Seated Cable Rows

Seated cable rows help exercise the entire back and middle torso. Additionally, this exercise also helps tone the arms. The muscle which gets the main focus during this exercise is the latissimus dorsi, which is the longest muscle in the back.

It is situated on either sides of the torso and right beneath the arms. These muscles help create the perfect v-shaped torso, because they make the torso look trimmer as well as more chiseled. This middle back exercise ensures that your biceps, upper arm muscles, lats, forearms, and shoulders get their fair share of workout.

Using low pulley cable rows is ideal for doing this exercise. Here are some tips on how you should do this exercise properly.

• The first step of this exercise is to sit on a flat bench machine and place your feet on its foot platform. Make sure that your bend your knees slightly.

• Ensure that you are comfortably seated and that your back is straight.

• Now, lean your body forward so as to grab hold of the bar handles.
• Now pull the bar towards your chest so that it touches your midriff. All this while, ensure that your back is straight. Do not hunch your shoulders inwards in order avoid injuring your back or neck.

• You will feel the muscles on your back stretching while doing this exercise. Hold each position for a few seconds and take slow deep breaths. Now, slowly retract to your original position, so that your hands are once again stretched completely.

There are other ways of doing this exercise, one of them being to perform the cable rows to neck while being seated. In this exercise, you need not place your feet on a special platform, instead placing them flat on the ground would be sufficient.

You will need a low cable pulley machine and a flat bench. Now, sit at the edge of the bench, and in a manner that allows your back to be straight. Now grab the bar attached to the machine.

All you need to do is to hold the bar with your arms completely stretched, and pull the bar towards your chin and neck. This exercise focuses on the back, arms, and biceps, but does not help the lower body in any way.

Following are some alternative exercises for those who just have a bench incline, dumbbells, and barbells:

• Bent over barbell row
• Dumbbell rows
• Bent over rows
• One arm dumbbell rows
• One arm barbell rows

It often happens that people tent to make several mistakes while performing this exercise. Here are some things that you must avoid and the right methods to follow.

• Never allow your back to lean forward so as to pull the bar. The idea behind this exercise is to keep your back straight.

• Do not pull your lower back as that could injure your waist.

• Do not squeeze your shoulders. Instead keep it as straight as possible so that your arms and back get stretched. If you hunch your shoulders forward, you will unnecessarily experience more pressure on your shoulders and upper back.

Any exercise, if done incorrectly has the potential of causing injuries, and the gravity of these injuries may vary from minor to substantial. Therefore it's advisable that you learn the correct method of doing seated cable rows, before you decide to do this exercise for the first time.

Consult a gym instructor, so that he/she is able to supervise you while you try out this exercise.