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Parallel Bar Dip
Works in
calisthenics, gym
Equipment
dip bars
Primary muscles
chest, triceps, shoulders
Why do it
One of the big four and, like the squat, pull-up and muscle-up, a movement every serious lifter should own. Dips build a powerful chest, triceps and shoulders and are the foundation of upper-body pressing strength. If you cannot dip yet, build up with bench dips and banded dips first, then progress to weighted dips once bodyweight is easy. Control the bottom and press hard to lockout.
How to do it
Support yourself on parallel bars with straight arms and shoulders down. Lower under control until the upper arms are roughly parallel to the floor, then press back to lockout. Lean the torso forward to bias the chest, stay upright to bias the triceps. No parallel bars? Use two sturdy chairs of equal height and dip between them once you have checked they are stable.
What the science says
A review of cohort studies covering over a million people found that just 30 to 60 minutes a week of muscle-strengthening work was linked to a 10 to 17 percent lower risk of dying early and of heart disease, cancer and diabetes (Momma et al., 2022, British Journal of Sports Medicine).
Fun fact
Dips are done on parallel bars, an apparatus built around 1811 by Friedrich Ludwig Jahn, often called the father of gymnastics. Parallel bars have been an Olympic gymnastics event since the very first modern Games in 1896.