Assisted Dip Machine
The assisted dip machine uses a counterweight under a knee or foot platform to take a set amount of your bodyweight off a parallel-bar dip. It trains the chest, the front of the shoulders and the triceps through the dip pattern at a load you can set precisely, and is the usual first step towards bodyweight dips.
Also called: Gravitron Dip, Counterweighted Dip · Equipment: machine · Pattern: push
Step by step
- Set the counterweight: a heavier setting gives more assistance. Choose one that lets you complete your target reps with control.
- Grip the dip handles with palms facing in, step onto the platform and kneel or stand on it with your arms straight and your body supported.
- Pull your shoulders down away from your ears, keep your chest up and lean your torso slightly forward.
- Bend your elbows to take your body down, keeping your elbows pointing back rather than flaring out.
- Go down until your upper arms are about parallel to the floor.
- Press through the handles until your elbows are fully straight.
- After the last rep, hold the top position and step off the platform one foot at a time while keeping hold of the handles.
- Shoulders down, away from your ears
- Chest up, slight forward lean
- Elbows point back
- Upper arms to parallel
- Press to straight arms
In VALDA, these cues are one tap away on the exercise while you train.
What it trains
| Muscle | Role | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Triceps brachii: lateral head | Prime mover | D |
| Triceps brachii: medial head | Prime mover | D |
| Pectoralis major: sternocostal (mid) | Prime mover | D |
| Pectoralis major: abdominal (lower) | Prime mover | D |
| Triceps brachii: long head | Secondary | D |
| Anterior deltoid | Secondary | D |
| Serratus anterior | Stabiliser | D |
Evidence grades: A = strong research base · B = good · C = limited · D = coaching consensus.
What goes wrong, and the fix
Going too deep
Fix: Go down until your upper arms are about parallel to the floor, then press.
Shoulders shrugging up
Fix: Pull your shoulders down away from your ears before each rep.
Elbows flaring out
Fix: Keep your elbows pointing back and close to your sides.
Half reps at the top
Fix: Press until your elbows are fully straight on every rep.
Bouncing off the counterweight
Fix: Go down under control and pause briefly at the bottom before pressing.
What the research says
General fitness · first choiceMuscle growthRehab & prehabEndurance
- Stable base — Research reviews find unstable conditions keep muscle activation high but cut the force you can produce. The machine's fixed platform takes the balance demand out of the dip.
- Load and effort — Studies show muscle growth is similar across a wide range of loads when sets are taken close to failure, and sets that finish a rep or two short of failure capture most of that benefit.
- Machines and free weights — A meta-analysis found machine and free-weight training produce similar muscle growth, while strength gains are specific to the type of equipment trained on.
- Volume — Research links more weekly sets for a muscle to more growth, with diminishing returns. Around 10 or more hard sets a week has been associated with more growth than fewer than 5.
- Progression — A common approach is to take counterweight off in small steps as reps build, moving to bodyweight dips once about 8–10 clean reps are possible with little assistance. There is no research on assisted-dip progression.
Swap it mid-workout
- Barbell Floor Press
- Barbell Reverse Grip Bench Press
- Dip
- Dumbbell Floor Press
- Kettlebell Floor Press
- Ring Dip
With VALDA Pro, FLEX offers alternatives like these when you swap an exercise mid-workout.
Log the assisted dip machine in VALDA, with these cues one tap away while you train and your history for it in one place.
General information about exercise technique, not medical advice. If you have an injury or a health condition, your healthcare provider is the right person to ask.