Wednesday 30 October 2013

Dip bars alternatives

A dip station or dip bars will allow you to follow the later stages of the dip progression.
The one pictured here folds flat and locks for under-bed storage and makes an ideal home station. It is available at

Here are a couple of alternatives however which will allow you to get started with dips:
Parallel bar dips can be performed between the backs of two chairs. Make sure these are sturdy enough to support your weight, and keep your feet off the floor by bending your legs as illustrated.
Parallel bar dips can also be performed between two tables, or two flat surfaces of the same height. Simply place your hands flat on the surface, and keep your feet off the floor when dipping.

5 comments:

  1. a walker is also an excellent dip station. they may be a little tough to find, but once you find one, they are stable, and can support a lot of weight. Most of them can handle up to 300 lbs

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  2. I recently sold all my weights & power rack which had dip handle attachments & switched to bodyweight only training. I now use gymnastic rings for everything. I can't do any where near as many ring dips as I could with solid dip handles but they really work me a lot harder. Love them!!!

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    Replies
    1. Tony, rings are great, but they probably wouldn't be suited for beginners. If you are working towards achieving dips, rings are probably not the best option. That said, I totally agree with you: rings are incredibly versatile.

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    2. I agree, rings would be difficult for a beginner. I'm 53 & only been working out with weights for about 2 years now. I've always loved dips & could manage about 12 on bars. When I switched to rings about a month ago I was maxing out at 3. I've worked up to 5 now but have struggled with discouragement at times due to the difficulty. I think they're definitely worth the effort though if you can stick with it & gradually up your reps.

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    3. I just recently got some rings to help with my rows and tried them out with dips. Before I was doing half dips, probably close to doing full dips, but had to revert back to assisted with my feed on a chair or something. I'm going to keep with the rings and work on transitioning other exercises to them as well.

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