Rope Pushdowns for Triceps

[fixationdarknes]

I am curious to know if any of you guys do this for your triceps. I have always done the pushdown where my palms are facing the floor, but some guy was using that machine, so I tried the rope pushdown. I kept hitting my dick by pushing all the way down. Am I doing it wrong?

[MixmasterNash]

I am curious to know if any of you guys do this for your triceps. I have always done the pushdown where my palms are facing the floor, but some guy was using that machine, so I tried the rope pushdown. I kept hitting my dick by pushing all the way down. Am I doing it wrong?

Depends how big your dick is.

Ha.

You arms should be flaring out to the sides as you push down.

Don't worry about them so much though; there are a dozen better tricep exercises, particularly dips and close grip bench.

[mikey4402]

i like to do rope pushdowns at the end of my tricep routine.....try not letting the ends of the rop touch each other and flare out to the sides like nash said

[Brawl]

Hey fix I agree with Mix ... if anything you can finish for a few concentrated rope pushdowns . Stay with close grip , dips , skullcrushers or pushdowns with a bar .

Vary it though ... anything else is good just make sure to stick with the basics .

[fixationdarknes]

Alright, thanks. Yeah, I wasn't really too fond of the exercise. I didn't like it that much, but I only did it because I thought that head of my triceps needed to get stronger. You know, the head that is on the bottom of your arm when you hold your arm out straight. I felt that doing rope pushdowns would help stimulate that head of the tricep, but maybe there are better one for that. I currently do tricepwork on my chest day, so I do- Incline Bench Press, Chest Fly, Flat Bench Press, Dips, Tricep Pushdowns. And I normally do Tricep Pushdowns with my palms facing the ground, but I had to do the rope one because the one I wanted was being used already.

I dunno what you would call that part of the tricep that is on the bottom of your arm when you hold out your arm straight with elbows locked and your fist like a hammer. What other tricep exercises stimulate that head? I feel that it doesn't get worked enough doing close-grips, dips, and palms-facing-down pushdowns.

[Titanium_Jim]

Every head of the tricep gets worked when you do a tricep exercise. You can emphasize different heads, basically by which way your palms are facing when you do the exercise. I read that palms toward you on say the pushdown bar would work the lateral head more than usual, while palms forward would emphasize the long head more than the other 2, which was the one you wanted to hit harder. I could be wrong on wich way works which one harder though, and I can't find the site I saw this on before.

[weightliftguy]

I like doing the push downs with the rope. You can do more wieght with the triangular bar attachment, but to me the rope isolates the tricep better if performed correctly. I started working out with a trainer when i was 16 at golds gym and he trains with alot of the pefessional wrestlers like Scott Norton. He got me growing and into shape and i haven't stopped sense. One thing i like to do is drop sets with the ropes that will really burn out your triceps, although i would save that for last.

[geoffgarcia]

with a rope there are 2 ways you can do it, either flare them apart, or keep them together.
I find that pulling them apart makes the outter tricep area on my arm burn.
If I keep them together I get the burn on the inner tricep.
The burn isn't subtle either as I use moderate weight, and hold for a 2-3 second flex in the bottom position.

I find the rope much easier on my wrists as its a more natural position than a straight or cambered bar.

Like everyone mentioned before, i wouldn't rely to heavily on this exercise (or the sister exercise: kickbacks), although they are nice to get the blood pumping and a good burn to finish off your tricep workout

[GrumpyTX]

I throw them in on occasion to change things up. Usually use them as a finishing movement.

I did them yesterday, I use the flair method, and my triceps are sorerer than they have been in awhile.

Take you time and really use the ROM. I pull the rope down where I can lock my elbows to my sides. As you press the rope down, flair you arms out to the side and hold this for a second and then return and then slowly go back up. I usually go as far as placing my thumb along the seam of my shorts before returning back to the start position.

[omarjiwa]

I was just wondering if the tricep rope pulldown is harder than the wavey bar that you pull down? Cause i can do around 120 pounds on the wavey bar, but on the rops i can only do around 70

[txterry]

I prefer the rope to the V-bar cause you can do the flaring motion Grumpy describes.
It seems to work the muscles more.
For a while I was doing Rope pulldowns on every tricep day and saw good gains but then after a while stopped seeing gains, Now Im taking a break from the rope and triceps are growing. I've learnt to keep rotating thru a number of different exercises so the muscles dont get 'used' to any of them.

[Maki Riddington]

The rope is harder because of the increased range of motion involved.

[fixationdarknes]

Alright, thanks for the help guys. Would it be a good idea to switch between rope/V-bar pushdowns every other tricep day? Or is it better to stick with one for a while, and then switch to the other, then switch back?

[abwowang]

its all on u man..
what works better for u?..
switching is always good.. change is good for ur muscles.. throwin it off..
IMO.. rope is better.. i get the full motion when my arms move to the side..

[Ironrelic]

Rope is a good finisher & burner. Try behind the back pushdowns too; limited up/down motion, but you can flare out each side at the downward point & get a fast burn.

[fixationdarknes]

Alright, thanks for all the advice guys. But will doing Rope Pushdowns not give a good workout to the head of the tricep nearest to the outer bicep?

[zen]

After a long time with a straight bar on the cable pushdowns, then switching to the rope for some time, then switching to the traingle bar with the flanged ends, I prefer the triangle.
Flaring the hands out with the rope feels like you are contracting more, because you finish up by pronating your arms out, but I honestly don't feel it helps. IMO, the triangle is a good balance between a suspinated and pronated forarm, and if you are carefull to stand so that the pulley that is above you is directly above your crown, then the angle of the cable is such that you can finish of the movement at full contraction without doing any contortions of the body. Keeping your elbows tight and stable is also very important, IMO.

But I use pushdowns to pre-exhaust my triceps before I go to narrow bench.