RTO Dips: one of the best exercises for upper body strength

I'd just like to report the progression I have made with my strength training... a few weeks ago I started a new training program, a big part of which is doing Rings turned out dips twice a week (RTO Dips for short) as one of my main pushing exercises.

I have a lot of training experience, but never have I experienced such an overall strength increase that I did since I started doing RTO Dips. I started doing them for 8 sets of 3 reps, then built up to 5x5, then 8x3 with 4Kgs, 5x5 with 4Kgs, and now I'm at 8x3 with 8Kgs, hoping to advance to 5x5 with 8Kgs within a week or so...

Anyway, they helped me with my handstand pushups on parallettes like nothing else did (a good tip for trying to develop HSPU strength, try RTO Dips), Cross Pullouts, and even dynamic parallette work, like transitioning between the various positions (L-sit, tuck planche etc.). My overall upper body strength has increased as a result, and my short term goal is to reach 5x5 with 20Kgs in the next few weeks.

I trained regular ring dips in the past, and after a few months went from 16Kgs to being able to do them with almost 40Kgs, but for some reason none of that strength effectively translated to any other exercise I was trying to improve. For example, I still continued to suck at HSPUs, even though it's also a pushing exercise. So regular ring dips really can't beat RTO Dips!

This is one of the absolute must have exercises in your Rings training regiment!

Roman

I was starting to feel like I was doing the same exercises over and over without much improvement. I was thinking about this all day and decided I should go back to the basics. Between a set of muscle ups I came on here and read this post. Thanks!!!

Are these also called bulgarian dips or is this something else?

Nope, he is just talking about doing Dips on rings with them turned out. I'm sure it's in one of the videos somewhere. Or is it?

Are RTO those?

serotonin said:

Are RTO those?

Yes!!

I tried them a couple of time, they are hard (much harder than bulgarian IMO, which are the ones i do perhaps because i'm cheating myself doing an easier stuff).

I would try them again because now i'm trying to improve in my handstand pushups (free), i can do serveral on the wall but free are other story, now that i have a stable free handstand thats my new goal. If the RTO can improve my handstand pushups (really headstand, cause im not strong enough to do them or paralletes) they are welcome

Thanks for sharing your progress

I can vouch for you, these are pretty tough, nothing like normal dips and you sure do feel it, the leverage difference is evident.