Weighted Bench Dip
Trains the Triceps.
- Equipment
- A weight plate and either a flat bench or an adjustable bench
- Mechanic
- Compound
- Force
- Push
- Level
- Intermediate
How to do it
- Set two benches parallel, far enough apart that your heels reach the far one with the legs straight.
- Sit on the near bench, hands beside your hips, and slide forward until your backside is off it.
- Have a partner set a plate across your thighs, or set one there before sliding out.
- Lower yourself by bending the elbows, keeping them pointing back rather than out.
- Go down until the upper arms are roughly level with the floor.
- Press back up to straight arms without letting the shoulders shrug.
Common mistakes
- Going deeper than the shoulders allow. With the hands behind the body the shoulder is already in extension, and depth adds internal rotation to it — level upper arms is a reasonable limit.
- Letting the elbows flare out. They point back along the body; flaring puts the shoulder into a position it cannot press out of.
- Adding weight before the bodyweight version is comfortable. The hands-behind position is the least supported dip there is, and a plate makes it more so.
- Setting the plate where it can slide off. A plate on the thighs travels as you move; a partner placing it, or a dip belt, is the safer arrangement.