Movement Demo – Skull Crushers

Rogue athlete and Arielle Loewen demonstrates proper form for Alternating Ground Skull Crushers, Double Ground Skull Crushers, Alternating Bench Skull Crushers, and Double Bench Skull Crushers in these quick and simple movement demos from Rogue HQ.

The Skull Crusher, which is also called a lying triceps extension is a classic bodybuilding-style accessory movement that has great benefit strengthening the triceps and therefore helps improve all pressing movements such as bench press and shoulder presses but also gymnastics movements such as HSPU’s and muscle ups.

Benefits

• Isolates and develops tricep strength which will assist the lockout in pressing movements.
• This movement therefore compliments a wide variety of other movements from gymnastics to barbell pressing movements and olympic lifts.
• Help improve elbow joint health, building stability and strength around the joint.
• Great accessory movement to strengthening the arms.

Execution

• Lie on a bench or the floor on your back
• Arms fully extended with dumbbells in your hands (top of bench press position).
• Hands at shoulder width
• Flex at the elbow lowering the dumbbells towards the head or even just behind the head, upper arm does not move from set up position – do not let the elbows flare
• Press the dumbbells back to the start position by extending the elbows. Ensure the upper arm does not move and there is no “swinging” or “throwing” the dumbbells back to the top, it needs to be a controlled press
• This can be executed with both arms moving simultaneously or alternating.

Regressions

• Use lighter dumbbells or a single dumbbell held with both hands.
• Completing skull crushers off the floor instead of a bench can limit the range of motion and make the movement easier on the elbows.
• Can also use resistance bands set up off a rig at a height lower than the bench which can sometimes feel more elbow friendly

Progressions

• Increase the loading through heavier dumbbells or even look to use a barbell or EZ bar for potentially heavier loading.
• Increase the angle of the bench to Incline skull crushers which can has the potential to increase the stretch on the tricep.
• Use Tempo / Paused Reps: 3–4 sec lowering, pause at bottom, increased time under tension.
• Overhead Dumbbell Extension, similar but more advanced angle hitting the long head more.

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