There are many contenders, but what is the best triceps exercise?
Walk into any gym and you have a multitude of choice nowadays. From pushdowns to close-grip push ups, skull crushers to dips.
If you pushed most people on their answer, many would opt for the often used rope pushdown as the true king. It's ability to zone in and create an extreme burn in the arms is truly uncanny.
At least, that would be the popular opinion. The scientific facts are far, far removed from this.
Triceps kickbacks, the type you'd have to dig out some 1980's keep fit dvd's in order to remember what they actually are, rule the roost when it comes to isolating the three headed monster which sits on the rear of your arms. Surely there is some mistake? After all, this exercise has long been ignored by most gym enthusiasts in favor of bigger, heavier movements.
Indeed, it is number one.
In fact, kickbacks not only ruled the roost of triceps exercises - they demolished the competition entirely!
In 2012, researchers from the University of South Carolina Upstate set out to discover the facts behind which exercise isolated the muscle more than any other. They compared several of the best known moves, putting subjects through an intense arm training routine and noting the key factors taking place inside the muscle.
Despite losing the popularity contest by a long shot, kickbacks turned the tables when it came to actual productivity. In a direct comparison against pushdowns, they activated over 50% more muscle fibers in the lateral head of the triceps, making the the ideal choice for any bodybuilder looking to pack size on to their arms.
Of course, those results were even more impressive when we take into account the difference in loads used. Pushdowns allow for a greater weight to be used, yet still could not compete in terms of results.
The fact that you need to use a much lighter load actually works in your favor, allowing you to focus on the muscle a lot more and really squeeze while you contract at the top of every repetition. Rep after rep, this builds into a very serious stress which the body will reward you via new muscle growth in time.
So dust off those 1980's magazines, break out the home fitness dvd's and find a pair of dumbbells. If you want to pack size on to your guns in the gym, this is one old school move you should definitely not be overlooking from now on.
The best triceps exercise, despite the fact it's rarely seen in the fitness industry nowadays, is scientifically proven to be dumbbell kickbacks.
Walk into any gym and you have a multitude of choice nowadays. From pushdowns to close-grip push ups, skull crushers to dips.
If you pushed most people on their answer, many would opt for the often used rope pushdown as the true king. It's ability to zone in and create an extreme burn in the arms is truly uncanny.
At least, that would be the popular opinion. The scientific facts are far, far removed from this.
Triceps kickbacks, the type you'd have to dig out some 1980's keep fit dvd's in order to remember what they actually are, rule the roost when it comes to isolating the three headed monster which sits on the rear of your arms. Surely there is some mistake? After all, this exercise has long been ignored by most gym enthusiasts in favor of bigger, heavier movements.
Indeed, it is number one.
In fact, kickbacks not only ruled the roost of triceps exercises - they demolished the competition entirely!
In 2012, researchers from the University of South Carolina Upstate set out to discover the facts behind which exercise isolated the muscle more than any other. They compared several of the best known moves, putting subjects through an intense arm training routine and noting the key factors taking place inside the muscle.
Despite losing the popularity contest by a long shot, kickbacks turned the tables when it came to actual productivity. In a direct comparison against pushdowns, they activated over 50% more muscle fibers in the lateral head of the triceps, making the the ideal choice for any bodybuilder looking to pack size on to their arms.
Of course, those results were even more impressive when we take into account the difference in loads used. Pushdowns allow for a greater weight to be used, yet still could not compete in terms of results.
The fact that you need to use a much lighter load actually works in your favor, allowing you to focus on the muscle a lot more and really squeeze while you contract at the top of every repetition. Rep after rep, this builds into a very serious stress which the body will reward you via new muscle growth in time.
So dust off those 1980's magazines, break out the home fitness dvd's and find a pair of dumbbells. If you want to pack size on to your guns in the gym, this is one old school move you should definitely not be overlooking from now on.
The best triceps exercise, despite the fact it's rarely seen in the fitness industry nowadays, is scientifically proven to be dumbbell kickbacks.
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