Triceps · At home · 31 exercises

Tricep workouts at home, no equipment

A tricep workout at home with no equipment: close-grip and diamond push-ups and dips off a chair.

The triceps makes up about two thirds of the upper arm. Its long head crosses the shoulder, so it’s worked hardest when your arm is overhead; pushdowns and close-grip presses train the other two heads more. A good triceps workout includes one of each.

With no equipment, you make exercises harder by changing leverage instead of adding weight: raising your feet, using one limb at a time, slowing down, or pausing at the hardest point. Everything here needs only your body and, at most, a sturdy chair, a table or a doorframe.

Bodyweight tricep workout

Bring your hands closer together to move the work from the chest to the triceps.

Close-grip Push-up
Sets
3
Reps
8–15
Rest
90 s
Bench Dip (Knees Bent)Hands on a sturdy chair behind you.
Sets
3
Reps
10–15
Rest
60 s
Diamond Push-up
Sets
3
Reps
6–12
Rest
90 s
Triceps Dips Floor
Sets
2
Reps
12–20
Rest
60 s

Can’t do one of these?

Machine taken or training somewhere else? Each of these has substitutes that work the same muscles.

Tips

Do at least one overhead extension per workout. It is the only position that fully stretches the long head, the biggest part of the triceps.
Lock your upper arm in place on pushdowns and extensions. Only the forearm should move.
Use close-grip presses and dips for heavy work, and save extensions for moderate weights and higher reps; elbows don’t love heavy skull crushers.
When you can do more than 20 good reps, move to a harder variation instead of adding more reps.

Run this workout in SPLYT

Every exercise here is in SPLYT’s library. Save the workout as a template, log your sets on iPhone or Apple Watch, and next time your weights are already filled in from what you lifted.

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31 triceps exercises you can do at home

Every one links to step-by-step instructions and a demonstration. Swap any of them into the workouts above.

All triceps exercises →

Questions

How many triceps exercises can you do at home with no equipment?

SPLYT’s exercise library has 31 triceps exercises you can do at home with no equipment, including Triceps Dip, Diamond Push-up and Close-grip Push-up. Each one links to step-by-step instructions and a demonstration.

What is the best tricep exercise?

Overhead extensions build the most size because they stretch the long head, and close-grip bench press lets you go heaviest. Most good programs use both.

Do push-ups work the triceps?

Yes, especially with your hands close together. Diamond and close-grip push-ups put most of the load on the triceps.

Can you build muscle at home without equipment?

Yes, if each set ends close to failure. Bodyweight training builds muscle as long as you keep moving to harder variations as you get stronger.