The 8 Best Tricep Dumbbell Exercises for Strength and Size, CPT Approved

If you want bigger arms, stronger presses, or maybe you're looking to finally beat your trash-talking uncle in the annual Thanksgiving flag football game — sorry, I may be projecting — don't skip triceps. They're key players in pushing, locking out, and extending the forearm at the elbow joint. Keep reading for the best dumbbell tricep exercises to target all three heads of the triceps so you can build strength and size in your upper arms.

What Makes Up the Triceps?

The triceps, formally known as the triceps brachii (Latin for "three-headed muscle of the arm"), are the largest muscle group in your arms. Located on the posterior upper arm, this muscle group is responsible for reaching, pushing, and is the muscle in charge of extending the elbow joint and straightening the arm.

There are three heads that make up the triceps — the long head, the lateral head, and the medial head — which attach at varying points on your scapula and humerus, but join at the elbow. Together, they act as antagonists to the biceps and brachialis muscles, working to extend the elbow while the opposing muscles flex it.

• The Long Head: As the name implies, it's the longest muscle segment. It's most active when the arm is raised overhead and engaged in an explosive overhead or backward arm movement — think the downward whip of a volleyball spike or the finishing pull when swimming freestyle.
• The Lateral Head: Activated when a movement requires high-intensity force, it contributes primarily during the end range of a powerful elbow extension — think a boxer's jab or a football lineman pushing their opponent.
• The Medial Head: Supports movements that require more precision and lower force, providing assistance with endurance. It helps maintains elbow position under constant tension while climbing and is firing consistently during isometric holds like handstands or high planks.

By training all three heads of your triceps, you'll build stronger arms and increase performance in your lifts, sport, and everyday movements.

Benefits of Dumbbell Tricep Workouts

Triceps exercises done with dumbbells — like our popular hex dumbbell — offer more than just convenience — they give you the freedom of movement that machines and barbells can't. That means you can work in a wider range of motion, recruit better muscle activation, and limit joint stress. Here are some of the benefits of dumbbell triceps workouts:

Versatile: Whether you're training in your home gym or tossing accessory work on after your bench press, there are countless ways to target your triceps with dumbbells or adjustable dumbbells. Unilateral, bilateral, overhead, bent-over, kneeling, lying down — we'll get into more detail about the variety of movements you can use to target your triceps with dumbbells down below.

Fixes Muscle Imbalances: The ability to work unilaterally with dumbbells provides you with the tools to identify and fix muscle imbalances from one arm to the other. This is especially useful for athletes who compete in sports that prioritize one side of the body over the other — think tennis, volleyball, or football, where your dominant arm often takes the lead.

Simple Progressive Overload: We know that progressive overload is the bread and butter of building muscular strength and size. Dumbbells make this progression as easy as possible. When you're ready to add on more resistance, swap out your dumbbells for a heavier weight — or simply select a higher weight when working with an adjustable dumbbell like the QuickDraw™ adjustable dumbbell.

Joint Support: Strong triceps play a crucial role in stabilizing your elbow joints, and when working with dumbbells rather than a barbell or on a machine, your joints aren't forced into a fixed path so they're better able to move more naturally. Basically, it's like a Russian doll of joint support: tricep exercises support joint health, and dumbbell tricep exercises reduce joint strain.

Stronger Here, Stronger Elsewhere: Building stronger triceps with dumbell tricep exercises will lead to stronger presses. You'll also be supporting bicep focused lifts by creating stability in your elbow joint, allowing you to push without strain.

The 8 Best Dumbbell Triceps Exercises

Here are the best dumbbell triceps exercises that you can try, plus details on which head each move targets.

Overhead Dumbbell Triceps Extension

Which Head Is Targeted: The long head takes center stage here as it helps to extend the elbow, stretched and actively engaged since the arm is raised overhead. The lateral head kicks in as you straighten you arm, helping to generate the force needed to lock out overhead, and the medial head taps in to control the movement and maintain stability in the elbow joint.

How to do it: Stand tall (or take a seat) and grip a single dumbbell between both hands above your head. Bend your elbows to lower the weight behind you, keeping your elbows pointing up and upper arm relatively still. Just when the weight's about to touch your back, fire your triceps to extend your elbow and bring the weight back up overhead.

Single Arm Overhead Dumbbell Triceps Extension

Which Head Is Targeted: Similar to the bilateral variation above, this move targets the long head — and may even isolate it a bit more since you're less able to compensate with the other arm and have a wider range of movement. The medial and lateral heads also assist, especially during the overhead lockout.

How to do it: With a dumbbell in hand, extend your arm up and over your head, and engage your core to keep you steady. Keep your elbow close to your head (don't let it flare out) as you lower and lift the weight — moving it in a straight up and down line behind your head. 

Tip: If you're like us and occasionally catch the back of your head with the weight in this move, we'd recommend rubber coated dumbbells — because if you're going to bonk yourself, rubber's going to feel a little better than a cast iron option.

Dumbbell Skull Crusher

Which Head Is Targeted: Since your arms are positioned overhead in this move, the long head is stretched (good, we like that) and taps in for elbow extension. The lateral head is recruited to generate force as you lockout your arms and extend your elbows, and the medial head provides joint stability throughout the movement.

How to do it: Lie back on a bench, and extend your arms towards the ceiling with dumbbells in each hand and palms facing toward each other. Adjust the weight slightly higher on your torso, so the weight tracks in line with your mouth. Flex the elbow and lower the weight so it travels just above your head, then reverse the move to return to start.

Dumbbell Kickback

Which Head Is Targeted: The lateral and medial heads are in the drivers seat with minimal involvement from the long head during this move. The lateral head tackles the elbow extension against resistance while the medial head maintains constant activation, working to stabilize the elbow and maintain control through the movement.

How to do it: Start standing tall. Grip a dumbbell in each hand with your palms facing in towards each other, set your feet about hip-width apart, and hinge at the hips with a slight bend to your knees while maintaining a neutral spine. Keep your elbows tucked by your side as you extend the elbows to send the weight behind you. Lower the weight with control back to start.

Close-Grip Dumbbell Press

Which Head Is Targeted: This move primarily targets the medial head with the lateral head helping out as you drive the dumbbells up.

How to do it: Lie back on a bench, plant your feet planted firmly on the ground, and press your dumbbells up above your chest with palms facing each other. Squeeze the dumbbells against each other as you lower them down to your chest, and keep your arms working close to your body. Then, press with power straight up, maintaining that contact between both dumbbells throughout.

JM Dumbbell Press

Which Head Is Targeted: The lateral head is the main mover here, in charge of pushing the bar away from your chest, and the medial head controls elbow joint stability both during the concentric press and the eccentric lower. The long head takes a back seat, however it still aids in extending the elbow.

How to do it: Lie back on a bench, plant your feet on the ground, and extend your arms up towards the ceiling, dumbbells gripped with your palms facing towards your knees. Lower the weight towards your neck by flexing your elbows out to 90 degree away from your torso. Keep your elbows lifted away from the floor as you lower down. When the weight reaches your neck, press it back to the starting position.

Tate Press

Which Head Is Targeted: The medial head is the focus here — especially as you lock out the weight — with some assistance from the lateral head as you apply force.

How to do it: Set up as you would for a dumbbell bench press, lying flat on a bench with a slight arch to your back, dumbbells extended over your sternum, core engaged, and feet planted on the ground. The dumbbells start close to each other, and as you bend your elbows out wide, allow the dumbbells to tip in on each other as you lightly touch your chest. Then reverse the movement to return to start.

Close Grip Dumbbell Push-Up

Which Head Is Targeted: The elevated hand position on the dumbbells allows for a wider range of motion in this pushup alternative. The medial head is the key mover, supporting elbow stability under constant tension here. The lateral head fires as you lockout with some light support from the long head.

How to do it: Set up the dumbbells as if you're about to do a diamond push-up — slightly angled in towards each other. Grip the dumbbells and lift your body off the ground into a tall plank. Engage your core as you lower down keeping your arms tucked tight to your body. Then press with power to extend your elbows and come back to that tall plank position.

How Many Sets And Reps To Tackle

If building larger triceps is the goal, work in a hypertrophy rep range, tackling 12 to 15 reps. Leave a few reps in the tank, meaning it should feel like you could have completed another 2 or 3 reps when you finish your set. 

While strength rep ranges are often 1 to 6 reps per set with a heavier weight, we wouldn't recommend this rep range for these single joint exercises. Instead, aim for a minimum of 8 reps. Work close to failure here where the last rep or two feels difficult, but you're able to finish without your form falling apart. The moment you start to use your body to help move the weight, you've done too many reps and reached failure. 

Tackle 3 to 4 sets with around 1 to 2 minutes of rest between sets.

If space is limited and you're in need of a variety of weights to tackle both strength and hypertrophy work, check out the REP® x PÉPIN™ FAST Series™ adjustable dumbbell.

Takeaway

Now that you're armed with what to do, how to do it, the equipment to do it — we're looking at you urethane dumbbells — and how many times to do it, grab some weights and get your triceps in on the gains. Whether you're looking to improve your other lifts, support overhead rips in your sport, or just want people to ask if you've been kicked by a horse, building strength and size with dumbbell triceps workouts is the way to go.

FAQs

Can you get big triceps with just dumbbells?

Yes. If the goal is bigger triceps, you'll want to work in a hypertrophy rep range, which is generally considered between 6 and 20 reps per set but more typically falling between 8 and 12 reps. Regardless, you'll want to work close to failure, so that it feels like at your last rep you might have only been able to do one or two more.

What dumbbell triceps exercise hits all three triceps heads?

If you're looking for a well rounded move that targets all three triceps heads, consider any one of the following: overhead dumbbell triceps extension (bilateral or single arm), triceps gravity press, skull crushers, JM press, or the close-grip dumbbell bench press. 

Rosie Borchert is NASM-CPT, former Nike Volleyball coach, and fitness writer whose work has appeared on BarBend and Tonal. If anyone would like to hire her to play beach volleyball, snowboard, binge watch TV, or go climbing, please get in touch.

Reviewed by Noah Tenenbaum, CSCS, MS Applied Physiology, and Product Analyst with REP Fitness.