Skull Crusher
- Intermediate
- Gym
The skull crusher has you lie on a bench holding a barbell over your chest, upper arms locked vertical while your elbows bend to lower the bar toward your forehead. Keeping the upper arms still isolates the triceps through the elbow joint alone, without help from the shoulders. Intermediate lifters use it in the gym for weight and reps, as a main lift or a finisher.
- Muscles
- Triceps
- Equipment
- Barbell, Bench
- Logged as
- Weight and reps
How to
- Lie on the bench holding the bar over your chest.
- Keep your upper arms vertical and still.
- Bend your elbows to lower the bar toward your forehead.
- Extend back to straight arms without flaring your elbows.
Form cues
- Push back to full lockout as you exhale.
- Keep your elbows pointed at the ceiling.
- Lower the bar slowly, not with a drop.
Common mistakes
- Elbows flare out and drift backward. Keep your elbows stacked over your shoulders.
- Bar drifts back over the top of the head. Aim the bar at your hairline, not further back.
- Wrists bend backward under the bar's weight. Keep your wrists straight and locked throughout.
Wellboy is a wellness and fitness app, not a healthcare service, and it does not provide medical advice. Talk to a doctor or another healthcare professional before starting a new exercise or diet routine if you have a medical condition, an injury, are pregnant, or have symptoms.
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