Best Upper Arm Workout: Seated Dips to Tone and Strengthen Triceps Muscles

Seated dips can be used to build strong triceps, even though seated dips are commonly used as a warm-up, cool-down, or a light set following some other traditional triceps building routine. I'm a certified personal trainer as well as a "dip-a-holic," in that I consider seated dips to be an essential part of strong triceps training and building the triceps muscles.

If you're not familiar with seated dips, they're when a person sits at the edge of a bench, hands on it, and props legs across the way atop a second bench. They then lift their butt off first bench so that they are suspended between the two benches by hands and feet. They lower body so that arms form a 90 degree (sometimes more) angle: a seated dip that targets the triceps. When women perform seated dips, their feet are typically on a floor, which makes the seated dip a lot easier.

Seated dips don't have to be done rapidly or in a bouncing fashion. I treat these dips as any other triceps building exercise. I make the resistance so heavy that I can barely push out 6-8 or 9 reps. That eighth or ninth rep is nearly impossible and takes all I have, and this is how seated dips will build strong triceps. In order to make seated dips this difficult, I must pile weights on my thighs while my feet are propped on a medium stool (I prefer a stool because the stool is higher than the bench). I use a mirror to ensure every time that my arms bend at least 90 degrees to get a full triceps motion.

With a 6-8 rep max, you can't bounce. It's a true, pushing and straining triceps building exercise. I do only four sets but that's sufficient (each set has increasingly heavy resistance).

Adjust your body to achieve whatever it takes to make 6-8 reps nearly impossible. For men who normally do a bunch of quick seated dips, they will need to put weights on their laps to force them to fatigue within 6-8 reps.

If 45-pound plates on your thighs are too unwieldy (the plates, with their large diameter, can press into the knee bones, causing discomfort), then use 35-pound plates; and then add smaller plates if necessary to reach the desired resistance total.

Most women who do seated dips place their feet on the floor, rather than on a second bench. If you've been doing this for awhile and can bend arms 90 degrees, try the second bench and see what happens. You may be pleasantly surprised at your ability to do actual dipping.

Seated dips for building strong triceps are just as valid as parallel bar dips, narrow-grip bench press or cable push-downs for building strong triceps.