Sinking too deep
Stop around parallel unless deeper feels fine on your shoulders; forcing extra depth adds strain without much benefit.
Vertical push · Machine
Assisted Dip Machine
The assisted dip machine uses a counterweight to support part of your bodyweight while you lower and press yourself between parallel handles. It builds the triceps, lower chest, and front delts, and suits anyone working toward bodyweight dips or wanting dips without the full load.
- Primary
- Triceps
- Secondary
- Chest, Front Delts
- Starting rep range
- 8–12 reps
- Target effort
- 1.5 reps in reserve
- Progression
- 5 kg / one stack step
Muscles worked
The triceps straighten the elbows and do much of the work, the lower chest pushes the arms down and forward, and the front delts assist. Leaning your torso forward shifts work toward the chest; staying upright biases the triceps.
How to set up
- Set the assistance: more weight on the stack typically means more help.
- Grip the parallel handles with hands about shoulder-width, just outside your hips.
- Kneel or stand on the pad and press up to straight arms.
- Set your shoulders down and back, chest up.
How to do each rep
- Lower slowly by bending your elbows, keeping them pointed mostly back rather than flared out.
- Stop when your upper arms are about parallel to the floor or slightly below, as far as your shoulders tolerate.
- Press back up until your elbows are straight.
- Use a 2-3 second descent and no bounce at the bottom.
Common assisted dip machine mistakes
Shoulders rolling forward
Keep your chest up and shoulders pulled back so the front of the shoulder is not hanging on the joint.
Elbows flaring wide
Keep the elbows tracking back along your sides to keep the triceps working and the shoulders comfortable.
Sets, reps, and progression
Surpass starts the assisted dip machine at 8–12 reps with about 1.5 reps in reserve. As a compound lift it usually belongs early in the session, when you are fresh.
When you reach about 12 controlled reps, reduce the assistance one step. Once you can do several reps with little help, try bodyweight dips on parallel bars.
Know what to lift next time
Surpass shows what you lifted last time beside a target for this set, and adjusts it from your reps and RIR. Free on iPhone, no account needed.
Assisted Dip Machine alternatives
These train the same main muscles. Swap when the equipment is busy, something hurts, or progress has stalled for several weeks.
Questions
Are assisted dips good for triceps?
Yes. The triceps work through a long range under meaningful load, especially with an upright torso. They make a strong base exercise before isolation work like pushdowns.
Are dips bad for your shoulders?
Most people tolerate dips well with controlled depth and the shoulders kept back. If the front of your shoulder hurts, reduce depth or swap to a press that feels better.