Cable Tricep Pushdown

Target muscles

The triceps brachii is the prime mover through elbow extension. The lateral and medial heads do most of the work at this shoulder angle; the long head contributes but is more loaded by overhead-arm variations. The forearms grip the attachment. The anterior deltoid and the lats fire isometrically to hold the upper arms pinned at the sides. The trunk braces against the cable's downward pull. As triceps-isolation exercises go, the pushdown is the cleanest of the bunch — load and recovery scale predictably, and the elbow position is friendlier than skull crushers for most lifters.

How to perform

Setup

Set a cable to the highest pulley with a rope, V-bar, or straight bar attachment. Stand facing the machine about one to two feet back, feet hip-width apart, slight knee bend. Grip the attachment at chest height. Pin the upper arms to the sides — pretend you're squeezing a sheet of paper between your upper arm and ribcage. Lean very slightly forward at the hips. Trunk braced.

Execution

Push the attachment down by extending the elbows until the arms reach full lockout at the thighs. The upper arms stay pinned throughout — they don't drift forward or back, and the elbows don't flare out. Squeeze the triceps at full extension for a one-second peak contraction. Let the cable pull the forearms back up under control to the starting position, with the elbows ending at roughly 90 degrees. The eccentric phase is where most of the muscle stimulus lives, so don't let the cable rip your arms back up.

Common mistakes

• Letting the upper arms drift forward as the weight gets heavy. If the elbows move forward, the chest and shoulders are stealing work from the triceps.
• Flaring the elbows out to the sides. Tuck them tight; the path stays straight up and down.
• Leaning forward dramatically to use bodyweight. A slight lean is fine; folding forward is a different exercise.
• Bouncing through full lockout instead of squeezing. The peak contraction is what builds the muscle.
• Going too heavy and using a partial range. Drop the load and own the full extension.

Progressions and regressions

Regress to band pushdowns at home, or to a lighter cable load until the elbow-pinned position is automatic. To progress, work pause pushdowns (2-second hold at full extension), single-arm pushdowns with a D-handle (great for working out side-to-side imbalances), reverse-grip pushdowns (palms up — biases the medial head), or rope pushdowns where you split the rope ends apart at the bottom.

Programming notes

Excellent triceps finisher after the main pressing work. 3-4 sets of 10-15 reps, two or three times a week. The pushdown tolerates higher volume than skull crushers or close-grip bench because it's gentler on the elbows. Use a drop set on the last set (heavy set, drop 30%, immediately rep to failure) for a brutal pump. Pair with overhead extensions to hit both ends of the triceps's loaded range.