Invictus Blog

Standard Kipping Ring Dips
Written by Nichole Dehart

In a previous article, I discussed the nuances of the butterfly ring dip. In this post we will go over the standard kipping ring dip.

As stated before, I encourage people to try both styles of ring dips and play around with each one for a while to get a feel for which one flows best. For some, the butterfly ring dip simply doesn’t click and they are much more comfortable with a standard kipping ring dip. There is less coordination involved with this style of ring dip, which can be appealing to some, but it can also be a bit slower then the butterfly ring dip depending on how quickly the athlete can master the cycling.

For those who would like to master the kipping ring dip, check out the steps below:

Step #1 – Lower yourself to the top of the rings, where your deltoids touch.

Step #2 – Drive your knees straight up towards your chest to help propel you out of the bottom of the ring dip. Think “‘up” with your legs instead of kicking down with them.

Step #3 – Immediately drop the legs back to a semi straight leg position once you’ve locked out at the top of the ring dip.

Step #4 – Continue this pattern, keeping your feet directly underneath you.

This standard style kip keeps the athlete in a more vertical position and doesn’t require a circular motion with the legs, like the butterfly ring dip. When doing this style of ring dip, make sure to focus on driving your knees up instead of kicking down.

A common fault I often see with this movement happens when an athlete doesn’t bring their knees high enough to their chest. Make sure to drive the knees up as close to the chest as possible; otherwise the legs will drop down too soon and pull the athlete down instead of propelling them up.

Both styles of kipping ring dips take practice. Try out each one and see what feels best for you! Just make sure to stretch your pecs when you are done practicing to prevent your chest from becoming too tight.