Alternative ExercisesFitnessTriceps Workouts
Trending

10 Easier and Better JM Press Alternatives

You might have tried so many exercises to build the size of your triceps. One such exercise is the JM press alternatives. JM press alternatives is an exercise done on the bench press. It looks similar to the skull crusher, but not the same.

When performing JM press, your elbow should not come below the torso as you lower the bar towards your eye level. You can find more about the form and technique of doing JM press alternatives by watching this video below.

JM press is a very effective exercise in building strength, but it has some problems too. This exercise is not suitable for those who have just started working out or are at an intermediate stage.

As a personal trainer, I have heard some people feeling pain in their elbow or wrist during this movement. This not just happens with beginners, but even advanced athletes face this problem. Also, it is not a safer position for the elbow as there is direct heavy stress on the elbow joint.

Because of these problems, people face with JM press, I have made this article to share with you some of the best alternatives to JM press that you can do without any worry of pain or injury. All of these exercises are better but make sure that you follow proper form and technique when you do these exercises.

But before talking about the alternatives, it is important to know what muscles are worked during JM press.

jm press alternatives

Muscles Worked During JM Press

JM press alternatives is a compound movement that primarily targets the tricep brachii. Along with that, the chest and shoulder are also engaged and act as secondary muscles. So whenever we choose any alternative exercise, we should consider this. Now let’s look at some of the alternatives!

jm press alternatives
jm press alternatives

JM Press Alternatives

1. Close Grip Pushup

The close-grip pushup is a great alternative to the JM press alternatives. You can do this easily anywhere without any need for equipment. This exercise targets your triceps and chest.

jm press alternatives

How to do

1. Place both hands close to each other on the mat. Move your legs back and keep your knees extended.

jm press alternatives

2. Keep your shoulder retracted and your elbows extended. Your core should be tight. This will be your starting position.

3. Start the exercise by lowering your torso while keeping your elbows slightly in. Stop until your arms are at a 90° angle.

4. Slowly push on the floor with your arms and return to the starting position.

jm press alternatives

Recommended Reps – 10-12

Make sure that when you start lowering the body, your elbows should point inward to keep maximum tension on the tricep. If your elbows are out, then the chest and shoulder will dominate the movement.

If you find a close grip push-up difficult, then do this exercise on your knees. The procedures will be the same as regular close-grip pushups.

2. Dips

This is a great bodyweight strength exercise for your triceps. Many people perform this exercise to build the size and thickness of your tricep.

According to the Ace Study, the average EMG of the lateral head was 89 compared to the long head which had 88 scores. This shows that dip is a great exercise to target the lateral head of the tricep.

jm press alternatives

As there were fewer differences in the number between lateral and long heads, therefore dips will be an awesome exercise to kickstart your tricep workout as it engages the entire triceps and is a powerful upper body exercise. So what else could be a better alternative than dips!

How to do

1. Place both hands on the bar while holding it tight and then lift your body balancing it in the air.

jm press alternatives

2. Now start lowering your body by slightly keeping your elbows out and reaching the bottom position where your elbows are at a 90-degree angle.

See also  The Best Dumbbell Exercises and Workouts for Your Lower Back

3. From there, start pushing the body up by squeezing your chest muscles and extending your elbows at the top.

jm press alternatives

Recommended Reps- 10-12

If you are a beginner, then you can do some other alternative exercises for dips as there are many other options available to you.

Dips is one of the best alternatives to JM press because it works the entire tricep and is an amazing strength-building exercise just like JM press.

3. Close Grip Bench Press

This is an awesome compound exercise for your triceps. You can start your workout with this exercise. This will help you increase the size of your triceps.

Targeted muscles– triceps brachii ( all the head)

How to do

1. Lay down on a flat bench with your feet placed on the floor. Your feet should be under the knees.

jm press alternatives

2. Grab the barbell with both hands at about 1-2 feet away from each other. Have a spotter behind you to lift the weights for you.

3. Lift the barbell up and hold it at the top. The barbell should be in line with your chest. This will be your starting position.

4. Bring the barbell down towards the lower part of your chest. Breath in as you go down.

5. Pause at the bottom and then push the weights up, back to the starting position.

Recommended Reps- 8-10

You can go heavy on this exercise! You can do this at the beginning of the workout after some warm-up sets with lighter weights. You can also do this exercise with a dumbbell.

4. Barbell Skull Crushers

Skull crusher is one of the best exercises for building strong and big triceps. Most bodybuilders do this exercise almost in every tricep workout. It puts the tricep in constant tension which makes it more effective.

Skull crusher looks similar to JM press. The only difference is that your elbows will be beyond 90° angle in the skull crusher that puts extra tension on the long head.

Targeted Muscles- triceps brachii (long head)

How to do

1. Hold a barbell or an EZ bar and lay down on a bench. Hook your feet under the pegs of a bench for balance.

2. Tight your abs and keep your arms up with your elbows extended. This will be your starting position.

3. Start by bringing the bar down without dropping your elbows and fully stretch your triceps at the bottom.

4. Stop at the bottom and then bring the bar up with the help of your triceps and extend your elbows at the top.

Recommended Reps- 10-12

You can go heavy on this exercise as it is a strength-building exercise. But don’t mess your form too much for the sake of lifting heavyweights. You can also do the same exercise with dumbbells.

5. Diamond Push-ups

This is another great bodyweight alternative option you have. Diamond push up can be done even at home without any equipment. So if you don’t have dumbbells to perform tricep kickback then do diamond pushups.

jm press alternatives

According to the ACE study, diamond or triangle push-up ranked no. 1 as the best tricep exercise which hits long and short heads at an equal level. So with this study, it is clear that diamond pushup has to be there in your workout program to target all the heads of the triceps.

jm press alternatives

You should never underestimate the power of a bodyweight exercise. You should do these exercises quite often to increase the overall strength of your upper body.

Targeted Muscles- triceps brachii

How to do

1. kneel onto the floor and place your hands on the floor with both the tips of your thumbs and forefinger touching each other. It should look like a diamond!

2. Now take both the feet back and keep them together. Your legs should be straight and your hands should be under the chest.

See also  The RIGHT and WRONG Way to do Squats

3. Now slowly take your body down and keep your torso straight. Your elbow should be in and your shoulder should be pinged back.

4. Pause at the bottom and then push back to the starting position.

Recommended Reps- 10-12

You can increase the intensity of the exercise by placing a bumper plate on your back. This will challenge you to lift more than your body weight.

Pro tip – After a few reps, if you start getting fatigued, then bring your knees down and then continue with the reps.

6. Incline Barbell Tricep Extension

If you want constant tension on the triceps then this is for you. On an incline bench, it puts your body in a position where your triceps will work continuously which is great if you want to grow muscle.

jm press alternatives

Targeted Muscles- triceps brachii

How to do

1. Hold a barbell or an EZ bar and lay down on an incline bench set at about 45° angle. Keep your feet on the floor

2. Bring the barbell up and keep your elbows extended and this will be your starting position.

3. Start by bringing the bar down while keeping your elbows pointed up and fully stretching your triceps at the bottom.

4. Stop at the bottom and then bring the bar up with the help of your triceps and extend your elbows at the top.

Recommended Reps- 10-12

If you are a beginner, then don’t go too heavy on this otherwise you can injure your elbow or shoulder. You should progress by adding 2-5 pounds every week on the bar instead of increasing a lot of weight suddenly. Gradual progression is better than injury.

You can also do this exercise with dumbbells or in a seated position. All these are good variations you can try.

7. Bodyweight Tricep Extension

This is a bodyweight version of skull crushers. This will make your triceps strong and will help you in adding some size. You can very easily do this on a squat rack.

Targeted Muscles- triceps brachii

How to do

1. Place a barbell on a squat rack and hold the bar with both hands placed slightly under shoulder-width apart.

2. Place both feet back and be in a push-up position with your back straight and core tight. This will be your starting position.

3. Now start bringing your head towards the barbell while keeping your elbows in and bringing your body down.

4. Stop until your triceps are fully stretched and then push the bar to bring the body back to the starting position.

Recommended Reps- 10-12

You can also do this exercise on a bench but it can hurt your wrist. Therefore barbell would be the best option. You can do this at the beginning of the exercise to charge up your triceps.

8. Lying Single Arm Tricep Extension

This is a great unilateral exercise to target the lateral head. Here, you need to focus on the correct form and technique and use a lighter weight in this exercise. You can also do this exercise at home on the floor by keeping your knees folded.

You don’t need a bench for this you can do this exercise even on the floor by just keeping your knees folded and feet on the floor.

Targeted Muscles- triceps brachii

How to do

1 Lay on the bench by holding a dumbbell in one hand. Your feet should be on the floor.

jm press alternatives

2. Now raise your left arm and place the other hand on the left elbow to keep your arms stable. This will be your starting position.

3. Start the exercise by moving your left leg down without moving your elbow. Stop at the bottom when the dumbbell is just above your chest.

4. From the bottom position, push the dumbbell with the help of your arm and then extend your elbow at the top.

5. Now switch and repeat the same movement from the other hand.

jm press alternatives
jm press alternatives

Recommended Reps- 12-15

Always remember to breathe in on the way down and breath out while you move the dumbbell up. Also, don’t use heavy dumbbells here as this is an isolation exercise where you should focus on proper form and technique rather than swinging with heavy dumbbells.

See also  Dumbbell-Only Booty Workout | 30 Minutes

9. Overhead Dumbbell Tricep Extension (Single-hand)

This exercise will focus more on that long head of the triceps. It’s good for those who have one side weaker than the other because you can train each part separately.

Targeted Muscles- triceps brachii ( long head)

How to do

1. Stand straight and take one dumbbell in your hands. Lift the dumbbells and hold them with your elbows extended.

2. From that position, start lowering the dumbbell until your triceps are fully stretched at the bottom.

3. Move the dumbbells up by bringing your hands up and extending your elbows fully at the top.

jm press alternatives

Recommended Reps- 10-12

Your elbow should point up towards the ceiling. Go back up and repeat the movement. Breathe in when you go down and breathe out when you go up.

jm press alternatives

Don’t swing the weights. Use weights according to your strength to fully control every single rep. Don’t compromise your form just for the sake of lifting heavy!

jm press alternatives

It’s always better to move your body in a full range of motion. It will make your muscles do the most work in each rep. Also, it will help you in improving mobility and range of motion.

10. TRX Tricep Extension

If you want to increase the strength and size of your tricep then you should do bodyweight exercises like TRX tricep extensions. This is a great alternative to a JM press as both are perfect multi-joint compound exercises.

When it comes to bodyweight exercises, TRX suspension is the perfect equipment to have with you. You can perform many bodyweight exercises with TRX and that too at home. So having a TRX suspension is always handy.

jm press alternatives

les- triceps brachii

How to do

1. Attach a TRX suspension at the top wherever you can fix the strap. You can find how to attach TRX here.

2. Grab the handles of X and stand forward with your body leaning forward. Keep your arms straight. This will be the starting position.

3. Start the exercise by moving your body forward and moving your hands back and behind your head. Don’t move your elbows during the movement.

4. Pause at the end when the tricep is fully extended and then push forward to bring your arms back to the starting position.

Recommended Reps – 12-15

If you are a beginner, then use a limited range of motion and don’t go too down. As you get used to the exercise, then increase the range of motion and go deep.

There are some more TRX tricep exercises you can do.

jm press alternatives

So these were some of the best JM press alternatives that you can consider whenever you feel any pain or discomfort while performing JM press exercise. Make sure that when you do any exercise, you don’t go too heavy. Many people injure themselves for the sake of lifting heavy. Don’t do that.

jm press alternatives

You are there in the gym competing with yourself and not with others. So make sure that you know your strength levels and do the exercises accordingly.

jm press alternatives

If you found this blog helpful, then do share it with your friends or share it on social media so that we can reach more people and can grow our website. Also, if you know of any other alternative exercises, then do share that with us in the comment section below.

If you found this blog helpful, then do share it with your friends or share it on social media so that we can attain more people and can grow our website. Also, if you know of any other alternative exercises, then do share that with us in the comment section below.

For the latest news and updates please follow us on Instagram.

Related Articles

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Back to top button