Like cable flies, tricep extensions suck as exercises because they require an awkward position and prohibit really heavy lifting. As the shoulder and back necessarily must hold up the arm during the entire movement, the athlete's ability to perform the movement with a heavy weight is necessarily limited, and thus the entire exercise becomes some sort of masturbatory experiment in time-wasting. There are few other tricep-focused exercises available for those lacking in this department, but bench presses typically help develop triceps much more directly than tricep extensions. That being said, do not tell girls this. See the above picture.
Tags: barbell, cable fly, exercises, smith machine, squat, stupid, tricep extension, waste of time, weight lifting
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Well written. I would have to agree. I try to not do exercises that will put me in a crazy position. I hate to see people doing some of this shit. Another that comes to mind is the behind the head lat pull down. I still see it done and sure don’t know why. I am in the mode of protecting my joints. I have a slap tear that has been a huge problem because of a crazy ROM I chose one day. Thanks for the article.
I agree with most of the exercises included in this list, especially the Smith machine. The more research I do, the more I realize that there’s really no good use for this machine. I don’t know how some of these exercises survive and make it into workouts this day in time.
The smith machine is fine for inverted rows. Pullups or chinups are sometimes possible too, depending on the amount of head clearance.
Uh, rows are not for the biceps. They are for the back muscles. In that they involve pulling rather than pressing, they affect the biceps but that is certainly not their first intention.
Absolutely correct – fixed. I have no idea why I wrote that.