Training guide
Two machines go by the name. On the seated dip machine, you sit and press handles down beside your hips, choosing the weight. On the assisted dip machine, you kneel or stand on a platform that a weight stack pushes up while you dip between bars, and the weight you choose is the help: more weight on the stack means more help, and you progress by taking weight off.
Both work your triceps, chest and the front of your shoulders. No study has measured either machine, so this guide uses bar dip research (small studies of trained men) and says where it's our reading. In one survey of gym users, machine dips were the dip least often linked to pain.
It covers both machines step by step, chest or triceps, how deep to go, your shoulders, and how many, with the ladder to your first bar dip.
The stack you pick is taken off your body weight, so a heavier stack makes the dip easier and you progress by taking weight off. A university gym card puts it plainly: "remember the heavier it is the easier it is". Read the label: a few machines may work the other way (our suggestion).
You sit and press handles down beside your hips against a stack or plates. Set the seat so the handles start beside you with your elbows bent to about a right angle, keep your elbows tucked and your shoulders down, and press until your arms are nearly straight, as our move page shows.
No study has measured either machine. In bar dips, the triceps, chest and front shoulder all worked hard in 13 experienced men, and in one small study of 10 men a wider grip drew more chest activity and a standard grip more triceps. So handle width and lean shift the balance, by our reading.
In a self-selected online survey of 1,387 gym users, 9% of those who used the dip machine linked it to pain, against 35% for bodyweight triceps dips and 21% for bench dips. Nobody counted how often they dipped, so it can't give a risk per session.
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A hospital shoulder handout advises never going below a 90-degree elbow bend on bars, and in one small study chest activity didn't rise with depth. With shoulder pain, see our shoulder pain when doing dips guide.
3 sets of 8 to 12, stopping 2 or 3 reps short, about 90 seconds' rest, 2 or 3 times a week as a step to bar dips (our dip progression), or 2 to 3 sets at the end of a chest session (our machine chest workout).
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You sit, take a handle in each hand beside your hips and press down until your arms are nearly straight. It's also sold as a triceps press or seated dip; plate-loaded versions have arms that move together or separately. One maker claims a pushing path "engineered to maximize recruitment of the triceps and chest"; nobody has tested that.
You kneel or stand on a platform or foot bar that a weight stack pushes up, hold the dip handles and dip. On most gym floors it's the same machine as the assisted pull-up, with dip handles as well as pull-up handles. A maker's set-up: "Select desired assist", "Select desired grip", "Step onto foot bar".
A dip station or power tower, with bars and no weight stack, is the bar dip in our dips guide.
The triceps, the chest (pectoralis major) and the front of the shoulder, with the muscles round the shoulder blade holding you steady; a maker lists "Dip - Pectoralis, Anterior Deltoid, Triceps". No study has measured either machine; in bar dips, all three worked hard.
Nothing for the seated machine (its move page says start light). For the assisted machine, being comfortable kneeling on the platform and holding yourself on straight arms (our suggestion).
From our move page (the right-angle start, pressing to nearly straight arms, elbows tucked, shoulders not rolling forward) and our dips guide's 2-second lowering. The seat height, grip, wrists and the chest or triceps tip are editorial, the last from bar dip studies.
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The movement on the figure: Dip machine
More weight on the stack means more help, as our assisted pull-up guide says for the same machine: the weight you choose is taken off your body weight, by about the same amount through the whole rep. A gym card: "Select the appropriate weight (remember the heavier it is the easier it is), turn the handles in". So you progress by taking weight off, and a bigger number on the stack is the easier setting.
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A loop band helps most at the bottom, where it's stretched furthest, while the machine's counterweight helps about evenly through the rep, as our assisted pull-up guide explains. No study has compared them for dips.
It keeps the bar dip's position with less of your weight. Researchers who measured bar, bench and ring dips wrote that "assisted bar dips (using a dip machine) may also be beneficial for all stages of progression, as counter-resistance can be decreased as strength increases".
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Makers: "Exit machine from top step only. Weight stack must be down (not elevated)." and "NEVER use this machine with the weight stack pinned in an elevated position." Hold the frame handles and step down only once the platform is at the bottom, because it rises as you take your weight off it.
The 3D figure shows an unassisted bar dip; the movement is the same. The help and the platform follow our assisted pull-up guide and makers' manuals, the handle and knee cues a university gym card, and the depth and breathing our dips guide.
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The movement on the figure: Parallel bar dip
We found no study of muscle activity, joint angles or training results on a seated or assisted dip machine. Everything on chest against triceps comes from bar dips, measured with EMG (electromyography: electrodes measuring how hard a muscle works) over a few reps, which shows effort, not growth.
In 10 trained men doing one rep of each, a standard bar dip drew the most triceps activity and a wider-grip dip the most chest activity. It's one small study in a journal not indexed by the main medical database, so treat it as a clue.
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In 10 trained men holding bar dips at 75, 85 and 95 degrees of elbow bend, chest activity didn't differ, and triceps activity was higher at the shallowest bend in the hold. Stopping at about a right angle cost the chest nothing in this small study.
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Coaches teach a forward lean for the chest and an upright trunk for the triceps, as our dips guide says; no study has measured the lean. On the seated machine, wider handles and a slight lean are the closest equivalent (our reading).
In 13 experienced men, bar dips drew higher peak activity than bench dips in six muscles, including the chest, front shoulder and triceps. Bench dips took the shoulder to 101% of each man's maximal backward range, bar dips to 88% and ring dips to 69%. The researchers' worry is the shoulder at the end of its range, from motion data; no injuries were measured.
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In 15 experienced men dipping to failure, reps slowed and shortened, but the deepest joint angles didn't change: the shoulder reached about 76% of its maximal range.
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In an ACE-funded study of 15 women with lifting experience, bench dips drew 87% of the triceps activity of the best exercise, a diamond push-up on the knees, ahead of pushdowns and extensions. The loads weren't matched and no machine dip was tested.
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Across 13 studies of 1,016 adults, machines and free weights built strength and muscle alike head to head. Strength is specific, though: maximums differed between machines and free weights in 31 trained men, and trained lifts improved about twice as much as untrained tests across 43 studies. If you want bar dips, practise bar dips too.
Our dips guide's ladder: bent-knee bench dips and straight-leg bench dips, 3 sets of 8 to 12, kept shallow; the dip machine, 3 sets of 8 to 12 (or the assisted dip machine, taking a plate of help off when every set reaches 12); a still hold at the top of the bars, 3 holds of 10 to 20 seconds; slow lowering, 3 sets of 3 to 5; full bar dips, 3 sets of 5 to 10 (all our dip progression); then the ring support hold and ring dips.
Seated machine: a weight you think you could press about 10 to 12 times; do 8 and keep 3 or 4 in the tank for your first two weeks, as our plans advise. Assisted machine: the least help that lets you finish every rep, as our assisted pull-up guide says.
3 sets of 8 to 12, stopping 2 or 3 reps short (our dip progression; editorial for the machines), or 2 to 3 sets at the end of a chest session (our machine chest workout), inside the American Heart Association's 1 to 3 sets of 8 to 12 for healthy adults. Failure added a trivial amount of muscle at most across 15 studies.
About 90 seconds, as our dip progression and machine chest workout use. Longer rests tended to help growth only slightly across 9 studies.
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2 or 3 times a week as part of the dip ladder, or once or twice a week in a chest or triceps session. Count each set as half a triceps set, as our tricep guides do for dips; about 10 or more hard sets a week per muscle built more muscle across reviews.
Seated machine: when every set reaches 12, the next pin, back to 8. Assisted machine: one plate less help when every set reaches 12. Adding reps and adding load both worked in a trial of 43 trained people.
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It's the help. A bigger number is easier; celebrate it going down.
Take a plate off when every set reaches 12.
Stop at about a right angle at the elbow, as a hospital shoulder handout advises.
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Keep your shoulders down and your chest up, as our move page cues.
Keep them tucked, as our move page says.
It turns the dip into a crunch. Keep your knees still and push through your arms.
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If the handles start above your shoulders, raise the seat (our suggestion).
Breathe in on the way down and out as you press, as our dips guide says.
In a self-selected online survey of 1,387 gym users, 36 of 386 who used the dip machine (9%) linked it to pain, against 136 of 392 for bodyweight triceps dips (35%) and 64 of 301 for bench dips (21%). Nobody was examined and exposure wasn't counted, so it's a clue, not a risk.
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Dips take the shoulder far back, and the researchers think repeating that under load might strain the front of the joint; no injuries were measured. A hospital handout: "never lower yourself below the point where the elbows reach a 90° angle" on bars. On the seated machine, start at about a right angle and don't let the handles pull your shoulders forward at the top.
A chest muscle tear during weighted bar dips, a stress fracture at the top of the breastbone during wide-grip bar dips, and a collarbone and rib fracture during triceps dips. We found no report from a dip machine. Case reports show what can happen, not how often.
Keep shoulder pain to about 5 out of 10 or less during the exercise, back to its usual level by your next session, as our shoulder guides advise. A sharp pinch means lower, lighter or stop.
Our shoulder pain when doing dips guide has the plan for a sore shoulder, including when the machines fit in.
Warm up with scapular push-ups, 2 sets of 10, and band pull-aparts, 2 sets of 15 (our dip progression), and shoulder circles, 3 slow circles each way with each arm (the move page's dose). For more triceps, pushdowns, 2 or 3 sets of 10 to 15 (our tricep workout), or the triceps extension machine, 2 to 3 sets of 10 to 15 (our editorial starting point). For the chest, the chest press machine, 3 sets of 8 to 12 (our machine chest workout). When dips bother your shoulder, diamond and close-grip push-ups train the triceps without the dip (our dips guide).
3D demoScapular push-up (push-up plus)Beginner · No equipment
3D demoBand pull-apartIntermediate · A band
3D demoShoulder CARs (controlled articular rotations)Beginner · No equipment
3D demoTriceps pushdownBeginner · A cable machine
3D demoTriceps extension machineBeginner · Strength machine
3D demoChest press machineBeginner · Strength machine
3D demoDiamond push-upIntermediate · No equipment
3D demoClose-grip push-up (close triceps position)Intermediate · No equipmentThe machine chest workout finishes with the dip machine, and the dip progression walks from bench dips through the machine to bar dips. The chest and triceps and tricep workouts use the dip machine as the easier option to bar dips.
A 35-minute chest session on gym machines: the chest press, a plate-loaded incline press, the pec deck and the dip machine, with a row to balance it.
35 minBeginner9 movesCardio machine, A bandWork 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 boxA 55-minute gym session for a split: the bench press, an incline dumbbell press, cable flys and dips for your chest, then two triceps extensions.
55 minIntermediate11 movesA band, A barbellA 35-minute triceps session: a close-grip bench press or dips, then overhead extensions, skull crushers and pushdowns, about 10 hard sets.
35 minIntermediate7 movesA barbell, A bench or boxA gym chest workout: bench press, incline dumbbell press, cable flyes, dips and a push-up finisher.
45 minIntermediate7 movesA band, A barbellThe calisthenics plan builds to bar dips; push pull legs uses them on push days; the gym plan for beginners starts on machines.
A 12-week calisthenics plan for beginners: three bodyweight sessions a week with push-up, pull-up, squat and dip ladders, and a bar if you have one.
3 training days40 minBeginner6 days a weekA 6-day push/pull/legs plan for experienced lifters: two push, two pull and two leg days, with sets, reps, rest and lighter weeks.
6 training days55 minAdvanced3 days a weekA first gym plan for beginners: 3 days a week, starting on the machines, adding free weights and cardio, with what changes by week 12 and what comes next.
3 training days50 minBeginnerIf you get chest pain or pressure, feel faint or dizzy, are unusually breathless, or your heart races or beats irregularly during exercise, as our plans advise. The American Heart Association says these need immediate medical evaluation.
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For chest pain that feels tight, heavy or squeezing, or spreads to your arms, neck, jaw or back; a sudden, extremely painful headache, especially while straining; someone who faints while exercising; or palpitations that don't go away, or come with chest pain, breathlessness or feeling faint. Don't drive yourself to A&E.
Pain behind the breastbone during dips isn't normal: stop dips while it hurts. Contact NHS 111 (in the US, urgent care) for chest pain to rule out other causes, even if you think it's costochondritis.
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Ask for an urgent GP appointment or get help from NHS 111 for sudden or very bad shoulder pain, an arm you can't move, a shoulder that has changed shape or is badly swollen, pins and needles that don't go away, no feeling in your arm or shoulder, an arm or shoulder that's hot or cold to touch, pain after an injury or a fall, severe pain in both shoulders, or feeling feverish or unwell. Go to A&E if, after an injury, you can't move your arm or your shoulder looks out of place or has changed shape. See a GP if shoulder pain is getting worse or hasn't improved after 2 weeks.
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.
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. In the US, go to urgent care.
A snap at the back of the elbow with sudden pain and weakness straightening the arm needs an urgent treatment centre or A&E.
Ask for an urgent GP appointment or get help from NHS 111 for a headache that's triggered or made worse by coughing, sneezing, bending down or exercising.
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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.
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See a GP if you think you have a hernia, a bulge or lump that may get bigger when you strain and smaller when you lie down. Get help from NHS 111 if you have a hernia and pain in or around it, a bloated tummy, you feel or are sick, you're vomiting blood or your vomit looks like coffee grounds, you're constipated, you have a high temperature or feel hot, cold or shivery, or you've suddenly become confused. Call 999 or go to A&E for a femoral hernia (a small lump at the top of your thigh, in your groin) with very bad tummy pain, sickness, being unable to fart or poo, a high temperature or sudden confusion.
The NHS lists lifting heavy weights among the causes of a femoral hernia. After an inguinal hernia repair, avoid heavy lifting or strenuous activity for at least 4 to 6 weeks.
After heart surgery through the breastbone, or a heart or lung transplant, follow your surgeon's advice before pushing, pulling or lifting with your arms.
After breast cancer surgery or reconstruction, follow your surgical team's advice on when you can lift your arm above shoulder height, or push, pull or lift with it.
After a recent shoulder dislocation, or shoulder or elbow surgery, follow your surgical team's limits first.
Dips you already do can carry on while they're comfortable, as our dips guide says; the NHS advises starting any new exercise gently in pregnancy. The seated machine keeps the platform and frame away from your bump (our suggestion).
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Speak to your GP first if you haven't exercised for some time or have medical conditions or concerns, as the NHS advises. Get advice before hard or straining work if your blood pressure is uncontrolled (140/90 or higher at a clinic, or 135/85 at home), or you have heart disease or chest pain when you're active, a pacemaker or defibrillator, diabetic eye disease, glaucoma, a hernia, recent eye or tummy surgery, or you're pregnant, as our breathing guide lists.
With controlled high blood pressure, the American Heart Association considers low- to moderate-intensity strength training with proper breathing safe. Breathe out as you lift, as our breathing guide advises.
With a pacemaker or defibrillator, the American Heart Association asks you to check with your doctor before upper-body strength training, because repeated arm movements can damage or dislodge the leads.
Muscle soreness for a day or two after a new or harder session is common and fades. Sharp pain, or pain that builds during a set or lingers into the next day, isn't: swap to an easier version, and see a clinician if it persists, as our plans advise. The NHS says to stop exercising straight away if you feel any pain or become unwell, and to get help from 111 if symptoms worry you or don't go away.
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Overstated. Dips take the shoulder far back, and no study has counted injuries from them. In the one survey, machine dips were the dip least often linked to pain. Keep a comfortable depth, and use our shoulder pain when doing dips guide if it hurts.
Nobody has measured either machine. In bar dips, the triceps, chest and front shoulder all work hard; grip width and lean shift the balance.
The weight you choose is the help, so more weight is easier. Progress means taking weight off.
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It lets you train the whole bar dip with part of your weight, and bar dip researchers suggest it for all stages of progression. The help you take off is a number you can track.
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Machines and free weights built strength and muscle alike head to head, and equipment type didn't consistently change results across 137 reviews.
No trial has compared dip depths, and chest activity didn't rise with depth in one small study.
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You kneel or stand on a platform that a weight stack pushes up, so part of your body weight is taken off while you dip between the bars. The weight you choose is the help: more weight makes it easier, and you progress by taking weight off.
More weight is easier and less is harder, on most machines. Start with enough help to finish every rep with control, and take a plate off when every set reaches 12. Read the label, as a few machines may work the other way.
Set the seat so your elbows start bent to about a right angle with the handles beside you, sit tall, and press the handles down until your arms are nearly straight. Keep your elbows tucked and your shoulders down, then let the handles rise slowly.
Both, plus the front of the shoulder, though no study has measured either machine. In bar dips, a wider grip drew more chest activity and a standard grip more triceps in one small study, and coaches teach a forward lean for the chest and an upright trunk for the triceps.
Bar dips work more muscle and need you to lift your whole body weight; the machines let you choose the load. The assisted machine keeps the bar dip's position, and researchers suggest it for all stages of building up to dips. Machines and free weights build strength alike, but you get best at what you practise.
The seated machine is easier to learn and lets you choose any load; the assisted machine is the closer step to a bar dip. If your goal is bar dips, use the assisted machine; for triceps and chest strength, either works.
Not for most people, but dips take the shoulder far back, and the bottom is the hard part. In one survey of gym users, machine dips were the dip least often linked to pain. Keep to about a right angle at the elbow, and if your shoulder hurts, see our shoulder pain when doing dips guide.
To about a right angle at the elbow, with your upper arms about level with the floor on the assisted machine. Going deeper hasn't been shown to build more, and chest activity didn't rise with depth in one small study.
On the seated machine, a weight you could press about 10 to 12 times, doing 8 to 12; on the assisted machine, the least help that lets you finish every rep. Machines differ, so compare yourself only on the same one.
3 sets of 8 to 12, stopping 2 or 3 reps short, with about 90 seconds' rest, 2 or 3 times a week as part of your dip ladder, or 2 to 3 sets at the end of a chest session. Count each set as half a triceps set when you add up your week.
Usually a strained chest wall or costochondritis, which has been linked to repeated upper-body lifting; very rarely, wide-grip bar dips have caused a stress fracture there. Stop dips while it hurts and get chest pain checked through NHS 111. Call 999 (911 in the US) if it spreads to your arm, neck, jaw or back, or comes with breathlessness or sweating.
Some people stand on the platform and push it back with one leg, but that's a different exercise and we found no study of it. This guide covers dips; our glute guides cover glute training.
Exercise education, not a personal prescription, and clinical review of these guides is pending. Check with a GP before starting hard training if you have a heart condition, chest pain, dizziness or breathlessness when active, and stop for sharp or increasing pain. Health disclaimer.
