Why you need to do the tricep dumbbell kickback for stronger, more sculpted arms

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. The triceps kickback goes under the radar when it comes to the usual tricep exercises done on push day. The favourites for that muscle seem to be locked in a constant loop of tricep pushdowns, skull-crunchers, dips and overhead extensions.

But adding the kickback, which doesn’t need a lot of weight and is one of the most useful exercises when it comes to isolating the triceps can be a gamechanger. It can be done with dumbbells, kettlebells and even on the cable machine with certain variations, the kickback can be turned into a group of exercises operating on the same fundamentals rather than be seen as just one move. The one thing one must remember, though, is that the kickback does not work on its own, but is a great add-on exercise to the other ones mentioned.

But adding these easier exercises can help one get the best from their main set. They are also best done with a lower weight which means they can be married very well to heavier sets in case you’re super-setting and arms workout. This also makes it a great finisher.

“[But] most gymgoers are going about the exercise the wrong way. They do the kickback much too lazily, or they use weights they can't handle and depend too much on swinging their arms to create momentum to power their movements once they move past the first rep. If you're not paying attention to the small details when you're performing the triceps kickback, you might be missing out on the valuable gains you're hoping to achieve," says a Men’s Health piece titled Why You Need to Do Triceps Kickbacks With Less Weight.