StrengthBeginner

Bench Dips

A bench-supported dip where you hang your body off the edge and push back up, the easiest entry point to vertical triceps strength.

GIF · Demo Bench Dips

What is the bench dips?

Bench dips are a beginner-friendly dip variation done with the hands behind you on a bench, feet on the floor or another bench. You lower your hips by bending the elbows, then press back up. They target the triceps with secondary chest and front delt work, and they let you train the dip pattern long before you have the strength for full parallel-bar dips. Cheap, scalable, and effective.

How to do the bench dips

Hand position

Sit on the edge of a bench, hands gripping the edge just outside your hips, fingers pointing forward.

Feet placement

Legs extended, heels on the floor (easier) or on another bench (harder). Hips just off the bench.

Lower under control

Bend the elbows straight back, not flared out. Lower until the elbows reach ninety degrees, no further.

Press back up

Push through the palms to extend the elbows. Lock out the arms at the top, keep the chest up.

Coach tip

Keep your shoulder blades pulled down and back the whole rep. The second they shrug up, your shoulder takes the load instead of your triceps.

Common mistakes

Going too deep. Past ninety degrees, the shoulders take a beating and the triceps stop benefiting. Stop at parallel.
Elbows flaring out. Flared elbows recruit the front delts and stress the shoulder joint. Keep elbows tracking straight back.
Hips drifting away from the bench. If your hips slide forward, the load shifts off the triceps. Stay glued to the edge of the bench.
Shrugging shoulders. Shrugged shoulders mean impingement risk. Pack the scapulae down and keep them there.

Variations & progressions

Easier

Bent-knee bench dips

Plant the feet flat with knees bent. Less of your bodyweight loads the arms, perfect for absolute beginners.

Harder

Weighted bench dips

Place a weight plate on your thighs. Add 10 to 20 kg progressively before graduating to parallel-bar dips.

Alternative

Close-grip push-ups

Push-ups with hands close together hit the same triceps emphasis with zero shoulder strain.

How to program it

Three protocols by goal. Pick one per cycle and aim for progression on load or distance.

Goal	Sets × Distance	Load	Rest
Technique	3 × 10	Bodyweight, knees bent	60 s
Hypertrophy	4 × 12	Bodyweight, legs straight	75 s
Strength	4 × 6	+10–20 kg plate on lap	90 s

Log every rep

Add the bench dips to your ZON program

Track load, distance and progression in one timeline.

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Bench Dips FAQ

Are bench dips bad for the shoulders?

Only if you go too deep or shrug your shoulders up. Stopping at ninety degrees of elbow flexion and keeping the scapulae packed down keeps the shoulder joint safe. People with a history of front shoulder pain should swap to close-grip push-ups.

How do I progress from bench dips to real dips?

Build to four sets of twelve bodyweight reps with feet elevated. Then load 15 kg on your lap for sets of eight. Then move to parallel-bar dips with assistance bands, dropping band thickness as you get stronger. The whole jump takes most beginners six to ten weeks.

Triceps or chest, what do bench dips really train?

Bench dips with vertical torso primarily hit the long head of the triceps, with secondary work for the lower chest and front delts. Forward-leaning torso shifts emphasis to the chest, but it also stresses the shoulder more. Keep them triceps-focused.