Upright Cable Row

What it is

This compound pull exercise uses a cable machine to strengthen your upper back. It primarily engages your trapezius muscles, often called traps, and secondarily works your shoulders. You initiate the movement by pulling a straight bar attachment upwards towards your chin, driving through your elbows.

Technique tips

• Drive the movement with your elbows, keeping them above your forearms.
• Keep the cable bar close to your body as it moves upward.
• Ensure your torso remains stationary throughout the exercise.
• Exhale as you pull the bar up; inhale as you slowly lower it.
• Briefly pause at the peak of the movement to feel the contraction.

How to track your progress

Log the weight and reps of each set. Straddly turns every set into an estimated one-rep max, so a heavier single and a strong set of eight both count as progress, and it flags a personal record the moment you beat your best.