How To Do Tricep Side Push-Ups

By: Chris Freytag, CPT


Chris Freytag demonstrates a Tricep Push-UpTricep Side Push-Ups are an excellent bodyweight move for strengthening the triceps, or back of your arms, as well as your biceps and shoulders. Learning to do any kind of push-up is a great idea, but if you want to tone the back of your arms you should learn how to do a Tricep Side Push-Up.

Many arm moves rely on weights or machines to get the job done. The first problem with that is you might not have access to this equipment. Second, if you choose weights too light, you won’t make any changes and if you choose weights too heavy, your form will suffer. Tricep Side Push-Ups rely on body weight instead which is with you to use any time, anywhere.

I’m sure you know how great a basic push-up is for strengthening your upper body, but how about a Tricep Side Push-Up? If this is new to you, don’t worry! Follow our 3 simple steps and soon you will know exactly how to do a Tricep Side Push-Up like a pro! You still get to work those arms, shoulders, and core but this particular variation is extra intense for your triceps, which can be a tough spot to tone up! This exercise is a great way to work those obliques too, which are your abdominal muscles along the side of your body! Working your obliques helps to tighten your waistline and strengthen your core. This move is functional and a great multi-tasking exercise.

When it comes to Tricep Side Push-Ups, do as many reps as you can on both sides, and pretty soon you will have killer arms AND abs!

Use the links below to quickly navigate this guide:

WANT TO SAVE THIS ARTICLE?

Enter your email & get this article sent to your inbox.

    We won't send you spam. Unsubscribe at any time.


    How To Do Tricep Side Push Ups

    Here are the steps to performing a Tricep Side Push-Up:

    1) Lie down on one side stacking your shoulders, hips, and feet. Bring top hand to the mat directly in front of your bottom shoulder. The bottom hand will be wrapped around your waist below your chest.

    2) The top arm does all the work as you press yourself up and lower yourself to the mat to your starting position. You will feel the tricep muscles on the back of the top arm working. Repeat on the other side.

    What Muscles Does Tricep Side Push-Ups Work?

    A tricep side push-up is a move that strengthens and tones the triceps as well as many other muscles of the upper body including, chest, upper back, and shoulder area. If you want to avoid saggy arms, you should learn how to do a tricep side push-up.

    Benefits of Tricep Side Push-Ups

    There are many reasons you should incorporate tricep side push-up into your workouts. Here are just a few:

    Strengthens Triceps

    Tricep side push-up is the ultimate when it comes to toning and shaping the back of your arms. In addition, pushing your bodyweight up and down ends up challenging your entire arm.

    Strengthens Shoulders and Upper Back

    Tricep side push-ups target the tricep muscle directly, but indirectly your shoulder is also getting a challenge. In particular, the front of the shoulders (anterior deltoid) gets stronger and the upper back muscles engage to keep you in good form.

    Strengthens Chest

    While you work your tricep side push-up you are also getting a great move for your chest. A basic push-up is more directly targeting the chest, but a tricep side push-up still gets into some of those chest muscles and strengthens the whole upper body.

    How Many Calories Does a Tricep Side Push-Up Burn?

    People often ask how many calories they are burning in their workouts. Most exercises will generally burn about 100 calories for every 10 minutes you are working at higher intensity. Bottom line: the harder you work, the more calories you burn.

    Tricep side push-up builds muscle in your arm. You won’t be panting or breathing heavy like you do in a cardio exercise, but you might get the heart rate pretty high since you are pushing your own bodyweight. No matter what you will be adding to your muscle mass makes for a better metabolism and higher calorie burn all day long.

    Other Exercises Similar to Tricep Side Push-Ups

    If you like the tricep side push-up and the results you get from it, here are a few more exercises you might want to try.

    How To Do A Push-Up

    How To Do Kneeling Plank

    How To Do Tricep Side Push-Up On Knees

    Incorporating Tricep Side Push-Ups Into Your Workouts

    Tricep side push-up is a great exercise to practice any time on its own. However, you could also incorporate it into other workouts to mix them up. Here are some ideas to make that happen.

    Use Tricep Side Push-Up In An Arm Workout

    Supersetting is a technique in strength training whereby you do more several exercises back-to-back. When you take the same muscle group and superset you build muscle and strength more quickly. This workout will put upper body exercises back to back, often using the same muscles for several moves in a row. That equals results!

    Sculpt and Tone Your Arms Workout: Try each exercise below for the number of repetitions listed with just a few seconds in between to rest.

    10 Overhead Shoulder Press

    10 Shoulder Lateral Raise

    10 Push-ups

    10 Renegade Rows

    10 Bicep Curl

    10 Reverse Grip Double Arm Row

    10 Tricep Side Push-Up Right

    10 Tricep Side Push-Up Left

    Repeat 3 times.

    Use Tricep Side Push-Up in a Full Body Strength Workout

    Getting a full body workout feels amazing. You walk away knowing you tackled it all! Not only do you make the most of your time, but if you move from one exercise to the next without stopping you will get your heart rate up as well. This workout gets it all done using basic strength moves

    Full Body Strength and Tone: Warm up for about 2-3 minutes then do between 10-15 of each of the following moves:

    Squat To Bicep Curl

    Push-Up

    Side To Side Squat Swing

    Plank To Upright Row

    Tricep Side Push-Up (10 each arm)

    Overhead Shoulder Press

    Plie V Raise

    Single Arm Row (10 each arm)

    Russian Twist

    Use Tricep Side Push-Up In A HIIT Workout

    High Intensity Interval Training, or HIIT, has become a phenomenon due to the positive results seen time and time again. By working your heart rate to overload, your body taps into more stored energy and burns up those calories at a higher rate. It’s a game changer. You can easily incorporate tricep side push-up into a HIIT workout that pushes the heart rate and targets the upper and lower body both! Just surround it with some high-intensity cardio moves and you’ve got your fat blaster!

    Bodyweight HIIT Workout
    Grab a pair of dumbbells and do each of the following moves for 30 seconds with no rest between moves. After completing all 4 moves, take a 30-second break and repeat. Go through the sequence 2 times.

    Squat Jumps

    Tricep side push-up (first time right, second time left)

    Split Jumps

    Tricep Dips

    Rest

    Skaters

    Squats

    Burpee

    Push-Up

    Rest

    Repeat 3 times

    Here are 3 more workouts to help tighten and tone your triceps!

    4 Bodyweight Exercises That Target Triceps

    15-Minute Tricep Toning Workout

    15 Push-Up Variations You’re Going To Want To Try

    Targets: arms, shoulders, core



    WANT TO SAVE THIS ARTICLE?

    Enter your email & get this article sent to your inbox.

      We won't send you spam. Unsubscribe at any time.
      (This will help us personalize your experience so that you can get the best advice possible from us!)
      Skip to content
      Send this to a friend