Back to Basics- Chin ups and Dips

I often find myself in discussion with guys about the most effective methods of training. Their usual desire is to get bigger on the upper body, specifically in the arms.

I start by asking them how many FULL RANGE dips and chin ups they can do and with how much additional weight. I emphasise full range which means starting from a dead hang on every rep of chin up and going as deep as your shoulder flexibility will allow on the dip. The partial range versions when you don’t come all the way down or up on either exercise don’t count I’m afraid!

At this point I often get funny looks at the concept of adding weight to these exercises. Then the typical excuses start to roll in-

A “Those exercises are so hard”

B “I’ll never be able to get as strong as you”

C “I’ll never be good at those, I’m too heavy”

D “My grip is too weak, I can’t hold onto the bar”

E “It hurts my shoulders”

Well sorry; none of the above are valid excuses.

A Yes the chin-up and dip ARE hard exercises because they activate so many muscle groups. But at the same time that activation of so many muscle groups at one time causes a massive stimulus to the body. More muscle means a faster metabolism so big exercises are crucial for your chubby guys too.

Please don’t tell me you are worried about getting too big if you do these exercises, unless your cousin is Arnold Schwarzenegger its just not that bloody easy to ‘get too big’.

Your results are proportionate to your effort. If you want to grow or if your goal is to reduce your waistline you have to be prepared to put in hard work and effort.

B News flash, when I started training I could do a grand total of 0 of either of these exercises. Yes I was skinny fat and weak. I have had to build up over a number of years what I can now do with additional weight. I am certainly nothing special as far as genetic marvels go!

If you put a limiting belief on yourself that you will never be able to do something then you are cheating yourself out of ever being good at it!

C How heavy you are when performing chin ups and dips is irrelevant. Your strength is all relative to your size. Yes true, a guy who weighs 80kg has to lift more bodyweight than a 60kg, but at the same token the 80kg guy should have more muscle.

Now if you are 60kg or 80kg and your body fat is too high (15% or above) then I’m afraid its time to loose the belly first! Any self-respecting male should be able to maintain around 10% body fat or below year round, especially personal trainers!

You will find as you loose the body fat and improve your fat to muscle ratio your chin up and dip performance will naturally improve.

D Your grip is too weak. Well its time to ditch wasting effort on 6 kilo wrist curls and start doing more chin ups. Ditch the straps and invest in chalk if your palms get sweaty.

Your forearms will get a hell of a workout just supporting your bodyweight. The grip will naturally improve over time as you get stronger on the exercise and will give you a much greater return compared to a wrist curl.

E If either the chin up or dip hurts your shoulders then its doubtful it’s the exercises themselves are the problem.

Its more likely that you have a shoulder dysfunction that could be caused by being too tight in the pectorals, too weak in the external rotators and lower trapezius or too inflexible in the thoracic spine. I recommend that you go and see a physiotherapist for a consultation if you have any shoulder issues. The shoulder is a complicated and easily injured joint so it’s a worthwhile investment to keep it healthy.

Chin ups and dips are for ladies too!



Women should not be afraid of performing chin ups and dips either. Women do not possess nearly as much muscle growth potential as men due to different muscle fibre composition and much lower levels of testosterone and other growth stimulating hormones. Becoming stronger at chin up's and dips will only produce a stronger, leaner, sexier feminine physique.

A benchmark to work towards

So to wrap it up if you cannot perform at least 10 full range chin ups or dips with your bodyweight then its time to drop the extra bicep curls and tricep pushdowns until you get a lot stronger on these basic exercises. This is a beginner’s level of strength for a man.

A man who has trained in the gym for more than a couple of years, should be able to perform these exercises for 10 rep's with at least 15% of his bodyweight added.

Ladies should aim to perform at least 3 full range chin ups and dips with their bodyweight.

Start mastering your bodyweight today!