Scapular depression is a small part of the lower traps. They also, - Upwardly rotate the scapula - Retract the scapula [![Shoulder motions][1]][1] *Image found [here][2]. Unsure of original source.* Upward rotation tends to be hard for people to visualize: [![Upward Rotation GIFs][3]][3] *GIF made from [this][4] video.* Lower trap: [![Lower trap zoomed out][5]][5] [![Lower trap zoomed in][6]][6] Anatomy drawings are a little funny this way. Look at them enough, and you'll see inconsistencies in attachment points. To be fair to the artists, anatomy isn't all that consistent itself! Point being, if you look at the red circle insertion point of the lower trap above, we can see with its medial (inside) attachment, when it pulls down the lateral side will go up. Ala: upward rotation. We can also see pure scapular depression isn't going to be a big job of the lower trap. Because again, if it pulls down by itself, part of the scapula will actually move up. Long story short- we don't really want to isolate a muscle in a vacuum of one action. We want to use the full breadth of its potential work. So, when you mention doing dips and pull-ups, sure, there *can* be scapular depression at the top of those movements. However, there doesn't have to be. For instance, in pull-ups, at the bottom we start with the shoulders shrugged into the ears. Who says we can't be at the top of the rep that way? [![Pull up form shrug lower trap][7]][7] A lot of people end their pull / chin-ups like above. Next, even if we are hitting scapular depression in dips / pull-ups, we're not maximizing how much we can work the lower trap. There's no (active) upward rotation, and retraction is similar to depression- it may or may not happen. (*Downward* rotation **will** happen.) To get all three actions, we should 1. Raise the arms overhead (upward rotation) 2. Once getting overhead, pull the arms back (retraction) 3. Finally, end with a little pull down of the shoulders (depression) This video is an example of trying to focus on the **upper** traps. The movement finishes at the top with a little extra elevation. If you did the opposite -some depression- you'd then shift focus more to the lower traps. - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=09jfP_lyT3A *Credit and* [*more about arm raise variations*][8]. Close up: - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a5IcQX3P_Y0 The reason for standing with the back against the wall is it's super common to arch the lower back when raising the arms overhead. That is, a person will think they're getting the arms overhead, but really they're leaning back to get that positioning. Notice how this person's hands **are** overhead, [![Overhead range of motion compensation][9]][9] But, that's because they're leaning back. In reality, their arms hands are not above their shoulders, but in front: [![Arm raise compensation lumbar extension][10]][10] [*Credit and more details*][11]. I bring this up because this is an extremely common pattern, particularly in males who lift a lot. Where overhead motion is often lacking. Bodybuilder types spend wayyy more time in the horizontal plane, and pulling their arms down, than they spend pushing their arms up. One can view that as lower trap weakness being common, but that's fairly simplistic. Considerations like latissimus dorsi stiffness, upper trap weakness, and more need to be part of the picture. One final note- the order of upward rotation, retraction, depression, is important. You do not want to say, attempt retraction, depression, then upward rotation. This is the common mantra of "Pull your shoulders back and down!" If you do this first, it's damn hard to get your arms up! It's also a common impairment of those with shoulder pain. Where they lack upward rotation, retracting too soon, causing shoulder pain / discomfort. In my experience, overwhelmingly issues of the lower trap are with upward rotation. Not depression or retraction. That is, your average person with shoulder problems does not have problems pulling them down or together. They have problems raising them up. [1]: https://i.sstatic.net/Vqo0t.jpg [2]: https://b-reddy.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/shoulder-scapular-motions.jpg [3]: https://i.sstatic.net/8itOP.gif [4]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3VygGuBObVc [5]: https://i.sstatic.net/7voNC.jpg [6]: https://i.sstatic.net/u6YQQ.png [7]: https://i.sstatic.net/qmrce.jpg [8]: https://b-reddy.org/2013/09/05/a-progression-to-lifting-your-arms-overhead-pain-free/ [9]: https://i.sstatic.net/PX27q.jpg [10]: https://i.sstatic.net/cvvjM.jpg [11]: https://b-reddy.org/wp-admin/post.php?post=15527&action=edit