7 Most Effective Dip Bar Exercises for Beginners

Updated: May 5th, 2020

Whether you’re at the gym or looking for an effective at-home workout, you can’t go wrong with dip bar exercises. These versatile pieces of gym equipment are ideal for targeting various muscle groups during bodyweight strength training.

While dip bars can be intimidating, there are plenty of beginner-friendly variations to get you started. Here are seven effective dip bar exercises for beginners.

If you’re looking for a dip bar, see our top picks here.

1. Static Holds

Before you do pull-ups, many coaches and trainers will advise you to try dead hangs. These simple exercises train your grip and prepare your body for the progression toward a pull-up. 

The same theory applies to static holds on a dip bar station.

It takes a surprising amount of strength to stabilize yourself in a good position for dips. Shifting out of position can limit the effectiveness of your exercise and even cause injury. Practicing static holds prepares you for more complex dip station exercises.

How To:

1. Stand between the dip bars and firmly grasp each side. The bars should rest on your palm with your wrists stacked.
2. Push down to lift your body upward, slowly removing your feet from the floor until your arms are locked out.
3. Hold this position for 15-30 seconds, then lower yourself back to the starting position.

Repeat this process, adding length to your holds as you build strength and stability. You need to be able to hold your own weight comfortably before you can add movement.

2. Negative Dips

The next progression toward full parallel bar dips is to do negative dips. These are sometimes referred to as “slow lowers” as you lower yourself down in a controlled motion to build upper body strength to support your dip bar exercises. 

How To:

1. Stand between the dip bars and firmly grasp each side. The bars should rest on your palm with your wrists stacked.
2. Push down, lifting your body upward.
3. Slowly lift your feet, bending your knees and crossing your ankles for stability.
4. Bend your elbows to lower your body, keeping your torso upright and controlling the movement.
5. When you reach the bottom of your range of motion, put your feet down, and return to your starting position. That’s one rep.

Negatives allow you to build strength during the eccentric portion of the exercise. In other words, when the muscle is lengthening. This prepares the body for the concentric part of the movement. I.E., when the muscles are contracting to push your body up. Studies have shown that eccentric exercises are superior in building muscle mass and strength, so don’t feel as though you’re missing out with this beginner dip station workout.

3. Band Assisted Dips

Using a resistance band can help you build the strength and stability you need to support your body weight while doing dip stand exercises. It might take some experimentation to find the right resistance band tension to support your body weight while still providing an effective workout. 

See our guide on assist bands here.

How To:

1. Secure a band over each side of the dip station. The middle of the band should hang between the two rails.
2. Stand between the dip bars and firmly grasp each side. Position your knees in the band, then extend to the static hold position. Alternatively, you can assume the position first and lower yourself into the band.
3. Unlock your elbows, bending them to allow yourself to lower toward the floor. Control the movement as you would do with negatives.
4. At the bottom of your range of motion, forcefully push yourself back up until your arms are fully extended. That’s one rep.

The band will assist with the upward motion, reducing the load put on your upper body. The bottom of your range of motion might look different depending on whether you’re doing tricep dips or chest dips. 

With tricep dips, your upper arm should be parallel to the floor with your chest held upright, and your elbows tucked. For chest dips, lean slightly forward, allowing your shoulders to dip past your elbows at the bottom of the movement.

More: Top 6 Benefits of Dips Exercise & How To Dip The Right Way

4. Scapular Dips

Scapular dips are the cherry on top of an upper-body dip bar workout. Scapular dips, like scapular push-ups, target the shoulders. They’re an effective warm-up for a more robust dip station workout, as well as a great way to add shoulder strength and definition.

How To:

1. Stand between the dip bars and firmly grasp each side. The bars should rest on your palm with your wrists stacked.
2. Push down while slowly lift your feet, bending your knees and crossing your ankles for stability. 
3. While keeping your arms locked out, lower your torso, allowing your shoulders to shrug upward toward your ears. 
4. At the bottom of your range of motion, push upward to full extension once more.

This is an effective bodyweight exercise for correcting shoulder instabilities, as well as building strength for both push and pull exercises. 

5. Extended ROM Push-Ups

Dip stations are versatile pieces of exercise equipment that can be used for more than just dips. If you have a steel frame dip station like The Ultimate Body Press, you can lay it down and use the sides for incline push-ups and other parallette bar exercises. With an extended ROM (range of motion) push-up, you’re able to lower yourself into the negative space and target your lower chest muscles more effectively.

How To:

1. Lay your dip station on its side, with the top facing you.
2. Firmly grasp each sidebar, approximately halfway between the top and bottom of the equipment. You may have to adjust based on your height.
3. Walk your feet out behind you until your body and arms are fully extended in an incline plank position.
4. Maintaining a tight core, lower yourself toward the floor, bending your elbows and keeping them tucked. 
5. Lower yourself as far as you can while maintaining form. Ideally, your chest will be below your hands.
6. At the bottom of the movement, push yourself back up into starting position. 

In addition to using a dip station or parallette bars for an extended ROM push-up, you can also use them for modified, beginner-friendly push-ups. To do this, you’ll end the movement when your chest reaches your hands, rather than extending your ROM.

6. Knee Raises with Leg Raise Progression

There are also plenty of dip bar exercises for abs to add to your workout. To get the most out of your training, start with knee raises before progressing to leg raises. This exercise will target your rectus abdominis and obliques, as well as your hip flexor muscles.

How To:

1. Stand between the dip bars and firmly grasp each side. The bars should rest on your palm with your wrists stacked.
2. Push down to lift your body, assuming the static hold position.
3. Bend your knees and lift them toward your chest in a slow and controlled motion. 
4. Pause at the top of the movement, then slowly lower back to starting position. Control the movement to avoid a swinging motion.
5. To progress to leg raises, repeat the motion with legs fully extended in front of you.

Both of these core workout variations take practice. When you get started with knee raises, you may not be able to lift them to your chest. As you build strength, your range of motion will improve. If you need to add a slight swinging motion during the lifting portion of leg raises, that’s fine. However, be sure to do slow, controlled negatives on the way back down.

7. Inverted Rows

While dip bar stations are great for push workouts, they can also be used for pull motion exercises. Inverted rows are a powerful upper body workout that targets your back and shoulders.

How To:

1. Position yourself on the floor between your dip bars, reaching up to grasp each side firmly. 
2. Walk your feet out into a glute bridge position, extending your torso with your ankles stacked under your knees. 
3. Lower your upper body down until your arms are fully extended while maintaining a firm core. 
4. From the bottom of the movement, pull your body up, keeping your elbows tucked. Your feet shouldn’t move during this motion.
5. Pause at the top of the movement, then lower back down with a controlled motion. That’s one rep.

To progress this movement, extend your legs so that your body is in a reverse plank position. This adds more resistance by allowing your arms to pull your full body weight.

Pull Your Weight at the Gym and at Home

With these seven exercises, you can build a strong foundation for using dip bars properly and effectively. Start with static holds and negative dips, then progress the movements as you build strength.