90 lbs Weighted Dips | When Your Body Weight Isn't Enough
#weightdips #tricepsexercise #chestexercise #calisthenics #weightedcalisthenics #tricepworkout #chestworkout #tricepsworkout #dips #bodyweightexercises #weightedexercises #tricepsdips #tricepdips #tricepdip #shorts
As the brofessor once said, dip your 90lbs sack into the ground! What's up everyone! Just wanted to do a little throw back when I was heavily into calisthenic workouts and made my way up to 90lbs dips. To be truthful, this is not the most I have done for dips. However, it is the most I have done at such a high body weight, which was 178lbs. My hope is to continue shedding off some fat but retain the strength for doing weighted dips.
Ideally, I'd like to increase my strength pound for pound especially since I really enjoy calisthenic workouts. This also means that I hope to improve on pull ups and other body weight exercises. With that said, I will eventually try for a 3 plate max but that will be a long way in the future.
Now, if you enjoy doing dips (and let's be honest, they are not for everyone--weighted or unweighted), then make sure you get the form right. I think dips are excellent as a body weight exercise for chest and triceps development but if the form isn't done properly, odds are you'll incur injury one way or other. Typically, this pain or injury manifests in the form of shoulder discomfort. Though, for some people, the triceps tendon can also be inflamed especially if you go up the weight too quickly. This is because the triceps tendon (or really any tendon for that matter) grows much slower in strength than muscles. Tendons don't heal as quickly because they don't receive nearly the amount of nutrition that muscles do due to blood flow. And let's be honest, anytime you go to the gym, you are assuming a risk. But when done properly, the benefits far outweigh the risks.
So while it's entirely possible that your muscles are strong enough to lift a certain weight, sometimes you need to progress slowly to accommodate the strength of your tendons. Your tendons, after all, are what transfer the force from your muscles onto your bones.
For me, it took quite a while to get to 90lbs weighted dips at 178lbs body weight. I could have done more but in the past, I have incurred injuries that would only set me back. And if you've been following my channel, you know that I always preach PROGRESSIVE OVERLOAD. Yes, it requires you to have a more patient and realistic expectation of what you can achieve. BUT it's something that you can achieve.
With that said, dips are pretty simple. They are a compound movement which makes them invaluable (to me) in certain situations. This exercise, regardless of position will target your chest, triceps and shoulders. However, you've probably heard that if you lean forward slightly, then you place more emphasis on your chest. Whereas if you position yourself more upright, then you target your triceps more. Both statements are true, but don't lose sight of the fact that this IS a compound movement and that many muscle groups will be targeted, among those are your chest, triceps, shoulder and even core. The most important segment of this movement that a lot of people get wrong is the eccentric or downward portion. A lot of people overextend their shoulders and dip below 90 degrees. While this might seem as if you are really tearing into those muscle fibers and going into a full range of motion, it's also pretty risky and hardly worth the additional effort when going 90 degrees is enough. This is usually where people start to incur shoulder discomfort. So start with your body weight. And progress onward. I think 5-10lbs increments are great. You will be impressed by the progress your body can make as it slowly adapts to this movement.
So when doing this exercise, a good reminder is to "feel" the contraction of your muscles. This will train you to properly do the dip movement as you develop a "mind muscle" connection. An exercise done poorly is an exercise that will come back to haunt you. The dips are great for upper body development but you need to be patient and do it properly. I feel like I am just beating a dead horse at this point but it's something I really want to emphasize.
-------------------------------
Find Me On Social Media:
Instagram: / nick.caligari
-------------------------------
Music by Epidemic Sound (http://www.epidemicsound.com)