Old Forum Weighted dips vs Military press

[Harry Westgate]

Which of these two exercises would be best to use for functional strength development of the upper body and pressing muscles when used 3-4 times per week?

The reason I ask which one alone would be best is because frankly, I like to keep things simple, with as few exercises as possible. My workout plan basically consists of 3-4 days per week of strength work in the gym (weighted pistols, weighted pull-ups and currently military presses, although I may exchange the press for dips, depending on the verdict of this thread) as well as GTG bodyweight pistols and OAPUs, and boxing training 3 times per week.

Finally, would performing only one of these exercises still aid the other if I later went back to it? E.g. If I chose to do only dips, would adding a few kilos to my dips maybe add a little to my military press, and vice versa? Or would I need to practice all pressing exercises in order to add any weight to them at all?

 

Thanks in advance!

 

[AndyMcL]

Harry,

Neither is really better than the other. However, a lot of peoples' shoulders cannot tolerate dips well. If you can, then dips are one of the best upper body pushing exercises. Adding weight to them will cause massive increase in triceps strength, so if your overhead press is being held back by tricep strength than you may see an increase. OH Pressing on the other hand will probably require more tension.

At lower levels of strength there will be some carryover, as your proficiency increases so too must the specificity of training.

Best advice would likely be to cycle them, perform 4-6 weeks with one, then switch. Likely would complement each other well.

Also, I would be careful about GTG OAPU when performing decent volumes of other pressing exercises.

 

[Jeff]

In my opinion, I think military presses is the better all around exercise due to the fact that the legs, core, and back have to support the lifter's body while pressing.  More carryover in the the real world.  If squats or deadlifts were also practiced then this might be a moot point, but I didn't see squats or deadlifts on your list of exercises you are currently doing.

 

[Matt]

While you make a good point Jeffrey, I'd add that it is surprising the amount of core work involved in heavy dips.  Makes sense when you think about it.  The core/diaphragm providing a platform for you to push off.  Glutes as well.  Dips and weighted dips also have a benefit that there is no direct help from the legs to provide some (pushing) power to transfer into the movement.   So it is quite an honest movement.

So I guess it depends on the functionality you need Harry?

 

[Harry Westgate]

Thanks for all the replies so far guys, really helpful! I may well do what you said Andy and cycle them every few weeks.

Matt, as for the functionality I need, what I mean Is basically how much each exercise would carry over to both my sport (boxing - although, honestly, both are pretty functional there and either would do) and real life activities and tasks. It's the 'real-world' strength bit I'm struggling with, i.e. which one carries over to everyday tasks better? (I'm aware that 'everyday tasks' is a very vague term, but interpret that as you will.) Although I must say I agree with Jeffrey's point on the carryover of the military press at the moment, as dips, while I like them, don't feel all that much like something I'd do outside of an exercise environment that often. In other words, I find myself pushing up rather than down more often when it comes to physical chores, etc. if you catch my drift.

 

[Jason Ginsberg]

I think your basic plan is sound. I also think you should let go of the "functional" idea; having a press of some sort in your program is functional; whether it is military, dip, getup, bench, bent, etc is not likely to make a difference in your everyday life, if you get strong at whatever press you choose.

I would tend to lean towards dips, partly because I think it pairs well with weighted pullups, and the two together will help you get to a muscle-up, which is an excellent exercise/skill of it's own. But I think you should do whichever one you prefer, stick with it a bit, then, if you choose, switch it out for a different press.

I have a suspicion dips might carry over better to boxing, but I'm not certain about that. Is staying in a weight class a concern for you?

 

[Jeff]

I wonder if military presses would promote greater shoulder mobility while dips would decrease shoulder mobility.

 

[Harry Westgate]

Jason, thanks for the input! I see what you mean in that any press still adds functionality to the body, regardless of the specific exercise.

With regards to your point about weighted dips and pull-ups going well together and one day leading to the muscle-up, I can actually already perform muscle-ups on both rings and a bar, and practice at least a couple of reps on my rings per day, (just to maintain the skill, and because it's fun! Also, to anyone trying to get the muscle-up, my progression was nothing more than slow, super strict tactical pull-ups, then when you one day try to explode over the bar, it comes with one or two attempts, or at least it did with me!) but I do know of some people using dips and pull-ups like you say to get there!

As such, back on point, I guess for the meantime I'll stick with the military press since I'm already doing it anyway, then maybe I'll swap it for dips in a few weeks.

Also, Jason, as for the carryover to boxing, you may or may not be right about dips, and like I said before, given the movement patterns in boxing, I reckon both are probably equally useful for it. As for my concerns about weight, I'm not too bothered, right now I box for fitness and for fun, and haven't yet had any amateur fights (although I hope to one day in the future), and I'd probably just look to stay strong, fit and healthy, then fight at whatever weight I happen to be; body mass isn't something I plan to lose sleep over. As a point of interest, right now I'm 18yrs old and 163lbs/74kg at 5'9" which makes me a middleweight in amateur boxing.

Again thanks for all the input so far everyone! This helps me loads, and sorry if my replies get long-winded!