rockstar143

iTrader: (6)

Ok, for the last few years I've been leaning a lot more toward jogging in the streets, biking and basketball for my cardio. And Calisthenics for my muscle workouts. Enough so that I even quit my gym membership.

Well, I bought a pull-up bar, for pullups,
arm slings for core workouts,
arms and legs for pushups

The one thing I'd been missing was somewhere I could do dips. I would sometimes find a fence or 2 posts I could use...or some dining chair backs (scary!) but I'd been thinking for YEARS about how I wanted to tackle this.

Finally, I did it. And for very cheap. I needed it to be easy to store, easy to pop into place (or I'd never use it) and sturdy enough for my 220 pounds.

Here's what I came up with:

Got 2 brackets from the trash at work (you can use anything that'll slide into the PVC, even a deck screw for a backyard fence or something wood) to hold up the on one end.

Then, I got from Home Depot:

4 lag bolts, with 4 lag anchors for concrete (this will vary for you)
1 10 foot section of the 260PSI 2" PVC
1 2 foot section of 260 PSI 2" PVC
3 90 degree 2" elbows
1 PVC Cement (optional, better to not cement for breakdown/storage but that adds a step to putting it back together to workout)
1 set of bicycle bar tape (also optional, I had some old bar tape laying around from an old build)

Cost: around $20

Bolted them to the wall with lag anchor and bolts. Again, you could use a couple of lag bolts in a wood fence in the yard, all this side does it hold the bars parallel, they don't support your weight since you mainly use the ends to hold yourself up.

I used my die grinder to cut off the extraneous bracket that was on it.


I saw many different options for making a dip station, including a walker, which I don't trust structurally. And a pair of PVC stands that are similar to a set of stands for woodworking, but seemed bigger, more costly and harder to store.

Here's what I ended up with. Horizontal bar cuts were 24", vertical length cuts were about 34", and the bar between at the base was eyeballed and marked, not measured.



And for now, can't find the extra hooks I had SOMEWHERE...I used my wheel hooks for storage. Does the trick...easy to get down, and they sit above my head so no problem with bumping into it.




Cheers!
Didn't reinvent the wheel, just skinned the cat a little differently than I'd seen and I figured I'd share.

J.

97BlackAckCL

iTrader: (6)

and here I thought you meant for parties, you know, for chips and dip

rockstar143

iTrader: (6)

LOL...hey, at least I got the section right this time!

rockstar143

iTrader: (6)

Dat dip station!

swoosh

iTrader: (5)

you are very creative dude...props on making that.....

Rapture

noob questiong about dips:

When doing dips, what's the best way to keep your body from rocking back and forth during reps? For me it's some weird involuntary movement. Is it just lack of strength in my shoulders?

swoosh

iTrader: (5)

^^^ lean forward

I used to sway a lot....and slowly was able to do a good 8-10 reps before I start swaying....but now I can hang a 45lb plate between my legs and do ~10 reps...

rockstar143

iTrader: (6)

I agree 100%, need to make your legs bend back and lean forward to kinda create a counter weight to keep from swaying. I can get up to about 25 dips straight...but no extra 45 pounds. Although, I do weigh 220, myself...so it's still a decent amount.

J.

Gonna hit them, now.

swoosh

iTrader: (5)

^^^ there goes my extra 45lbs

rockstar143

iTrader: (6)

don't worry, being 20 pounds overweight is no picnic either.