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Chest

Cross Body Cable Fly

The Cross Body Cable Fly is a strength exercise on a cable machine for your chest. Share of the load in the Zulta muscle model: mid chest 43%, upper chest 15% and lower chest 13%.

Level: IntermediateEquipment: CableSingle-joint (isolation)Unilateral: one arm or leg at a time

How to do it

  1. Set one pulley above head height and clip on a single handle.
  2. Stand side-on to the machine, take the handle in the hand nearest the stack and step out until the cable is taut.
  3. Start with the arm raised out toward the pulley, elbow slightly bent, feet shoulder-width.
  4. Sweep the handle down and across your body until your hand passes the midline in front of the opposite hip.
  5. Return slowly along the same diagonal until the arm is back up toward the pulley.

Tips

  • Keep your hips and shoulders facing forward so the chest, not the torso, moves the handle.
  • Finish with the hand just past the midline to get a full squeeze.

Common mistakes

  • Twisting the torso toward the finish to cheat the weight across.
  • Bending the elbow into a pressing motion.
  • Letting the cable yank the arm back up at the end of the rep.

Muscles worked by the Cross Body Cable Fly

  • Mid chest Primary43%
  • Upper chest Secondary15%
  • Lower chest Primary13%
  • Front delts Secondary13%
  • Obliques Minor5%
  • Biceps (short head) Minor4%
  • Serratus anterior Stabilizer4%
  • Rotator cuff Stabilizer3%

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.

One side loaded asks the trunk to resist rotation. A fly is pure shoulder horizontal adduction with the elbow fixed, so the pec does nearly all the work and the triceps drop out.

Cross Body Cable Fly alternatives

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Frequently asked questions

What muscles does the Cross Body Cable Fly work?

Mainly the mid chest and lower chest. The upper chest and front delts assist.

Is the Cross Body Cable Fly good for beginners?

The Cross Body Cable Fly is rated intermediate. If you are new, learn the Single Arm Cable Fly first and build up from there.

What is a good alternative to the Cross Body Cable Fly?

For example the Single Arm Cable Fly, Cable Fly and Band Fly. They train mostly the same muscles, some with different equipment.

Sources

  • Welsch et al. 2005, JSCR 19(2):449-452 (bench, incline, fly)
  • Solstad et al. 2020, J Sports Sci Med 19(4):645-651 (bench press vs fly)

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