Ring Dip

The Ring Dip is an advanced bodyweight exercise that builds significant upper body strength and stability by requiring you to lower and press your bodyweight on unstable gymnastic rings. It intensely targets the triceps, chest, and shoulders while demanding constant core engagement to maintain proper alignment.

How Iridium Helps

Ring dips place a high demand on the central nervous system and shoulder joint stabilizers due to the inherent instability of the equipment. The AI analyzes your heart rate variability (HRV) and recovery metrics to determine if your stabilizers are fresh enough for this advanced movement, potentially substituting stable bar dips on low-recovery days to prevent injury. Additionally, by tracking RPE and rep drop-off, the app ensures you stop the set before form breakdown occurs, which is critical for shoulder safety on the rings.

Form Cues

Do
  • Keep the rings held tight against your hips or ribs throughout the rep
  • Lean your torso slightly forward to engage the chest
  • Squeeze your glutes and brace your core to minimize swinging
  • Lower continually until your shoulders dip just below your elbows
  • Drive forcefully through your palms to return to full arm extension
Don't
  • Don't let the rings drift away from your body sideways
  • Don't allow your elbows to flare out wide
  • Don't shrug your shoulders up towards your ears at the top
  • Don't kick or swing your legs to generate momentum

Common Mistakes

  • Letting elbows flare outward
  • Insufficient depth (partial reps)
  • Lack of core tension
  • Shrugging shoulders at the top
  • Rings drifting wide

Muscles Worked

This exercise primarily develops the triceps and lower pectorals through a deep range of motion and high tension. Secondary emphasis is placed on the anterior deltoids and the small stabilizer muscles of the rotator cuff, which must work continuously to keep the rings stationary.

Primary

Lower ChestTriceps Lateral HeadTriceps Medial Head

Secondary

Anterior DeltoidMiddle ChestGeneral Core

Get Personalized Coaching for Ring Dip

Don't guess your way through weights or workouts. Download Iridium for automatic, AI-powered coaching that adapts to your recovery and goals.

Coming SoonLearn More