A few newsletters ago we discussed the ideal biceps exercise based on Mr. America and Mr. Universe Doug Brignole’s factors grounded in physics and biomechanics. Now let’s look at the ideal triceps exercise…
In case you missed it, Doug has 16 factors, basically a checklist, for determining an exercise’s rank. From those 16, Steve extracted his top five that are detailed in the new ebook.
One of the big ones for optimal muscle-fiber activation is correct resistance curve. That means the exercise should be hardest near the stretch position and easiest at contraction to optimally activate muscle fibers…
Correct-resistance-curve examples include the dumbbell decline press for chest and the incline one-arm lateral raise for the medial head of the delts.
Another key factor is that the muscle is pulling the resistance directly toward the target-muscle’s origin. On the dumbbell decline press, for example, you are driving your arms toward your breast bone, which is the pec muscles’ origin.
On the other hand, a row is pulling your arms straight back, not in toward the spine where the mid-back muscles’ origin is located. That makes rows inefficient for back development—but not useless (as explained in the new ebook).
What about triceps? Doug sifts through his factors and concludes that the dumbbell decline triceps extensions is the free-weight top dog.
It checks off both of the above factors…
1) an excellent resistance curve due to angle of pull and gravity
2) target muscle pulling directly toward its origin—triceps pulling the forearm up, but really toward the back of the shoulder…
That last statement may be confusing because it appears as if you’re pushing, but the triceps are actually pulling your forearms up, like a rope.
All muscles pull. Think about it…
On laterals your deltoid is pulling your arm up, on leg extensions your quads are pulling your lower leg up, on bench presses your pecs are pulling your upper arms toward your breastbone, and so on.
No muscle “pushes.”
Even on back squats, your quads are pulling your lower leg from a 30-degree forward lean to vertical, or straight—and your glutes are pulling your torso back toward your hamstrings.
The problem with back squats from an “ideal” standpoint is limited range of motion for quads and too much butt activation—but again, that’s a different discussion.
Now one important ideal-exercise factor is missing from the dumbbell decline extension: avoiding bi-lateral deficit…
Bi-lateral deficit means that a muscle is stronger when working alone rather than with its opposite-side counterpart.
You can do the triceps extension one arm at a time. For us it’s a bit awkward, so we train both arms at once. Dumbbells at least force the triceps to work independently.
A good substitute would be a one-arm pushdown, but you need to be standing directly under the cable for the proper resistance curve—hardest near stretch, easiest at contraction.
If you step back, you’ll get too much resistance at the bottom where the resistance should be less. That version lessens fiber activation.
Till next time, train hard—and smart—for BIG results.
—Steve Holman and Jonathan Lawson
www.X-Rep.com
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