# Seated Cable Row: how to do it

- Main muscles: upper back, lats
- Also works: biceps, rear delts
- Equipment: cable
- Level: beginner
- 3D demo (side view): https://media.trainaq.com/exercises/seated_cable_row/8f4a1a6667/side-m-720.mp4

## Steps

1. Sit with your feet on the plate and knees slightly bent.
2. Hold the V-bar with palms facing, arms straight, back flat.
3. Sit tall and pull the handle to your stomach, elbows brushing your sides.
4. Squeeze your shoulder blades together for a second.
5. Let your arms straighten slowly, leaning forward only a little.

## Cues

- Elbows back, not out.
- Chest up, shoulders down.
- Sit tall at the finish; no rocking.

## Common mistakes

- Rocking back to move the weight: lighten it and keep your trunk upright at the finish.
- Rounding your back at the stretch: reach with your arms, not your spine.
- Shrugging at the finish: pull your shoulders down before you squeeze.

## Starting position

Sit on the bench facing the low pulley, feet on the foot plate, hip-width apart. Knees soft (about 20° flexion), never locked. Close neutral grip on the V-bar: palms facing each other, hands about 15 cm apart (about 0.4 × shoulder width). Wrists straight, thumbs wrapped. Chest up, shoulders down, spine neutral from pelvis to head.

## The movement

The trunk rocks only from about 10° forward to upright, as one rigid piece pivoting at the hips. The handle travels in a near-horizontal straight line along the cable. Elbows slide back close to the sides, not out. Legs, feet and head stay still; the neck stays in line with the trunk.

## End position

Handle touching the front of the stomach at about navel height. Trunk upright (0°, accept 0–5° back). Elbows tight to the ribs and just behind the torso: elbow flexion about 110°, shoulder extension about 40°. Shoulder blades squeezed back and down. Hold 1 s.

## Tempo

Pull 1.5 s / squeeze 1 s / return 2 s, plus 0.3 s at the stretch with the stack still off its rest.

## Form in numbers

| Measure | Target | Good range | Sources |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Hand spacing (V-bar) | 15 cm | 12–18 cm (about 0.3–0.5 × shoulder width) |  |
| Elbow flexion at the stretch | 5° | 0–10° |  |
| Handle height at the end | navel | lower ribs to navel |  |
| Elbow distance from the ribs (front view) | 5 cm | 0–10 cm |  |

Source: https://trainaq.com/exercises/seated-cable-row