Floor triceps dips work the muscle at the back of the upper arm (triceps) with no equipment. You sit on the floor with your knees bent and your hands behind you, lift your hips like a crab, then bend and straighten your elbows to lower and raise your body a short way. The movement is shorter than a dip from a chair, but it still loads the front of the shoulders and the wrists.

How to do the floor triceps dips

Sit on the floor with your knees bent and your feet flat, about hip width apart.
Place your hands on the floor a little behind your hips, about shoulder width apart. Point your fingers forward toward your feet, as in the video.
Press through your hands and feet to lift your hips just off the floor.
Bend your elbows to lower your body toward the floor, stopping before your bottom touches down. The elbows point back, not out.
Straighten your arms to push back up, keeping the hips off the floor, and repeat at a steady pace.

What you should feel

Effort at the back of the upper arms, with some work in the front of the shoulders. A pinch deep in the front of the shoulder, or pain in the wrists, is not the aim.

Common mistakes

Elbows drifting out sideways instead of pointing back.
Shrugging the shoulders up toward the ears as you lower.
Sitting the bottom down on the floor between repetitions.
Pushing up with the legs and hips instead of straightening the arms.

How often

Many programs use 2 to 3 sets of 8 to 15 slow dips, 2 to 3 days a week. Your physio will adjust this.

Stop and check with your physio if

Pain or a pinch at the front of the shoulder.
Sharp pain in a wrist or elbow.
The shoulder feels as if it could slip out or give way.
Pain, pins and needles or numbness spreading down your arm or into your hand.
Pins and needles in your arm or hand that do not go away after you stop, or part of your arm or hand goes numb. Get medical advice the same day. If one side of your face or body suddenly goes numb or weak, or your speech becomes slurred or muddled, call emergency services, even if it goes away.
A sudden pop or tearing feeling in the shoulder that brings sharp pain, new weakness or trouble lifting the arm. Stop and contact your surgical team the same day, or get medical advice the same day if you have not had surgery.
The shoulder feels as if it has slipped out of place, looks a different shape or suddenly locks so you cannot move the arm, or your hand turns cold, pale or blue. Go to an emergency department straight away, without driving yourself, and do not try to put the shoulder back in yourself.
Chest pain or pressure, dizziness or feeling faint, a racing or irregular heartbeat, or being far more out of breath than the effort should cause.

From the clinic

Go only as low as the video shows: a small bend of the elbows while your bottom stays clear of the floor. Walking the feet further away makes it harder, and bringing them in closer makes it easier. If your wrists ache, turn the hands slightly outward, and leave the exercise out if the ache stays. The triceps dips on a chair are the bigger version, and the reverse plank uses a similar hands-behind position as a hold.

With your hands behind you and your weight on them, the front of each shoulder takes a good deal of strain. If you have pain at the front of the shoulder, or a shoulder that has dislocated or felt unstable, check with your physio first.

After shoulder surgery, including a rotator cuff repair, or after a shoulder fracture or dislocation, follow your surgeon's or physio's plan, and do only the movements and range they have cleared. Many plans allow only passive movement at first, where the arm is moved for you and its muscles stay relaxed. After a broken wrist, hand or forearm, or surgery on any of them such as a tendon repair, start only when your doctor, surgeon, physio or hand therapist says the bone or repair is ready for this, and follow their plan for how much to do. After a broken or dislocated elbow, or elbow surgery such as a tendon repair, follow your surgeon's or physio's plan, and start this exercise only when they have cleared you.

If you have just hurt your arm and have severe pain, cannot move the elbow or heard a snap, do not exercise it. Go to an urgent care center or emergency department the same day. If the arm looks a different shape or sits at an odd angle, a bone is showing, or your arm or hand tingles, feels numb or turns cold, pale or blue, go to an emergency department straight away or call emergency services, and do not drive yourself.

If you have high blood pressure, breathe steadily through every repetition and never hold your breath. If chest pain, pressure or tightness does not ease quickly when you rest, spreads to your arm, neck, jaw, stomach or back, or comes with sweating, feeling sick, feeling light-headed or being short of breath, call emergency services straight away, as this can be a heart attack. If it eases quickly and none of these happen, get medical advice the same day, and do not exercise again until you have been checked. If you faint while exercising, call emergency services, even if you feel fine again quickly.

Written and checked by the PocketPhysio editorial team. Last updated 2026-09-28.

This page is general education, not a diagnosis or a personal treatment plan. If you have pain, an injury or a health condition, see a physiotherapist or doctor before starting new exercises.

Floor triceps dips