An illustration of the bottom position of the classic dip exercise.
Although pull ups are my favourite upper body calisthenics exercise for building muscle mass and sculpting your physique, doing body weight dips on parallel dipping bars or gymnastics rings are a very close second.
Before you run out out get yourself a set, you need to be aware of what Dip Bar options you have available.
Body Weight dips are one of the most challenging functional strength exercises because they will work your chest muscles, back, shoulders, and triceps.
Just like pull-ups, body weight dips are a very challenging functional strength exercise that will expose weak muscle groups. If you have really weak triceps and a strong chest for example, your weak triceps will be exposed and you won’t be able to perform many body weight dips with good form.
Any half decent Calisthenics upper body strength training program should contain dips, pull ups, and both standard and handstand push ups.
Before you can get started knocking out rep after rep of dips, you need to know a thing or two, such as your options.
Let’s dive in and take a look at the different options available to you.
Portable Dip Station
A portable dip station is ideal for home based workouts.
They are of course portable, so you can easily move them around or out of the way if required.
They are also relatively inexpensive and allow you to knock out various exercises including dips, L-sits and bent knee raises.
For more info about using a Portable Dip Stations you can click here.
Wall Mounted Dip Bars
Another great option if you have the space and are wanting a permanent fixture is Wall mounted dip bars.
They can be installed very easily in the convenience of your own home although a spare room or garage would be best so they don’t get in the way.
The installation process is very similar to that of the wall mounted pull up bar.
If you want to know more about Wall Mounted Dip Bars click here.
An illustration showing the bottom position of bench dips. Bench dips place a lot of emphasis on the triceps and are a good exercise for beginners.
Combined Pull-up Dip Stations
One of my favourite machines for home based workouts is the combination pull up dip station a.k.a Power Tower, that allows you to do pull ups, dips and leg raises.
You can purchase these simple pieces of equipment for your own home, avoiding a pricey gym membership. In the scheme of things they are relatively inexpensive.
Buyer beware though. You often get what you pay for so if you can afford it, stick with a known brand that has good reviews or testimonials.
To find out more information about Power Towers aka Combination Pull Up Dip Stations click here.
Outdoor Dip Bars
If you live in a warm climate make sure to check out your local park because they are usually ideal for Calisthenic training.
Most parks worth their salt will have a set of dipping bars or bars suitable for that purpose.
Assuming you can find a suitable pull up bar at the park as well, you can pretty much do everything there. No gym membership or equipment to buy and all while working on your tan. Talk about killing two birds with one stone!
If you prefer to workout at home you can mount a set of weather resistant parallel dipping bars outside in your yard. That way you can train in privacy, while still catching some sun and fresh air!
Thanks for reading. Feel free to leave comment or sign up to the FREE S&S newsletter below.
Thanks.
Jeremy.
To read about the benefits of Calisthenics, click here to return to our homepage.
If the pull up is the king of calisthenics exercises, then the dip is the queen. I don’t know any exercise that will build your shoulders, chest and arms at the same time better than the dip. When it comes to equipment for doing dips, I prefer outdoor dip bars.
Great post man, keep it up.
Dips are like squats for the lower body. They are absolutely amazing. I make sure to program them in no matter what. Although doing them on a dip tree is obviously harder, I actually feel it better when I use a couple of chairs. Good read.