Cable Wood Chopper
A diagonal cable rotation that trains the obliques to drive force from high to low across the body.
How to do it
- Set the cable at the highest pulley position and grab the handle with both hands above one shoulder.
- Step into a wide athletic stance with your feet planted and knees softly bent.
- Brace your core, then pull the handle down and across your body toward the opposite hip.
- Drive the rotation with your torso, letting your back foot pivot naturally as your hips turn.
- Pause at the bottom with straight arms and a locked-in core, feeling your obliques under load.
- Slowly return the handle to the start above your shoulder, then repeat for your reps.
Key technique cue
Chop from the trunk: hips turn, arms stay straight, no yanking.
Common mistakes
- ✕ Pulling with the arms instead of rotating through the trunk, which takes the obliques out of the exercise.
- ✕ Keeping the hips locked so all the movement happens in the lower back, risking injury.
- ✕ Going too heavy and yanking the cable, which trades clean rotation for momentum.
- ✕ Standing too close to the stack so the cable loses tension at the top of every rep.
Benefits
- ✓ Builds rotational power through the obliques and trunk.
- ✓ Trains the core to transfer force between the hips and shoulders.
- ✓ Carries straight over to golf, tennis, throwing and striking sports.
Progression: from easier to harder
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Step 1 -
Step 2 You are here - Cable Wood Chopper
- Cable Chop
- Cable Standing Low To High Wood Chopper
About the exercise
The Cable Wood Chopper is the benchmark rotational core exercise. With the cable set high and the handle pulled down across the body, the obliques generate rotation while the rest of the trunk stays braced. It mirrors the swinging, throwing and chopping patterns athletes use in real sport. It is a must-have for athletic conditioning, golf, tennis and combat sports. It also slots nicely into rotational core blocks inside general strength programs and into mobility-plus-strength sessions when you want to wake up the trunk.
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