“They Are the Best Exercise…”: Mike Mentzer Once Shed Light on Why Dips Are One of the Best Exercises for the Upper Body

Usually, when one hears the name Mike Mentzer, the first thought that comes to mind is high-intensity training. The late bodybuilder was a pioneer of the HIT, and he popularized heavy-duty training as the utmost solution to make gains. While most of his lecturers touch upon intense workout routines and muscle gain, a recently resurfaced video of Mentzer talks about the best exercise for the upper body.

Unlike his usual training methods, which focus on intense workouts, Mentzer once disclosed the importance of dips. He also pointed out why dips are one of the greatest exercises for the upper body. Dips are one of the most challenging exercises, as the person performing them uses only their own body weight to lift themselves. However, an important thing to keep in mind while performing dips is how you position your body, as it ultimately dictates how the load is placed on the prime muscle groups.

Mentzer mentions in the lecture that dips are the best pec exercise in the world for the upper body squat. It is also one of the best forms of exercise for the shoulder and tricep.

“Dips are by far, without a doubt, unparalleled. They are the best exercise for pecs, delts, and triceps.”

In the video, he also gave an example of three American gymnasts who only used dips as a form of workout. Mentzer said that these Americans worked at parallel bars that possessed pecs, shoulders, and arms like those of advanced bodybuilders.

He further mentioned that when he asked these gymnasts if they lifted heavy weights, they denied it. They develop those big upper bodies by just doing dips. Mentzer said he once watched Ivan Ivankov perform and noticed:

“His biceps isolated and popped out. It looked as big and even more defined as most advanced or even professional bodybuilders.”

Therefore, Mentzer suggested that dips could be a great addition to your workout routine, especially for your upper body. You can start with parallel bars to understand how to do it and gradually increase the weights. Just like Mentzer believed that dips are good for the upper body, he also believed that close grip lat pull-down is the best exercise for your biceps.

Mike Mentzer believed close grip lat pull-down is best for growing biceps

Mike Mentzer once discussed his favorite bicep exercise, the close grip lat pull-down. He believed this form of exercise required an adaptation that was beneficial to the lats and rear delts. Furthermore, he mentioned that the close-grip variants of pull-downs were more beneficial to the biceps as they not only targeted the lats but also the rear delts.

“While most people think of them exclusively as a lat exercise, and they are very good for the lats, they are also very effective in working the rear delts…the close grip palms up pull down is the best bicep exercise in the world.”

Hence, Mentzer believed that the close-grip pull-down is superior to any other form of workout for the bicep curl. It is because of the type of muscles and joints worked upon by the exercise. Thus, curls limit the movement of these parts, keeping the effect more concentrated on one part. In addition, Menter stated that the close-grip lat pull-down works not only on the bicep but that its effects are spread throughout the entire arm.

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