Cable Row
The cable row is a seated horizontal pull where you draw a handle from a low pulley toward your torso. It trains the mid back, with the lats and biceps assisting. The seated setup removes lower-back fatigue, so it is a reliable way to add back volume after heavier free-weight rows.
Muscles worked
The cable row trains the back, with biceps, lats helping.
Weekly sets for back
Hard sets per week that Swole.fit plans for back, counting every exercise that trains it. Start a cycle near the growth line and climb toward the recovery limit before a deload.
How to do the cable row
- 01Sit at the row station with your feet on the platform and knees slightly bent.
- 02Attach a close-grip V-handle, grab it and sit tall with your arms straight and shoulders reaching forward.
- 03Start each rep by pulling your shoulder blades back, then drive your elbows past your ribs.
- 04Touch the handle to your lower ribs or upper stomach while keeping your torso upright.
- 05Straighten your arms slowly and let your shoulder blades slide forward for a full stretch.
Coaching cues
- Elbows back, chest up
- Pull to your belly button, not your neck
- Let the shoulders reach at the front
Common mistakes
- Swinging your torso back and forth turns the row into a hip hinge, so keep your torso nearly vertical and lighten the stack.
- Shrugging the handle toward your chin moves the work to the upper traps, so drive your elbows back and down instead.
- Stopping short at the front cuts the stretch, so let your shoulder blades protract fully before the next pull.
How Swole.fit programs it
Log it once and the app plans the next session for you.
- Most sets land between 8 and 15 reps, the range the plan steers compound lifts toward for size.
- Week one starts around 2 to 3 reps in reserve. Each week you train a little closer to failure, ending around 0 to 1 in reserve before a deload week.
- Hit the top of the range on every set and the next session adds the smallest real jump in weight, rounded to the plates, dumbbells or stack you actually have.
- Sets for this exercise count toward your weekly volume for every muscle it trains: a full set for the primary muscles, half a set for the helpers.
The full method, with the maths, is in how mesocycles work.
Cable Row alternatives
Same muscles, different tool. Swap in one of these when the equipment is taken or your joints want a change.
Free programs that use it
Ready-made splits from the Swole.fit library. Pick one and the app runs the progression.
- Arm Blaster3 days a week, biceps, triceps, shoulders
- Deadlift Religion3 days a week, back, hamstrings, glutes
- Full Body Power3 days a week, chest, back, quadriceps, hamstrings
- Pull Domination3 days a week, back, biceps
- Pump & Circumstance3 days a week, chest, back, shoulders, biceps, triceps
- Upper Antagonist3 days a week, chest, back
Log it. Let the app plan the next one.
Track your cable row free. Swole.fit picks the next weight, counts your weekly sets and tells you when to deload.