Pain guide · Shoulder pain

Shoulder pain when doing dips: the front of the shoulder, depth, the AC joint and what helps

Shoulder pain when you do dips usually comes from one of a few places, and where it hurts is the best clue. An ache at the front or outside of the shoulder at the bottom of the dip usually comes from the rotator cuff or the biceps tendon; pain you can point to with one finger on top, at the end of the collarbone, from the AC joint (acromioclavicular joint); and a pop at the front of the armpit with bruising, from a torn chest muscle tendon (pec). No study counts what causes pain in dips, or tests changes to the dip against pain. What lab studies do show is that dips take the shoulder further back than most pressing: in experienced men, bar dips used 88% of each man's maximal shoulder range and bench dips more than 100%, though no injuries were measured. That doesn't make dips bad for shoulders, but depth matters.

This guide starts with the signs that need help, from a 999 call for chest pain that feels tight or spreads to your arm, to accident and emergency (A&E) for a shoulder that looks out of place, and a same-day check through the National Health Service's 111 line (NHS 111) for a pop with bruising in the chest or armpit. It then maps the causes by where it hurts, explains what the lab studies show about depth and about bench, bar, ring and machine dips, and why a scan rarely helps at first, shows how to change your dips today, and gives a three-stage plan with a 3D demo of every move, from push-ups and the dip machine back to bar dips.

3-stage exercise plan When to get help 43 sourcesUpdated 28 October 2026

When to get help first

Exercise is for pain that has been checked or is clearly mild and settling.

Get urgent medical help if

Call 999 or go to A&E: after a fall or injury, your shoulder looks out of place or has changed shape, you cannot move your arm, or your shoulder is painful, bruised or swollen. Do not drive yourself, and do not try to put it back in yourself.
Call 999: shoulder or arm pain with chest pain that feels tight or squeezing, or chest pain that spreads to your arms, neck or jaw, especially with shortness of breath, sweating or feeling sick. It could be a heart attack.
Get help from NHS 111: pain or tightness in your chest, neck, shoulders, jaw or arms that comes and goes, often brought on by exercise, stress, emotion or cold and easing after a few minutes' rest. It can be angina, a sign of a heart problem. If you've been diagnosed with angina, get help from NHS 111 too if it feels worse than before, is happening more often, lasts longer or happens when you're resting.
Call 999: you suddenly can't fully lift both arms and keep them there, because of weakness or numbness in one arm, especially if one side of your face droops or you slur your words or sound confused. It could be a stroke. Call even if the signs have stopped.
Same day (NHS 111 or an urgent treatment centre): a pop or tearing at the front of the armpit or chest during a lift, a dip or a tackle, followed by bruising into the chest or upper arm, a change in the shape of the chest or armpit (a thinner or lost armpit fold, or a chest or nipple that looks uneven), or weakness pushing. Don't wait for it to settle: it can be a torn pec tendon, and repairs done within about 6 weeks did better than later ones.
Same day (GP or NHS 111): a sudden pop or snap with pain at the shoulder or upper arm during a lift, with or without a bulge low in the upper arm. It's usually a torn long head of the biceps. Most need no operation, but the rotator cuff can tear at the same time.
Urgent treatment centre or A&E: a pop or snap at the back of the elbow during a push, a press or a dip, or after a fall onto an outstretched hand, then sudden pain and swelling, bruising at the back of the elbow or forearm, a gap above the point of the elbow, or weakness straightening the arm, especially overhead. Don't wait to see if it settles: a full tear in an active person is usually repaired, and expert guidance favours repairing it early.
Same day (GP or NHS 111): sudden weakness lifting the arm after an injury or fall. A rotator cuff tear caused by an injury needs urgent referral to a shoulder specialist. After a dislocation in anyone over 40, the rotator cuff should be checked: about 40% have a tear.
Same day (GP or NHS 111): sudden or very bad shoulder pain; you cannot move your arm; the arm or shoulder is badly swollen or has changed shape; pins and needles that do not go away; no feeling in the arm; the arm is hot or cold to the touch; pain that started after an injury such as a fall; or severe pain in both shoulders.
Same day: clumsiness in your hands, or numbness, pins and needles or weakness in one or both arms, that is getting worse; problems with balance or walking since the neck pain started; or neck pain with a severe headache.
Same day (GP or NHS 111): the shoulder or arm is hot, swollen or red, or you have a high temperature (although not everyone has one) or feel unwell. A joint infection needs same-day care.
Get help from NHS 111 if you think you have costochondritis. Chest pain needs checking to rule out other, more serious conditions, and costochondritis is diagnosed only once the heart and lungs have been considered.
Same day (call NHS 111, or go to A&E if you feel very unwell): after a big or unusual session, such as hundreds of pull-ups, push-ups, dips or curls, a challenge or a new class, muscle pain, swelling or weakness far worse than the session explains, and dark pee (red, brown, tea or cola coloured), sometimes starting hours or days later. Dark pee isn't always there, so muscles far sorer, more swollen or weaker than the session explains still need the same-day check. It can be rhabdomyolysis, a breakdown of muscle that can harm the kidneys.

See a doctor or physiotherapist if

Pain that is getting worse or has not improved after 2 weeks of looking after it yourself, or it is very hard to move your arm. In many areas you can refer yourself to physiotherapy.
Your shoulder has partly or fully come out of joint, or you worry it might, including a clunk or a feeling it will slip with the arm low and back at the bottom of a press.
Pins and needles or a cold arm alongside neck pain, or a new loss of strength or feeling in the arm that you cannot explain (a possible nerve problem).
Pain on top of the shoulder at the end of the collarbone that isn't settling after a few weeks of changed pressing: ask about weightlifter's shoulder (distal clavicle osteolysis), which often needs an MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) scan to confirm.
Painful clicking or snapping at the front of the shoulder, or a feeling of something slipping there. The tendon can slip out of its groove, usually alongside a rotator cuff tear, so ask for an assessment.
A dip or change in the chest's shape that you only notice once the bruising fades, or weakness pushing that isn't getting better: get it checked promptly through your GP or NHS 111, and ask about a shoulder specialist. A tendon tear found late can often still be repaired, though the results are better early.
Pain beside the breastbone with no injury, sore to press: see our costochondritis guide, once the heart has been considered. Pain between the ribs after coughing or a twist: see our rib injury guide.
Pain at the top of the breastbone that is tender to press and builds with dips, especially wide-grip dips, and isn't settling after a week or two without them: see a GP. Very rarely, dips have caused a stress fracture there (our suggestion).
A past history of cancer, an unexplained lump or swelling, weight loss, or pain that is constant and does not ease when you change position.
See a GP if you have pain and stiffness for more than a week, especially if you're over 50, it's in both shoulders (often the neck and hips too) and the stiffness lasts longer than 45 minutes in the morning. It can be polymyalgia rheumatica.

Where does it hurt?

Location narrows the likely causes; it does not diagnose.

The front or outside of the shoulder and upper arm, at the bottom of the dip, lifting the arm out or reaching behind you

Usually rotator cuff related pain, often called impingement: the commonest cause of shoulder pain. A shallower dip, the dip machine and rotator cuff work usually help.

Read: Shoulder impingement (rotator cuff pain) →A tender spot in the groove at the front of the shoulder, sometimes with a snap, worse reaching back for a seatbelt or a coat

Often the long head of the biceps tendon, usually alongside the rotator cuff.

Read: Biceps tendinitis (shoulder) →On top of the shoulder, one finger on the end of the collarbone, worse with deep dips, wide bench presses and reaching across your body

The AC joint, including weightlifter's shoulder in people who press heavy and often.

Read: AC joint injury and pain →A pop or tearing at the front of the armpit or chest while lowering into a heavy or weighted dip, then bruising or a changed armpit fold

Possibly a torn pec tendon: rare, and almost only in men. Get it checked the same day, as the warning signs say.

Read: Pec strain or tear →Behind or beside the breastbone during or after dips

Often the chest wall, such as costochondritis; very rarely a stress fracture of the breastbone. The heart comes first: see the warning signs.

Read: Sternum pain →Deep in the shoulder at the bottom, with a clunk, a dead arm or a feeling it will slip

Possibly a loose (unstable) shoulder, especially after a past dislocation or with very flexible joints.

Read: Shoulder dislocation and instability →Deep clicking or catching in the shoulder

Sometimes the labrum (the rim of the socket), though labral tears are common on scans of shoulders that don't hurt.

Read: SLAP tear →The back of the elbow when you lock out, or in deep dips

Usually the triceps tendon, which is rarely the problem. A pop with weakness straightening the arm is a tear: see the warning signs.

Read: Triceps tendonitis →From the neck down the arm, with pins and needles, burning or numbness

A nerve in the neck, even if your neck doesn't hurt.

Read: Pinched nerve in the neck →An ache in the chest, shoulders and triceps a day or two after a big session, not during the dip

Muscle soreness. Muscles far sorer, more swollen or weaker than the session explains, especially with dark pee, need a same-day check.

Read: Shoulder pain after a workout →Mainly on the bench press or push-ups

Our bench press and push-up guides cover grip, hand position and range.

Read: Shoulder pain when benching →The elbow rather than the shoulder, in dips and push-ups

Our push-up elbow guide maps the back, inside and outside of the elbow.

Read: Elbow pain in push-ups →

Understand it

What no study has counted, and what the lab studies showEmerging evidence

No study counts what causes shoulder pain in dips, and none has tested depth, lean, grip width or elbow position against pain. So the map on this page comes from what each condition is known to do, two lab studies, a gym survey, case reports and health-service pages.

On parallel bars you hold all your weight on straight arms and lower by bending your elbows; the upper arm swings back behind your body, so at the bottom the shoulder is close to the end of its backward range (extension) while it carries your weight. In a lab study of 13 experienced men, bench dips reached 101% of the shoulder range each man reached when tested lying still, bar dips 88% and ring dips 69%; bench dips go furthest back because the trunk stays upright, while on bars a forward lean shares the depth. The researchers think loading the front of the joint capsule this way, again and again, might strain it. That is their hypothesis: the study measured movement and muscle activity, not injuries or pain. In 15 experienced men who dipped to failure, tired reps got slower and shallower, not deeper.

Sources 1, 2, 3, 4

Where it hurts sorts the causesEmerging evidence

NHS inform calls rotator cuff related pain (subacromial pain) the most common reason for shoulder pain; it hurts at the front or outside of the shoulder and upper arm, especially lifting the arm or reaching behind you. The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) lists pain at the front of the shoulder that is worse reaching backward, for a seatbelt or a coat, among the signs of biceps tendon pain, usually alongside rotator cuff problems; the bottom of a dip is the same backward reach, though that link is our reading.

Pain on top, at the end of the collarbone, is the AC joint. In people who press heavy and often it can be weightlifter's shoulder (distal clavicle osteolysis), a stress reaction at the end of the collarbone: 45 of 46 athletes in the first series lifted weights, and bench pressing was behind 49.1% of 483 published cases. A torn pec tendon happens almost only in men, usually lowering a heavy weight with the arm out and back: 63.2% of 664 injuries were in weight training, mostly on the bench press, and dips aren't a listed cause in the pooled data. It brings a tearing feeling, bruising, a changed armpit fold and weakness pushing.

Sources 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12

How often dips are blamed, and what has been reportedEmerging evidence

In an online survey of 1,387 recreational gym users, 732 reported training pain. Of those, 35% of the people who did bodyweight dips linked them to pain, against 21% for bench dips and 9% for dip machines; the shoulder was the commonest pain site overall, though the survey didn't split pain sites by exercise. It is a self-selected survey, so it can't give a risk per session.

Published injuries from dips are rare. The lab group found only two case reports of pec ruptures on bar dips (one with added weight), and there are single reports of a stress fracture at the top of the breastbone during wide-grip dips and a collarbone and rib fracture during triceps dips. These show what can happen, not how often.

Sources 4, 1, 13, 14, 15

What a scan shows, and when it mattersStrong evidence

Not at first, for an ache at the front or outside of the shoulder. Rotator cuff changes on scans are common whether or not they hurt, rising from 9.7% of people aged 20 and under to 62% from 80 (30 studies, 6,112 shoulders), and labral tears were read on 55% to 72% of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans of painless shoulders in people aged 45 to 60. NHS inform says nerve symptoms from the neck usually don't need X-rays or MRI.

A scan matters after a fall or a shoulder that came out of place, which needs hospital treatment; for a suspected torn pec, which needs prompt imaging because early repair does better; and for pain on top of the shoulder in a lifter that isn't settling, where MRI shows swelling in the bone at the end of the collarbone in most cases (72.2%).

Sources 16, 17, 18, 19, 9, 7

How it usually goesStrong evidence

No study follows shoulder pain from dips. In general practice, only about half of new episodes of shoulder pain fully recovered within 6 months (16 cohort studies), and high pain at the start predicted a slower course; in 101 Dutch patients, 51% still had complaints, mostly coming and going, at 26 weeks and 41% at 12 to 18 months, though many of them considered themselves cured. These are general shoulder pain figures, not lifters'.

The NHS says shoulder pain can take 6 months or longer to recover, and NHS inform expects new pain to begin to settle within 6 weeks. Most weightlifter's shoulder settled with changed training (415 of 483 people). No one can promise a date.

Sources 20, 21, 22, 23, 7

What helps, and how strong the evidence is

Depth: expert advice, and lab data that explain itEmerging evidence

A hospital sports medicine handout says never lower yourself below the point where the elbows reach a 90-degree angle on parallel bars, advises against training to failure, and suggests weight training 2 to 3 times a week. The National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM) teaches bench dips to about 90 degrees at the elbow, and a review of gym injuries advises no maximum stretch in exercises such as flys and dips. This is expert advice, not tested against pain or injury.

The lab data explain why depth is the main dial: experienced men who chose their own depth already took the shoulder to 76% to 88% of its maximal backward range, and bench dips past it. No trial has compared dip depths.

Sources 24, 25, 26, 1, 2

Bench, bar, ring and machine dipsEmerging evidence

In the 13 experienced men, bench dips took the shoulder furthest back and bar dips worked six muscles harder than bench dips, including the chest, the front of the shoulder and the triceps; ring dips matched bar dips for the triceps and used the least shoulder range, with falling the researchers' main worry. They would leave bench dips out of regular training and suggest assisted bar dips, with a machine or a band, as the easier step. In the gym survey, dip machines were the dip least often linked to pain.

Bench dips are still a strong triceps exercise: in 15 women they drew 87% of the triceps activity of the top exercise, equal to kickbacks. The American Council on Exercise (ACE) has called dips controversial because of the stress on the front of the shoulder; that is opinion, without data.

Sources 1, 4, 27, 28

Elbows, shoulders, lean and grip: coaching cuesEmerging evidence

NASM lists shrugging the shoulders and flaring the elbows as mistakes that add shoulder stress, and teaches the elbows pointing straight back. A slight forward lean on bars lets the trunk take part of the depth instead of the shoulder; experienced dippers leaned about 37 degrees. The one breastbone stress fracture happened on a grip wider than shoulder width, and the lab group thinks a wide grip may raise the risk to the pec. None of these cues has been tested against pain, so treat them as sensible starting points.

Sources 25, 1, 2, 14

Exercise is the treatment for rotator cuff related painStrong evidence

In 102 people with long-standing rotator cuff related pain, specific rotator cuff and shoulder-blade exercises gave a successful result in 69% against 24% with general exercise, and fewer chose surgery afterwards (20% against 63%). Across trials, exercise beat no exercise and specific exercise beat general exercise, on very low certainty evidence. A Cochrane review found exercise did about as well as steroid injections or surgery to make room for the tendon, on low quality evidence, and one type of exercise was rarely better than another.

A single self-managed loaded exercise, 3 sets of 10 to 15 twice a day, did as well as usual physiotherapy in 86 people. Steroid injections have a small benefit that doesn't last long. These people had shoulder pain in general, not from dips.

Sources 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34

Lifting and the shoulder: links, not causesMixed evidence

Up to 36% of resistance training injuries are at the shoulder. In recreational weight trainers, signs of impingement went with lateral raises and upright rows above shoulder height, and signs of a loose shoulder with behind-the-neck lifts; both were less common in people who trained the muscles that turn the arm outwards. In 20 weightlifters with hidden instability, rehab and technique changes settled 13 of 23 shoulders. A previous shoulder injury made a new one 8.1 times as likely in a conditioning gym. None of these studies names dips.

Weightlifter's shoulder went with heavy bench pressing (pressing more than 1.5 times body weight) and training 3 or more times a week, and most people improved with changed training. Dips aren't named in that research either, but deep dips press on the same joint (our reading).

Sources 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 7, 40

A torn pec: repair, and sooner rather than laterEmerging evidence

Across 664 pec tendon injuries, repair beat no surgery for function, strength and the chest's shape, and across 112 cases, repair within about 8 weeks did better than later repair. These are pooled studies without randomised comparisons, but they are why a pop with bruising needs checking the same day.

Sources 9, 11

How much pain is OK while you exercise?

Up to 5 out of 10, back to normal by the next sessionEmerging evidence

This guide uses the shoulder hub's rule, as our other shoulder movement guides do. During shoulder strengthening, pain up to about 5 out of 10 is acceptable, and a little is expected. By your next session it should be back to where it was before. If it isn't, use a lighter band or weight or a smaller range next time, not nothing. It comes from the Holmgren trial, in which patients were not allowed to go above 5 out of 10 during the exercises but were expected to feel some pain, and any increase had to settle before the next session; otherwise the load came down. NHS inform's shoulder exercises use the same bands (0 to 3 minimal, 4 to 5 acceptable, 6 to 10 excessive) and want your pain no worse the morning after. In long-lasting pain, exercise into some pain did no worse than pain-free exercise (7 trials, 385 people). A hospital handout for lifters is stricter: don't work through pain in the shoulder joint.

For dips (our suggestion, built on the same rule): use the step of the ladder (push-ups, the dip machine, assisted bar dips, bar dips, then weighted or ring dips) and the depth where the last reps stay at 5 out of 10 or less and your shoulder is back to normal by the next session. If it isn't, go back one step, not to nothing. Burning in the chest and triceps muscles is fine; a sharp pain in the joint, a catch or a feeling of slipping means stop. A pop, bruising in the chest or armpit, sudden weakness, chest pain or pins and needles that don't go away aren't pain-rule questions: see the warning signs.

Sources 29, 41, 42, 24

The exercise plan: 3 stages

Start at the first stage. Each move opens a full guide with a 3D demo.

Stage 1

Keep pushing, take the depth out

About the first 2 weeks, rotator cuff work most days and pushing 2 or 3 times a week: keep your chest and triceps working without the deep, loaded position, and start the rotator cuff and shoulder-blade work the trials used. No bar or bench dips for now. With a diagnosed condition (a torn pec, a dislocation, weightlifter's shoulder, a rotator cuff tear, a labral tear or costochondritis), that guide's plan comes first; after surgery, your surgical team's plan does.

Incline push-up demonstrated on the 3D figure

3D demoIncline push-upBeginner · A bench or box

2 to 3 sets of 8 to 12, hands on a bench or worktop, a short range at first · As in our bench press guide (editorial). An incline push-up puts much less of your weight through your arms than a dip

Easier: Wall push-up · Harder: Push-up

Dumbbell floor press demonstrated on the 3D figure

3D demoDumbbell floor pressIntermediate · A dumbbell

2 to 3 sets of 8 to 12, stopping with 2 or 3 reps in reserve · The move page's dose. The floor stops your elbows before your shoulders go far back

Easier: Chest press machine · Harder: Bench press with chains

Standing band external rotation demonstrated on the 3D figure

3D demoStanding band external rotationBeginner · A band + An anchor point

3 sets of 15, light band, elbow at your side, slow return, once or twice a day · The Holmgren trial's sets and reps

Easier: Stick-assisted external rotation (lying) · Harder: Side-lying external rotation

3D demoBand rowBeginner · A band + An anchor point

3 sets of 10 to 15, stopping 2 to 3 reps short of failure · The move page's dose

Harder: Supported single-arm dumbbell row

Scapular push-up (push-up plus) demonstrated on the 3D figure

3D demoScapular push-up (push-up plus)Beginner · No equipment

2 to 3 sets of 10, at a wall or bench first · As in our bench press guide (editorial)

Easier: Dumbbell shoulder-blade punch · Harder: Push-up

Triceps pushdown demonstrated on the 3D figure

3D demoTriceps pushdownBeginner · A cable machine

3 sets of 10 to 15, elbows at your sides · Editorial. Triceps work without your shoulder going back; the hospital handout counts pushdowns as safe

Harder: Dumbbell skull crusher (lying triceps extension)

Move on when: Incline push-ups and the floor press pass the pain rule, and your shoulder is back to its usual level by the next session (as in our bench press guide).

Follow along: a timer, a cue and the next move, one step at a time.

Stage 2

Build the cuff, and bring the dip back with help

About weeks 2 to 6, 2 or 3 sessions a week: stronger rotator cuff and shoulder-blade muscles, and the dip's movement back on a machine, to a right angle at the elbow at most.

Dip machine demonstrated on the 3D figure

3D demoDip machineBeginner · Strength machine

3 sets of 10 to 15, light, the elbows bending to a right angle at most · Editorial. Machine dips were the dip least often linked to pain in a gym survey

Harder: Parallel bar dip

Side-lying external rotation demonstrated on the 3D figure

3D demoSide-lying external rotationBeginner · A dumbbell

3 sets of 15, once a day, lowering over about 3 s · The Holmgren trial's sets and reps, once a day as in its last month

Easier: Standing band external rotation · Harder: Cuban rotation

Scaption raise demonstrated on the 3D figure

3D demoScaption raiseBeginner · A dumbbell

3 sets of 10 to 15, thumbs up, to shoulder height · The SELF trial's dose range; as in our push-up guide

Easier: Band lateral raise · Harder: Smith machine upright row

Prone Y-T-W raises demonstrated on the 3D figure

3D demoProne Y-T-W raisesBeginner · No equipment

2 rounds of 8 of each shape · As in our push-up guide (editorial). Keep your neck long, as the move page says

Easier: Wall angel · Harder: Bent-over reverse fly

3D demoPush-upIntermediate · No equipment

3 sets of 8 to 15, a comfortable depth · As in our bench press guide (editorial)

Easier: Wall push-up · Harder: Close-grip push-up (close triceps position)

Straight-arm plank (high plank) demonstrated on the 3D figure

3D demoStraight-arm plank (high plank)Intermediate · No equipment

3 holds of 15 to 30 s · The move page's dose: straight-arm support, as at the top of a dip

Easier: Knee hover (Pilates tabletop hover) · Harder: Leg pull front (Pilates leg pull down)

Move on when: 3 sets of 12 to 15 on the dip machine to a right angle, and side-lying outward rotation with a heavier weight, pass the pain rule (editorial).

Follow along: a timer, a cue and the next move, one step at a time.

Stage 3

Back to bar dips

From about week 6: bodyweight bar dips to a right angle, then your usual dips, one change at a time by the written steps below. No trial has tested a return to dips after shoulder pain, so the order is editorial.

Parallel bar dip demonstrated on the 3D figure

3D demoParallel bar dipAdvanced · Pull-up bar

3 sets of 3 to 5 slow lowerings (3 to 5 s down) to a right angle, then 3 sets of 5 to 8 full reps, with a band or your feet helping until 5 clean reps come easily · Our dips guide's ladder (editorial). Stop at about a 90-degree elbow bend, as the hospital handout advises

Easier: Bench dip · Harder: Ring dip

Triceps dip (upright) demonstrated on the 3D figure

3D demoTriceps dip (upright)Advanced · Other / check instructions

2 to 3 sets of 5 to 10, stopping with 2 or 3 reps in reserve · The move page's dose. Stop at about level upper arms, as the move page says

Easier: Bench dip · Harder: Ring dip

Neutral-grip dumbbell bench press demonstrated on the 3D figure

3D demoNeutral-grip dumbbell bench pressIntermediate · A dumbbell + A bench or box

3 sets of 8 to 12 · As in our bench press guide (editorial)

Easier: Barbell bench press · Harder: Bench press with bands

3D demoFace pullIntermediate · A band

3 sets of 12 to 15 · As in our bench press guide (editorial)

Easier: Prone Y-T-W raises · Harder: Tuck back lever

Cable external rotation demonstrated on the 3D figure

3D demoCable external rotationBeginner · A cable machine

2 to 3 sets of 10 to 15, twice a week, kept going · Editorial: the trials' rotator cuff work, kept as a habit

Harder: Side-lying external rotation

3D demoRing dipAdvanced · Gymnastic rings

Last and optional: 3 sets of 3 to 6, after about 8 steady bar dips and a steady ring support hold · Our dips guide's rule (editorial). Rings used the least shoulder range in the lab study, but falling was the researchers' main worry

Easier: Parallel bar dip · Harder: Muscle-up

Move on when: Your usual dips to a right angle pass the pain rule for 2 weeks. Add weight only after 10 to 15 clean bodyweight dips, the smallest step first (our dips guide), and keep rotator cuff work twice a week. If it flares, go back a stage for a few days, not to nothing (editorial).

Follow along: a timer, a cue and the next move, one step at a time.

What to change for now

Your dips for now (written steps)

Our 3D figure can't show all of these. They come from a hospital handout, coaching sources and lab studies of healthy experienced men; where a step is our suggestion, it says so. No trial has tested a change to the dip for shoulder pain.

1. Depth: stop when your upper arms are about level with the floor and your elbows are bent to about a right angle; the hospital handout says never lower on parallel bars. Stop sooner if the front of your shoulder complains, and go a notch deeper only once the pain rule holds (editorial).
2. Bench dips out for now: they take the shoulder furthest back of any dip. Use the dip machine, or bar dips with a band or your feet helping, as the lab study's authors suggest.
3. A slight forward lean on bars, so your trunk takes part of the depth instead of your shoulder.
4. Shoulders down, away from your ears, and elbows pointing back rather than flared out to the sides (NASM's cues).
5. Grip about shoulder width (our suggestion). The one breastbone stress fracture happened on a wide grip.
6. Lower over about 2 seconds without bouncing (our dips guide's suggestion), with no added weight, no sets to failure and no maximal attempts for now (the hospital handout).
7. 2 to 3 sessions a week, with fewer heavy pressing days: heavy, frequent bench pressing goes with weightlifter's shoulder.
8. Keep using your arm for everyday jobs: the NHS says don't completely stop using your shoulder, and don't make up your own strenuous exercises or use heavy gym equipment while it hurts.

Sources 24, 1, 4, 25, 14, 2, 40, 22

Back to your usual training (written steps)

No study has tested how dips come back after shoulder pain, so these steps are our suggestion unless a source is named.

1. One change at a time: less help, then depth (to a right angle, no deeper), then reps, then weight, then rings.
2. Add weight with a dip belt only after 10 to 15 clean bodyweight dips, the smallest step first (our dips guide).
3. Weighted and ring dips last; bench dips only if you want them back, kept shallow, once bar dips pass the pain rule (our dips guide).
4. If it flares after a big session, go back a stage for a few days, not to nothing.

The breastbone, the elbow and everyday life

Pain behind or beside the breastbone during dips is often the chest wall, but get chest pain checked first: the NHS says call 999 for chest pain that feels tight or squeezing, or spreads to your arms, neck or jaw. Leave dips out until it settles. Very rarely, dips have caused a stress fracture at the top of the breastbone (one case report, on a wide grip).

Everyday life comes back alongside the plan: carry shopping close to your body, reach behind you for a seatbelt or coat slowly while the front of the shoulder is sore (the biceps tendon dislikes that reach), sleep on the other side with a pillow under the sore arm (editorial), and swim the strokes that don't hurt (editorial). Pins and needles or burning down the arm point to the neck rather than the shoulder.

Sources 43, 14, 6, 18

Positions to swap, and why

Habit or position	Why it matters	Instead
Dipping as deep as you can	Self-chosen dips already take the shoulder to 76% to 88% of its maximal backward range in lab studies of experienced men, and a hospital handout stops at a 90-degree elbow bend.	Upper arms about level, on the dip machine first.Try: Dip machine
Bench dips while the front of your shoulder hurts	They took the shoulder furthest back of any dip (101% of each man's maximal range) in a lab study.	The dip machine or assisted bar dips.Try: Dip machine
Weighted dips while it's sore	More load at the end of the range; one of the two pec ruptures reported on dips was on weighted dips.	Bodyweight dips to about level upper arms.Try: Triceps dip (upright)
Elbows flared and shoulders shrugged	NASM lists both as mistakes that add shoulder stress.	Elbows back, shoulders down, a shorter range if you can't hold it.
A grip much wider than your shoulders	The one breastbone stress fracture happened on a wide grip, and the lab group thinks a wide grip may raise the risk to the pec.	About shoulder width (our suggestion).
Dropping into the bottom and bouncing	Momentum loads the shoulder at the end of its range (our dips guide).	About 2 seconds down, with a brief pause.
Sets to failure and dip challenges	A hospital handout advises against training to failure, and in rare cases an extreme session breaks down muscle.	Stop 2 or 3 reps short, 2 to 3 sessions a week.
Ring dips before steady bar dips	Falling was the lab group's main ring dip concern.	Bar dips and a steady ring support hold first.Try: Ring support hold
Resting the arm completely	The NHS says this can stop the shoulder getting better.	The stage 1 moves and everyday use.Try: Incline push-up

Routines to follow

Dip progression workout

Work up to bar dips: bent-knee and straight-leg bench dips, a support hold, slow lowering and assisted dips, then full dips and ring dips.

20 minBeginner9 movesA band, A bench or box

Push-up progression workout

Work up to full push-ups: wall, incline and knee push-ups, then the floor push-up and harder variations.

15 minBeginner8 movesA wall, A bench or box

Shoulder mobility and rotator cuff routine (with a band)

A 25-minute band routine for healthy shoulders: move the shoulder and upper back through their range, then strengthen the rotator cuff and shoulder blades.

25 minBeginner12 movesA wall, A band

Upper back mobility routine

A 12-minute routine for a stiff upper back and rounded shoulders: chin tucks, wall angels, Y-T-W raises and open books.

12 minBeginner8 movesA foam roller, A wall

More moves for this area

Questions people ask

Why does my shoulder hurt when I do dips?

At the bottom of a dip your upper arm is far behind your body while it carries your weight, so a sore rotator cuff, biceps tendon or AC joint shows up there first. In a lab study of experienced men, bar dips used 88% of each man's maximal shoulder range and bench dips more than 100%, though no injuries were measured. Where it hurts is the best clue.

Why does the front of my shoulder hurt after dips?

Usually rotator cuff related pain or the biceps tendon, which tends to hurt when you reach backward. A pop at the front of the armpit followed by bruising is different: it can be a torn pec, and needs checking the same day.

Are dips bad for your shoulders?

No study shows they are at sensible doses, but they ask a lot of the front of the shoulder. Stop at about a right angle at the elbow, keep your shoulders down, and swap them out while the front of your shoulder hurts.

How deep should I go on dips?

Until your upper arms are about level with the floor and your elbows are bent to about a right angle; a hospital sports medicine handout says never go below 90 degrees on parallel bars. No study shows that deeper dips build more.

Are bench dips worse than bar dips for my shoulders?

In one lab study they took the shoulder further back than bar dips, past each man's measured maximum. The researchers suggest assisted bar dips or a dip machine instead, and bench dips only kept shallow if they don't hurt.

Is the dip machine better for a sore shoulder?

It lets you choose the load and limit the range, and in a survey of gym users who had training pain, dip machines were blamed least (9%, against 35% for bodyweight dips). It is a good middle step back to bar dips.

Why does the top of my shoulder hurt on dips?

Pain you can point to with one finger at the end of the collarbone is usually the AC joint. In people who press heavy and often it can be weightlifter's shoulder, which mostly settles with changed training.

Why does my chest or breastbone hurt during dips?

Often the chest wall, such as costochondritis; very rarely dips have caused a stress fracture at the top of the breastbone. Get chest pain checked, and call 999 if it feels tight or spreads to your arm, neck or jaw.

Should I stop doing dips?

Change them rather than stop pushing: shallower, on a machine or with help, with rotator cuff work, keeping pain at 5 out of 10 or less and back to normal by the next session. The NHS says don't stop using your shoulder completely.

What can I do instead of dips?

Incline or floor push-ups, a dumbbell floor press or neutral-grip dumbbell presses for the chest, and triceps pushdowns or close-grip push-ups for the triceps. In one study, kickbacks worked the triceps about as hard as bench dips.

Do I need a scan?

Not at first: rotator cuff changes are common in shoulders that don't hurt. A scan matters after a fall or a shoulder that came out, for a suspected torn pec, or for pain on top of the shoulder that isn't settling.

When should I see a doctor?

Go to A&E for a shoulder that looks out of place, call 999 for chest pain that feels tight or spreads, and get a same-day check for a pop with bruising, sudden weakness or pins and needles that don't go away. See a GP or physiotherapist if it's no better after 2 weeks; in the US, call 911 where this page says 999.

Related exercise guides

Other pain guides

Sources

Exercise education, not a diagnosis or treatment plan. It is written from the guidelines and studies listed above; review by a clinician is pending. If your pain follows an injury, is severe, is getting worse, or comes with any warning sign listed on this page, get it assessed. Health disclaimer.