Dip
The dip is a bodyweight press on parallel bars: from straight-arm support you bend your elbows until your upper arms are about parallel to the floor, then press back up. It works the triceps and the chest, especially the bottom part of the chest, with the front of the shoulders assisting.
Also called: Parallel Bar Dip, Chest Dip, Tricep Dip, Dips · Equipment: bodyweight · Pattern: push
Step by step
- Grip the parallel bars with your palms facing in, about shoulder-width apart, and jump or step up to straight-arm support.
- At the top, keep your chest tall and your shoulders pressed down away from your ears. Lean your torso slightly forward and let your legs hang or cross them behind you.
- Bend your elbows to bring your body down under control, keeping your elbows tracking back rather than flaring out.
- Descend until your upper arms are about parallel to the floor, or to the depth you can control with your shoulders set.
- Press back up by straightening your elbows, keeping your shoulders down, until your arms are locked out.
- Breathe out through the hardest part of the press and reset tall at the top before the next rep.
- Tall at the top, shoulders down
- Elbows back, not flared
- Down to upper arms parallel
- Lean forward for chest, upright for triceps
- Press the bars away
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 | C |
| Triceps brachii: medial head | Prime mover | C |
| Pectoralis major: sternocostal (mid) | Prime mover | C |
| Pectoralis major: abdominal (lower) | Prime mover | D |
| Anterior deltoid | Prime mover | C |
| Triceps brachii: long head | Secondary | C |
| Pectoralis major: clavicular (upper) | Secondary | D |
| Serratus anterior | Stabiliser | C |
| Pectoralis minor | Stabiliser | D |
| Latissimus dorsi | Stabiliser | C |
| Rotator cuff | Stabiliser | C |
| Rectus abdominis | Stabiliser | D |
Evidence grades: A = strong research base · B = good · C = limited · D = coaching consensus.
What goes wrong, and the fix
Shoulders shrugging at the bottom
Fix: Keep your shoulders pressed down away from your ears throughout the rep.
Going deeper than you can control
Fix: Descend only to the depth you control with shoulders set, about upper arms parallel.
Flared elbows
Fix: Keep your elbows tracking back, with your forearms roughly vertical.
Bouncing out of the bottom
Fix: Descend under control, pause briefly, then press.
Shrugging at lockout
Fix: Finish tall with your shoulders pressed down away from your ears.
What the research says
Muscle growth · first choiceGeneral fitness · first choiceStrengthSport performanceEnduranceFat loss & conditioning
- Load by goal — Research comparing loads finds maximal strength favours heavier loads (about 8 reps or fewer per set), while muscle growth is similar across a wide range of loads when sets are taken close to failure. Once bodyweight reps come easily, many lifters add weight with a dip belt.
- Effort — Studies show sets that finish a few reps short of failure capture most of the size and strength benefit, and that true failure adds only a small extra return.
- Volume and frequency — Research links more weekly sets for a muscle to more growth, with diminishing returns. Training the chest and triceps about twice a week is a common way to spread that volume.
- Chest or triceps — A forward lean is commonly used to bias the chest and an upright torso the triceps. This is coaching practice; no study has compared torso angles in the dip.
- Pairing — Research finds alternating a push with a pull in paired sets gets more work done in less time without a drop in per-set performance. Dips and pull-ups are a classic pairing.
Swap it mid-workout
- Ring Dip
- Assisted Dip Machine
- Barbell Floor Press
- Barbell Reverse Grip Bench Press
- Dumbbell Floor Press
- Kettlebell Floor Press
With VALDA Pro, FLEX offers alternatives like these when you swap an exercise mid-workout.
Log the dip 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.