Cross-Body Cable Tricep Extension

What you'll gain

• Constant cable tension keeps the triceps loaded through the whole elbow range.

• The cross-body path shortens the long head at lockout, which a straight pushdown does less of.

• Training one arm at a time makes left-to-right differences obvious.

Step-by-Step Instructions

1. 1

   Set a cable at a high pulley and hold the bare cable end in the working hand.

2. 2

   Stand beside the stack and bring that hand to the opposite shoulder, elbow bent.

3. 3

   Rest the free hand behind your back and brace the trunk so the torso stays still.

4. 4

   Keep the working upper arm fixed and extend the elbow until the arm is straight.

5. 5

   Pause at lockout, then bend the elbow under control back to the opposite shoulder.

6. 6

   Finish the set, then switch arms.

Common Mistakes

• Letting the elbow drift forward, which turns an isolation into a shoulder press-down.

• Leaning the torso into the cable, which hides how little the triceps moved.

• Snapping the lockout, which dumps tension at the only part of the range that matters here.

• Using a D-handle the approved clip does not show, which changes the grip and the line of pull.

About This Exercise

The cross-body cable tricep extension is elbow extension against a high pulley, with the working hand starting near the opposite shoulder. Extending across the torso rather than straight down puts the long head in a shortened position at lockout, which is why the squeeze at the bottom is the point of the lift. The upper arm stays still; only the forearm travels. This clip uses the bare cable end with a rubber stopper, not a D-handle or rope. For a catalog it is a unilateral cable isolation that belongs next to pushdowns and kickbacks. App builders can drop it into arm finishers, cable-machine filters, and pages that compare long-head bias from a high pulley versus an overhead extension.

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