Floor Dips

Name: How to do Floor Dips: exercise demo
Uploaded: 2024-11-26T04:51:42Z
Duration: 2 s
Description: Floor dips are a bodyweight triceps exercise done sitting on the floor with your hands planted behind your hips, bending and straightening your elbows to lower and raise your upper body. They work the triceps, with the shoulders and core assisting.

Also called floor tricep dips

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Quick answer

Floor dips are a bodyweight triceps exercise done sitting on the floor with your hands planted behind your hips, bending and straightening your elbows to lower and raise your upper body. They work the triceps, with the shoulders and core assisting.

Written by the GymStreak coaching team · Updated 29 Sep 2026

Muscles worked

Front

Back

Primary

Triceps

Secondary

How to do Floor Dips

1
Sit on the floor with your knees bent and your feet flat, about hip-width apart.
2
Place your hands on the floor a few inches behind your hips, shoulder-width apart, with your fingers pointing toward your body.
3
Press through your hands to straighten your arms and lift your chest; your hips can rest lightly on the floor or hover just above it. This is your starting position.
4
Bend your elbows straight back to lower your upper body toward the floor, stopping before your elbows or back touch down.
5
Press through the heels of your hands to straighten your arms and return to the starting position.

Form cues

Point your elbows straight back, not out to the sides.
Keep your shoulders down and away from your ears.
Lower slowly, and straighten your arms fully at the top.
Lift your hips and straighten your legs to make it harder.
Let your arms do the work; keep your legs relaxed.

Breathing: Breathe in as you bend your elbows and lower your upper body, and breathe out as you press back up.

Common Floor Dips mistakes

Elbows flaring out to the sides
Keep your elbows pointing behind you so the triceps do the work.
Shrugging the shoulders up toward the ears
Press down through your hands and keep your chest open throughout.
Bridging the hips up and down instead of bending elbows
Keep your hips at one height so the movement comes from your elbows.
Doing short, bouncy reps
Lower under control through a full range, then fully straighten your arms each rep.

Sets and reps by goal

Goal	Sets	Reps	Rest
Beginners	1–3	8–12	60–90 s
Muscular endurance	2–3	12–20	30–60 s

Starting ranges in line with the ACSM guidance on resistance training. Pick a load you can lift with good form for every rep, and add weight or reps gradually.

Floor Dips variations and alternatives

Variations

Straight-leg floor dips
Legs straight and hips lifted puts more of your weight on your arms.
Bench Dips
Hands on a bench lets you lower further, the next step up from the floor.
Tricep Dips (parallel bars)
The hardest version, lifting your full bodyweight.

Alternatives

Diamond Push-Ups
A bodyweight triceps press that also works the chest.
Knee Diamond Push-Ups
An easier diamond push-up from your knees, good for home workouts.
Tricep Dumbbell Kickback
Isolates the triceps with a light dumbbell.
Tricep Pushdown
A cable option in the gym that is easy to load.

Floor Dips FAQ

What muscles do floor dips work?

Floor dips mainly work the triceps, which straighten your elbows to push your body back up. The front and rear shoulders help support the position, and your core, glutes and hamstrings work to hold your hips and legs steady. Your forearms and wrists also help support your weight through your hands.

Are floor dips effective?

They are a useful beginner and home exercise for the triceps because they need no equipment and are easy to scale. The range of motion and load are limited, though, so once you can do 15–20 controlled reps, move to bench dips or add harder triceps exercises such as diamond push-ups to keep progressing.

What is the difference between floor dips and bench dips?

Both use the same elbow-bending motion. On the floor your hands are low and your hips stay near the ground, so the range is short and more of your weight sits on your legs. On a bench your hands are raised, your hips drop below them, and you lower further, which makes bench dips harder.

How many floor dips should I do?

Start with one to three sets of 8–12 slow reps with a full lockout at the top. When that is comfortable, build to two or three sets of 12–20 with shorter rests. If reps start to get short or your shoulders shrug up, end the set; quality reps matter more than a big number.