Butterfly Ring Dips

Written by Nicole Dehart

I often get asked about cycling ring dips. People generally want to know either how to kip ring dips or what I consider the most effective kip style.

Before we even talk about kipping ring dips, it is important to note that a person must have three or more strict ring dips before attempting any sort of kip. Anytime you add kipping to a movement, the volume increases as well as the demand to maintain the quality of the movement when performing it dynamically, all of which requires a great deal of strength.

Now that we have discussed the pre-requisites, we can talk about kipping ring dips. I am a huge fan of the “butterfly” ring dip. I know some athletes that love this style while others don’t feel comfortable with the rhythm; they prefer to stick with a more general kipping ring dip. I like to leave it up to the athlete to play around with both styles and see which one works the best for them.

How to do the Butterfly Kipping Ring Dip

This type of ring dip mimics the same rhythm that you would use with a butterfly pull-up. Don’t worry about speed when first learning this style; just focus on the rhythm and the speed will come over time. Your legs end up moving in a circular motion, just like a butterfly pull-up, and help propel you to the top of the rings. This helps keep your momentum going in a ring dip, which is important since fatigue can set in quickly with this movement. Here are step-by-step instructions for learning the butterfly ring dip:

1. Begin from a locked out position on the rings with your feet slightly behind you.

2. Lower yourself down to the rings so your deltoids reach the top of the rings.

3. As you lower yourself, your legs should start to extended and your feet should begin to “sweep” the floor, going in a forward motion.

4. Continue the momentum by bending your knees and driving them to your chest (this should happen at the exact moment your deltoids reach the top of the rings).

5. The drive from your knees should propel you UP to a locked out position at the top of the rings.

6. Continue this circular motion with your legs by bringing the feet behind you, dropping the legs to an extended position and sweep the floor again, then drive your knees to your chest as your chest reaches the bottom of the rings.

This may sound complicated but check out the video at the top of the blog for a visual example.

This style of ring dip takes practice but can be very efficient and fast when learned. Take some time to practice this style and hopefully start knocking out clips of ring dips with ease! Watch for a follow up article coming soon that explains the standard kipping ring dip so you can experiment with both types to figure out which works best for you.