It’s perfectly okay to start at a low weight because you’ll actually avoid injuring yourself. As you develop more upper body strength, you can work up to more weight. Remember to be especially careful if you’ve had a shoulder or lower back injury in the past—consult a doctor to see how much weight is best for you.
Some horizontal cable machines come without a bench, so you’ll sit on the floor with a straight back and slightly bent knees instead. If you use one of these machines, you’ll achieve the maximum muscle stimulation for your back and lats. [3] X Research source
Bend your knees slightly so you can keep your center of gravity and balance, both of which will help you focus on your posture and your upper body movements. If the machine you’re using doesn’t have pads or a base where you can brace your feet, just improvise with a step platform. Prop your feet on the side of the step platform to brace your feet while you perform a seated cable row.
A V-grip bar is popular for beginners because you can hold it with both hands and don’t need to stretch your arms out. It targets your inner back, including your rhomboids and traps. If you use a long straight bar, which requires you to use a wide grip and targets your lats, grab it with either an overhand or underhand grip. If you’d like an adjustment that’s easier on your shoulders, use an underhand grip. In order to sit up completely straight, make sure to extend your arms.
Even though you’re keeping your back straight and your torso in one place, you can flex your hips a little if that helps you do a seated cable row. Keep your core muscles engaged so that your upper body stays steady once you try your seated cable rows.
Exhale as you pull the cable toward you.
Inhale as you release the cable back to the starting position. When you work against the tension, you should be able to softly place the weights back down. If you hear the weights clank down on the cable machine, it’s likely that you moved back too quickly.
Placing your elbows outward will engage your biceps instead of your back. Shrugging your shoulders will put too much pressure on your traps. Swinging your shoulders will prevent you from activating your back muscles. Using rapid movements will keep you from fully completing your row. Locking your knees will put a lot of stress on your joints.
When you focus on 1-arm cable rows, you’ll train both the dominant and the non-dominant side of your body—this is especially helpful if you notice that you have any physical imbalance. Use a V-grip bar for 1-arm cable rows so you can easily grab the grip with one hand.
When you bend your elbows, make sure your upper arms are parallel to the floor.
The V-grip attachment is extremely popular and is usually the go-to option for most cable machines in local or home gyms.
Inhale and slowly stretch your arms out in front of you to return to your starting position and return the weight to the weight stack. A lat bar is used for both seated cable rows and pulldowns—it looks like a wide bar and has ends that curve downward.
To complete the workout, inhale and reverse your movement by slowly extending your arms in front of you. Finish by returning the weight to the weight stack. When you attach an EZ bar to your cable machine to perform a seated cable row, you’ll mainly work out your shoulders and lats—however, you’ll also give your biceps extra exercise.
Build muscle density in your back Enhance your pulling strength Fatigue your muscles to promote “hypertrophy,” the growth of muscle cells Develop your lower back to reduce any stress put on it Improve your posture
