Thursday, January 5, 2012

Best Ways to Do Tricep Dips

A triceps dip is an intense upper body exercise that targets the muscles on the backs of your upper arm. The weight of your body provides enough resistance to fatigue your triceps and improve your strength. To vary the intensity of the workout, you vary the placement of your legs. Dips are an exercise that progresses with you as your strength improves.

The Dip

The movement of the dip occurs in your arms. Sit on a flat bench or in a chair and place your hands on the bench next to your hips. Allow your fingers to hang over the edge of the bench. Straighten your arms. Walk your feet away from the bench to lift your hips off the support. Bend your knees if you are a beginner, or straighten your legs for a more advanced workout. Inhale and bend your elbows as your body lowers toward the ground. Bend your arms until your upper arm is parallel with the floor. Exhale and straighten your arms to the start position. Point your elbows behind your body as you bend your arms.

Bent Knees

The beginning leg position during the triceps dips is a bent knee position. Place your feet hip-distance apart. Align your feet parallel with each other and point your toes forward. Keep your knees over your heels throughout the exercise and place the majority of your body weight in your heels. You should be able to raise your toes off the floor.

Straight Legs

When you change your leg position from bent knees to straight legs, you change the distance your feet are from your body. In the bent knee position, your feet are close to your triceps. The bent knee positions shorten the length of your body during the dip which lessens the tension on your arms. When your legs are straight you increase the length of your body during the dip, which increases the amount of tension in your triceps. Although you are still lifting the weight of your body, the new position limits the amount of support given from your legs and places the tension in your arms.

Lifted Legs

The advanced version of the triceps dip elevates your straight legs. Instead of placing your heels on the floor, place your heels onto another weight bench or chair. The height of the bench depends upon your strength. A lower bench equals a lower elevation of your feet and a less intense dip. The higher you elevate your feet, the more you increase the challenge of the dip.

 
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