Minimal equipment training is my thing.
It’s how I like to train and my clients come to me because they like that type of training also.
There is something about becoming stronger and seeing results in your body when you’ve done it with a minimalist approach.
And while my collection of equipment has grown a bit more in the past 6 months, I
can still fit it all in the trunk of my car.
I have a collection of Kettlebells, battle ropes, a basebar, an ab wheel, a set of resistance bands, a couple of jump ropes, and a TRX suspension trainer.
When I look through that list it doesn’t sound as minimalist anymore but it still doesn’t take up that much space.
In fact, I keep most of it under a shelf in the laundry room.
The TRX has to be one of the more interesting pieces of equipment though.
A great tool for working all the pulling muscles that make up your back and your biceps.
But people have struggled with the legs and their pressing muscles in the past.
That’s not to say you can work these muscles, you just need to think outside the box sometimes.
Triceps have been seen as one of the tricky ones to train with a TRX.
But honestly, it’s really not that hard.
In fact, I’ve got 4 exercises for you to try out that will prove just how easy it can be to train your triceps with a TRX.
And more importantly, you can train them from anywhere!
If training anywhere you like sounds like something you might be interested in.
Get yourself a FREE copy of my EBook.
Train wherever the f*ck you want.
I’ll teach you how I’ve changed the game by training when and where I want.
But back to my 4 exercises.
Giving your triceps a solid workout with a TRX is easy to do with just these 4 exercises.
Kickbacks, Tricep Extensions, Close grip press, and Close hand push-ups.
If you’re familiar with a lot of these exercises with a barbell or dumbbells.
They follow a very similar principle to the TRX only you’re going to be moving your body around inside.
So let’s have a look at how we would do these exercises.
Getting a nice tricep pump with a Trx is as easy as doing the following 4 exercises.
I would recommend doing 4 sets of 8-12 reps on every exercise with about a 30-60 seconds rest between sets.
Start off facing into the TRX at a slight angle so you are leaning over your hands.
Now that your body weight is supported, kick your hands back like you would do dumbbell kickbacks.
You should be bending from your elbows, not your shoulders.
Set up facing away from the TRX with the handles above your head, leaning forward and into your hands.
Bend at your elbows to slowly lower yourself forward and then extend your arms out to complete the movement.
Start off facing into the TRX at a slight angle so you are leaning over your hands.
Now that your body weight is supported, with your hands close to each other, lower yourself down like you would a push bush.
Press back up to finish off the movement.
With the TRX set up so it’s hanging just off the floor, get down into a push-up position with your hands in the TRX handles.
Now perform a close hand push-up, you will find your core coming into play a lot with this movement.
Your triceps are a pushing muscle, so anytime you are pressing something above or away from you, chances are you are training your triceps.
So let’s have a look at a few different types of exercises that use your triceps.
I want to go over how you should break down working any muscle group.
We’ll start with compound exercises and then finish with isolated exercises.
Compound exercises and movements that use more than one joint and in turn a lot more muscle groups.
When you do a bench press, for example, your primary movers and the muscle in your chest.
Your shoulder muscles and triceps are secondary movers.
So starting with compound movements is a great way to get even more load on your triceps and there are more muscles moving the weight.
An isolated exercise is targeting one muscle.
You can’t load up as much weight on the muscle but you focus on the one muscle, this is an approach used in bodybuilding.
An example of an isolated exercise would be a Bicep Curl.
The whole movement is done with almost on the bicep.
Its aim is to move the weight with only your bicep giving you bicep ‘the pump’.
So my 5 exercises you should be doing for your triceps are.
Lay face up on the bench with your head under the bar.
Press the bar up with your hands at shoulder width.
Slowly lower the bar back down to your chest and press back up on a slight angle so it finishes up just above your line of sight.
Set up on the parallel bars with your hands below your shoulders.
As you lower yourself down, keep your elbows tight to your body.
Lower yourself down so that the top of your arm is parallel to the bar.
If you want to take these further you can add a weight belt or even try them on the rings.
These are easier to do with the EZ bar.
Lay down on the bench facing up.
Take the bar in both hands and keep your elbows tucked in close to your sides as you low the bar down from your elbows.
It’s important that this movement is down just from the elbow to the shoulder.
I set up so that my upper arm is on an angle with my elbows past the top of my head.
Standing in front of the cable machine, take both of the rope handles in your hands.
Keep your elbows close to your body as you pull the handles down.
Same as most tricep movements, bend from your elbows not your shoulders.
Do these just like you would a normal push-up.
But with your hands close together, you can make a diamond shape with your thumbs and index fingers if you want.
And yes you can do these elevated or on your knees if you need.
I prefer my clients to do push-ups elevated rather than on their knees.
Because when you do push-ups on your knees you take your core out of the movement.
For more on that watch the video below where I do 1000 push-ups in one day!
If you don’t eat enough food and you aren’t doing any resistance training you won’t build muscle.
So as long as you are eating enough, getting the right amount of protein, and doing the right amount of resistance training you will build muscle.
Training with a TRX is resistance training.
Instead of lifting weights, the suspension trainer is letting you use your own bodyweight as resistance for your muscles.
Whether it’s a barbell, dumbbells, kettlebells, resistance bands, a TRX, or even bodyweight your muscles need stimulation.
When you force your muscles to move something heavy they are quite literally tearing.
And when you give your muscles fuel and protein while they are recovering, they will grow back bigger and stronger.
So what you train with isn’t as important as what you fuel your body with.
Check out this article I wrote on how to gain weight.
If all we’re looking for is just muscle building, then free weights will always be your best option.
We’ve been using them since day dot and they’re still the most popular choice.
But they take up a lot of space, they’re expensive and you need a full set to progress correctly.
But if we look at things like cost, flexibility and accessibility then a TRX is a better option.
You only need to pay for it once, you don’t need a gym membership for one and you can use it almost anywhere!
Between my TRX and my set of resistance bands, I train when I want and where I want. Get your TRX Below!
TRX is great for arms.
But honestly, it’s a lot easier to train your back and biceps with a suspension trainer.
Just the way they tend to be set up it’s easier to pull yourself with them.
But as I mentioned before, training your pushing muscles isn’t difficult, but sometimes it can take a bit of creativity.
I prefer using the TRX for my pulling workouts and my resistance bands for my pushing.
That being said both do either fine. And they’re both fine for training legs also.
What do people mean when they say toning is burning fat.
Unfortunately, you can’t spot burning fat.
Fat all comes off the body at the same time.
But the luck of the genetics draw means you may store more fat in other parts of your body.
So to tone your arms with a TRX you need to burn fat in general.
And just like building muscle, burning fat is more about your diet than anything else.
Sure you need to get your heart rate up to burn calories, but the golden rule for weight loss is calories in vs calories out.
I wrote an article recently that teaches you how to eat what you want on the weekend and still lose weight.
It’s the process I go through with all my clients teaching them the value of food and when you can and can’t eat what.
The most effective tricep workouts are the ones that you do.
I speak with my clients all the time about finding a way to train that they enjoy doing.
But that is not to say I let them get away with skipping certain muscle groups because they don’t like training them.
Maybe you find HIIT Bodyweight training fun or maybe you prefer your typical bodybuilding session.
Whatever it is that gets you motivated and you enjoy doing, do that.
And training your triceps is no different.
If you like the TRX, train them with that.
The point of any exercise at the end of the day is discipline.
You need to be disciplined to set aside the time and do what’s right for your body.
So again, the most effective tricep workout is the one that you do.
Exercise is one part of the equation and nutrition is another part.
But people often overlook healthy habits, and this is the glue the holds it all together.
With a solid routine it doesn’t matter what workouts or diets you are doing are like.
Eventually it all breaks down and you’re back at square one.
Thats why I developed The Grizzly Method, I put it all together to help you take back control and finally achieve the body and life style you’ve always wanted.
