KEY AREAS: All 3 parts of the Triceps – Long, Lateral and Medial heads.
START POSITION: Stand in front of a cable machine and grab the bar using a Pronated Grip (overhand). Tuck your elbows into your sides (they don’t actually have to touch) and bend your knees very slightly. Allow the cable to pull your arms upwards without pulling your elbows upwards and outwards. This is the Start position.
NOTES: So the first thing to note here is the confusion about the naming of this exercise.
I was first introduced to this exercise by an old-school expert who owned and ran an old-school gym (before the Internet and social media gripped the world). Back then it was simply called the Tricep Pulldown. And that is the name I will always associate with it. But it seems that nowadays half the Internet is calling it the Tricep Pushdown. 🙁
Too much confusion! Too much information! Call it whatever you want to call it – just make sure you do it right.
Now then, how do we do the Tricep Pulldown correctly? Hmmm.
Mine is oldschool form and I make absolutely no apologies for that – it worked for me and made me run soooo much faster. But it seems that nowadays there is a new form of this exercise in circulation. That’s fair enough. My advice is to experiment (within the bounds of reason) and see what works best for you.
The form that I use involves a more upright stance and standing closer in to the cable machine (so that the cable almost brushes against my nose). And my feet have a slightly wider stance than the more modern form of the Tricep Pulldown (or Pushdown).
I feel certain that a more modern form of this exercise is being taught in Sports Universities, and I am not going to argue against the sports scientists but for some sacred things which I have learned and proven in competition – I tend to follow my own internal instincts and block out all else. All I can say is that you should try both techniques and compare the results for yourself.
My understanding is that the two distinct forms of the Tricep Cable Pulldown activate slightly different parts of the Tricep muscle and quite likely there is more Shoulder engagement in the modern form of the exercise. The modern form has a narrower foot separation and a bend at the hip joint so that the upper body is leaning forward (thereby encouraging the upper body to lean into the weight (which in my simply purist opinion is cheating). Maybe you should do both forms? I will leave it up to your own judgement.
Breathe out as you push down and in as you bring the bar back up again. Pause for a split second at the bottom of the move. Keep it smooth and controlled, with no rocking, swaying or jerking.
Finally, you can say a very quick Goodbye to your ‘Turkey wings’ – and start to get some beautifully sculpted arm definition.
The modern form of the Tricep Pulldown:
