Why Are Dips So Hard for Beginners

You can do push-ups. Maybe you can even knock out a few pull-ups. But when you get on the parallel bars for dips, your arms shake, your shoulders feel sketchy, and you can barely push yourself back up. It’s a common frustration that makes a lot of people skip the exercise entirely.

Key Takeaways

• The main reason dips are hard is you're lifting nearly 100% of your bodyweight from a mechanically weak position, unlike a push-up where you only lift about 65%.
• Beginners lack the shoulder stability and triceps strength required for the bottom portion of the lift, which is where most people fail.
• Proper form means stopping when your shoulders are level with your elbows (a 90-degree arm bend). Going deeper is the #1 cause of shoulder pain.
• To achieve your first dip, you must follow a progression: start with bench dips, then move to negative dips, and finally use assisted dips with bands or a machine.
• Leaning your torso forward by about 30 degrees targets your chest, while keeping your torso upright emphasizes your triceps.
• With a consistent plan, you can expect to achieve your first clean bodyweight dip within 4 to 8 weeks.

Why Dips Are So Much Harder Than Push-Ups

The answer to 'why are dips so hard for beginners' is simple math and physics. You are lifting almost 100% of your bodyweight from a position of terrible leverage, and your stabilizer muscles aren't ready for it.

Think about a push-up. Your feet are on the floor, providing a stable anchor. You're only pressing about 60-70% of your total bodyweight. For a 180-pound person, that’s around 110-125 pounds. It's a significant amount, but manageable.

Now, consider a dip. Your feet are off the ground. Your entire body is suspended in the air, supported only by your hands. You are now responsible for controlling and lifting nearly all of that 180 pounds. There is no floor to help you stabilize. Your shoulders, chest, and triceps have to do all the work, and your core has to work overtime just to keep you from swinging.

Furthermore, the bottom of a dip places your shoulder joint in a position of extreme stretch and demand. This requires not only strength but also mobility and stability that most beginners haven't developed. Your triceps are put under a massive stretch, and if they aren't strong enough in that lengthened position, you simply won't be able to push yourself back up. It’s the equivalent of trying to bench press 1.5 times what you normally lift, but only from the bottom inch of the movement.

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The Two Biggest Mistakes Beginners Make

Most people who try dips and fail are making one of two critical errors. These mistakes not only prevent progress but also dramatically increase the risk of shoulder injury. If you’ve felt a sharp, pinching pain in the front of your shoulder doing dips, mistake #1 is almost certainly why.

Mistake 1: Going Way Too Deep

You've seen advanced lifters go “ass to grass” on squats, so you assume deeper is always better for dips. This is wrong and dangerous. The dip is not an exercise where you should chase maximum range of motion.

The safe and effective range of motion ends when your shoulders are approximately level with your elbows. This creates about a 90-degree angle in your arm. Going any deeper causes the head of your humerus (the upper arm bone) to slide forward in the shoulder socket, putting immense strain on the ligaments and tendons in the front of your shoulder. This is what causes that sharp, anterior shoulder pain.

Your goal is to build muscle, not to test the limits of your joint capsules. Stop at parallel. This provides all the stimulus your chest and triceps need without risking injury.

Mistake 2: Jumping Straight to Bodyweight

Trying to do a full bodyweight dip without any preparation is like trying to bench press 185 pounds on your first day in the gym. You wouldn't do that, so why would you expect to lift your entire bodyweight on a different exercise?

Ego is the enemy here. You see someone else doing dips and think you should be able to as well. But that person has likely spent months, if not years, building the foundational strength to perform them. When you fail, you get discouraged and label dips as an exercise that's “not for you.”

In reality, you just skipped all the necessary steps. Strength is a skill that must be built progressively. You need to earn the right to do a bodyweight dip by mastering easier variations first.

The 3-Step Progression to Your First Full Dip

If you can't do a single dip right now, don't worry. Almost no one can at first. Follow this proven 3-step progression, and you will get there. The key is to master each step before moving to the next. Your goal is not just to do a dip, but to own the movement with perfect, pain-free form.

Step 1: Bench Dips (The Foundation)

This is your starting point. It uses the same muscles but reduces the amount of bodyweight you have to lift.

How to do it: Sit on the edge of a flat bench and place your hands on the edge, just outside your hips. Slide your butt off the bench and walk your feet out. To make it easier, keep your knees bent. To make it harder, straighten your legs. Lower your body until your arms are at a 90-degree angle, then press back up.

Your Goal: Achieve 3 clean sets of 15-20 reps with your legs straight. Once you can do this easily, you are ready for the next step.

Step 2: Negative Dips (Building Eccentric Strength)

The “negative” or lowering portion of a lift is where you are strongest. By focusing only on this phase, you can safely handle your full bodyweight and build the specific strength needed to push yourself back up.

How to do it: Get on a parallel dip station. Jump or use your feet to get to the top position, with your arms locked out. Now, as slowly and controlled as possible, lower your body. Fight gravity the entire way down. Aim for a 3 to 5-second descent. Once you reach the bottom (arms at 90 degrees), put your feet back on the step and get back to the top to start the next rep. Do not try to push yourself up.

Your Goal: Perform 3 sets of 5-8 reps, with each rep lasting at least 3 seconds on the way down. When you can control the negative, you're ready to practice the full movement.

Step 3: Assisted Dips (Practicing the Full Motion)

Now it's time to put it all together with some help. You have two excellent options here: a dedicated assisted dip machine or resistance bands.

Option A: Assisted Dip Machine: This machine has a knee pad connected to a weight stack. The more weight you select, the more it helps you, making the exercise easier. Start with an assistance weight that is about 50% of your bodyweight. If you weigh 180 pounds, start with 90 pounds of assistance. Perform your reps, focusing on a full range of motion (down to 90 degrees). Each week, try to reduce the assistance by 5-10 pounds.

Option B: Resistance Bands: Loop a thick resistance band over both dip bars. Place your knees (easier) or feet (harder) into the loop. The band will stretch at the bottom of the movement, giving you the most help where you are weakest. As you get stronger, you'll progress to thinner and thinner bands, which provide less assistance.

Your Goal: Work your way up to 3 sets of 8-10 reps with minimal assistance (e.g., only 20-30 pounds on the machine or using the thinnest resistance band).

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Your First Dip Workout Plan

Knowledge is useless without a plan. Here is a simple, twice-a-week routine you can integrate into your current training schedule to get your first bodyweight dip. Stick with this for 4-8 weeks, focusing on progressive overload.

Day 1 (e.g., Monday - Strength Focus)

1. Negative Dips: 4 sets of 5 reps. Focus on a slow, 3-5 second controlled descent on every single rep. Rest 90 seconds between sets. Your only job is to lower yourself with perfect control.
2. Bench Dips: 3 sets of 15-20 reps. Since you've already fatigued your muscles with negatives, this is to add volume and build endurance. Rest 60 seconds between sets.

Day 2 (e.g., Thursday - Repetition Focus)

1. Assisted Dips (Machine or Band): 4 sets of 8-12 reps. Choose a level of assistance that makes the last 2 reps of each set challenging but possible with good form. Once you can hit 12 reps, reduce the assistance for the next session. Rest 90 seconds between sets.

When to Test Your First Bodyweight Dip:

After 4 weeks of consistently following this plan and making progress (slowing down your negatives, reducing assistance), it's time to test. At the beginning of your workout, when you are fresh, attempt one bodyweight dip. Get to the top, lower yourself to the 90-degree point, and push. If you get it, congratulations. If not, don't be discouraged. Simply continue with the progression plan for another 2-4 weeks and test again. You will get there.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are dips bad for your shoulders?

No, bad form is bad for your shoulders. Dips are perfectly safe when you stop at the correct depth-when your upper arms are parallel to the floor (or your shoulders are level with your elbows). Going deeper than this is what causes injury.

What's the difference between chest dips and triceps dips?

For chest dips, lean your torso forward about 30-45 degrees and allow your elbows to flare out slightly. For triceps dips, keep your torso as upright as possible and your elbows tucked in close to your body. Beginners should start with whatever form feels most natural before specializing.

How many dips should I be able to do?

For a beginner, achieving 1 clean bodyweight rep is a massive accomplishment. A solid intermediate goal is to perform 3 sets of 8-12 reps. An advanced lifter will add weight using a dip belt while staying in that 8-12 rep range.

What if I feel pain in my wrists?

This often happens when you let your wrists bend backward under the load. Focus on maintaining a neutral, straight wrist throughout the movement. Using parallel bars is generally more comfortable than a V-shaped dip station, as it allows for a more natural wrist angle.

Can I do dips every day?

No. Dips are an intense compound exercise that heavily taxes your muscles, joints, and central nervous system. You need to allow for recovery. Treat them like any other major lift, such as squats or bench presses, and perform them 1-2 times per week at most.

Conclusion

Dips are hard because they demand a unique combination of upper-body strength, stability, and control that most other exercises don't build. They are a true test of relative strength.

But they are not impossible. Stop trying to force a bodyweight rep you haven't earned. Follow the progression, respect the proper form, and you will build the strength to conquer this incredible exercise.