Rows
Inverted row under the bar
- Kit
- Pull-up bar
- Works
- mid back · lats
- Also
- biceps · rear delts · forearms · core
The inverted row is a bodyweight horizontal pull performed under a fixed bar, hanging with your heels on the floor and pulling your chest up to the bar. It builds the mid back, lats and arms, and it teaches you to pull without letting your lower back sag. Because you change the difficulty by moving your feet, it suits everyone from beginners to strong pullers.
Form
How to do inverted row under the bar
- 1Set the bar at roughly hip height and lie underneath it. Grip it a little wider than your shoulders with your arms straight and your hands directly over your chest.
- 2Walk your heels out until your body is a straight line from shoulders to ankles, squeeze your glutes and brace your stomach so your hips do not hang.
- 3Pull your shoulder blades down and back, then drive your elbows past your ribs until your chest touches or comes close to the bar. Breathe out as you pull.
- 4Lower under control until your arms are fully straight and your shoulder blades reset, breathing in on the way down.
- 5Keep the same tension through the whole effort and stop the set if your hips start to drop rather than rushing the last pulls.
Watch for
Common mistakes
Hips sag and the chest arrives at the bar before the body does.
Fix: Squeeze your glutes and think of holding a plank, so shoulders, hips and heels move as one piece.
Pulling with the arms only and letting the shoulders shrug up toward the ears.
Fix: Start each pull by drawing the shoulder blades down and together, then let the elbows follow.
Short, bouncy pulls that never reach the bar or never straighten the arms.
Fix: Slow down and use the full range: arms locked out at the bottom, chest to the bar at the top, or raise the bar to make that possible.
Sessions