The medial head doesn't cross the shoulder, so arm position barely changes its role: it works in every elbow extension. These five picks differ in how the long and lateral heads share the load, how heavy you can go and where the rep feels hardest.
Cable
The go-to tricep pushdown for the medial head. Your upper arm stays pinned to your side, so the lateral and medial heads do most of the work while the long head assists. The cable keeps tension through the whole rep, including full lockout. Great as a finisher, though loads stay lighter than on dips.
- Stand close enough that the cable runs almost vertically along your body at the bottom.
- Lock out fully and squeeze your triceps for a second without dropping your shoulders.
- On the way up, stop when your forearms are just above parallel and keep the elbows from drifting forward.
Bodyweight
The best no-equipment medial head exercise: a narrow hand position with tucked elbows shifts work from the chest to the triceps. Every rep finishes at fully straight arms. Use it at home or as a warm-up before pressing. Past 20 reps, slow the descent or add a pause.
- Place your hands shoulder-width or a bit narrower, fingers forward, so your elbows track back.
- Take three seconds to lower, keeping your upper arms close to your ribs and your abs tight.
- Press to fully straight arms and pause briefly without letting your shoulders sag.
Bodyweight
The heaviest move on this list: you press most of your bodyweight, then add plates on a belt. Staying upright shifts the load from the lower chest to the triceps, so the medial and lateral heads handle weights no isolation exercise allows. If the bottom bothers your shoulders, shorten the range.
- Keep your torso as upright as you can and point your elbows back, not out to the sides.
- Lower under control until your upper arms are parallel to the floor, or a bit higher if your shoulders complain.
- Drive up by thinking about straightening your elbows rather than pushing your chest up.
Barbell
With your upper arms pointing up, the long head stretches more than in a pushdown, and the medial head works just as fully, since its length depends only on the elbow angle. Make it your main tricep isolation lift; if your elbows ache, switch to an EZ bar.
- Grip the bar slightly narrower than shoulder-width and keep your wrists straight, not bent back.
- Lower the bar toward the top of your head instead of your face, elbows in line with your grip.
- Extend all the way to straight arms without letting your upper arms swing forward.
Dumbbells
This is mainly a long head exercise: the arm overhead puts it in its longest position. The medial head doesn't care about shoulder angle, but it still extends the elbow on every rep, so it gets full credit for the set. It needs just one dumbbell, so it works at home too.
- Sit on a bench with a backrest so you can't arch, and cup the top plate with both palms.
- Lower the dumbbell behind your head until your elbows are fully bent, slower than you lift it.
- Extend to straight arms with your elbows pointing at the ceiling, not drifting forward.
