Dip bars are a versatile piece of fitness equipment that can be used for many different bodyweight exercises. They can be free standing or wall mounted and are usually made of sturdy steel frames.
They’re often used for a variety of calisthenics to target upper body muscles. They also allow you to perform advanced variations like muscle-ups and weighted dips.
1. Inverted Rows
Whether you are training in your home gym or outdoors, there is no excuse to skip bodyweight movements that can improve strength, posture, and stability. One such movement is the inverted row. This is an effective calisthenics exercise that works the upper back muscles—trapezius and latissimus dorsi—as well as the biceps.
In addition to targeting the back muscles, the inverted row also puts a demand on your core and other stabilizers to keep your body stable throughout the motion. This helps to prevent the sagging or hollow look that can sometimes occur when performing other exercises such as dumbbell rows and front-lever rows using a power rack.
To perform an inverted row, grab a bar with both hands and bring your chest to it, like you were performing a push-up. Keeping your hips and shoulders in a straight line, lower your body until the bars are at the same level as your chest. This is one rep of the movement. Then, slowly return to the starting position and repeat. As you become stronger, you can increase the difficulty by lowering your body or adding more tension with your arms.
2. Chest Press
Although the chest press may seem like a straightforward muscle-building mechanism, there are many variations of this exercise that can target your pectoral muscles in different ways. These variation are important because the muscle group needs to be trained in a variety of ways to ensure proper function and avoid overtraining.
Begin by laying supine on an exercise bench with a dumbbell in each hand at arm’s length above your chest with your palms facing inward. Slowly lower the weights down to a point at or slightly below your chest and then sweep them up overhead until they are in line with your eyes. Inhale throughout this movement.
When you reach the top position, squeeze your chest muscles. Then, exhale and slowly return the weights back to their starting position towards your chest.
The chest press is a great exercise to build strong shoulders and triceps. These muscles are necessary for daily activities such as pushing a shopping cart or a heavy door and also for sports that involve swinging a racket or club.
3. Chest Fly
There are a number of techniques to exercise the chest (pectoralis) muscles without having to worry about maintaining balance whether on a bench, a ball, or standing. The chest fly machine is an excellent choice because it allows you to target this muscle group without having to worry about positioning your body in a way that is challenging to balance. Additionally, some variations of the chest fly machine allow you to work other muscle groups that aid in stabilising your body, such as the back and abdominal muscles.
Performing a chest fly requires the use of dumbbells held with the palms facing each other. With a slight bend at the elbows, slowly lower the dumbbells out to the sides until you feel a stretch in your chest. Return to the starting position and repeat.
Chest flyes can be performed on their own or as part of a total body strength superset workout. Try adding this exercise to your workout and you will see results in no time! Like all strength training, chest flyes can also burn calories, but they burn more calories per minute if done at a higher intensity. This is because you’ll be able to build more muscle mass which will burn more calories throughout the day.
4. Tricep Dips
Tricep dips are a great exercise to target the muscles in the upper arms. They can be a good complement to chest exercises such as push-ups, and also work to strengthen the shoulders.
Performing tricep dips properly requires an appropriate amount of weight, and the use of the proper technique to prevent shoulder injury. A common mistake is lowering too far into the dip, which can put unnecessary stress and strain on the shoulders.
One of the best things about dip bars is that they are portable, and can be used virtually anywhere. This is important for people who are limited by the availability of equipment at their gym or home.
If you are looking to elevate your workout and build tricep strength, the best option is to make your own DIY set of dip bars using two chairs. This is a relatively easy and cost-effective project that can take just a few hours to complete. It also helps to have a little carpentry skill and some salvaged wood lying around. Then, you can create a piece of functional fitness equipment that will be useful for years to come!
5. Shoulder Press
The shoulder press, or overhead barbell press, is one of the most popular and effective exercises for the shoulders and upper chest. It targets the deltoids and triceps, and is important for building power and stabilization. However, despite its popularity and effectiveness, the exercise can be challenging to execute properly. This is especially true for beginners who don’t have the necessary knowledge or experience to avoid common mistakes, which can result in shoulder injuries.
Fortunately, there are many different variations on the shoulder press that can be used to elevate your workout and meet any fitness goal. From tackling muscle imbalances to improving full-body strength, these shoulder press variations provide a variety of solutions for both novices and experienced lifters.
One great variation on the standard shoulder press is the dumbbell front raise. Start with your feet hip-distance apart and a single dumbbell in each hand, then press them up over your head to shoulder height. From here, slowly lower them behind your head and extend your arms to complete the rep. Repeat for 8-12 repetitions.
