Wide-Grip Seated Cable Row
Seated cable row taken on a wide bar, pulling to the upper abdomen with the elbows away from the ribs.
How to do it
- Attach a wide bar to a seated row station and set the load.
- Sit with your feet on the plate, knees slightly bent, and take an overhand grip outside shoulder width.
- Sit tall, brace your abs and pull your shoulder blades down away from your ears.
- Row the bar to your upper abdomen with the elbows traveling out and back.
- Squeeze the shoulder blades together for a beat with the torso still.
- Extend the arms slowly to a full stretch without rounding your back and repeat.
Key technique cue
No rocking: pull to the upper belly, blades down, shoulders away from the ears.
Common mistakes
- ✕ Rocking the torso back and forth, which turns a back exercise into a hip movement.
- ✕ Shrugging the shoulders toward the ears, which loads the upper traps instead of the mid-back.
- ✕ Rounding the lower back on the return, which puts the lumbar spine under a stretched load.
- ✕ Letting the weight stack pull the arms out fast, which loses tension at the end of the range.
Benefits
- ✓ Biases the mid-back and rear shoulder more than a close grip row.
- ✓ Supported seated position keeps the lower back out of the lift.
- ✓ Constant cable tension across the whole pulling range.
Progression: from easier to harder
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Step 1 You are here - Wide-Grip Seated Cable Row
- Cable Supinating Row
- Machine Seated Cable Row
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Step 2
About the exercise
The wide-grip seated cable row is a horizontal pull from a low pulley with the hands set outside shoulder width. Because the elbows travel away from the ribs instead of tucking, the pull becomes transverse shoulder extension and the middle trapezius, rhomboids and rear deltoids take a larger share of the work than in a close neutral grip row, where the lats and rhomboids lead. The lats still contribute, the biceps assist, and the trunk stays upright with the shoulder blades depressed rather than shrugged toward the ears.
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