Heavy Triceps, Heavy Bench
“It was just triceps work.” -JM Blakely
If you want a bigger bench press, you need stronger triceps.
Not better cues, a new bar path, or another bro-pump set. Sure that stuff can help, but the key to a big bench is stronger triceps.
Every great bencher figured this out long before fitness influencers became a thing. Different eras and different gyms all came to the same conclusion. Triceps lockout the bench press, and the men who benched the most weight trained them accordingly.
The Bench Press Is Won at the Lockout
Most benches are missed in the same place. The bar moves off the chest, slows, then dies somewhere between a 90-degree elbow position and the lockout. Lifters blame their pecs or shoulders, but the truth is simpler. The triceps could not finish the job.
The pecs start the press, the shoulders and lats guide it, and the triceps end it.
If they are weak, no amount of pec-deck or dumbbell flies will save the lift.
This is not theory, it’s iron history.
Bill West and Heavy Triceps Before It Was Cool
Bill West understood something most lifters still ignore. He believed that if the triceps were not trained heavy, the bench would stall. His solution was not light pump work, it was overload.
West was known for his cheating extension variations. He would lower the bar behind his head, sometimes all the way to the bench, then blast it up using body English and sheer force. These were not pretty reps, they were heavy reps. They allowed the triceps to handle weights far beyond strict extensions.
The goal was simple. Make the triceps strong enough that lockout was never in question.
Pat Casey and Overloading the Finish
Pat Casey, the first man to officially bench press 600 pounds, attacked the same problem from a different angle while in the same gym as West. His combo pullover into extension movement allowed him to overload the triceps through a long range of motion with serious weight.
The pullover created momentum and stretch and the extension finished the rep. The triceps were forced to take over under load. Casey was not chasing isolation, he was building lockout power.
Once again, heavy benching followed heavy triceps.
Westside Barbell and the Rule That Never Changed
Louie Simmons made it very clear. If you want a bigger bench, train your triceps. The legendary Larry Pacifico told him that and Lou took it to heart. At Westside, the main bench movement came first. After that, the triceps were worked hard, every single bench day.
Presses. Extensions. Pushdowns. Floor presses. Board presses. Rolling dumbbell extensions. JM presses. High rep band pushdowns for blood flow and recovery-up to 300 reps three times per week.
The methods rotated, but the rule did not.
Bench first. Triceps after. Finish with lats/upper back, delts, and maybe some hammer curls.
Louie often said that the triceps were the most important muscle group for the bench press. Decades of results backed him up.
JM Blakely and “Triceps Work”
JM Blakely was one of the greatest bench pressers of his era, and when asked about his assistance work, he did not overcomplicate it. He called it “triceps work.”
His signature movement combined a close grip press with an extension, lowering the bar toward the throat and pressing it back up through the triceps, fists first. (My paid subscribers have access to a training tip video on the JM Press BTW.) It was brutally effective.
It was later named it the JM Press in tribute, likely by Louie and the Westside crew. The movement became a staple for anyone serious about benching big weights. Not because it looked fancy, but because it worked.
Why Variety Matters but the Target Does Not
The best bench pressers never relied on one triceps exercise. They rotated movements to avoid stagnation and overuse. Extensions, pressing variations, and high rep pushdowns for restoration and volume.
The triceps were attacked from multiple angles, through different loading schemes, but always with intent. The goal was not soreness. It was strength that carried over to the platform.
High rep band pushdowns may look easy, but they are not pointless. They build work capacity, tendon health, and increase blood flow to the elbow joint so heavy work can continue week after week.
The Takeaway
If your bench press is stuck, stop looking at the pecs and start looking at your triceps. Don’t neglect the upper back either, but we’ll talk about that in a future article. Are you training the triceps heavy, frequenctly, and finishing your bench sessions by working them hard?
The men who benched the most weight all agreed on this.
Strong triceps lockout heavy benches.
You do not need new tricks, just stronger arms. So train them accordingly.
Want a bigger bench?
Then your triceps need to be trained with purpose, not guesswork.
Inside my Online Coaching Club, bench work is paired with proven triceps programming drawn straight from the methods you just read about. Presses, extensions, volume work, and rotation done the right way, week after week.
Stop missing lifts. Start finishing them. Click here to join the crew!
I hope you enjoyed this week’s article, and until next time, happy benching!