At all times of human existence, close attention has been paid to strength training. It is common for people to strive to improve their figure and body. For many years, the main sports equipment for improving strength was the horizontal bar and parallel bars.
These apparatuses remain the basic ones for strength training today. They can simply be installed in every yard or farmstead. Watching sports competitions and looking at photos of the exercises performed at them, you can see with what ease the athletes work at them.
Unfortunately, photos or sports demonstrations of push-ups on uneven bars will not convey the technique and methodology of training on these apparatuses. The horizontal bar and parallel bars can easily replace fitness centers and fancy exercise equipment. The main thing is to understand how to properly organize the training process on these equipment.
Nuances of performing the exercise
Many people are interested in which muscles work the most during dips.
The answer to this question cannot be unambiguous. Depending on the width of the projectile, the inclination of the body and the angle of arm extension, the load can be distributed differently.
In order to focus on working the chest, you need to choose a projectile slightly wider than your shoulders.
During the active phase, the elbows should move away from the body.
Thus, most of the work of lifting the body to its previous position will be done by the lower and outer part of the chest.
Triceps dips must be performed according to different rules.
The body should be positioned vertically, and the arms should be pressed to the body, the elbows should be pulled back during the descent.
Of course, it cannot be said that the chest is turned off, but most of the work is still done by the back of the arms.
The influence of grip width on muscle development
The width of the grip determines the emphasis of the load on the muscles.
- If the bars are wide apart, this is a variation of the parallel bars for the pectoral muscles. It is considered more technically difficult and requires better physical preparation.
- Dips to work the triceps are performed with a narrow grip. A simulator in which the crossbars are located closer to each other is suitable for this.
If there is only one exercise machine in the gym and on the playground and the width of the bars cannot be changed, the emphasis can be shifted to different muscles by tilting the body.
Pros and cons of dips
All bodybuilders and powerlifters, and even fighters trying to build muscle mass, all use this exercise.
Correctly performed dip technique allows you to efficiently work out all areas, giving strength and volume to the muscles. Therefore, they are included in the training program of all successful athletes.
Regular exercise also allows the development of small tissues responsible for the rotation of the shoulders and shoulder blades.
As a result, the back becomes straighter, the posture takes on the appearance of a wheel, which looks like the chest bulging forward and the deltoid muscles pushed back.
However, this is not the safest bodyweight exercise available.
The peculiarity of the movement involves the active work of the shoulders. Because of this, in case of injury or pain, you need to stop performing so as not to worsen the consequences.
Before starting to do push-ups on parallel bars, a beginner needs to spend at least a month doing regular, classic exercises on the floor.
Why do you need to do parallel bars?
Crossbar and parallel bars, complementary sports equipment. Bars help train and prepare those muscles of the body that are impossible or difficult to improve on the bar.
By performing the most basic push-ups on the uneven bars, you can achieve great results in improving your body. The most trained muscles that work when doing dips are the chest muscles, shoulder girdle and triceps of the arms.
Benefits of parallel bars training:
- training and improvement of the muscles of the upper torso and arms;
- training different muscle groups depending on the angle of inclination of the body;
- the ability to use the entire body and its muscle mass during training.
To achieve the greatest effect, training can be done three or four times a week for 45-60 minutes. Breaks are necessary to restore the activity of the body's muscles. After performing exercises on the parallel bars, active growth is observed in almost all the muscles of the torso.
Exercise technique
In order to prevent unnecessary injuries during execution, it is advisable to begin the exercise with a body slightly prepared in home training conditions.
You should not chase quantity, as this will not give a tangible result. All movements must be performed in full amplitude, without jerks or sudden jolts.
It is advisable to follow the following recommendations:
- Before starting classes, stretch your shoulders and elbows well. Basic movements involve two joints, which by their nature are the most traumatic. Stretch all delts and twist your arms away from you and towards you, do 20-30 push-ups from the floor.
- You need to start training from the top point. Pressing it to your chest will save your neck from being crushed and pinched. The hands are located slightly wider than the shoulders and turned inward.
- You need to lower as slowly as you inhale. An excellent result would be to reach the bottom point within three seconds. Having reached the final goal, fix this position for half a second.
- After this, the rise should be somewhat faster, but at the same time smoother. The ideal speed would be one and a half seconds to reach the starting position.
- After completion, do not relax your arms and fall to your feet. In this case, there is a high risk of injury. Therefore, arrange steps for yourself in advance.
To determine how wide the push-up bars should be, stand in front of them. Your shoulders should touch the handles of the apparatus.
How can you improve your training?
Each exercise has its own nuances of implementation.
Bars help make the pectoral muscles larger, more aesthetically pleasing and stronger, even more than a barbell in the gym.
Professional athletes provide the following observations that they have made from their training:
Weighted dips allow you to accelerate weight gain when the athlete has reached his peak.
For beginners, it is advisable to perform triceps-oriented techniques. This is due to the fact that their entire chest cannot be involved in the work, since the triceps do not perform a stabilizing function efficiently.
The main thing is speed of execution. Quick shudders will not lead to anything good.
So focus on inhaling slowly, as your body slowly lowers, and exhaling more quickly. But you need to maintain smooth movements all the time.
Features of push-ups on uneven bars with weights
You should only switch to dips with additional weight after your bodyweight progression has slowed or stopped altogether. There is no point in performing a movement in a high-repetition style, except for competitions for the maximum number of repetitions or endurance training. If the goal is to increase strength or mass (for which weights are used), the greatest effectiveness will be achieved by working in a mode of 6 to 12 repetitions.
The technique when performing push-ups on uneven bars with weight does not change and depends on which muscle needs to be loaded:
- Chest – with the body tilted forward.
- Triceps - body in an upright position.
A weight or pancake is used as weights. The weight is hung on the belt using a hook or clamp immediately before the start of the set. Removed immediately after finishing the approach.
Push-ups
To transfer the load with minimal risk to the joints to the chest area, you need to move your elbows not back, but at an angle of 30-45 degrees. At the same time, tilt your chin to your chest and pull your knees towards you.
The depth of immersion will be greater than with triceps exercises, this is due to the fact that the increased amplitude will have a greater effect on tissue growth.
Weighted push-ups
Extra weight is a great way to stimulate weight gain. But it must be taken into account that the risk of injury increases many times over.
Therefore, you should not immediately move on to large weights. It is necessary to systematically increase the load. For this purpose, the best tool would be a backpack with a dumbbell or barbell plate.
Partial range push-ups
When you have some strength left after completing the main program, there is a way to increase your dips.
To do this, with the last of his strength, the athlete performs a partial lowering of the body, approximately 30-50 degrees down.
Mostly small muscles work, which will take on additional load in the next workout, allowing you to do more repetitions.
Common mistakes when doing the exercise
Of course, at first glance it may seem that the exercises are quite simple, and it is simply impossible to make a mistake. However, dips can both benefit the body if the technique is used correctly, and cause harm if mistakes are made.
The most common errors are related to the position of the back and elbows or the inertia of the body.
But there are still other errors when working with a projectile:
- Breathing technique. Before lowering your body down, you need to take a breath, otherwise you can injure your chest muscles.
- Incorrect grip – wide or with a bent wrist. The most optimal is considered to be an average grip of hands at a distance of shoulder width.
- High speed push-ups. Sudden intermittent movements can harm the muscles. The delay for each lowering and raising should be 2 seconds. You need to keep the tension at the lowest point.
- Sudden weight gain. You need to add load gradually so as not to stress both the muscular and cardiovascular systems. The body must gradually, getting used to the load, strengthen its ability to build and strengthen muscle mass.
- Poor warm-up. How well you perform push-ups on the uneven bars depends on how conscientiously the warm-up is done. Poor warm-up often causes injuries. The warm-up can include stretching, push-ups and rotational movements of the joints.
Program for experienced athletes
With a strong body and proper technique, you can modify your workouts. This will not only accelerate muscle growth, but also have a good effect on the nervous system.
The following techniques can be used:
Finishing approaches with incomplete amplitude. This will allow you to spend your last strength, but you need to calculate everything correctly so as not to fall off the projectile.
Forced approaches with insurance. In order to completely and irrevocably kill your pecs, ask your partner to back you up while performing repetitions. Lower and push until the muscles refuse to work.
When you start performing exercises with heavy weights, take a break of no more than 10 seconds and return to the apparatus, but at the same time reducing the weight used.
Combine parallel bars and barbell exercises. The barbell bench press, like the parallel bars, is a basic, multi-joint exercise.
Changing the type of activity will cause additional stress, causing the release of hormones.
How can you replace dips?
If doing an exercise is contraindicated for medical or other reasons, then only safe movements that load the same muscle areas can replace it. For example:
- Bench press.
- Dumbbell bench press.
- Bringing the arm back while bending over.
- Close grip bench press.
- French presses.
Also, for athletes who cannot perform exercises on the uneven bars, these movements will serve as an excellent basis for increasing strength and technically correct execution of all elements.
Programs for women
Girls need muscle mass differently than men. It would be more accurate to say that it should be located in the right place.
Approaches on uneven bars for them should not increase the volume of the chest too much, otherwise the aesthetics of the figure will be spoiled.
The best tool for women to tighten their entire body is the gravitron. This is a special exercise machine that has a comfortable leg support that allows you to reduce the load.
With regular and comprehensive training, this allows you to lose excess weight.
Advantages of parallel bars training
Experts highlight the main advantage of dips - targeted development of muscle groups. Progress in this area gives a strong impetus to a variety of pressing movements, both lying and standing.
Although it is simple, it is also a very effective exercise that even a beginner can do. You can do push-ups on parallel bars not only in professional gyms, but also in courtyards where this structure is installed.
Remember, if you want to do a special incline on your arms, then the bench press is better for you, and regular push-ups will give a greater load to the chest muscles.
After classes, the chest contours will noticeably stand out, the shoulders will visually become wider, and the deltoids will become larger. In addition, the above exercises will have a positive effect on your posture and figure.
