One of the greatest challenges of bodyweight training is finding ways to overload your body. Yes, pushups and squats can challenge you, but, after awhile, you get comfortable moving your own bodyweight.
That’s when it’s time to use fewer muscles to move more of that bodyweight. And that’s what you’ll do during this vicious home triceps move from Men’s Health fitness director Ebenezer Samuel, C.S.C.S, the Archer Position Bodyweight Skullcrusher. The move shifts almost all the load of your body onto one arm muscle group — your triceps — an overload that’ll push your triceps to the limit and layer size and strength onto your arms.
“It’s a killer,” says Samuel. “And it’s working your entire body too. Every muscle throughout your core and torso is working to help you stabilize and avoid compensations. Meanwhile, your triceps is working in isolation to raise your entire body.”
This all means that a small muscle group is doing most of the work, and that’s the perfect stimulus for triceps growth. Bodyweight skullcrusher are hard enough to do correctly, but now, you’re adding even more challenge. The motion is small, as you get in position and straighten your elbow, driving your torso upwards, but it’s ultra-challenging.
That challenge only occurs in the concentric plane, too, letting you build triceps power. “There’s a limited amount of eccentric control work being done here,” says Samuel. “Because after you press up, you’re lowering only until your forearm returns to the ground, and that happens quick.”
That makes this move an underrated way to build overall triceps power with only bodyweight. “By skipping a lot of eccentric work here, you’re left with that much power and pop and impetus to squeeze your triceps on every rep,” says Samuel.
The best part: You don’t need even a hint of equipment. The bodyweight archer-position skullcrusher isn’t easy, but it is worth learning if you want massive arms at home. Get to work.
The archer-position bodyweight skullcrusher is a perfect move to throw into a bodyweight total-body circuit, or to use on a chest day or in a home triceps workout. And it can be leveled up and combined into bodyweight supersets and drop sets too, says Samuel. “This is a perfect move, because you’ll do so few reps, to drop set,” says Samuel. Try this: Do 6 to 8 archer-position Skullcrushers per side, then immediately to 10 standard bodyweight Skullcrushers. Do 3 sets. “It’ll rock you,” says Samuel.
For more tips and routines from Samuel, check out our full slate of Eb and Swole workouts. If you want to try an even more dedicated routine, consider Eb’s New Rules of Muscle program.
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