Tricep dip
A pushing exercise where you lower and raise your body using your arms on parallel bars or a bench.
Overview
The tricep dip is a bodyweight pushing exercise for the back of the arms. Supporting yourself on parallel bars or the edge of a bench, you bend your elbows to lower your body, then press back up until the arms are straight. The triceps do most of the work, with help from the chest and shoulders.
Bench dips, with the feet on the floor, offer an accessible starting point, while dips on parallel bars support the full bodyweight and are more demanding. It is a popular way to build pressing strength without machines.
The movement
- 1Support yourself with hands on a bench or parallel bars, arms straight.
- 2Bend your elbows to lower your body toward the floor.
- 3Keep your elbows tracking back behind you.
- 4Press back up until your arms are straight.
Beginner notes
- Bench dips with feet on the floor are an easier starting version.
- Lowering to a comfortable depth keeps the movement smooth.
- The elbows travel back rather than flaring wide.
A note on training information
Where it’s used
Sports this relates to:
Calisthenics
Bodyweight strength training — push-ups, pull-ups, dips and progressions you can do almost anywhere.
Fitness
Strength and general fitness training — the foundation that supports every other sport.
Bodybuilding
Resistance training focused on building muscle size, symmetry and definition through consistent effort.
Related exercises
Squat
A foundational lower-body movement where you bend at the hips and knees to lower down and stand back up.
Goblet squat
A squat variation where you hold a single weight close to your chest for balance and control.
Jump squat
An explosive squat variation where you spring off the floor at the top of the movement.
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Movement patterns
- PushPressing a load or the body away from the torso — horizontally or overhead — by extending the shoulders and elbows, developing the chest, shoulders and triceps.
- JumpThe plyometric pattern of projecting the body off the ground through explosive triple extension and controlling the landing — the core expression of lower-body power.
- SquatA knee-dominant pattern: bending the hips, knees and ankles to lower and rise while keeping the torso upright — the foundation of lower-body strength.
- LungeA split-stance, single-leg-emphasis pattern: stepping or dropping into a staggered stance and pushing back up to build single-leg strength, balance and stability.
- CarryHolding and transporting a load while keeping the trunk braced and stable — an anti-movement pattern that builds grip, core stability and full-body strength.
Techniques
- Bodyweight SquatA foundational lower-body exercise that lowers the hips by bending the knees and hips, then stands back up, using only body weight.
- Push-UpA bodyweight exercise that lowers and raises the body by bending and straightening the arms while holding a rigid plank line.
- PlankA static core exercise that holds the body in a straight line supported on the forearms and toes.
- Running FormThe efficient posture and stride mechanics of distance running, keeping the body relaxed and the cadence smooth.
- DeadliftA strength exercise that lifts a loaded barbell from the floor to a standing position by extending the hips and knees together.
Lifestyle
- No equipmentActivities and workouts you can do with little or no gear, using mostly your own body.
- EveningUsing the evening to be active after work, whether to unwind or fit in a proper session.
- OutdoorsSport and activity in the fresh air — running, cycling, hiking and more, using parks, trails and open space.
- 20 minutesTwenty minutes is enough for a solid, focused workout — a proper run, an interval session or a full-body circuit.
- At homeMovement you can do in your living room — from bodyweight strength to yoga — with little or no equipment.
Skills
- BlockingThe skill of using the hands or body to stop or slow an opponent’s attack.
- ThrowingThe skill of propelling the ball accurately and with control using the arm.
- BalanceThe skill of keeping the body stable and controlled while still or moving.
- BreaststrokeA swimming stroke using a symmetrical arm sweep and a frog-like kick, with the head lifting to breathe.
- Core stabilityThe skill of engaging the trunk muscles to keep the body strong and controlled through movement.
Sports science
- ProprioceptionThe body’s internal sense of where its parts are and how they are moving — the awareness behind balance and coordinated movement.
- Energy systemsHow the body supplies energy for movement — the different pathways that power everything from an explosive jump to a long, steady run.
- Aerobic and anaerobic energyThe difference between energy the body produces with oxygen and energy it produces without it — a core idea behind why different efforts feel and last so differently.
- Training adaptationThe process by which the body changes in response to repeated training — the underlying reason exercise makes you fitter, stronger or more skilful over time.
- BiomechanicsThe study of how the body produces and controls movement — the mechanics behind every technique in sport.
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How this page is maintained
- Content type
- Exercise
- Provenance
- Tier A — evergreen educational
- Verified external sources
- 0
- Content updated
- 2026-07-06
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