Building Huge Triceps - The Proven Way

By Doug King

There are so many views as to what the proper, most effective way to work your triceps is. Though there is no "one size fits all" so to speak, there are some basic similarities in the workouts that are worthwhile and effective. Before I get into the actual triceps workout I do on a regular basis I would like to explain what a tricep is. The first three letters in the word tricep is "tri" which literally means three or three parts. The tricep muscle is located in the rear and sides of the upper arm and contains, you guessed it, three parts. Many times bodybuilders will spend most of their time working their biceps but tend to neglect their triceps. To obtain that full upper arm muscular look, it makes sense to spend at least as much time and energy on your triceps as you do your biceps since it makes up the majority of the upper arm. One can flex his biceps but not look that impressive because he has very little triceps to show. Thus, his overall upper arm appearance lacks that full, muscular look.

When I work my triceps I train them hard. I do not finish a set until my triceps are "crying out for mercy." In other words, I do not complete the set until I can no longer do one more rep.
Even after I have completed a set to failure I will often do one or more forced, partial reps until I can no longer move the weight. I raise alot of controversy when I say that I am against rep ranges. For example, I do not believe in performing say, 10-12 reps or 8-10 reps of an exercise.
You see, muscles cannot count. Your tricep muscle does not know how many reps you have done. But your tricep muscle does feel the high intensity set when you simply cannot perform another rep. When your muscle is forced to respond to the added stress, it is compelled to grow and get stronger to allow for the new demands being placed on it. On the other hand, if you perform a set of 10-12 reps and have little or no problem finishing your set you muscles will have no need to get stronger or bigger to account for any added stress because there is no added stress. I do however, use as a general guideline, that if you are able to perform 12 or more reps too easily increase the weight for the next set. Also, if you are not able to complete at least six reps decrease the weight on the next set. However, it is still better to do 3 or 4 reps to failure then to do "endless" reps too easily or sloppy. I hope you are following my reasoning up to this point.

Here is a sample of one of my triceps workouts I do to maintain my 17 1/2 inch arms:

• Tricep Presses
• 3 sets to failure
• Tricep Press Downs
• 3 sets to failure

Another sample triceps workout:

• Close-grip Presses
• 3 sets to failure
  
• Feet-elevated Pushups with hands touching
  
• 3 sets to failure

I train my triceps twice a week and never do the exact same workout each time. I constantly "surprise" my muscles. You need to rest your triceps at least two days before doing your next triceps workout. Your muscles need to recuperate; they grow during recuperation, not during the actual workout.

Believe me, if you train your triceps the way I do you will feel it and will probably be sore the next day but the results will speak for themselves. Now, go build those triceps!

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