The long head of the triceps is the biggest of the three heads, running down the bottom/back of the arm. It's the one that hangs down most visibly when you do a bicep flex.
You can see it hanging down very clearly in this pick of mine where I'm sort of dressed like a pirate...
If you want big arms, this is an exercise that's going to fill out the arms like crazy.
It's going to target both major functions of the long head of the triceps...elbow extension (straightening the arms) in the overhead position and shoulder adduction (bringing the arms down towards your body).
I'm going to show you two versions of this...one with just the barbell and one with bands added for direct line resistance to the adduction function (you'll see what I mean...it's brutal).
Start by setting a barbell on the floor, loaded with 45's. The amount of weight on the bar doesn't really matter. We're just using the 45's to get the bar up off the floor as much as possible.
Kneel down in front of the bar then set your hands on top of the bar, shoulder width apart, palms down. Grip on the bar with a false grip (no thumbs) then externally rotate your shoulders so that the insides "pits" of your elbows are facing up. This will help you keep your elbows tucked in, putting more tension on the triceps during the exercise (important).
Now you're ready to go.
Roll the bar forward, like you would for an abdominal rollout. However, instead of keeping your arms straight, bend at the elbows as you come down.
At the bottom, your elbows should be pretty much touching the ground, with the top of your head almost touching the bar.
Now pull/push yourself back up to the start position, straightening your elbows as the same time.
Those are the two functions of the long head of the triceps, wrapped up into one exercise.
Come all the way back up to the top position.
That's the version done with just the barbell. And it works very well for hitting the triceps.
Now it gets worse...
If you have training bands, we're going to attach those to the bar and do the exact same exercise with direct lateral resistance. This targets the adduction function of the long head of the triceps strongly...and I do mean STRONGLY. This is going to hurt.
(click here for my recommended source for bands - I'm just using the small red mini-bands for this).
I've got one end of the bands hitched to the power rack post, the other end looped around the bar.
Kneel down then roll the bar back until you get some tension in the bands.
Roll forward, just like you did in the first exercise. The bands will go loose...there's not additional resistance here.
Now pull/push yourself back up. The bands are starting to stretch.
Now the pain begins...
Keep pushing that bar back until it contacts your legs and hold for a second or two, squeezing the triceps HARD (though honestly, you won't have much choice in the matter...this is the near-peak contracted position for the triceps, like a kickback).
Think about this for a second...
This exercise takes your triceps through peak stretch to peak contraction under tension.
Here you have an exercise that takes you from a strong, near "anatomically possible" peak STRETCH on the triceps, all the way through UNDER TENSION to a near "anatomically possible" peak CONTRACTION on the triceps.
The setup allows you to dynamically (and effectively) change your body position during the movement, which changes the angle of tension on the triceps...something that's not possible with a normal, relatively static position free weight exercise like an extension, press or kickback.
The only improvement I have to figure out now is a way get a truly complete overhead stretch on the triceps. With this setup, the floor stops your elbows, limiting the stretch somewhat. This is why you need to use the biggest plates you've got...clearance, not resistance.
Bottom line, this is a great exercise for developing the triceps with just the barbell. And if you want to really challenge yourself (and destroy the long head of your triceps), try it with the bands.
You can also perform Bodyweight Tricep Extensions on the Bar End for the long head of the triceps.
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