isolation arm
Weighted Dips
triceps · chest · shoulders
dumbbell · advanced
How to do it
- 1Hold a dumbbell between your crossed ankles, or hang a plate from a dip belt, and support yourself on the parallel bars with straight arms.
- 2Lower until your upper arms are roughly parallel to the floor, then press back up, keeping the weight still.
What to think about
- Lean forward slightly for chest, stay upright for triceps, and keep the descent slow.
What usually goes wrong
- Dropping deeper than the bodyweight version because the weight pulls you down.
Worth knowing
- Earned, not chosen: only after clean bodyweight dips at the top of the range. Stop at a depth your shoulders are comfortable with; it is the added weight that finds the limit.
Watch it
Instead of this
What the cautions rest on
The safety points above come from these, not from house opinion.
- Strength and muscle gain require progressively increasing demand over time.
- Weight training carries a low injury rate compared with most field and contact sports.
- Holding your breath through a heavy rep raises blood pressure sharply, which matters most for people carrying cardiovascular risk.
- Free weights carried over the head or trunk need a spotter or a catch mechanism, and equipment needs checking before it is loaded.
Who checked this
Nobody qualified has. These are standard coaching points and ordinary gym safety, written down: how to set the thing up, what to control, and when to stop a set. They are not a clinical opinion and no physiotherapist or strength coach has read them back. If they disagree with somebody who can actually see you lift, believe that person.