Dips to help with Press?

[Bloodninja666]

Tommy Suggs mentioned in his interview that dips were the go-to exercise to assist the Press among the old York crew. Has anyone had luck with this?

I seem to have hit a wall again after getting a bit of a boost from weighted sit-ups. I think I'll start throwing in some dips after my pullups.

[stronger]

I've also decided to start throwing in dips again after I got lazy and leery of straining something on an assistance exercise

[Namo4184]

I used to do dips, they never helped me with my press. Chin/Pull Ups and a tight back are much more helpful to me. Also doing back off sets when you have failures on the press seem to really help according to my training logs.

[gzt]

I haven't tried it, but those not getting anything out of it might not be doing it in the right spirit. Pat Casey, first man to bench 600, would do dips with up to 300# of added weight.

[Bloodninja666]

Also doing back off sets when you have failures on the press seem to really help according to my training logs.

Now there is a good idea. Why I hadn't thought of this, I cannot say...

[Smiler Grogan]

I haven't tried it, but those not getting anything out of it might not be doing it in the right spirit. Pat Casey, first man to bench 600, would do dips with up to 300# of added weight.

Yes. Both my bench and press improved once I started approaching my pullups and dips from a strength perspective. If I'm doing 5X5 with 280# on the bench, I do 5X5 pullups and/or dips (depending on the day) with 70# at a bodyweight of 210 (280# total.) Adjust your reps/loads to reflect what you did in the opposite direction. This way pressing and pulling at different angles increases consistently and in balance. If you haven't been doing them there will of course be some discrepancy you'll have to even out, but you get the idea.

BTW, I learned that from the often looked-down-upon-'round-here Mike Boyle. Don't discount everything he says because he doesn't want to hurt his hockey players with conventional squats. :)
Also, I agree with backoff sets, which I undulate with the heavier sets a la 5-3-1.

[Namo4184]

Now there is a good idea. Why I hadn't thought of this, I cannot say...You got to tap into the universe my friend...

Best of Luck.

P.S. Also try using the same shoulder width grip on all pressing and pulling exercises. That seems to help too.

[stronger]

a question for people saying a certain assistance exercise helped improve x lift: how do you know? Were you stalled up to that point? For me I am not stalling on anything, but making progress, so I'd be interested to find out

[Namo4184]

a question for people saying a certain assistance exercise helped improve x lift: how do you know? Were you stalled up to that point? For me I am not stalling on anything, but making progress, so I'd be interested to find out
I started off with stronglifts, it's a derivative 5x5 program. In that program it went this:

A-day
Squat 5x5
Bench 5x5
Row 5x5
Dip 5x5

B-Day
Squat 5x5
Overhead 5x5
Deadlift 5x5
Chin/Pull 3xFailure

The program was done 3x a week alternating A-day and B-day, much like starting strength.

Doing that program, I excelled a dips going from 0 dips to 3 sets of 8 at a body weight of 217.5. Now after doing it for a while, I decided that the squatting heavy 3 days a week was kicking my ass and I started doing R-man's advanced-novice.

Advanced Novice I'm doing goes like this.
Mon
Low-Bar-Squat 3x5
Bench/Overhead Press 3x5
Chin-Ups 3xF or 3x5-7 weighted, after 3x15

Wed [Recovery]
High-Bar-Squat 3x5, 80% monday's weight
Bench/Overhead Press 3x5
Deadlift 1x5

Fri
Low-Bar-Squat 3x5
Bench/Overhead Press 3x5
Pull-Ups 3xF or 3x5-7 weighted, after 3x15

looking at the advanced novice program, there are no dips and there are more pull ups and chin ups since its twice every week. By keeping training logs and also keeping mental notes, I noticed that my ability to keep my back tight has increased since switching to advanced novice.

Keeping my back tight has helped my overhead press and bench by providing a more stable platform on which to exert force. Further more, I have never improved my chins/pulls with out a corresponding increase in my pressing movements. It's the same as the squat and the deadlift. If increase my squat, my deadlift goes up with it.

I have also payed attention to how I fail on my lifts, since doing advanced novice, I no longer fail on the locking out protion, I only fail at the bottom portion of both pressing movements. Yet I do no dips. So in my mind, dips aren't all that useful.

[WaWa Bird]

I don't want to start a new thread, so I'll just ask the question here.

I've been stalled at 10,10,8 in my dips sets for awhile. Should I be alternating between weighted dips and BW regular dips to break through?

[gman]

I don't want to start a new thread, so I'll just ask the question here.

I've been stalled at 10,10,8 in my dips sets for awhile. Should I be alternating between weighted dips and BW regular dips to break through?

If you can do 10 dips at full range of motion, I think it's time to start adding some weight. I try to keep dips and chin ups in the 5-7 rep range with added weight.

[WaWa Bird]

If you can do 10 dips at full range of motion, I think it's time to start adding some weight. I try to keep dips and chin ups in the 5-7 rep range with added weight.

On my first set, if I wanted to add more I could but I'm saving up for other sets. If I maxed out on my first set I probably could manage 13-15.

[Aslin]

I treat them like working sets of a main lift. I'd do some warmups and then go heavy for three sets of 8, once I got the three sets i'd move up weight, same with pullups.

[jameson]

Dips are good. You might also try 5 sets of 3. Most experienced guys will attest that the only way to press properly is to press heavy. This is the only way to really find the correct groove for the press. Read this:

http://ditillo2.blogspot.com/2009/11/increasing-press-brooks-kubik.html

[MazdaMatt]

Your link to old strongman training suggests that they used to practice press 4-5 times/week, but 2-3 is fine...

Could I seriously, as a novice, train my press every gym visit like squats?

[jameson]

Your link to old strongman training suggests that they used to practice press 4-5 times/week, but 2-3 is fine...

Could I seriously, as a novice, train my press every gym visit like squats?

As a novice, you can pretty much do whatever you want and make gains. In all seriousness, if you want to focus on presses then do them more often. Let's say your on an A/B split (which I'm assuming you are) and presses fall in the A session (where benchpress would fall in the B session). Do A, B, A each week until your satisfied with your gains. Make sense?

Or, yes, train your presses every gym visit until you feel this is getting out of hand relative to your bench. My first suggesion makes better sense, I think.

[MazdaMatt]

It would make sense if life would stop fucking me and I could get to the gym 3 times EVERY week. I've hit a deload from 105lb press :(

[jameson]

What's your height/weight? Where'd you start with presses?

[gzt]

On my first set, if I wanted to add more I could but I'm saving up for other sets. If I maxed out on my first set I probably could manage 13-15.
With chins or dips, if you can get to 13-15 when you max out, yeah, it's time to consider adding weight until you get down to 5s.

[Bloodninja666]

Well, after 2 dip sessions I blasted through my sticking point on the Press (just above head.) There may be something to this...