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Cable Row Wide Grip
The Cable Row Wide Grip is a strength exercise on a cable machine for your back. Share of the load in the Zulta muscle model: mid traps 19%, rhomboids 17% and rear delts 15%.
Also known as: seated cable row (wide bar), wide grip cable row
How to do it
- Clip a wide lat bar to the low pulley of a seated row station.
- Sit with the feet on the platform and grip the bar overhand, hands wider than the shoulders.
- Sit upright with the arms straight and the chest up.
- Row the bar to the lower chest with the elbows flared out at about 60 degrees from the torso.
- Let the arms straighten slowly and let the shoulder blades spread.
Tips
- Finish by squeezing the shoulder blades together behind you.
- Pull to the lower chest, higher than a close-grip row.
Common mistakes
- Tucking the elbows in, which moves the work away from the upper back.
- Leaning back to finish each rep.
- Shrugging the shoulders up at the end.
Muscles worked by the Cable Row Wide Grip
Share per muscle in the Zulta muscle model. The model spreads the load of one rep over 40 muscles, based on EMG and biomechanics research.
Elbows flared away from the body turn the row into horizontal abduction. Rowing toward the torso is shoulder extension plus scapular retraction: mid traps, rhomboids and lats lead, rear delt and elbow flexors assist; torso support decides how much the lower back works.
Cable Row Wide Grip alternatives
Same equipment
Different equipment
No equipment
Make it harder
Similar exercises
Frequently asked questions
What muscles does the Cable Row Wide Grip work?
Mainly the mid traps and rhomboids. The rear delts, lats (upper), biceps (long head), brachialis and biceps (short head) assist.
Is the Cable Row Wide Grip good for beginners?
Yes. The Cable Row Wide Grip is rated beginner in the Zulta library: the technique is easy to learn with a light weight.
What is a good alternative to the Cable Row Wide Grip?
For example the Dumbbell High Row, Hammer Strength High Row and Machine High Row. They train mostly the same muscles, some with different equipment.
How do you make the Cable Row Wide Grip harder?
Add weight or reps, or move on to the High Cable Row and Seal Row.
Sources
- Lehman et al. 2004, Dyn Med 3:4 (lat and back exercises)
- Fenwick et al. 2009, JSCR 23(5):1408-1417 (rowing exercises)
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