There are only a handful of exercises regarding chest muscles development and the overall upper body development like frontal pecs, triceps, shoulders, and deltoids.
Weighted dips and traditional bench press are the most common compound training that helps to build muscle mass, strength, and hypertrophy to give you a balanced, sculpted upper body.
These exercises primarily target the same muscle areas with just a bit of variation. That’s why weighted dips vs bench press have long been a topic of argument.
So, in this article, we tried to lay out all the facts to help you decide which one of these, if not both, is good for you.
If you don’t have either of these on your workout routine, we highly recommend you to read this article cause you might change your mind afterward.
Well then, without further delay, let’s jump right into it.
What are weighted dip and bench press? Are there any variations?
Firstly, weighted dips are an advanced variation of usual dips where you put an extra weight with your primary body weight. It makes the dip a bit challenging.
In the case of bench press, there are a lot of different kinds. Like incline, decline, narrow grip, and the traditional flat bench press.
You can do weighted dips using a weight bench, then it’s called a weighted bench dip. You can also use two benches to take it to the next level.
Now, you might wonder, do bench presses build better pecs? Or, do weighted dips build triceps?
Yes, we have all the answers to your questions. So, let’s take a look at how both of these compare to each other.
Should I do the weighted bench dip? How to do weighted bench dip?
Weighted bench dip is a variation of dips where you use a bench behind your back for hand support and use your body weight as the primary lift.
You try to push your hand downward and slowly lower your body, then press right back up as you hit the designated position.
It is a must-do exercise if you want to start doing weighted dip since that requires more shoulder mobility and strength.
Weighted bench dips particularly trigger our triceps. At first, you should try doing it with your legs straight forward and hands on the bench for support.
If you think you are ready for the next step, try cross bench dips. Here you also have to put your leg at the same height as your leg or a little lower.
The last step is to try putting some weight on your thigh, usually a weight plate. Just like that, begin with the weight you feel most comfortable with and slowly try to increase it.
Keep in mind that you won’t just be magically able to do weighted bench dips, you also have to be able to do a good amount of push-ups and regular dips since it requires more strength.
Which one is easier to do? Is it bench press or weighted dips?
Since we got to know about these two, the question arises which one of these is easier to do? Or can I do either of these at home?
While none of these are hard to practice, the traditional bench press is relatively easy than weighted dips.
Having good shoulder health is vital for doing weighted dips. If you have any history of a shoulder injury then you should probably reconsider doing it. You also should be able to do a good amount of push-ups and bench dips for starting weighted dips.
On the other hand, you can start doing bench presses with your current strength and mobility. Your strength and the weight you can lift will increase with due time.
As for if you can do these at home, then the answer is an absolute yes. All you need is a parallel bar for dips and a good weight bench for bench press, and you are good to go. But be sure to be extra careful.
Weighted dips to bench press ratio comparison
When it comes to the traditional flat bench press, you can lift about 20-30% more in the weighted dip. But it may vary depending on the individual.
On the other hand, most people can lift 10-20% more while training the decline bench press. Sometimes even more if they change their grip.
In incline bench presses it is usually 40-50% lower than what the average person can lift in weighted dips.
Benefits of weighted dips
Weighted dips will not only develop your chest muscles but also the durability and stability of your whole upper body which will ultimately build more stamina for your body.
Thus, you will see other developments like easily doing more sets of push-ups or pull-ups than before with the same amount of resistance.
While doing weighted dips you will experience a greater range of motion on your chest than bench press meaning it doesn’t put more pressure onto a single muscle. This way you won’t be exhausted easily and will be able to do more reps.
Despite being one of the most compound exercises, The bench press will lessen your shoulder flexibility whereas if done right dips can improve your shoulder mobility and stability.
Benefits of bench press
Rather than only some areas, bench press focuses on the whole upper body quite well which helps to build a well shaped and rounded upper body.
In the bench press, even a beginner can lift heavy weights quite easily and progress even more within a short time which helps to build muscle mass and hypertrophy quickly.
Bench press also improves your bone health. It will significantly increase your bone density and overall your body’s skeletal system. It will be really helpful to prevent chronic diseases such as osteoporosis at an older age.
Rather than that, it strengthens your muscles and builds endurance over time. It also corrects if you have any muscular imbalances.
Which one is best for the chest, weighted dips or traditional bench press?
You might be wondering, are dips as good as bench press? Or, is it really worth doing?
Although we all know dips are not as popular as bench press, that doesn’t mean it is any less effective. In fact, it does the job pretty well.
Since weighted dips and bench press both activate similar muscle areas like the pectoralis major, pectoralis minor, anterior deltoid, triceps brachii, and latissimus dorsi. So, it is reasonable to say that both of these exercises are pretty similar and unrivaled.
Weighted dips were the primary exercise for chest development before bench press, but bench press became really popular among people because it’s an easy technique with a lot of variations.
So, for most people bench press became the go-to workout to develop their chest muscle as it is fairly easy to practice compared to weighted dips.
But weighted dips have also proven to develop both chest thickness and width whereas bench press focuses on building muscle mass and thickness.
Given that the growth of these muscles is essential for an overall well balanced upper body, that’s why even though both of these exercises have very different processes the end result would be pretty much the same.
Can weighted dips ultimately replace bench press?
If you’d like to know whether or not weight dips can completely replace bench press, then the answer can be both yes and no depending on what you are trying to accomplish.
Even though both of them are fundamentally different, both of them build your chest and upper body fairly well with a slight difference in range of motion and amount of weight.
There is also a difference in muscle activation in different areas but it isn’t very much noticeable.
Doing both of these can also be an option, since that will bring the best possible outcome for your bodybuilding program.
In the end, it all depends on your preference and which one you enjoy doing. So, be sure to try both of these and see which one works best for you.