Dips: How to Do Them, Muscles Worked and Variations

Dips are one of the most effective upper-body exercises you can do with almost no equipment. You support your bodyweight on two bars or handles, lower until your upper arms are parallel to the floor, then press back up. That simple movement loads your triceps, chest and shoulders through a long range of motion, which is exactly why gymnasts, lifters and callisthenics athletes all keep dips in their training. This guide covers how to do a dip properly, the muscles it works, how to make it easier or harder, and the mistakes that cause sore shoulders.

How to do a dip

You need a set of parallel bars, a dip station, the dip handles on a power tower, or the sturdy corner of two solid surfaces. Set the bars roughly shoulder-width apart if you can choose.

1. Get into the top position. Grip the bars, jump or step up, and lock your arms straight so you are supporting your full weight with your shoulders down (not shrugged up towards your ears). This is your start and finish position.
2. Set your torso. For triceps focus, stay tall and upright. For chest focus, lean your chest forward around 15 to 30 degrees and cross your ankles behind you.
3. Lower under control. Bend your elbows and lower your body slowly, keeping your elbows tracking back rather than flaring wide. Take about 2 seconds on the way down.
4. Hit depth. Stop when your upper arms are roughly parallel to the floor, or your shoulders are level with your elbows. Going much deeper than this loads the shoulder joint hard with little extra benefit.
5. Press back up. Drive through your palms and straighten your arms back to the top, squeezing your triceps and chest. Keep your shoulders pulled down throughout.

Muscles worked

The dip is a compound push, so several muscles share the job, and your torso angle decides who does most of it.

• Triceps. The muscles on the back of your upper arm straighten your elbows and are heavily loaded on every rep, especially with an upright torso. Research on the parallel-bar dip records high triceps activation and shows it is a genuine progression from the easier bench dip (EMG comparison of bench, bar and ring dips).
• Chest (pectoralis major). Your lower chest fibres drive your arms in and down. Leaning forward increases the stretch and the load on the chest, much as changing your angle shifts emphasis in pressing movements (bench angle and pec activation).
• Front deltoids. The front of your shoulders assist the press and work hard at the bottom of the movement.
• Upper back and core. Your lats, rhomboids and abs stabilise your torso so you do not swing, which is why dips feel like a whole upper-body effort.

If you want to load these muscles harder over time, a dip belt or a dumbbell held between your feet lets you add weight gradually.

Chest dips versus triceps dips

You do not need two separate exercises, just two setups of the same move.

• Triceps dips: torso upright, elbows tucked close to your sides, narrower grip. The triceps do most of the work. Best if your goal is arm size and lockout strength for pressing.
• Chest dips: torso leaning forward, elbows allowed to flare slightly, wider grip, ankles tucked behind you. The lower chest takes more of the load. Best if your goal is chest development.

Most people benefit from doing both over time, or simply picking the version that matches their weekly training gap.

Benefits

• Big pushing strength with minimal kit. One pair of bars trains your triceps, chest and shoulders through a long range, which carries over to the bench press and overhead press.
• They scale forever. From bench dips for a total beginner to heavy weighted dips for advanced lifters, the exercise grows with you.
• They build the muscle groups behind a stronger lockout. Strong triceps are the difference between grinding out a heavy press and stalling halfway.
• Great for home training. A dip station or power tower takes up little space, and the NHS recommends muscle-strengthening work for all major muscle groups on at least two days a week.

Common mistakes

Going too deep. Dropping until your shoulders are well below your elbows stretches the shoulder joint under load and is the most common cause of dip-related pain. Stop at upper arms parallel to the floor.

Shrugging your shoulders. Letting your shoulders ride up towards your ears takes the load off the muscles and puts it on the joint. Keep them pinned down throughout.

Flaring the elbows wide on triceps dips. If your goal is triceps, keep your elbows tucked. Wide, uncontrolled flare stresses the shoulders and reduces triceps work.

Half reps. Cutting the range short (a small bend and back up) builds far less strength. Control the full range down to parallel and lock out at the top.

Swinging and kipping. Using momentum to bounce out of the bottom cheats the muscles and loads the joints unevenly. Keep your torso still and move only at the shoulders and elbows. Muscle activation stays high through full, controlled reps even as you fatigue (fatigue and the bar dip).

Progressions and variations

If you cannot do a full dip yet:

• Bench dips. Hands on a weight bench behind you, feet on the floor. Bend your elbows and lower your hips, then press up. Move your feet further out to make it harder. Keep the depth modest to protect the shoulders.
• Band-assisted dips. Loop a resistance band across the bars and kneel or stand in it for a boost out of the bottom.
• Negatives. Jump to the top, then lower as slowly as you can (aim for 4 to 5 seconds). Repeat. This builds the strength for full reps fast.

Once full dips feel easy:

• Weighted dips. Add load with a dip belt, a weighted vest, or a dumbbell held between your feet. This is the single best way to keep progressing.
• Ring dips. Performed on gymnastic rings, these add a huge stability demand. Muscle activity and joint demands differ from fixed bars, so build up slowly (bench, bar and ring dip comparison).
• Tempo dips. Take 3 to 4 seconds to lower and pause for a second at the bottom. Brutal, and it bombproofs your form.

Sets and reps

A simple plan that works for most people:

• Strength and muscle: 3 to 4 sets of 6 to 12 reps, 2 times a week. Add weight once you can hit the top of the range with clean form.
• Learning the move: 3 to 4 sets of negatives or band-assisted dips, resting 90 seconds, until you can do a few clean bodyweight reps.
• Endurance: 2 to 3 sets of 15 or more bodyweight reps in a circuit.

Pair dips with a pulling exercise like pull ups or chin ups to keep your shoulders balanced and healthy.

Recommended reads

1. The best dip station in the UK
2. The best pull up bar in the UK
3. How to do the bench press
4. How to do the overhead press