1st time in years actually doing dips with my body weight and I suck at them. Found something I’m either weak at or too fat for. My goal was 5 sets of 10 then realized on the 1st set I could only do a few more after 5, so then I was gonna do 5 sets of 5, I finished the 3rd set and had no more… I weigh about 290lbs. I did do Military press before the dips and felt good, never thought dips would be so damn hard, So im thinking a combination of being tall(6’4")& long armed, and being a lil fat played a big role in it…
Anyone else struggle with dips?
Yeah I kinda suck at dips. After MP I can get about 3 sets of ten then I start to go down. I only weight 230 though.
Pull-ups are worse
not really, but they seem to put unnesesary strain on my shoulders.(i only weigh 185 though at 5’11 or so)
I’m pretty bad at them. Was pretty decent at doing them when I was down to about 235-240, but once I hit 260 my dips went to shit. I have shoulder issues which probably exacerbate my crappiness, plus like you I am tall (6’5) with long arms. My goal is to just do them till I don’t suck at them any more!
Yup… 6’5 here too and honestly the reason why we are all so bad at them is because we weigh more than most. You weigh 290, thats the equivalent of a 200 lb person doing dips with two plates on a weight belt. You are at a natural disadvantage, but consider this: Once you master dips, you will be the fucking man.
Try an EDT program with Dips and Close Grip Chinups (all bodyweight) as your movements, I am doing that currently, and I went from 12 dip max to 25 max in a month. Just a suggestion,
Best of luck
My training partner is 6’2" and has long arms. He complains about how he can’t keep up with my short arms and my light weight. I usually just do more reps so he doesn’t feel bad.LOL
Really it is as simple as just doing them, I started out doing 5X3 with Bodyweight. now I can do 3 45’s and a 25 for 3x5 at 165lbs. This was done in a few months not yrs. I am also 52yrs old. It’s all about work and not over doing it. Your body will tell you when you can up the weight. Just remember this is an accessory not a main lift.
They blow up my shoulders so I just go to a little bit over parallel if I choose to do them… parallel or below completely kills my shoulders… and I’m super tiny. 160-165lbs
CGspot, pull-ups are just out the question, im one a done on them.
Dymdez, what exactly is EDT program?
Im with you VTBalla, im just gonna keep doin them until im better at them or until something breaks 
[quote]MrEdofCourse wrote:
CGspot, pull-ups are just out the question, im one a done on them.
Dymdez, what exactly is EDT program?
Im with you VTBalla, im just gonna keep doin them until im better at them or until something breaks :)[/quote]
x2 I want to know what it is. I suck at both of those movements (dips and chinups).
[quote]forbes wrote:
[quote]MrEdofCourse wrote:
CGspot, pull-ups are just out the question, im one a done on them.
Dymdez, what exactly is EDT program?
Im with you VTBalla, im just gonna keep doin them until im better at them or until something breaks :)[/quote]
x2 I want to know what it is. I suck at both of those movements (dips and chinups).[/quote]
as far as i know, edt stands for escalating density training. Charles Staley wrote a lot about it.
[quote]iamthewolf wrote:
[quote]forbes wrote:
[quote]MrEdofCourse wrote:
CGspot, pull-ups are just out the question, im one a done on them.
Dymdez, what exactly is EDT program?
Im with you VTBalla, im just gonna keep doin them until im better at them or until something breaks :)[/quote]
x2 I want to know what it is. I suck at both of those movements (dips and chinups).[/quote]
as far as i know, edt stands for escalating density training. Charles Staley wrote a lot about it.[/quote]
I know but I wanted the specific program
I have always been pretty good at them until I have sprung up with shoulder impingement issues. Its a great exercise to add overall mass to your tris and chest. I also found it to be a great assistance exercise for benching, as I was tricep shoulder dominant presser. I got up to 90lbs plus body weight which lies around 240 x 4.
So if you could do them devoid of pain, even if you suck at em do them, they will benefit. I would say once you can get 12 reps of BW, then move up in weight. If they cause you pain unfortunately I would lay off them or youll be like me and deal with this nagging shit.
I’m not convinced that bodyweight has that much to do with it. I’m 6’5" and 260 lbs. I used to weigh 305 and could do weighted dips for sets of 10. The weird thing is that since I’ve lost weight, my dips have not really improved. Anyway, after I complained that my bench sucked because of my long arms, my old strength coach said “your height has nothing to do with it, you’re just weak.”
I think the same could be applied to dips and pullups. You may have to work harder than a smaller guy, but it all boils down to being weak. I still can’t do one pullup and it’s because for years, I never even tried because I convinced myself that bigger guys can’t do them. The truth is that I’m just weak.
Also, I used the Gravitron to build up my dip strength. Just try one more rep or 5 more pounds every time you train and eventually you’ll get there.
you say weighted dips, what was the weight?
I dont fully believe the your just weak comment, I fully believe if you have longer arms benching is going to be tougher and DLIng may be somewhat easier. You may have to work harder at it because of your physical limitations.
I sometimes train with a guy who Deadlifts 565, but can only bench 285, he aint weak at all, in fact I would call him strong, but he has admittedly long arms which can explain some of why he excels at Deadlifting more than benching. It doesent explain it all but I am firm believer that it has something to do with it.
It sounds like your coach was just trying to give you a kick in the ass. if you were 305lbs and could do sets of 10 with weight, you aint weak either.
it does give me some shoulder pain, but hell so does MP, i just work through it and within 10 mins after lifting its gone. I like the feeling it gave my tris and and shoulders, and im actualy sore in my upper ribcage area today…
[quote]MrEdofCourse wrote:
CGspot, pull-ups are just out the question, im one a done on them.
Dymdez, what exactly is EDT program?
[/quote]
Keep in mind this isnt my EDT program, just principles from Charles Staley’s DVDs and book and the way I chose to interpret them.
Well, I start a timer for 15 minutes. I perform 5 dips, 5 chinups. I keep performing that many per set until I feel like I can’t get it easily anymore. Then I go down to either 4 or 3 reps per set and continue super setting. I choose the rest amount myself… I rest just enough so I don’t burn out too quickly before the 15 minutes is up. I record how many reps I complete for both exercises in the 15 minute window. The following week, I know the number I need to beat. Once I beat it by more than 20%, I add 5 lbs to my bodyweight, and repeat. It’s actually really fun and it works like no other… I do these once or twice a week for 15 minutes depending on how I feel. (P.S. Keep in mind, sets dont really mean anything, its only the total reps performed in the 15 minute block (or whatever time you choose.))
I did this for about 2 months (so far… i’m still doing it) and I added around 10-15 dips/chins to my max. My bodyweight went up a couple pounds. PM me if you need any more information. I have an ebook on gymnastics that covers a lot of this stuff too…
P.P.S. Also, keep in mind it doesn’t have to be dips and chinups, its any two exercises you want, it just helps if they are agonist/antagonist. Dips/Curls works, Dips/Rows, doesnt matter
[quote]MattyXL wrote:
you say weighted dips, what was the weight?
I dont fully believe the your just weak comment, I fully believe if you have longer arms benching is going to be tougher and DLIng may be somewhat easier. You may have to work harder at it because of your physical limitations.
I sometimes train with a guy who Deadlifts 565, but can only bench 285, he aint weak at all, in fact I would call him strong, but he has admittedly long arms which can explain some of why he excels at Deadlifting more than benching. It doesent explain it all but I am firm believer that it has something to do with it.
It sounds like your coach was just trying to give you a kick in the ass. if you were 305lbs and could do sets of 10 with weight, you aint weak either.[/quote]
I don’t mean that the person is weak, just weak at that particular movement. I just think that using your height, weight, age, etc. as an excuse can be self-defeating. It’s like when people don’t even try to lose weight because they say they just have bad genetics. Sure, that person may never be a swimsuit model, but they dont’ have to be obese either. Same thing with dips, you may never be able to do weighted dips with an extra 100lbs, but a few sets of 10 is realistic for any healthy person.
To answer your question, I used a 35lb plate for sets of 10. But my best raw bench is only 425. I never saw much carryover with dips.
[quote]mkrozewicz wrote:
[quote]MattyXL wrote:
you say weighted dips, what was the weight?
I dont fully believe the your just weak comment, I fully believe if you have longer arms benching is going to be tougher and DLIng may be somewhat easier. You may have to work harder at it because of your physical limitations.
I sometimes train with a guy who Deadlifts 565, but can only bench 285, he aint weak at all, in fact I would call him strong, but he has admittedly long arms which can explain some of why he excels at Deadlifting more than benching. It doesent explain it all but I am firm believer that it has something to do with it.
It sounds like your coach was just trying to give you a kick in the ass. if you were 305lbs and could do sets of 10 with weight, you aint weak either.[/quote]
I don’t mean that the person is weak, just weak at that particular movement. I just think that using your height, weight, age, etc. as an excuse can be self-defeating. It’s like when people don’t even try to lose weight because they say they just have bad genetics. Sure, that person may never be a swimsuit model, but they dont’ have to be obese either. Same thing with dips, you may never be able to do weighted dips with an extra 100lbs, but a few sets of 10 is realistic for any healthy person.
To answer your question, I used a 35lb plate for sets of 10. But my best raw bench is only 425. I never saw much carryover with dips. [/quote]
Exactly, which is why your coach called you that. It is also why I stated the following…
“You may have to work harder at it because of your physical limitations.” just like your comment on somewhat who is genertically predisposed to being heavy.
Size has nothing to do with anything. There are some exercises that just suck though. Dips are one of them. Lunges suck too.
[quote]StormTheBeach wrote:
Size has nothing to do with anything. There are some exercises that just suck though. Dips are one of them. Lunges suck too.[/quote]
I totally disagree with this, dipping with 300lbs versus 150lbs is a big difference,(its science and common sense) in high school i weighed between 185 and 210 and could pound out dips,(10-20) a set, @ 290 no such thing, im a lot stronger now and i can’t pound out dips.