Giant triceps without destroyed elbows? Science has the solution!

Author: Radim Koudelka

10.06.2025

4 minuty čtení

Triceps overhead: The key to more growth and healthier elbows

Want stronger triceps but don't want to destroy your joints with heavy weights? A study published in the European Journal of Sport Science (Maeo et al., 2023) has shown that training the triceps in the overhead position can lead to significantly greater muscle growth, even when using significantly lower loads.

Why do overhead exercises win?

This 12-week study compared elbow extension training with the arm overhead and with the arm in a neutral position. The results were surprising:

Greater growth of all triceps heads: there was a 1.5-fold increase in volume of the long triceps head and a 1.4-fold increase in volume of the other heads (lateral and medial) for the overhead arm exercise. Overall, the growth of the entire triceps was 1.4 times greater.
Less load, same intensity: although participants used 34-39% less weight during overhead exercises, the level of training load and strength (as measured by 1RM) increased at the same rate as the neutral position. This means you achieve the same effective muscle stimulation, but with less risk of joint overload.

Scientific explanation

The key to this success is stretching the muscle under tension. When you train the triceps in the overhead position, the long head of the triceps is stretched to its maximum. This stretch increases:

Moremuscle fibers are activated.
Metabolic Stress: More metabolic by-products are created to stimulate growth.
Hypertrophy signaling: The body receives stronger signals to build muscle mass.

What does this mean for you?

Incorporating overhead triceps extensions on the pulley (or with single-arm dumbbells) into your training plan can be a great strategy for:

Grow triceps more efficiently: get better results in less time.
Healthier joints: Reduce the risk of elbow and shoulder injuries.
Smarter training.

No need to lift the heaviest weights to achieve maximum growth. A smarter approach with an emphasis on proper positioning and stretching of the muscle can give you better gains and keep your elbows in shape.

You can find this entire study below:

Triceps brachii hypertrophy is significantly greater after elbow extension training performed in the overhead versus neutral arm position.

Authors: Maeo, S., Wu, Y., Huang, M., Sakurai, H., Kusagawa, Y., Sugiyama, T., Kanehisa, H., & Isaka, T.
Year: 2023
Journal: European Journal of Sport Science
DOI: 10.1080/17461391.2022.2100279

Study abstract: The long head of the triceps biceps brachii (TBLong) is extended more in the overhead arm position than in the neutral position. This study compared the increase in triceps volume after elbow extension training performed in the overhead arm position versus the neutral position. Using a pulley machine, 21 adults performed elbow extensions (90-0°) with one arm in the overhead position (Overhead-Arm) and the other arm in the neutral position (Neutral-Arm) at 70% of one repetition maximum (1RM), 10 reps/series, 5 sets/training, 2 sessions/week for 12 weeks. Training load was gradually increased (+5% of 1RM/training) if the previous training session was completed without repetition failure. Training load and 1RM increased similarly in both arms (+62-71% post-training, P = 0.285), whereas their absolute values/weights were always lower in the Overhead-Arm (-34-39%, P < 0.001). Muscle volume changes in the Overhead-Arm compared to the Neutral-Arm were 1.5 times greater for the TBLong (+28.5% vs. +19.6%, Cohen's d = 0.61, P < 0.001), 1.4 times greater for the monoarticular lateral and medial heads (TBLat+Med) (+14.6% vs. +10.5%, d = 0.39, P = 0.002), and 1.4 times greater for the whole triceps brachii (Whole-TB) (+19.9% vs. +13.9%, d = 0.54, P < 0.001). In conclusion, triceps volume increases were significantly greater after elbow extension training performed in the overhead arm position vs. the neutral position, even with lower absolute loads used during training.