.
Overall, to really boost your triceps strength and general
mass you should employ the use of good ole compound
exercises. This doesn't just go for triceps training; your
triceps come into play in many chest and shoulder
movements. Make the bulk of your training center around
compound movements for overall general muscle mass.
Some of the exercises you should include to hit all the
triceps heads fully are close-grip bench presses, overhead
extensions, skull crushers, triceps dips, pushdowns, etc.
While all of these triceps exercise are important, far too
many people put all their faith in pushdowns in hopes to
reap the results of well-developed triceps.
Skull crushers are an overlooked triceps exercise. This is
not an easy movement and getting the form right can be
difficult. For this reason, my suggestion is to start off
using light poundage to learn the form of the skull
crushers. Starting off light will also allow you to
actually feel the muscle work. Once you feel the muscle
working during the movement your form will improve greatly.
After you get a good warm-up (5 minutes on a treadmill or
bike and another 5-10 minutes of actual warm-up exercises
for the triceps) you can begin your first set of skull
crushers.
Skull Crusher Form
Step #1 - I recommend starting with free weights, using the
EZ curl bar for skulls. After you grab the bar lie back on
a flat bench with your feet flat on the floor.
Step #2 - Using a narrow and prone grip, slightly less than
shoulder-width, position the bar over your chest area.
Step #3 - Bend your elbows and allow the weight to lower to
your forehead. NOTE: As you lower the weight allow ONLY
your elbows to bend in the direction the weight is
lowering. Your elbows should not sway out; they must stay
aligned with your body.
Step #4 - From the lowered position, use your triceps
muscle to contract and bring the weight back to the
starting position. As the bar reaches the top of the
movement, contract the triceps hard.
Step #5 - Repeat steps 3 and 4 for the designated reps in
that set.
One-Month Triceps Blast Workout
Note: each week's triceps workout involves different
training principles. Please read below the training workout
for how to include each training principle each week.
Week #1
Warm-up Parallel bar dips 3 x 10
EZ bar skulls 3 x 10 (DS)
DB overhead ext 3 x 10 (DS)
Pushdowns 2 x 40
Week #2
Warm-up
EZ bar decline skulls 3 x 8 (TS)
Close-grip press 3 x 8 (TS)
Reverse-grip pulldown 3 x 8 (TS)
Week #3
Warm-up
EZ bar overhead ext (21s)
Parallel bar dips (21s)
DB skulls (21s)
Week #4
Warm up
Close-grip press (Neg)
Reverse-grip overhead ext (Neg)
Kickbacks (Neg)
Skulls 2 x 40
Drop Sets (DS) - Drops sets involve doing as many
repetitions as you can and begin decreasing the poundage as
you hit muscular failure. Keep this process going until you
can't do one more rep.
Tri-Sets (TS) - A tri-set is using three consecutive
exercises for the same body part. Tri-sets take a lot of
strength and energy to complete all three in a consecutive
manner, so be sure to keep weight poundage within reason.
Rest two to three minutes and then do 2-3 more tri-sets.
Twenty-ones or 21s - Twenty-ones is a training principle in
which one set is broken up into 3 different segments of 7
that total 21. The three different aspects of the full set
involve 2 partials sets and one full range of motion set.
Negatives - Eccentric contractions are the lengthening of
the muscle. This is also known as the negative. The aid of
a spotter is helpful when doing negatives. Use about 35%
more weight than you use on a concentric lift. Explode the
weight up and focus on the downward phase of the lift,
keeping your lifting pace slow and controlled.
Close-grip press - Lower the bar to your chest slowly and
have a spotter help lift it back to the starting point.
Rest 2-3 minutes and repeats
Conclusion
The above triceps workout is a great shocker to get you
started for advanced triceps training. Once you are able to
feel the muscle move through the movements, you will be
better able to handle heavier weight with minimal sets and
reps to further advance growth.
Your goal for growth in the gym is to simply tear the
muscle down so it can rebuild into a stronger unit.
----------------------------------------------------
Karen Sessions has been in the fitness industry since 1988.
She is a nationally qualified bodybuilder and holds two
personal training certifications. She has written 6 ebooks
on fitness and has helped hundreds of clients transform
their bodies.
http://www.iron-dolls.com
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reproduced in full, and all web URLS are active hyperlinks
directed to the author"
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