Aside from ass to grass squats and overhead presses, has there been an exercise as wrongly vilified as dips? Usually, dips serve as one of the great divides between the hardcore strength athletes and the folks they’d deem as the pencil-necked corrective exercise geeks.
Bodybuilders have credited dips for armoring their chest and triceps with dense layers of muscle while some powerlifters and Strongman competitors have boosted their pressing strength by incorporating dips as assistance exercises. Taking a gander at heavily muscled male gymnasts, you’ll note their immensely developed triceps. Think they’re camping out at the cable stack at your local commercial gym performing endless sets of press-downs? Nope. Instead, they’re performing an array of dipping and pressing movements throughout their lengthy practices each day. What about folks who don’t have access to weight rooms but often have a set of parallel bars at their disposal, such as prisoners, members of our armed forces, and bodyweight extraordinaire, Hannibal the King of YouTube fame? They all share one commonality—incredible triceps development.
Conversely, the mesh Polo shirt wearing, clipboard toting, Bosu ball bouncing, hyper analytical, pseudo physical therapist personal trainers have demonized parallel dips, arguing that they destroy the shoulder and elbow joints. While there’s some credence to their argument because parallel dips aren’t advised for individuals such as throwing athletes, those with anterior shoulder instability, and pre-existing elbow pain, they shouldn’t be entirely steered clear of, especially by healthy lifters and athletes.
Performing dips with an extra wide grip should be avoided because they predispose the shoulder to injury by forcing it into near maximal external rotation. This is akin to bench pressing with a really wide grip. Also, performing dips with an extended range of motion in which the biceps and forearms make contact will increase rotation at the shoulder, perhaps contributing to impingement over time. Going really low also overstretches the pectoralis, increasing the likelihood of tearing it.
Functional anatomy
The triceps (primarily the lateral and medial heads), sternal and clavicular heads of the pectoralis major, anterior deltoid, scapulothoracic, and core musculature, all work in accord during the movement. The scapulothoracic muscles collectively stabilize the scapulae during the movement, especially as the descent is commenced. The core resists any movement, specifically lateral sway, which occurs right off the bat in lesser experienced lifters and weaker individuals or late in the set when fatigue begins to set in. The pectoralis and anterior deltoids provide the initial push at the bottom while the triceps, along with the aconeus, take over the movement when the elbow approaches 90 degrees of flexion, helping to lock the elbows out to complete the movement. The pectoralis will again be called upon if the parallel bars are spaced apart at shoulder width or if the lifter is executing the dip with a forward torso lean.
How to properly perform dips
Dips, like squats, deadlifts, and seemingly every other movement, can invite injury when the movement is botched. Ideally, before attempting a dip, you should be able to bang out fifty push-ups with strict form consecutively. You should also be free of any pre-existing shoulder or elbow pathology.
First, assume a shoulder width or slightly wider than shoulder width grip on the parallel bars. Some wall mounted parallel bars flare out at the ends. Avoid grasping this part. Selectorized assisted pull-up and dip machines will typically have handles that rotate and lock into place, allowing you to go wide or narrow, depending on your preference. Flip the handles inward to keep the hand placement narrow, at least initially.
If there isn’t a foot plate or step attached to the machine or located below the parallel bars, situate a low plyometric box, stack of plates, or aerobic steppers beneath the bars. Alternatively, you can grasp the parallel bars and jump into place.
Once you’re atop the parallel bars with your elbows locked out, perform the following before descending:
- Inhale while simultaneously bracing the core and locking the hips into extension. If the parallel bars are high off the ground, you may keep your knees extended. If not (or if you’re freakishly tall), bend your knees, crossing one foot over the other, to keep them from hitting the ground.
- Keep the chin tucked and squeeze the shoulder blades together. This will prevent any scapular elevation or excessive shoulder extension from occurring.
- Using the handles, pull yourself down slowly, as if you’re rowing the handles to your chest. Do not drop down.
- Keep a slight forward lean. Allow your torso to “drift” away from the handles slightly. This helps balance the stress imposed on the shoulders and elbows equally because now they’ll be stacked atop each other.
- Descend to the point of a stretch, not pain. Ideally, you should feel a slight stretch of both heads of the pectoralis major as well as the anterior deltoid. You should not sink below where the elbow achieves 90 degrees of flexion or where the back of your arm is parallel with the ceiling.
- Exhale while driving with the heel of the palm to initiate the push of the anterior delts and chest. Focus on pushing the bars down and away from you as if you’re scaling a fence.
- Continue to exhale while you extend the elbows. There isn’t any need to forcefully lock out the elbows.
Additional considerations
- It should be noted that maximal elbow extension torque doesn’t occur near full extension. Instead, it takes place when the elbow is at 90 degrees of flexion. Multi-joint pressing movements such as the dip suggest that the length of a muscle, not leverage, determines the point in the range of motion where elbow extension torque naturally occurs (1). For the bodybuilders and lifters seeking hypertrophic development of the long head of the triceps, it should be noted that the long head doesn’t possess an optimal length/tension relationship during 90 degrees of elbow flexion with minimal shoulder flexion. Instead, it occurs at close to 90 degrees of elbow flexion and full shoulder flexion.
- If you aren’t strong enough to perform dips, don’t use the platform attachment of assisted pull-up and dip machines. They don’t optimally accommodate the strength curve of the exercise. Instead, wrap bands around the handles and position yourself inside the bands. The contribution of the machine is continuous whereas the bands will provide you a boost from where you’re generally the weakest—the bottom.
- Alternatively, you may use the bands to overload the movement by wrapping them over your shoulders behind the neck.
- With regards to loading, vests are a better option if your shoulder integrity isn’t up to par. Having plates attached to a belt will actively pull you down, pushing your shoulders into extension and forcing them into internal rotation while stretching the joint capsule and forcing the upper back to round a bit more. As you get stronger, it’s best to balance the load with a vest and a belt.
- Firmly grasping the handles, which are typically thicker than barbells, will not only bolster your crushing grip but will also prevent lateral elbow pain and increase neural drive to the muscles of the rotator cuff, which dynamically stabilizes the head of the humerus allowing for smoother articulation of the shoulder joint during the movement.
- Dips should not replace bench pressing variations, which include board presses, pin presses, floor presses, and presses with variable resistance in a powerlifting training program. However, they are awesome as an accessory movement, during a deload, or as a great finisher when performed with body weight only. For bodybuilders, dips are safer when wanting to move heavy loads while training alone and may be used as a main pressing movement within one’s program temporarily or permanently.
Dips, when performed correctly, are one of the most potent movements for developing the chest and triceps and boosting pressing strength. Adhere to the aforementioned guidelines and watch your upper body grow and your bench numbers soar.
References
- Neumman DA (2002) Kinesiology of the Musculoskeletal System. St. Louis, MO: Mosby.
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Joe Giandonato, MS, CSCS, is a Philadelphia-area personal trainer, corporate health coach, and freelance writer. More of his content can be found at 
By the way I fucking love dips… Hands down my favorite triceps exercise. Close grip press and weighted dips are the only triceps exercises I will touch. Almost up to three plates on my dips… YYEEAAHHH BOIII!
I think dips are great and I miss doing them. Just started really feeling a lot of pressure on my clavicles when going heavy. Close grip bench/floor press seem to work just fine though.
As far as ‘existing shoulder pathologies’ go, what would you say for someone with a recent impingement(15 months, self diagnosed), that seems to have been successfully rehabbed? I know you’re not a doctor, but I’m interested in your opinion. Correcting my imbalances, mobility work, body awareness and rehab work on the cuff complex seems to have done the trick…and I miss dips.
I’m with Nathan. My right clavicle is acting up on dips, even body weight these days.
Joe, great article. Really love dips.
Iam no anatomy-junkie nor did i study anything in this area at all. Got a question regarding your statement with wide dips, external rotation and wide bench presses.
As for now, i thought Its common sense that shoulder rotation will increase, and thus is dangerous, when doing a wide dips. Reading this Statement only acknowledge this belive. But then, when you said it would be just like a really wide bench press, something went wrong in my head. I Remember reading Dave Tates Iron Evolution: Phase 5, Westside Barbell, Technique. (http://www.t-nation.com/free_online_article/most_recent/iron_evolution_phase_5)
Dave states there that he has strained his pec numerous times and moved to and narrower grip over time. Louie Simmons then told him to bench wider. “Louie had me bench wider. He explained that the pressure on the pec was determined by the degree of shoulder rotation, and that with a wide grip there was actually less shoulder rotation than my more “pec friendly” close grip.”
wouldnt that mean the contrary of the statement above? Can you Explain?
With the elbow pain; if things like barbell curls or skull crushers make my elbows flare up (and they do), would that be an indication not to try dips?
Thanks for the feedback guys!
@ David W. – If I were you, I’d get seek out a qualified professional in your area for an assessment to determine shoulder ER/IR, scapular stability, etc. I’d avoid assisted dips and variations until someone can give you a look.
I dont’ have a dip station now, and was thinking of buying one is why I ask–I dont’ want to sink 100 bucks into it and find out I can’t’ use it!
Hey Flo,
Thanks for pointing that out to me. When I meant wide grip, I meant really wide with the shoulders fully abducted and elbows flared out all the way, with the bar brought down to the upper chest (closer to the clavicles). Wide handled dipping and benching in this manner royally pisses off shoulders as it forces the shoulders into unnatural external rotation.
Hey Paul,
Where are you experiencing the pain specifically? I know that heavy barbell curls or dumbbell curls with a supinated grip along with high volume pulling, including rows and shrugs can ignite the tendons of the wrist extensor muscles, causing pain on the lateral side of the elbow. This can be further aggravated by writing, typing, and driving, where you’re using those muscles a lot. The pain associated with doing skull crushers is typically from the extension part of the movement.
If the pain is severe, see someone. If not, try doing SMFR – rolling a marble over the top of your forearm with the palm of your hand or taking the convex side of a spoon, held in place with your opposite thumb and gliding that over your wrist extensor muscles. Stretch them afterward by interlocking your hands and fingers and holding them in front of you keeping them at shoulder level, pulling down with the arm on the bottom.
Great write up, and glad to know I’m doing them correctly (for the most part).
Dips are definitely a weakness of mine, but doing them consistently as an assistance has improved my strength over time. Definitely a ‘train your weaknesses’ situation for me.
Joe,
thanks for the reply.
But wouldnt generally benching wider still increase shoulder rotation? Im Confused with Daves Section in the article i listed above.
Flo,
Benching with a wider hand placement, without tucking the elbows will cause the shoulders to externally rotate more. You can limit the external rotation if you don’t abduct the arms as much. 30-45 degrees is safe for those with shoulder pathologies – impingement, instability, etc.
joe, so benching wide with tucked elbows is actually better than benching narrow with tucked elbows regarding shoulder rotation? so would be wide dips with tucked elbows be more pec friendly than narrow dips with tucked shoulders?
there’s nothing wrong with narrow bench, besides wrist stress. wide bench is tough on shoulders with or without tuck. dips should never be wide and there’s no such thing as narrow dip grip- you simply grip handles close to your sides. shoulders should always be pulled back, bench or dip. elbows should always be tucked, it’s just the amount the varies, due to arm length and the need to keep elbows in line with wrists.
Yeah- the one thing I disagree with the regs on the site about is their dislike of dips. Dips are the king of all exercises for the triceps. Folks here complain about shoulder issues- I’m going to go out on a cheeky limb and say unless there is a pre-existing issue, the problem is their set up/form not the exercise itself. When it’s heavy, you have to set up properly, just like on chins, or bench. The most important thing is to keep shoulders pulled back and grip width correct, followed by rom check, lean and keeping tight. The problem I have is on how to add plates. Anymore than 4plates won’t fit between the legs and I can’t figure out how to add more.