Tone Up Your Arms This New Year With Tricep Dips
Amongst men and women, one of the most sought after body parts is strong arms.
Every New Year, thousands of us hit the gym in droves with the goal of bulking up or creating definition in our arms.
We do bicep exercise after bicep exercise imaginable.
What many don’t realize is that doing lots and lots of bicep curls isn’t the way to achieve this goal.
The arms are made up of two major muscle groups – the biceps and the much larger triceps, so by failing to work triceps, we aren’t properly training arms.
In this post I’m going to help you avoid making the same mistakes as most by discussing tricep dips and explaining how this simple, flexible exercise can be made part of almost any workout program.
Why Tricep Dips?
As discussed above, if you want to build killer arms this New Year, you need to be working your triceps.
Tricep dips are a great exercise for doing this, particularly if you’re just getting started on your fitness journey and the list below explains why:
1) They’re Easy To Learn
Many tricep exercises such as dumbbell skull crushers and overhead dumbbell tricep extensions are relatively difficult and it takes a while to master the form.
However, tricep dips are very easy to pick up, even if you’ve never worked out a day in your life. You simply sit on a chair, raise yourself up, move forward slightly and then dip away.
2) They Don’t Require Specialized Equipment
One thing that causes people to give up on their fitness themed New Year’s resolutions early is the fact that most exercises require specialized equipment.
For many people this means if they can’t get to the gym, they can’t workout and as their schedule gets busier, they lose the motivation to go to the gym at all.
However, with tricep dips, all you need is a chair and regardless of how busy you are, you can always fit a few sets into your day.
Tricep Dip Variations
Standard tricep dips are suitable for people of all fitness levels.
People who are just starting out can perform a small number of reps and master the technique while people who have been working out for a while can increase the rep range and give their triceps a real challenge.
However, if you want to do more than just adjust the rep range and get a little creative with tricep dips, try these three variations:
1) Beginner Variation – Bent Knee Tricep Dips
If you don’t think your triceps are strong enough to perform regular tricep dips, this beginner variation is a perfect way to strengthen them up before you move on to regular tricep dips.
To perform bent knee tricep dips, sit on the chair, raise yourself up and move forward but instead of extending your legs out in front of you, bend your knees at a 90 degree angle and start dipping.
Bending your knees in this way moves some of the weight off your triceps and onto your legs and makes the exercise easier to perform.
2) Intermediate Variation – Two Chair Tricep Dips
If you can do 20 or more tricep dips with ease, two chair tricep dips are a great way to increase the challenge.
To perform two chair tricep dips, grab a second chair and place the two chairs a body width apart.
Then balance between the two chairs by placing your hands on one chair and your feet on the other chair and then dip as normal.
Using a second chair allows you to go much deeper with each dip and increases the amount of work your triceps have to do.
3) Advanced Variation – Weighted Two Chair Tricep Dips
This simple but effective variation adds extra resistance to each tricep dips and is perfect for people who want to get the maximum intensity from each dip.
To perform weighted tricep dips, simply wear a weight vest or place some weight on the top half of your legs, get in the two chair tricep position described above and dip away.
Saftey with Dips
As with any exercise, you want to make sure you are doing it right. Dips are one of those that you need to be careful with because you don’t want to hurt your shoulders.
Tricep Dip Workouts
While tricep dips can help you to develop killer arms, if you want to improve your overall fitness in the New Year, you need to be making them part of an effective workout routine.
The best workout routine for you will depend on your own personal fitness goals but if you need some ideas to get you started, try out one of the tricep workouts listed below:
Workout 1 – Push Up & Tricep Dip Workout
- Perform 10 tricep dips or any of the tricep dip variations listed above.
- Stand up, place your hands on the chair, kick your legs out behind you and perform 10 push ups.
- Repeat steps 1-2 for as many repetitions as you desire.
Workout 2 – Cardio, Core & Tricep Dip Workout
- Perform 10 tricep dips or any of the tricep dip variations listed above.
- Lie down on the floor and perform 10 bicycle crunches.
- Stand up and perform 10 jumping jacks.
- Repeat steps 1-3 for as many repetitions as you desire.
If you’ve made the New Year’s resolution of having bigger stronger arms but you’re not training your triceps, you’re setting yourself up for failure.
The tricep dip variations and tricep dip workouts listed in this article will ensure that you get the best results possible with your arms.
So grab a chair, get dipping and make this New Year the one where you get the arms you desire.
