Why Do My Shoulders Hurt When I Do Dips and Am I Leaning Too Far Forward

The Real Reason Your Shoulders Hurt (It's Not Just Your Lean)

If you're asking 'why do my shoulders hurt when I do dips and am I leaning too far forward,' the answer is almost always excessive internal rotation at the bottom of the rep, not the lean itself. That sharp, pinching pain you feel in the front of your shoulder has a specific cause, and it's fixable.

You're not alone in this. You see people at the gym repping out dips like it's nothing, and you wonder what you're doing wrong. You try leaning forward, you try staying upright, and the pain is still there. It's frustrating enough to make you want to quit the exercise entirely.

The problem is something called anterior humeral glide. Your shoulder is a ball-and-socket joint. When you lower yourself into a dip without keeping your shoulder blades pulled back and down, the head of your humerus (the "ball") slides forward in the socket. This pinches the biceps tendon and other soft tissues against the bone, creating that sharp pain.

So, what about the forward lean? Leaning forward is actually correct for a chest-focused dip. The issue isn't the lean; it's leaning *while letting your shoulders round forward*. When your chest collapses at the bottom, your shoulders take all the load in a very unstable position.

For 9 out of 10 people, the pain starts the moment their shoulder drops below their elbow. This excessive range of motion, combined with poor shoulder blade control, is the true culprit. The goal isn't to eliminate the lean; it's to control it while keeping your shoulder joint stable.

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The "Shoulder-Safe Zone" You're Probably Violating

Your shoulder joint has a "safe zone" where it's strongest and most stable. This isn't straight in front of you or directly out to your side; it's in a path about 30 degrees forward of your torso. Think about the path your arm travels when you throw a ball underhand-that's the natural, powerful arc.

Dips can either live in this safe zone or violate it completely. This is where the forward lean becomes critical.

When you attempt to stay perfectly upright during a dip (often called a "tricep dip"), your elbows have to travel far behind your body. This forces the shoulder into extreme extension and internal rotation, putting immense pressure on the front of the joint. For most people, this is a direct path to impingement and pain.

A controlled forward lean of about 20-30 degrees does something amazing: it brings the movement path forward, closer to that shoulder-safe zone. It allows you to keep your elbows from drifting too far back and aligns the force with your pectoral muscles instead of your shoulder joint.

The number one mistake people make is initiating the forward lean from their upper back instead of their hips. They round their shoulders and collapse their chest to lean forward. This is wrong and dangerous.

The correct way is to hinge at your hips while keeping a "proud chest." Imagine someone is about to poke you in the sternum-you'd puff your chest out to meet them. That's the feeling you need to hold throughout the entire repetition. Your torso angle should be set at the top and remain fixed.

You now understand the 30-degree lean and the "proud chest" cue. But knowing the form and executing it perfectly for 3 sets of 8 are different things. How do you know if your form broke down on rep 6? If you're not tracking your workouts and adding notes on form, you're just guessing and risking re-injury.

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The 4-Step Protocol to Pain-Free Dips

Stop doing full dips immediately. Pushing through the pain will only make the inflammation worse and ingrain bad motor patterns. Instead, you're going to rebuild the movement from the ground up. This protocol will take 4-8 weeks, but it will build a foundation for decades of pain-free training.

Step 1: Master the Scapular Dip

This isn't a strength exercise; it's a control exercise. It teaches your brain how to stabilize your shoulder blades, which is the root of the problem.

• How to do it: Get into the top position of a dip with your arms locked out. Keeping your elbows straight, let your shoulders shrug up towards your ears, then actively push down as far as you can, depressing your shoulder blades. Think about creating as much space as possible between your ears and your shoulders.
• Volume: Do 3 sets of 10-15 reps as part of your warm-up. Focus on the feeling of control, not speed.

Step 2: Control the Negative (Build Eccentric Strength)

Your muscles are about 20% stronger during the lowering (eccentric) phase of a lift. We'll use this to build strength in the exact range of motion where you feel pain, but without the painful concentric (pushing) part.

• How to do it: Use a box or bench to get to the top of the dip position. Brace your core and begin lowering yourself as slowly as possible, aiming for a 3- to 5-second descent. Go only as deep as you can *without any pain*. At the bottom, put your feet back on the box and reset at the top. Do not try to push yourself back up.
• Volume: Do 3 sets of 5-8 negative reps.

Step 3: Introduce Paused Reps at 90 Degrees

The bottom of the dip is where your stability fails. Paused reps force you to own this position.

• How to do it: Perform a dip, but only lower until your upper arm is parallel to the floor (a 90-degree bend at the elbow). Hold this bottom position for a full 2 seconds, focusing on keeping your chest up and shoulders back. Then, press back up.
• Volume: Do 3 sets of 6-10 reps. If you can't do 6 reps, continue with negatives for another week.

Step 4: Test Full, Pain-Free Dips

After 2-3 weeks of the previous steps, you can test a full dip. Your body has now learned the proper motor pattern and built strength in the weak points.

• How to do it: Film yourself from the side. Set your 20-30 degree forward lean at the top. Lower yourself until your shoulder is roughly level with your elbow. Your chest should stay proud, and your shoulders should not roll forward.
• Volume: Start with 3 sets of as many perfect reps as you can. When you can do 3 sets of 8-10 reps, you can consider adding weight with a dip belt.

What to Expect: Your 60-Day Timeline to Stronger Dips

Rebuilding a movement pattern takes patience. Your ego will want you to jump back to full dips, but your shoulder joint needs you to follow the plan. Here is a realistic timeline.

Weeks 1-2: The Foundation Phase

You will only perform Scapular Dips and Negative Reps. You will not feel any pain because you are avoiding the aggravating part of the movement. You might feel like you're not doing a "real" workout. That's the point. You are rewiring your neuromuscular system and letting inflammation subside. Your job is to master control.

Weeks 3-4: The Stability Phase

You will introduce Paused Reps to a 90-degree depth. The goal is to feel completely stable and strong in the bottom position. You should be able to hold the 2-second pause without your form breaking down. Your confidence in the movement will grow significantly. The exercise will start to feel productive again.

Weeks 5-8 (Month 2): The Performance Phase

You should now be able to perform multiple sets of full, pain-free dips. The movement will feel different. You'll feel the tension in your chest and triceps, not a pinching in your shoulder. Your goal is to accumulate volume with perfect form. Once you can comfortably perform 3 sets of 10 reps, you have earned the right to add weight.

Warning Signs: Any sharp, pinching pain is a signal to stop immediately. It means you either went too deep or your form broke down. Don't push through it. Regress to the previous step in the protocol for one more week before trying again. This isn't failure; it's smart training.

Frequently Asked Questions

The Difference Between Chest Dips and Tricep Dips

A chest dip uses a wider grip and a distinct forward lean (20-30 degrees) to target the pecs. A tricep dip uses a narrower, shoulder-width grip and a more upright torso to emphasize the triceps. For many people, the upright tricep dip forces more shoulder extension and is more likely to cause pain.

The Safest Depth for Dips

Lower yourself until your upper arms are parallel to the floor, which creates about a 90-degree angle at your elbow. Going deeper provides minimal extra muscle-building stimulus but dramatically increases the stress and risk of injury to the shoulder capsule. Stop at parallel.

Good Alternatives if Dips Still Hurt

If you've followed the protocol and still experience pain, dips may not be the right exercise for your body. Excellent alternatives include the close-grip bench press, decline dumbbell press, and push-ups with your hands elevated on a bench. These train the same muscles with more stability.

The Role of Elbow Flare

Your elbows should not be tucked tightly to your sides, nor should they be flared out at 90 degrees. A natural path is for them to track back at roughly a 45-degree angle from your torso. This allows for comfortable movement at both the shoulder and elbow joints.

Warming Up Before Dips

Never do dips cold. Start with 5 minutes of light cardio to increase blood flow. Then, activate your upper back with 2 sets of 15 band pull-aparts and 2 sets of 10 face pulls. This helps you maintain the crucial "shoulders back and down" position during the exercise.