Resistance Bands Videos - Exercises For Arms -
Triceps Kickbacks
Overview: Using exercise bands is an excellent
way to get a great portable workout anywhere. There is no need for
heavy equipment, cumbersome dumbbells or huge machines. All you
need is a pair of resistance bands and you can perform a workout
in the privacy of your own home, your hotel room when you're traveling
and even your office when you're at work! Although exercise bands
will not provide the level of resistance as free weights, they will
still provide enough resistance to stimulate your muscles and get
a great workout.
Muscles Targeted: This exercise really hits
the triceps very well and allows you to isolate the muscle from
a bent over position. The triceps muscle is located at the back
of the arm and consists of three heads. It is the largest muscle
of the arm and its one that you really want to train in order to
build big and impressive arms. Although the triceps is the primary
muscle worked, the bent over kickbacks also targets the forearms
as the secondary muscle.
Exercise Advice: The bent over triceps extension
can either be performed using one arm or both arms. While holding
the handles of the exercise band, step on the middle of the band
using one foot. If you want even more tension and resistance, you
can place both feet on the exercise band. If you're only using one
arm, start the exercise by bending over so that your back is flat.
Position your right hand at about hip level with your palm facing
back away from you. Position your arm at about 90 degrees and tuck
your elbow into your side. Slowly raise the exercise band and fully
extend your arm behind you and up to the top position. Keep your
elbow in a fixed position throughout the entire range of the movement
and do not raise or lower it. This will allow you to keep 100% of
the tension on the triceps muscle. Fully extend your arm at the
top of the movement, pause for a moment then slowly lower the handle
back to the starting position. If you're using both arms, simply
position both hands in the same manner and perform the exercise
using the same technique. It's a little easier to step on the band
with both feet when using two arms. To decrease the resistance,
stand with both feet together. To create more tension and resistance,
place your feet on the band at about a shoulder width stance.
Things To Avoid: The biggest mistake with the
triceps kickbacks is allowing your elbows to move all around when
performing this movement. When you let your elbow move around, it
takes all the tension off the triceps since your shoulder joint
is not in a fixed position. Your focus should be to maintain a locked
position with your elbow and tuck it into your side. Keep it in
the same position when you fully extend and lower the exercise band.
Avoid arching your back and rounding your shoulders. Make sure to
maintain a flat back throughout the entire range of the movement.
Always perform this exercise slow and controlled with a very slow
tempo to ensure you're placing maximum tension on the triceps muscle.
Reps and Sets: Since this is a resistance band
exercise, the level of resistance will be minimal when compared
with free weights or machines, so your overall repetition range
will be 15-20 reps per set. Shoot for 2-3 sets for this exercise
and combine a few more exercises to create a great triceps workout
routine.
Other Exercises To Use: A few great exercises
to combine with the bent over triceps kickbacks are the tricep
extensions and bench
dips. This will allow you to hit the triceps from different
angles which will stimulate the muscle very well in order to make
it grow bigger and stronger.