Why You Should Be Doing Dips: 5 Proven Benefits for Upper Body Strength
The dip is one of the most effective exercises for building upper body mass and strength, targeting chest, shoulders, triceps, and abdominals. Here's everything you need to know about mastering this fundamental movement.
Man using gym chest press machine
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Proper Form for Chest Dips:
- Stand between parallel bars just outside shoulder width
- Grip bars firmly and elevate yourself
- Lean forward to focus tension on chest
- Bend knees slightly to elevate feet
- Lower until upper arms are parallel to ground
- Push back up without locking elbows
- Maintain controlled movement throughout
Triceps Dip Variation:
- Keep body more upright than chest dips
- Can be performed on parallel bars or between benches
- For bench version, place feet on second bench
- Use overhand grip close to body
- Lower body between benches
- Push up using primarily triceps strength
5 Key Benefits:
- Improves Bench Press Performance
- Acts as an excellent complementary exercise
- Weighted dips can significantly boost bench press numbers
- Builds Chest and Triceps
- Forward lean targets chest
- Upright position emphasizes triceps
- Excellent for muscle development
- Versatile Rep Ranges
- Effective for both low-rep strength work (4-7 reps)
- Great for high-rep endurance sets
- Can be weighted for progressive overload
- Maximum Muscle Activation
- Compound movement engaging multiple muscle groups
- Superior to isolation exercises
- High electromyographical activity in pectorals and triceps
- Convenience and Accessibility
- Requires minimal equipment
- Can be performed almost anywhere
- Effective for both gym and home workouts
- Time-under-tension can replace added weight
For best results, incorporate both chest-focused and triceps-focused variations into your training routine, progressively increasing difficulty through added weight or slower tempo.