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InGreatShape
New member
I have encountered a lot of people whether to choose locking or not to lock your elbows when doing tricep exercises. So which is better?
Lock or not to Lock triceps
- Thread starter InGreatShape
- Start date
R
rahl
Guest
I lock except on dips. Dips are so hard on your shoulders and elbows anyway I just hold for a second just short of lockout.
I lock on everything except narrow grip bench press and heavy dips
try this, the real problem i have with the "lock" position, at either point during the exercise is at that moment of "lock" blood flows into the muscle..
If your goal is size and strength, then you want to keep the muscle under tension, you want to cause micro fractures withing the mitofiber and cause damage to the mitocondria, so keeping the muscle under contraction "anabolic = without oxygen" rather than "aerobic = with oxygen" you will cause more damage and thus increase the possibility of new muscle size, and cause the muscle to increase its ability to hold more glycogen and create the effect of "Mitocondrial re education"
With that said, the best success i have had is to do 3 exercise in straight sets 4-6 rep range, then the 4th exercise for that body part to do 60% in the full range open and close at the top and bottom.. trying for 20-25 reps.. this will pump more and more blood into the now damaged muscle, bringing more nutrients and taking away more of the lactic acid..
If that sounds like too many exercises to you.. do 2 straight sets in the "unlocked" condition, then in the 3rd exercise do the open/20-25 rep range for 3-5 sets.. if you can..
If you can reach above your head to remove your shirt, then you did it wrong..
If your goal is size and strength, then you want to keep the muscle under tension, you want to cause micro fractures withing the mitofiber and cause damage to the mitocondria, so keeping the muscle under contraction "anabolic = without oxygen" rather than "aerobic = with oxygen" you will cause more damage and thus increase the possibility of new muscle size, and cause the muscle to increase its ability to hold more glycogen and create the effect of "Mitocondrial re education"
With that said, the best success i have had is to do 3 exercise in straight sets 4-6 rep range, then the 4th exercise for that body part to do 60% in the full range open and close at the top and bottom.. trying for 20-25 reps.. this will pump more and more blood into the now damaged muscle, bringing more nutrients and taking away more of the lactic acid..
If that sounds like too many exercises to you.. do 2 straight sets in the "unlocked" condition, then in the 3rd exercise do the open/20-25 rep range for 3-5 sets.. if you can..
If you can reach above your head to remove your shirt, then you did it wrong..
Tblock1
New member
Why don't you lock out on close grip bench press? Too much stress on elbows?
lookinfit75
New member
In order to keep constant tension on the muscle I don't lock out. Locking out also puts a lot of stress on the joints so I try to avoid it. The only time I lock out on something would a 1RM type of thing.
I lock out but I dont relax the muscle and allow the joint so take all the weight, I dont lock back my elbows or knees but I fully straighten them if that makes sense. I dont do anything on purpose I just lift the thing how I would do it naturally. I dont even think about it...
I narrow grip bench 315 lbs for reps....it's def. too much pressure on the elbows if you lock out on top IMO
id say as long as you dont take the tension off the muscle on lock itll be fine.
InGreatShape
New member
Thanks for all the insights, I learned a lot.
oh how I disagree....
You are not talking to a group of powerlifters, you're talking to bodybuilders, power lifters, strongmen, etc...
If you said that about biceps, I MAY agree to some extent...but doing triceps work will get you to bench and press much heavier weights
I lock out or its not a full rep. When I write my workouts down I want to make sure I write them down correctly so I will preogress better, If I lock out its only for a half second though. Its not like I would be bigger if I didnt, not much difference imo
musketeer
New member
Do you mean- I'm not talking to WEIGHTLIFTERS?
The only people who should be doing direct tricep work are the really advanced or injured. Lets face it, if you're doing heavy bench, ovehead press, dips, then you are already killing those relatively small muscles.
Even when I was bodybuilding, my best triceps exercise was push press! MOst people here seem to do chest and shoulders on different days, so that's two intense workouts each week already.
If you are a powerlifter and you've reached a pretty advanced level, then its different, but in general most people would benefit from more compound pressing exercises and less cable presses and dumbbell kick-backs.
I'm 6' 235lbs and drug free, and have not done direct arm work for three years, but have 17.5 inch arms.
musketeer
New member
Not to rob this thread with this (perhaps I'll start a new one) but you can't compare shoulders to triceps because of the mechanics, and unless you've tried eliminating direct triceps work for a decent period of time, then you can't say that it does not work for you to just do compound pressing movements. Maybe I'd allow a few near failure sets a week but that's really it! - any more and you're robbing all of your other pressing exercises. Powerlifters and ADVANCED steroided-up body builders are an exception to this, but the average person on here would benefit from drastically reducing their triceps exercises.
