Bigger Stronger Leaner

Tip: Do the Reverse-Grip Smith Press

Looks weird, but it's one of the best exercises for big strong triceps. Here's how to do it.

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This reverse-grip press hits the lateral and medial head of the triceps – the mid-range resistance curve. With reverse-grip benching you may find holding the bar problematic at times. You'll end up concentrating too much on just moving the weight – trying to stabilizing rather than loading the triceps.

The solution? The smith machine. Really. Give the smith a go and you won't have to worry about stabilizing, which is a good thing for this application. You'll be able to tuck the elbows in hard and load the hell out of your triceps, especially on the eccentric (lowering) portion of the movement.

Coaching Points

  1. Don't bring the bar all the way down to your chest. Lower it to a few inches above to make sure the triceps are under tremendous tension the entire time.
  2. After a few warm-up sets, do 3-4 heavy sets of 6-8 reps.