Bench Dip: Muscles Worked and How to Do It
TL;DR
The bench dip works your triceps first, with your chest and shoulders assisting as you lower and press back up. Bending your elbows to lower your hips loads the back of your upper arm directly, making bench dips a simple bodyweight way to build pressing strength without equipment.
- Primary muscle:
- Triceps
- Secondary muscles:
- Chest, Shoulders
Muscles worked
Your triceps are the prime mover, straightening your elbows to press your body back up to the top. The more upright your torso and the closer your hands stay under your shoulders, the more of the work falls on the triceps specifically.
Your chest and shoulders assist as your elbows bend and your torso leans forward slightly, especially at the bottom of the dip where your arms are most flexed. Your shoulders also work to keep the joint stable as your body weight moves through your arms.
Log Bench Dip in PR Streak
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How to do it
- For this exercise you will need to place a bench behind your back. With the bench perpendicular to your body, and while looking away from it, hold on to the bench on its edge with the hands fully extended, separated at shoulder width. The legs will be extended forward, bent at the waist and perpendicular to your torso. This will be your starting position.
- Slowly lower your body as you inhale by bending at the elbows until you lower yourself far enough to where there is an angle slightly smaller than 90 degrees between the upper arm and the forearm. Tip: Keep the elbows as close as possible throughout the movement. Forearms should always be pointing down.
- Using your triceps to bring your torso up again, lift yourself back to the starting position.
- Repeat for the recommended amount of repetitions.
Form tips
- Keep your hips close to the bench, not out in front of it, to protect your shoulders.
- Lower until your upper arms are roughly parallel to the floor, not past it.
- Keep your elbows pointing backward instead of flaring out to the sides.
- Push through your palms to straighten your elbows fully at the top.
- Stop the descent if you feel pinching in the front of your shoulder.
Exercise details
| Equipment | Bodyweight |
|---|---|
| Level | Beginner |
| Mechanic | Compound |
Used by lifters following PPL, 5x5, upper/lower, and more.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are bench dips bad for your shoulders?
Bench dips can stress the front of the shoulder if you lower too deep or let your elbows flare wide. Keeping your hips close to the bench, your descent no deeper than upper arms parallel to the floor, and your elbows tracking back keeps the stress mostly on your triceps.
How do I make bench dips harder?
Elevate your feet on a second bench or box to add more of your bodyweight to the movement, or add a weight plate across your lap once bodyweight dips get easy for 12 or more reps. Progress gradually rather than jumping straight to the hardest version.
What other exercises target the triceps like bench dips do?
The diamond push-up and close-grip bench press both put the triceps in a similar prime-mover role with your elbows close to your body. Rotating between a few triceps-focused movements works the muscle from slightly different angles.
More triceps exercises
Exercise instructions and photos come from the free-exercise-db library, public domain, the same library used inside the PR Streak app.
