If you want to build up the lateral head of your triceps and maximize the development of your upper arms, these lateral head triceps exercises will help.

There are three heads on the triceps muscle: the lateral head, the long head, and the medial head.

To maximize gains, you should focus on and work on different tricep head muscles.

This guide focuses on exercises that specifically target the lateral head of the triceps.

I will discuss the following topics in this article:

• The Lateral Head Triceps: How To Build Them
• Performance Contribution Of The Lateral Head Tricep
• The Triceps Muscles (Triceps Anatomy) and Their Function
• The importance of working the lateral head of the triceps
• Performance Contributions Of The Lateral Head Triceps
• The 12 best exercises for lateral head triceps

How To Build To Lateral Head Triceps

Exercises for the lateral head triceps help you increase the size of your arms and strengthen your bench press, overhead press, dips, and other pressing movements.

There are two types of Lateral head triceps exercises: compound movements and isolation movements.

• Close-grip bench presses and dips are compound triceps exercises that involve elbow extension and shoulder movement.
• Exercises that isolate the triceps involve just elbow extension without any other joint movement, such as dumbbell lying extensions or dumbbell kickbacks.

In spite of the fact that every triceps exercise hits all three heads to some degree, certain exercises are better at stressing the different heads than others based on biomechanics.

Anatomy of the Triceps Muscles

It consists of three parts, the medial, lateral, and long head, on the back of the arm.

There are two distinct areas of the humerus where it begins below the socket of the shoulder blade.

On the back of your arm, the lateral head of the triceps is located on the outer side of the humerus.

Located in the middle of the upper arm, the medial head of the triceps originates from the humerus and ends at the elbow.

It crosses the shoulder joint and assists in shoulder extension. The long head of the triceps is the largest part of your triceps.

Function of the lateral head of the triceps

Located on the outer portion of the upper arm, the lateral head of the triceps extends the elbow and assists with shoulder extension and adduction.

Straightening the arm is the primary function of the lateral head of the triceps.

Exercises such as push-ups, dips, and bench presses use this movement.

In addition to stabilizing the shoulder joint during exercises like the overhead press and push press, the lateral head also assists in arm adduction.

The importance of working the lateral head of the triceps

In terms of strength and aesthetics, the lateral head of the triceps is an important muscle group.

By focusing on the lateral head of the triceps, you can create a more defined and symmetrical appearance in the upper arm, as well as increase the overall strength of the triceps.

Additionally, push-ups, bench presses, and dips involve the lateral head of the triceps.

These exercises can be improved by having a well-developed lateral head.

It is also beneficial to focus on the lateral head of the triceps in order to prevent imbalances and injuries in the upper arm muscles.

An effective tricep workout program includes working the lateral head of the triceps.

Performance Implications Of Lateral Head Triceps

To achieve the final phase of the bench press, the lateral head of the triceps must be strong.

Again, mostly during the lockout phase, overhead movements such as the jerk, push press, and overhead press require lateral head tricep strength.

While the lateral head rarely plays a primary role in compound exercises, if it's weak, you probably won't be able to extend the elbow fully.

Exercises for Lateral Head Triceps

There are 12 best exercises for your lateral triceps, all of which emphasize the muscle's lateral head.

Push-ups with diamonds

You can practice diamond push-ups by bringing your hands too close together, forming a diamond or triangle shape below your chest.

Diamond push-ups are a good bodyweight movement for training and working your tricep lateral head.

It is a unique movement because it develops the lateral head of the triceps effectively.

How To Do

• Put your hands together under your chest so your index fingers and thumbs form a diamond shape.
• Your body should now form a straight line from your head to your feet as you extend your arms.
• Be sure not to flare your elbows out to the sides, and keep your back flat as you lower your chest towards your hands.
• Push yourself back up to the starting position as soon as your chest touches the floor.

Tips

• Make sure your body is rigid and straight.
• Do the diamond push-up on your knees to make it easier.

Dips on a bench with elevated legs

A bench dip exercise is one of the best exercises for building triceps and bigger arms.

As a bodyweight exercise, bench dips can be done anywhere, making them a good lateral head tricep exercise for at home or on the road.

How To Do

• While placing your feet out in front of you, place your hands on the side of a flat bench so that your body is perpendicular to the bench.
• As you sit on one bench, place your feet on the edge of the other bench so that your legs are suspended between them.
• With your palms on the bench, your arms should be fully extended.
• To lower your body, bend your elbows until they reach 90 degrees.
• As you lift your body back to the starting position, flex your triceps hard.

Tips

• To get the most out of this exercise, squeeze the triceps hard at the top.
• Avoid dipping too low as it places unnecessary strain on your shoulder joints.

Push-down cable one arm reverse grip triceps

This cable one-arm reverse-grip tricep push-down builds muscle and strength in all three tricep heads.

Although push-downs are excellent regardless of the variation, the reverse grip may allow you to emphasize more of the outer tricep head.

With reverse grip tricep pushdowns, you can activate the lateral head more effectively.

How To Do

• Hold the single-grip attachment with an underhand grip near the cable apparatus.
• Exhale throughout the movement as you press the weight downward while keeping your elbows at your sides. If desired, you may self-spot with your free hand.
• As you inhale throughout the negative motion, slowly raise the weight until your forearms are parallel to the ground.
• You can repeat steps 3-4 as many times as you like.

Tips

• Get that extra pump by squeezing the triceps hard at the end of the exercise!

Bench Press with Close-Grip

It is a variation of the bench press that emphasizes the lateral head of the triceps.

Muscles in the triceps and chest are strengthened and enlarged in this position.

When it comes to building mass on your triceps, the close grip bench press is the best exercise.

How To Do

• Overhand grip the barbell with your hands shoulder-width apart, lying flat on a bench-press bench with your feet flat on the floor.
• Slowly lower the bar to your lower chest, keeping your elbows close to your sides.
• Your elbows should be lower than your shoulders at the bottom of the movement.
• Return the bar to its starting position by pressing it back up.

Tips

• Any grip closer than shoulder width increases triceps involvement.
• Slowly and carefully perform the exercise.

Pushdowns of the triceps

By isolating the lateral head of the tricep and focusing on elbow extension alone, the Triceps Pushdown exercise is the most popular tricep exercise.

When lifting a cable, the resistance is uniform throughout the movement, unlike when lifting a barbell or dumbbell, where the resistance varies.

Pronated grips (palms down) emphasize the lateral head of the triceps, while supinated grips (palms up) emphasize the long head.

By switching the hands into a neutral grip (thumbs up), all three triceps heads are equally targeted.

How To Do

• Face a short straight bar attached to a high-pulley cable.
• Your knees should be bent slightly and your feet should be about shoulder width apart.
• With your elbows tight against your sides, grab the Short bar with a pronated grip (palm down).
• Straighten your arms until they are fully extended, keeping your elbows stationary.
• At full extension, pause, flex your triceps, and slowly return the bar to its starting position.

Tips

• Ropes or EZ bars can be used for this exercise.
• The standard position is to stand upright with the spine straight.

Triceps extension while lying down

One of the best exercises for building triceps is the lying tricep extension (aka skull crusher).

Skull crushers are a single joint exercise that can help you build bigger triceps.

The long head of the tricep is emphasized with a wide grip, while the lateral head is targeted with a narrow grip.

How To Do

• Place your feet on the floor and lie on a flat bench.
• Over your chest, hold a barbell at full extension.
• Maintain a stationary position with your upper arms.
• Bring the bar down to your forehead by slowly lowering your lower arms.
• Repeat for the desired number of reps without locking your elbows out.

Tips

• Your elbows should do most of the movement, not your shoulders.
• Under good control, this exercise should be performed slowly and carefully.

Kickback with dumbbells

Exercises that target the triceps muscles include the dumbbell tricep kickback.

The lateral head of the triceps is greatly activated by this isolation exercise.

Unlike other exercises like push-ups or bench presses, the tricep kickback targets only the triceps.

How To Do

• You should place your right knee and palm on a flat bench so that your torso is parallel to the ground.
• With your left hand holding a dumbbell, keep your left foot flat on the floor and press your left arm tightly against your side.
• Until your arm is fully extended, extend it at the elbow.
• Return to the starting position after flexing the triceps hard.
• Repeat all reps on the left arm, then on the right arm.

Tips

• You should keep your body as still as possible, moving only your forearms.
• Slowly lower the weight while maintaining control.
• Dips on parallel bars for the triceps

One of the most effective compound movements for the upper body pushing muscles, particularly the chest and triceps, is the parallel bar triceps dip.

On a narrow parallel bar with your torso upright, the dip is one of the best exercises for building triceps mass.

The tricep dip is an excellent exercise for working your pecs, shoulders, and lateral head simultaneously.

How To Do

• Hold the dip bars with your arms extended and locked.
• Try to keep your body vertical to keep the emphasis on the triceps.
• You should bend your elbows as close to your sides as possible while lowering your body until your upper arms are parallel to the ground.
• Extend your arms and raise your body back up by pressing your hands into the bars.
• The repetitions can be repeated as many times as desired.

Tips

• At the top of the movement, do not lock out your elbows.
• Keep your elbows tucked in while working the triceps.

Squeeze press with dumbbells

One of the best exercises to induce functional hypertrophy in the inner body, particularly the inner pectorals, is the dumbbell squeeze press.

Lateral head triceps exercises involve keeping the dumbbells in contact with each other at all times and actively squeezing them inward.

How To Do

• Lie down on the bench with the dumbbells in your hands.
• Lift the dumbbells over your chest side by side.
• The dumbbells should be lowered together by touching each other, and then pushed back up again.
• You may repeat this process as many times as you like.
• End of listing

Tips

• On the way up, exhale.
• Don't lock out the elbows entirely to maintain more tension through the pecs.

Dumbbell lying triceps extension with one arm

One-arm lying dumbbell tricep extension is one of the best unilateral tricep exercises for lateral head, because it stretches the muscle and allows full range of motion.

One-arm lying dumbbell tricep extension is an excellent exercise for overall tricep development.

How To Do

• Hold a dumbbell in your right hand with an overhand grip while lying on a flat bench.
• You should extend your right arm so that the dumbbell is straight up from your shoulder.
• Bring the dumbbell down to your side by bending at the elbow without moving your upper arm.
• Push the dumbbell back up to the starting position while exhaling.
• Repeat with the left arm as many times as desired.

Tips

• You should only move your forearms, not your upper arm.
• The elbow should not be locked out at the top of the movement.

Bench Press with Inclined Reverse-Grip

Reverse grip incline barbell press is a compound lateral head tricep exercise.

It is actually an Incline bench barbell press with a reverse grip that focuses on the upper pecs and triceps the most.

Make sure your thumbs are hooked around the bar when you begin.

How To Do

• As you lie on a flat bench, grasp the bar with a supinated (reverse) grip, hands shoulder-width apart, and thumbs around the bar.
• Slowly lower the bar to your lower pecs while keeping your elbows close to your sides.
• Return the bar to the start position in a slight backward arc without letting your elbows flare out.
• Keep your elbows bent at the top of the rep, maintaining control of the weight at all times.

Tips

• Control the pressure when pressing.
• When pushing, exhale, and inhale when returning to the starting position.

Tate Press with dumbbells

Dumbbell Tate presses are variations of dumbbell tricep extensions used to build stronger triceps.

A lateral head tricep exercise that moves the muscle differently, yet still targets and builds the tricep muscle.

In order to build a complete pair of horseshoe triceps, the Tate press offers a unique range of motion to target the triceps.

How To Do

• Sit on a flat bench with your feet firmly planted on the floor.
• Face your palms towards your feet as you hold a dumbbell in each hand.
• Keeping your back on the bench, raise the weights to the center of your chest while engaging your abs.
• By contracting your triceps, slowly raise your arms up and down without moving your elbows.

Tips

• Slow eccentric exercises can help improve tension and muscle-mind connections.
• To protect your elbows, don't lock out at the top of the movement.

Workout Tips And Techniques For Lateral Head Triceps

The Lateral Head Tricep Should Be Prioritized:

Exercises like kickbacks and overhand-grip press downs will be necessary if you want to prioritize your lateral head triceps in your workout.

After a rest day, training your triceps can be extremely beneficial.

By taking a rest day before working your triceps, you can prepare your body to work hard in the gym with this strategy.

Multi-joint movements should be the first part of your Triceps routine

Multijoint exercises, also called compound exercises, are best performed at the beginning of your workout routine when your energy levels are high.

The shoulder and elbow joints will be moving together in a close-grip bench press.

Make sure you include multiple lateral head exercises in your routine

It is helpful to incorporate multiple exercises into your routine that target the lateral head tricep in particular if you are trying to strengthen this muscle.

Make sure you mix it up and use exercises that are different from one another to achieve your fitness goals.

Experiment with new lateral head movements

Make your workouts even more energizing and beneficial to your body by trying something new and having fun.

Strengthening, stabilizing, and bulking up your lateral head tricep will require persistence, motivation, and resilience.

Exercise and equipment should be used in a variety of ways

Exercises and equipment of different types can be beneficial to your workouts.

Try something new or mix things up in your workout to keep it interesting and productive.

The best equipment to use for triceps is dumbbells, cable machines, barbells, kettlebells, and resistance bands.

Formally improve

Form is crucial when performing lateral head tricep exercises.

You will be able to maintain the perfect form during your workout by keeping your elbows tucked to the side.

Take time to rest and recover

Your muscles grow stronger when you train intensely.

After exercising, your body needs time to rest in order to recover.

When the Lateral Head Of The Tricep Doesn't Grow, What Should You Do?

There are a few things you can do to improve muscle growth on the lateral head of your triceps:

Muscle Isolation

Perform exercises that target the lateral head of the triceps, such as close-grip push-ups, tricep dips, and diamond push-ups.

Resistance should be increased

Increase the weight or resistance you use in your exercises over time to challenge the muscle more.

Change up your routine

You can stimulate muscle growth by incorporating different exercises, such as overhead press and bench press, that work the triceps in a different way.

Make sure your form is correct

For effective muscle targeting and to avoid injury, ensure that you perform exercises with good form.

Rest and recover enough

To allow the muscles to grow and repair, make sure you get enough rest and recovery time between workouts.

Make sure you are eating right

Muscle growth can be supported by eating enough protein and caloric surplus.

Exercises For Lateral Head Biceps

Volume of training (sets and reps)

You will determine the number of sets and reps based on your fitness journey, but here is a good starting point:

Sets

Beginners: ~10 sets per week.
Intermediate: ~15 sets per week.
Advanced: ~20 sets per week.

If you are unable to progress when a certain amount of volume is being used, you can add sets to increase volume.

Reps

Work with the best rep ranges and loads.

6-8 reps with heavy load
8-15 reps with moderate load
15-20+ with light load

For it to be effective, the load should bring you to or near failure within the given rep range.

Workout samples for lateral head triceps

You can prioritize your Lateral head triceps if it's lagging, but don't forget about your medial and long head triceps as well.

Lateral Head Triceps Workout Plan #1:

Diamond Push-Ups: 4 sets of 8-10 reps.
Triceps Push down: 4 sets of 8-10 reps.
Dumbbell Kick Back: 3 sets of 15-20 reps.

Lateral Head Triceps Workout Plan #2:

Bench Dip with Elevated Legs : 4 sets of 8-12 reps.
Close-Grip Bench Press: 4 sets of 8-12 reps.
Incline Reverse-grip bench press: 3 sets of 8-12 reps.
One-Arm Dumbbell Lying Triceps Extension: 3 sets of 10-15 reps.

Lateral Head Triceps Workout Plan #3:

Takeaway

Your lateral triceps benefit from a well-developed triceps as well, so don't ignore this part of your arms - hit it hard with the best lateral triceps exercises.

If you want the best possible development of your triceps, you should be focusing on a single head with certain exercises, arm positions, and grip positions.

FAQs

For the lateral head tricep exercises, here are some frequently asked questions:

Can I build my lateral head of my triceps at home?

You can build the lateral head of your triceps at home by performing exercises such as close-grip push-ups, tricep dips, and diamond push-ups.

By focusing on the outer portion of the muscle, these exercises target the lateral head of the triceps specifically.

If you want to add resistance to your exercises, you can also use resistance bands or weight plates.

What is the effect of skull crushers on the lateral head?

By straightening your arm from a flexed position and flexing it, skull crushers target the lateral head of the tricep.

Is there an exercise that works the lateral head of the triceps?

When you extend your elbow against resistance, your lateral head is activated. Here are a few of the best exercises for the lateral head of the triceps:

Lying Triceps Extension: 4 sets of 6-8 reps.
Cable one arm reverse grip triceps push down: 4 sets of 8-12 reps.
Parallel Bar Triceps Dip: 3 sets of 8-10 reps.
Dumbbell Squeeze Press: 3 sets of 8-12 reps.

What is the best way to hit the lateral tricep head?

Dips, kickbacks, and overhand-grip press-downs are all good exercises for targeting the lateral head of the triceps.

What Is The Location Of The Lateral Head Of The Tricep?

In the upper arm, the lateral head of the triceps muscle is located.

There are three heads of the triceps muscle: the long head, the medial head, and the short head.

As well as assisting in elbow extension and shoulder adduction, the lateral head is responsible for extending the elbow.