Fitness

Best 9 Cable back workouts for a strong back

Did you know that cable back workouts can keep you from visiting a back doctor one day? Follow to find out everything.

You are here because you definitely suffer from back problems or you want to get a strong back and seek to avoid injuries resulting from some daily activities that have become a major role in weakening the back area and exposing it to injury easily.

Yes, I am talking about phones and computers, everyone is arching their back for 4 hours a day to browse social networking sites or chat with friends, and this is a real problem because you will not be able to withstand that stage where your grandfather suffers from back problems, because you will suffer from it early!

But the good thing is that you are here, because according to studies, cable back exercises can be a non-drug treatment for the back area and make it strong.

That is why I dedicated this post to get to know the best 20 cable exercises for the back, believe me, you will not suffer with back problems after these exercises.

Let’s continue together!

Image by ArtPhoto_studio on Freepik

9 Cable back workouts for strength and more flexibility

These workouts are for people who suffer from back pain or people who want to get a strong back, so that the exercise schedule will focus on resistance exercises using the cable because it is more effective in reducing pain and disability and improving muscle strength.

1- SEATED FLOOR CABLE ROW

BENEFITS:

Seated cable rows strengthen the upper part of the body, and specifically target the back area, making it as straight as possible and focusing on activating every muscle in it, and it is also useful for the biceps muscles as well.

MUSCLE WORKED:

Cable sit-up exercises target the various muscles of the body, especially the muscles of the back, focusing on:

  • Lats.
  • rhombic shapes.
  • Trapezius muscle.
  • The biceps.

HOW TO DO IT:

  • First thing, while sitting in a sitting row, always keep your back straight like a wall.
  • Firmly tighten the cable handle, extending your arms and shoulders forward while sitting upright.
  • Keep your feet about shoulder width apart, and keep them flat on the floor.
  • Exhale deeply, then start using a rowing motion and pull the handles toward you until you reach the outside of your chest.

MISTAKES:

  • Don’t let your elbows move away, keep the elbows on the body during the stretching phase.
  • Don’t let your torso swing.
  • Keep the knees locked.
  • Don’t shrug your shoulders while pulling the weight, try to hold them back and down.

2- LOW CABLE ROW

BENEFITS:

Low cable rows are among the most exercises that target the mid-back area, which is often performed in a sitting or standing position. It helps to make the back straight, reduces back pain and helps to strengthen it, as it is a great exercise for the upper body.

MUSCLE WORKED:

Low cable rows work several muscles, and the main muscles that work in low cable rows are:

  • latissimus dorsi muscle.
  • rhomboid muscles.
  • Trapezius muscle.
  • biceps brachii.
  • gluten and core.

HOW TO DO IT:

  • First, sit up straight, put your feet on the pedal and always keep your back straight.
  • Hold the handles firmly, keep your hands straight.
  • Push your shoulders back and your chest forward.
  • Keep some slight bend in your knees and keep your spine straight.
  • Pull straight into your torso and slowly until your elbows are at a 90-degree angle, then extend them again.

MISTAKES:

  • Don’t swing, keep everything tight.
  • Keep your back straight, never arch it.
  • Always keep your shoulders back.
  • Do not pull to the chest, pull to the stump.
  • Do not rush to do repetitions, take a deep breath with each pull.

3- DUAL CABLE PULLDOWN

BENEFITS:

The dual cable pulldown really allows you complete isolation and greater control over your range of motion, which is what makes it effective in targeting your back muscles and helping them gain strength and flexibility.

MUSCLE WORKED:

Also, dual cable pulldown allows you to target the various muscles of the upper body, and the most important target muscles are:

  • The large back muscle.
  • torso.
  • deltoid.
  • rhomboid muscle.
  • The latissimus dorsi muscle that runs the length of your back.
  • Triceps muscle.
  • shoulder sling.

HOW TO DO IT:

  • Adjust the handles to the height of your hands while sitting.
  • Sit straight, making sure your knees are well fixed.
  • Hold the handles tightly, then start pulling to your shoulders as you will be doing chest press
  • Pull the handles and keep pushing your elbows out until they are at a 90-degree angle.

MISTAKES:

  • Don’t pull a weight you can’t handle, because it will pull you up every time you try to pull down.
  • Always keep your back and head straight and never change your position.
  • Do not pull to the chest or torso, pull to the side of the shoulders and push the elbows out.
  • Pull with both hands at once, one hand should not be behind the other during the pull.

4- CLOSE GRIP LAT PULLDOWN

BENEFITS:

As we have already mentioned, long hours of sitting in front of the office or using the computer for long periods may paralyze the back muscles and lack of use, so the close grip lat pulldown is one of the exercises that stretch the back muscles well and improve their position and help build a big back and strong.

MUSCLE WORKED:

The close grip lat pulldown exercises activate the most important muscles of the back so that it gives an effective exercise for them:

  • rhomboid muscle.
  • Trapezius.
  • latissimus dorsi muscle.

HOW TO DO IT:

  • First, adjust the pillow well in the position that suits you, because it will allow you to perform the exercise correctly.
  • Hold the bar close to shoulder width with your palms facing forward.
  • Hold the bar and extend your arms up well, sit in a comfortable and appropriate position.
  • Always keeping your back straight, tilt your torso back slightly, about 30 degrees.
  • Take a deep breath, push your chest forward and then pull the bar toward your upper chest.
  • Keep your upper forearm still as you move and squeeze your back muscles as you pull down.

MISTAKES:

  • Don’t pull away from the body range.
  • Do not lean back too much, because this mistake can expose you to injury.
  • Do not use the driving force of the body.

5- STRAIGHT ARM PULLDOWN

BENEFITS:

Perhaps this exercise will be one of the best back exercises because the straight arm pulldown is ideal in working to improve the upper part of the body and improve the strength of its muscles, especially at the level of the middle back muscles and the sides of the back and even the muscles of the front and back hands, and this is what makes it a natural medicine for back pain and Maintaining its integrity and protecting it from kinetic stagnation resulting from work and so on.

MUSCLE WORKED:

The straight arm pulldown exercise activates several muscles in the upper body, the most prominent of which are:

  • Broad back muscles.
  • rhomboid muscles.
  • The main rotator muscle.
  • deltoid background.

HOW TO DO IT:

  • Adjust the cable machine to a slightly elevated position.
  • Stand two steps away from the cable machine, extend your hands well and grab the handles.
  • Push your chest forward well, keeping your hands straight at all times.
  • Push your torso slightly forward, about less than 30 degrees, push your buttocks back a little, and bend your knees a little.
  • Pull the bar straight toward the sink.
  • Never bend your hands, and try to stay in your position and let only the hands do the workout.

MISTAKES:

  • One of the common mistakes in this exercise is bending the arm while pulling. You must always keep your arm straight.
  • Don’t use your arms too much, many beginners use their arms a lot to pull the weight down.

6- ONE ARM CABLE PULLDOWN

BENEFITS:

Pulling down with one hand allows you to focus on each side at a time. It also gives you more flexibility at the shoulder level and tightens the lateral back muscles so that using the rotating grip creates a good extension of your arms upwards, this creates a great extension on the lats.

MUSCLE WORKED:

The pull-down exercise with one hand engages a number of different areas in the back, including:

  • Lats.
  • Backbones.
  • rhombic shapes.
  • The traps are secondary.

HOW TO DO IT:

  • Adjust your sitting position just like a closed grip.
  • Always keep your chest pushed forward, your back straight and a little bending back.
  • Drop the shoulder just by applying pressure to the collarbone.
  • Press the shoulder blades, take a deep breath and then pull the handle to the top of your chest.
  • Keeping your focus on the lotus, pull your elbow back and down.
  • Pause and release the cable back to the starting position.

MISTAKES:

  • Avoid excessive bending while pulling down.
  • Don’t let your torso sway, keep it straight with a little bending throughout.
  • Do not allow the cable to be pulled upwards while pulling. Stay still on the seat at all times.

7- ONE ARM CABLE ROW

BENEFITS:

One arm cable row is one of the best exercises to increase strength, improve the position of the back and strengthen the upper part of the back. It increases core strength and improves muscle balance. This is what makes it one of the best exercises that target the back area well.

MUSCLE WORKED:

This exercise works different muscles, so that it works the muscles of the upper back on one side at a time, so that it targets each of:

  • Latissimus Dorsi.
  • traps.
  • rhombic shapes.
  • deltoid background.
  • Secondary biceps muscle.

HOW TO DO IT:

Like all cable pulling exercises.

  • Stand two steps away from the rope machine, with your feet shoulder width apart.
  • Adjust the cable machine to meet your torso.
  • Keeping your back straight, push your chest forward.
  • Hold the handle with one hand, then pull toward your torso.

MISTAKES:

  • Do not pull the handle until it touches your torso, you should keep some space between the stump and the elbow.
  • During a full pull, do not keep your elbow in front of you, pull the elbow and torso back.
  • Keep the pelvis and your entire body stable and balanced.

8- SEATED HIGH ROW

BENEFITS:

The seated high rows vary, but they are all effective in building the strength and size of the back. They are also effective in constantly tensing the muscles, and this is what makes them one of the most important exercises that target the upper back area and maintain its straightness and strength.

MUSCLE WORKED:

It also targets various muscles, including:

  • lats.
  • rhomboid muscles.
  • The main rotator muscle

HOW TO DO IT:

  • Adjust the seat to the position that suits you and is comfortable with it.
  • Place the feet on the floor, keeping the knees slightly bent.
  • Keeping your back straight, grab the straight part of the tape with your palms facing down.
  • Keeping the elbows wide, pull straight to the upper chest.

MISTAKES:

  • Shrugging shoulders, always keep your shoulders back and down.
  • Fast movement, always keep calm in the performance of the movement for maximum benefit.
  • Swinging torsp, keep your stump still at all times.

9- CABLE BENT OVER ROW

BENEFITS:

One of the most powerful exercises that helps isolate the back muscles, shoulders and tendons, and this is what makes it a real taming of the back area and works to strengthen it and reduce the risk of injury resulting from some daily activities, and not only this, but it can also strengthen the heart and stabilize the shoulder and Build a strong neural connection.

MUSCLE WORKED:

This exercise engages various muscles and works to strengthen them and improve their appearance and functions. Among the muscles that he focuses heavily on are:

  • latissimus dorsi muscle.
  • Middle and lower trapezius.
  • rhombic shapes.
  • deltoid background.

HOW TO DO IT:

  • Adjust the cable machine to the bottom.
  • Stand two steps away from the cable machine.
  • Bend your knees slightly, push your hips back well.
  • Keeping your back straight and curved forward, push the chest well.
  • Pull straight down into your abdomen, keeping your elbows out if you are using a wide grip.

MISTAKES:

  • Back arch, never arch your back, keep it straight as possible.
  • Standing while pulling, you should never stand. Stay in a bent position throughout the exercise.
  • Pulling to the chest, you should pull to the lower abdomen in order to target the torso and other muscles well.

Repetitions and sets for a great back workout

BeginnerIntermediateAdvancedRestReps
All workouts above3 Sets4 Sets5 Sets60 sec8-12
Schedule of repetitions and sets for back workout

Train your back with the correct way using cables rows

Do not limit yourself to always doing one of these exercises because this may not change a lot of things with you, for this I have put several exercises in different positions and different grips in order to target the muscles in new ways always, because commitment to limited movements may not give fruits.

The beauty of the back exercises using the cable machine is that it allows you to control a wide range of movement, and allows you to move freely and target the muscles well.

Are cable workouts effective in reducing back pain and help in building a strong back?

Several studies have proven the effectiveness of cable exercises in operating different muscles and improving their strength, and this is due to its special method of targeting the 

muscles in several different ways and providing a wide range of motion.

As for the back area, several studies have confirmed that cable exercises for the back area can improve muscle function, improve strength, and help build the upper body.

How to integrate back workouts into your training program?

Try to incorporate back exercises into your workout schedule twice to four times a week. You can choose one of the exercises we mentioned previously during each session targeting the upper body area. 

You can do 3 different exercises in each session during the week, you can also choose the duration and repetitions according to your weekly exercise schedule.

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Summary

If you are ready to get back in shape and gain more flexibility, there is no doubt that the beginning will be by getting used to doing this type of exercise.

Even if you suffer from injury or cramps, these exercises will help provide more flexibility and improve muscle strength, just do not let it escalate until it becomes a real problem.

Sports in general is a good thing for the body and can keep you away from injuries and premature aging and keep you always at the top of activity and make your daily life easier, so think about doing these exercises well because they will definitely help you.

Do not forget to share the post with your friends who are interested in this type of exercise in order to get a strong back, and you may want to join us via the mailing list as well.

Hamza Bjr

Hamza started his journey with building fitness and strong muscles 4 years ago, he was able to successfully change the shape of his body and he was able to earn a third-class coach certificate from the "SET" Center, after that he decided to use his simple knowledge about exercises and high-intensity training to help many others people achieve their goals.

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