Cable Face Pull
Horizontal pull, cable, rear delts and upper back
The face pull draws a rope on a cable toward the face, with the elbows high and the hands finishing beside the ears. It trains the rear shoulders and the upper back, with the upper traps helping. It suits almost anyone who lifts, as a lighter exercise that balances a lot of pressing.
Setting up
- Set the pulley at about eye height and attach a rope handle.
- Hold the rope ends with the thumbs toward you.
- Step back until the arms are straight in front of you with the weight lifted off the stack, and stand tall with the feet hip width apart.
- Choose a light weight; this is a move for control, not load.
How to do a cable face pull
- Pull the rope toward the face, leading with the elbows.
- Keep the elbows high, level with or above the hands.
- Finish with the hands beside the ears and the rope ends pulled apart, thumbs pointing back.
- Pause for a moment, then let the arms straighten under control.
- Between reps, let the shoulder blades move forward a little before you pull again.
- Keep the body still; only the arms and shoulder blades move.
Breathing. Breathe out as you pull and breathe in as the arms straighten.
Muscles worked
- Mainly
- Rear delts and upper back
- Also
- Traps
Common mistakes
- Rope set low, so it turns into a row to the chest. It misses the rear shoulders the move is for and turns it into a row, so set the pulley at about eye height before the first rep.
- Leaning back to move the weight. Then body weight moves the stack instead of the rear shoulders, so stand tall with the feet planted and lighten it.
- Elbows dropping below the hands. It shifts the work to the lats and biceps, so keep the elbows as high as the hands all the way to the face.
- So heavy the shoulders shrug up. The neck and upper traps then take over, so go lighter and pull smoothly with the shoulders down.
Easier and harder
- Easier
- Band Face Pull
- Harder
- Suspension Face Pull
Guide
