alternatives to Skullcrushers and Tricep Extensions?

[alkemyst]

I am doing Dips already...kickbacks could work but I don't think they are a good mass builder.

I blew out an elbow and have joint damage + bad tendonitis still.

Skullcrushers even light kill me. Tricep extensions hurt. Pushdowns hurt a bit.

Dips are pain free.

The rest of my exercises are pain free too.

What are some better tricep exercises I can do?

Thanks
Å

[shamardal]

I find Dumbbell close grip bench presses very good for triceps, do them strict with elbows brought down very close to sides of waist and there should be no pain in elbows from doing this. Doing them on a slight decline makes them hit the triceps even better.

Just to add, do them with a hammer style grip also..

[buff_dad_dy]

I do not know where to lead you on this but i do a lot of work that involve the tri one way or another. Are you able to do any DB overhead or other DB presses without much pain?

[alkemyst]

I do triceps on my back day, then skip a day, then chest.

I could do decline close grip BP's probably then.

I can do military presses no problem overhead (bar or dumbbell)

[shamardal]

I do triceps on my back day, then skip a day, then chest.

I could do decline close grip BP's probably then.

I can do military presses no problem overhead (bar or dumbbell)

How to you actually find the pain when doing lying DB triceps extensions with a hammer grip? This should also take some of the strain in the elbows away as its more neutral arm position and a little less stressful on the elbow than barbells.

I do decline db cg bp's on both arm day and a few on chest day aswell, I find i'm getting great gains lately from them, the db's really help me isolate the triceps a little better than barbells...
just to add, my elbows flare up at times from barbell tri work, so on these occasions switching to db varieties above helped ease the pain greatly.

[Stenn]

There's always pushups. I've had persistent elbow and shoulder problems but find that pushups don't bother me much as long as I get a good warm-up first.

[ironwill2008]

Sometimes a simple change of hand position, or arc of travel will eliminate pain. Try Tate Presses. If you've never done these, as always with a new exercise, start light.

[IronCharles]

This is my second favorite tricep exercise, after dips:



If the dip hand position doesn't give you pain, then try these. Same hand position, and will give you an awesome pump. Plus overhead presses activate both ends of the triceps, which is a 2 joint muscle group. Lying skullcrushers only extend the elbow insertion end of the muscle.

[Stenn]

This is my second favorite tricep exercise, after dips:

You should be able to do something very similar on a cable machine with a low pully.

[Josann]

I also have bad elbows but find that any movement with palms facing works. Pushdowns with a rope. kickbacks. extensions with a triceps bar, db extensions, etc. Play around with movements and see what works. Most of the suggestions made here seem to hve palms facing I've noticed. That Tate Press looks pretty good.

[ironwill2008]

Play around with movements and see what works.

^^^^This.

To add to what I posted earlier, many times, a simple change in hand position, or body position (such as a slight change in bench angle, or leaning forward slightly at the waist if standing) can change a painful (and unusable) exercise into a good one for you.

If you're relatively new to training, such slight changes may seem inconsequential, but they're not. It does, however, often take time and effort to search out a solution to a problem. One is almost always there though, if you look for it long enough.

[rob440]

I find that using dumbells is easier on the elbows. I like to do a skullcrusher type of movement on a 30 degree or so incline bench. It is similar in motion to a dumbell curl where you supinate the hands (turn them) but in reverse. At the bottom when the dumbells are close to your head the palms are facing your face and as you go up you rotate the hand so that at the finish the palms are facing away from you.

There are a multitude of exercises to choose from but hopefully you can find things that are effective without aggravating your injury.

[Cgb6810]

I find Dumbbell close grip bench presses very good for triceps, do them strict with elbows brought down very close to sides of waist and there should be no pain in elbows from doing this. Doing them on a slight decline makes them hit the triceps even better.

Just to add, do them with a hammer style grip also..

Close grip bench press is my favorite mass builder. Another movement that does not hurt my elbows is push downs on the assisted pull up machine. That is, if you have this machine.

[tmonkey]

Close grip bench press is my favorite mass builder. Another movement that does not hurt my elbows is push downs on the assisted pull up machine. That is, if you have this machine.

is that you?

[Cgb6810]

is that you?

That is me.

[boathead]

i'll chime in with straight arm pulldowns. imo, the tricep long head is tough to isolate, and this exercise hits it exclusively (with some lat assistance). this will take elbow movement out of the equation, so that might be up your alley.

[ntrllftr]

One of my favorites...
The reverse bench dip

http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/...tBenchDip.html

[Legbuh]

I'm going to second close grip bench. I also like kickbacks and skull crusher stuff with dumbbells laying on a bench (like overhead ones, but you're laying down).

Normal bb crushers wreak havoc on my elbows as well, so I've had to go away from them. Mix it up for best results!

[tmonkey]

Close grip bench press is my favorite mass builder. Another movement that does not hurt my elbows is push downs on the assisted pull up machine. That is, if you have this machine.

That is me.

I was going to rep you but it said i need to spread some around first ha

[plmb1]

Close grip bench press is my favorite mass builder. Another movement that does not hurt my elbows is push downs on the assisted pull up machine. That is, if you have this machine.

I like those..........and your right.......peeps that have elbow problems can normally do these with little to no pain.......

Great suggestion

By the way.......it's obvious that you have paid your dues.......good job!!

[plmb1]

One of my favorites...
The reverse bench dip

http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/...tBenchDip.html

Yet another great suggestion by another person thats paid their dues.........

Looking good there natty........reps on recharge......

[sydneyelvis]

As an arthritis sufferrer i have problems with all my joints especially elbows and shoulders so i have had to come up with variations to traditional movements that still build mass. I like lying on my side (say right side) on a bench with a dumbell (in my left hand) elbow pointed at the ceiling and raising the dumbell upwards beyond the elbow slowly then down slowly towards my head. Use really light weight at first to master the biomechanics of the exercise. I find i get a great pump without stressing my elbows at all.

[alkemyst]

Finishing up my oatmeal and going to try some of these today.

Will see if the palms facing methods get me away from the pain-zone.

shoulders and triceps in 10min

[alkemyst]

Triceps bar and dumbbell skull crushers still hurt.

Close Grip Bench was no pain....didn't try declined though, is that much better,

I want to try the assisted pull up machine method, someone else was actually doing that when I started, but I tried other exercises first.

So far Dips and the close grip bench press will be 2 exercises, I want one more (I do 3 sets of each 10/8/6).

Was able to do:

Dips: BW+25 x 13, BW+25 x 10, BW+45 x 5
Close grip BP: 85 x 16, 105 x 11, 125 x 8.

[boathead]

i'm telling you man, straight arm pull downs. takes the elbows out of the equation completely, and nothing will fry the tricep long head as much.

[Old-Time-Lifter]

i'm telling you man, straight arm pull downs. takes the elbows out of the equation completely, and nothing will fry the tricep long head as much.

That's mainly a lat movement? I've certainly never done that for my triceps?

http://www.criticalbench.com/exercis...m-pulldown.htm

[boathead]

nope. while i agree there is some lat recruitment at the top of the move (sort of like a pullover), from a bit over the 90 degree mark down to the sides, it hits the long head of the triceps exclusively.

and as the op mentioned elbow tendinitis, this move takes it out of the equation completely.

as with many exercises, there is some overlap in muscle groups. if someone wanted to take lats completely out of the equation as well, the remedy would be simply to do the bottom half of the move. light weights, higher reps to start, and you'll see what i'm talking about.

[ocn2000]

Close grip bench?

[J.Ho]

If dips are pain free, try some chair dips with your feet/heels on a bench... do 15-20, then have someone put a plate on your abs.. 20 more... another plate to failure...

You can try them at different arm widths to target different areas of the muscle

Those things CRUSH my triceps!

[alkemyst]

off to the gym (on vacation this week)

Going to do:

Dips
Close grip Bench press

and try:

tricep pushdowns on the assisted pullup machine.

Need to stretch my shoulders now, getting those tendon pops at times lifting my arms parallel to the floor and out to the side

Can't really complain too much being only 8 weeks back after 4 years doing nothing...my own fault.