Does it matter if I hold the bar thumbs-up or thumbs-down when I do tricep presses? I sure FEEL weaker with thumbs-up, but my friend says it's the same.

Your friend has a point. If you look at an anatomical chart, you'll see that the Tricep attaches to the very tip of your elbow. Do a simple experiment: Bend your arm as if you were about to arm-wrestle. Now put your fingers on the tip of your elbow and rotate the hand. As you notice, whether your thumb points up or down, the elbow - and the tricep muscle - won't move, and therefor couldn't care less whether your thumb is pointing one way or the other. However, since you have to actively use your forearms to hold on to the bar when doing thumbs-up, it might be distracting and weaken you compared to doing it thumbs-down, where you won't have to split your focus between your triceps and your forearms.

Thanks,

mattdanielsson@hotmail.com

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