It’s also a great exercise to add in as ‘active recovery’ between sets in a lifting session. I did this for a while and my upper back/traps blew up. I was hitting around 200 reps every session. It was like fertiliser for the upper back!
100% agreed! All those unique features of the row make them the PERFECT light day exercise. They are easy to recover from and benefit from much more volume than a lot of other movements.
I have been watching calisthenics RUclipsrs for a few years, you are one of the view that I still can learn something materially new and useful. Many thanks.
The scapular movement taught by rows is one of the most important things you can learn in the gym. It's absolutely required for proper technique in any type of press and even for proper rack positioning in the squat. Back when I started lifting, I had absolutely no connection with my back and struggled with even holding the bar in a proper position to squat.
Any tips for developing that connection? I have particularly crappy shoulder blades (they're winged, difficult to retract, and I find it especially difficult to pull with my back muscles, as opposed to my arms and rear delts.) I try to maintain good form and really squeeze my shoulder blades back and together, but it never feels like they're actually doing the work of the movement.
@@scottk1525hi, there's one important (maybe the most),and very simple; when u try to do any pulling movement, try to pull ur 👉 ELBOWS 👈, and to feel the diff between the right and the wrong movement, do a row focusing on pulling ur HANDS.Then, do another row focusing on pulling ur ELBOWS and like trying to make em touch one another jt behind ur back. Also, when u Pull, start the movement with ur upper back like trying to bend it by sticking ur shoulders. Hope it work bud and tell us if it worked.
@@scottk1525Use extremely light weight and work on form (you can change the angle to lighten the weight). Squeeze your shoulder blades tightly at full contraction. That should help you feel the connection. You can literally train that squeeeeze feeling while sitting in a chair during the day.
i don't quite get it i think (english aint my first language..) the scapular movement is pulling back your shoulders when your at the top/max of the movement?
Good point about rows. One vanity thing. I never took inverted rows seriously until at ope point I developed some tendonitis from overdoing it on pull ups. I focused on rows exclusively for a little while (few months), and boy did my rear delts double in size. I was really astounded. I’ve kept rows in my routine ever since.
Did your tendonitis go away from doin rows ? And how long did it take until you could do pull ups without pain ? I’m currently in the same exact position and switched to rows about 2-3 weeks ago
@@sn22yt It's weird how after all the "rear delt accessory" work I did back when I was doing "proper" lifting, nothing ever did the trick like a steady diet of inverted rows. 4-6 sets within 2-3 reps of failure, 2 days per week, circuited with a leg exercise and a press of some kind.
@@snowman1340When I had pain in the tendon in one finger because of an over doing in pull ups over a couple weeks. I stopped doing pull ups for 2months. Then I started again and always when I did a bit more - the pain started there again. I have done it also at home under the staircase - where you have a very uncompleted difficult grip 😅 My tendon pain went away - last time I did too much I had pain in another finger. But an important note is that my tendons didn't got destroyed or so cause I stopped it - so ut wasn't that bad. BUT the first time I had this - my tendon hurt in a way that I first thought that I burned my hand there because it's a burning-pain sensation. God bless good luck with that!
This video is a godsend. After a period of injury my pull-up max reps dropped from 16 to 6 and i've since been in a plateau. I'll try dialing back to these rows to see if I can build strength and endurance so I can do more pull-ups. As always, thank you for your content, K. They are always gold. Take care, brother! All the love from Brazil!
Another great video. Also holy shit, I haven't looked at the subscriber count in a while. So happy to see how much this channel is grown! It is the best on YT
Thanks, Jason! Yeah it has grown a lot! Such a supportive and positive group on here. It’s an honor to provide content for everyone. Thank you for the kind words!
Thank you for this information. I’ve always tried to progress by increasing too fast and end up doing shitty pull ups that lead to tendinitis. This makes so much sense. Definitely changing the way I incorporate these into my training.
Love your channel Kyle, centered on the pleasure of training, searching for a good form, not only focused on building muscles , bulking and stress your body ..very inspiring ❤
Thank you! I love treating training as a movement practice. All the good benefits come from treating with with respect and maintaining a lifelong practice.
awesome and interesting information. literally NOBODY has spoken about this before online that I can think of. thanks for always providing value, next month will be the day I committed to switching to calisthenics thanks to you. Much love!!
Sounds like this is an exercise that will take a few years to really exploit especially when centered around building scapular strength and consistency. Never thought of it as a stand alone for specific goals but as a bridge to pull ups and chin ups. As usual, you have me rethink my exercise plan and progressions all over again - thank you for the thoughtful look at specific exercises and what muscles they really exploit and how it can fit in an overall program. I can’t imagine how you come upon this info other than really taking the time to sit and think about movement - this is definitely a passion for you which benefits so many of us here.
I think you are spot on. It literally took me like a decade to figure out why all the rowing I was doing wasn’t actually doing what I wanted it to do. There is such a race to do “more” when we train that it can be easy to lose sight of what we are actually trying to do with an exercise, and the row displays this perfectly. So take your time, get the most out of each rep, and treat it as a specific tool to accomplish the task that it does just about better than anything else. It will pay off! Thank you for the kind words and the support!🙏
Man your videos have perfect timing as usual, im still building up to at least one proper chest to bar pull up (i can do several with bad form with rounded shoulders, but who needs a bad form pull up :) ) so scapula pull ups and rows have been my entire focus. Always feel more reassured about trusting the process after watching these, thank you!
Or just load up heavy, do 5 compound moves/workout and wonder why you stagnate or lose strength. Or end up with clinical depression because you managed to nuke your nervous system >
This is true af pal, great information of yours yet again! ;)) I used to now reach sets of like 11-12 pull ups, chin over the bar, however I have corrected my pull ups, and it was throughout this exercice by doing it clean form! ;p (the rows) and progressing on it. Once i came back to the pull up with so many changes in mind, retracting scapulas at it's MAX, arched back, pulling 100% with my back, ZERO keeping, controlled reps & slow negatives, while also keeping the tension in the lats, and making sure that when i start to feel like im cheating a bit, I stop the set : as a result, my reps went down from 12 to 5-6 .. It is Crazy! And i will not talk about the huge pump I do get. And it feels better for my shoulders, arms tendons, back ect..., i MUST keep up that way, one of my favorite pull ups, are the close grip rings neutral pull ups where you go up until you touch the rings with your chest and i am glad you've mentionned that one in your vid. For me this is a sort of Rings Rows-pull ups hybrid, and this exercice is out of this world in my opinion, the combo is Excellent.
I've been back to doing rows consistently most days. Right now I'm really just at a 45 degree angle and trying to worry about form and lots of reps. For the first time in way too many years, my back is finally returning. I used to white water kayak a ton and took for granted that I'd just have a strong back. But I neglected it and lost it. Rows are the path back. They are offer an incredibly safe platform for me to rebuild all the movement in that area of the body, and it retrains the rest of me.. core.. legs.. posterior chain.. forearms.. neck even.. safely. I love this for balancing all the pushups I kept doing even after I stopped doing pullups from lack of having a bar.
Man, I just love your videos. Short and staright to the point with no shit talking. Your philosophy made me, for the first time in my life, work out consistently. I have a question though - will rows be effective when done not on rings but on low horizontal bar? Thanks in advance for your reply and for everything!
Amazing video as always Kyle, thank you! I've been following your pull up: unlocked program as a beginner, the squeeze at the top while doing the ring rows feels really nice. I've already progressed enough to the point where I can perform 3 clean pull ups or 5 clean chin ups, can't wait until I can properly use the pull ups in my routine. Keep it up brother, you're one of a kind!
Love this video bro!🔥 Ring rows are exactly what got me the strength to be able to pull the chest to bar finally. I am 6‘4“ and it never happened until I got extremely disciplined in my ring rowing. These should serve exactly as you described, a scapular exercise where full range of motion can be utilized to get strong in the top range of motion. It drives me nuts when I see people cheat rep their rows and barely even get their hands to their rib, cages, or chest. What a waste of time. I do these every other day or so for two or three sets after my pull-ups on my upperbody focused days. These are the perfect complementary exercise to pullups if you utilize them with perfect form and a great contraction of the upper back. These will fill out your upper back and provide your rear dealt with a beautiful cap. I owe a lot to this exercise. I want to do them right now, but have to wait till tomorrow lol.
100% totally agree, brother! You explain the power of this exercise, exactly! In past videos, I have critiqued the rows from a biomechanics perspective, pointing out some of the unique characteristics which demand special attention, and a lot of people misunderstood my point about it. In my opinion it is an exercises that is so frequently misused that the vast majority of people end up wasting SOOO much time with it, only to plateau at some "advanced" progression of it that involves no scap retraction and 3" of ROM. It took me YEARS to realize that all the rowing I had done in my 20's was essentially worthless and never translated over to anything productive. I just trained it too heavy, and that was a tough pill to swallow. I had to really humble myself, regress the movement back to "beginner" versions, and all of a sudden my upper back lit up and I ended up developing that end ROM strength that carried over to the top of the pull up. The row is one of the most important tools we have, but I really see it as a "specialist" exercise. It does what it's supposed to do EXCEPTIONALLY well (exactly what you describe), but if misapplied, it can lead to some serious disappointment.
@@Kboges that hit me hard when you said, essentially all of the rowing I did in my 20s was worthless. That’s exactly how I feel. I don’t think I ever got a single thing out of that exercise, especially when I was trying to do it with a barbell, until I really just disciplined on perfect gymnastics, ring/suspension system rows. I think people don’t like your opinion on it too because they’re so wrapped up with going big and hard on movements like this, or generally, just not have matured much with their training to see the power of calisthenics to understand that gymnastics rings are probably the most effective tool you can use. It’s great to train heavy sometimes but honestly the upper back responds a lot better to just being fully retracted with the scapula with light weight for a good reps. Like theoretically, I believe you can spam upper back exercises almost every day to a degree with a light load, perfect form, and have amazing results in your shoulder health, and the development of your upper back.
I was doing bodyweight rows today and noticed how the top part of the exercise got progressively more difficult until I couldn't retract my shoulders, but could still go up until the moment where I normally would start retracting -- this syncs exactly with what you're saying here about the strength curve. Will continue to incorporate these and won't chase more (crappy) reps lol, thanks!
Awesome. Really enjoy this exercise, as it provides an opportunity to enact strict form from varying angles. I sometimes use the weight vest to change the rep range. Watching this reminds me that most pulling exercises are not easy. Especially if your form is on point! Carry on Kyle Boges 💯🔥
Very informative video. I've been training for a year and a bit and recently dialed back the rows (Australian Pull ups in my case) and it's going well. Helping fix a huge strength imbalance I have when doing pull ups. Probs to you!
Good to hear! Keep at it, take your time with them and the benefits will accumulate. It’s an awesome exercise when treated conservatively. It just falls apart when it’s loaded too heavy, and it takes some discipline to pull back a little, train it lighter, and get the most out of it! Enjoy my friend, and thank you for the support!
Fantastic, Kyle!!! I was thinking about stopping doing rows these very days, because I was feeling that I was losing my time (I was trying to go heavier and felt exactly that: I started to feel my muscles around that area less and less). It's like you read my mind, thank you!!!
Good timing! Yeah lighten it up, focus on good scap retraction, and only progress it as much as you can maintain that solid technique. Give that a shot and let me know how it treats you.
I've been loving incline rows with high reps lately as its the only pull exercise i can do that doesn't irritate my golfer's elbows. Plus it allows you to always have full range of motion, and its at the top where i really feel the lats engage, along with the scap retractors.
Rows are phenomenal: Great for beginners to hit the back muscles for weaker individuals (getting my mum on these) Great for addressing bad posture Great for lighter back days or if you’re recovering from illness or injury
One Critique: great demonstration on execution. I think it needed a "Get into proper form" for doing the exercise to target said muscles. Also a Do & Don't forms for the exercise. The brevity is nice, and the video does not lack visually, meaning the time of day is good, equipment, and location are well done also. Adding the Do & Don't aspect would round it out nicely.
this is a great exercise, I still consider myself a beginner but when I first got into the gym I started with these and they always felt great and eventually got me to the point where I could do pull ups prior to that I couldn't do a single one
This is a super useful perspective. After progressing to ring rows with elevated feet, I noticed that further progressions (for example tuck front lever rows) don't allow me to retract the scapula at the top. Since I'm mostly doing calisthenics for joint health and carryover to acrobatics, missing that part of the movement felt wrong. Not to mention that hitting perfect reps with full scapular range of motion on all exercises is so satisfying :) Thanks for talking about this topic in such a straightforward way!
Kyle, great content! I got these tips from your amazing pullup pdf. One thing I'm still really concerned with when it comes rows - be it w/ rings, TRX or a bar - is lower back pain, which I get most of the times when I perform them. I know this might come from bad posture (unlike your own in the videos, which is always on point) and also lack of a strenght routine for the muscle group that embrace the region. I mention this because it could be a subject for a future video that might help a lot of people like myself. 👍
Yeah it’s totally both, right?! Awesome for those building up to their first pull up and excellent to build upper back strength. It just has to be done properly.
My guy, I love your videos, and I love how they are straight to the point, with no annoying music distracting from the knowledge you drop on us~ I want you to know that your videos are a lot of help, they are very motivating and inspiring too~ I just wanted to say thank you so much for all that you have given to the calisthenics community~ I did want to ask; You stated once that you practice martial arts and I would be very interested in any video you made regarding that field, I understanding if youre not really an expert on the field but I would love a video where you explain how you balance calisthenics and training martial arts in your daily life~
Good stuff! Doing ring pullups and ring rows lately, and the rows feel kinda meh, I will try to use an easier variation and focus on the proper form, thanks!
Nice video! Retraction is a must for anyone wishing scapula control and stability! A heavy, explosive row will definitely build your traps and rhomboids very well, even though there is not so much retraction, there is an immense stretch at the bottom that might be key for traps (just like farmers' walks and deadlifts will build up your traps through stretch alone and if you choose to deadlift with a snatch grip it will even build up your rear delts, heck look at Olympic weight lifters throwing weight around.). However that's training traps in a different way that won't carry over to sternum pullup because in the sternum pullup, you are trying to of course retract your shoulder blades actively. Whereas explosive heavy rows you are catching the weight on the way down with your traps. Light rows are much better on recovery and are useful for every athlete's training (especially daily trainers)! Whereas heavy, explosive rows will be harder on recovery and suitable for those looking to gain explosive power in this movement pattern (Olympic lifters or people who train 2x a week). But in the end, both will build muscles through different means (heavy, explosive rows done less frequently, lower reps, focus on stretch: 6x3,4x4 or 5x5, light rows done more frequently at higher reps and focusing on retraction.). You are right that you defiently should not leave out retraction altogether, and 1 rep max rows are basically useless, but it would be wrong to say that heavy rows are a waste of time for every athlete. All this I'm saying might be taken out of context since this is a daily training calisthenics channel from my understanding. What do you think about doing a sternum pullup isometric hold at the top for retraction?
Well said! I don't disagree with any of this. And I think for bodybuilding and powerlifting purposes, heavy barbell rows are pretty awesome for the reasons you stated, as well as for deadlift assistance movement. This video is more about the ring row and the "progressions" of the row in calisthenics, like tuck lever rows, that don't really put a big stretch on the mid traps. And to be clear, I'm not saying those don't have an application, but for the average person who is in the process of developing their strength, and working through basic BW progressions but is unable to perform basic rows with good scap control, I see the pursuit of these advanced row progressions at the expense of mechanics as a waste of time for a lot of people. My general advice for those starting out is to build excellent scap control with rows, apply that to pull ups, then use pull ups and chin ups as the primary BW strength movement. Front lever and tuck elver rows are great if you are pursuing levers specifically, but if you aren't you are better off using row variations that preserve scap mechanics and heavy vertical pulls for general pulling strength.
I absolutely agree with @spaceinvader4565 here. Nobody emphasized going light for scapular retraction before. In convict conditioning, Pal Wade recommends performing 3 sets of 30 of these from a hip height bar before progressing to vertical pull ups. And probably that is the reason that pull ups progression in Convict Conditioning become so hard to follow.
Haha yeah I think a lot of people got the wrong impression about that video. My point wasn’t that rows are bad, but that they have a terrible strength curve, have less ROM, and can’t be loaded as heavy and things like chins. These are objective facts about the row and pointing them out doesn’t mean rows are bad; it just points out limitations that need to be taken into consideration when programming. What most people think they are accomplishing with rows is WAY better accomplished with pull ups and chin ups. I don’t think a lot of people watched the whole video or read the description where I talked about some uses of rows. I look at exercises as tools; rows do some things really well, but they don’t do other things really well. I’m glad this video clears some of that up. 💪
Wow, that strength curve explanation completely matches my experience with rows, and explains a lot. Is there a certain rep range (or rep minimum) you find most suitable for rows? And do you keep the shoulder blades retracted at the bottom as well (seems like it)? Thanks again for a great video!
I typically like higher reps for rows, like 20-30, but nothing wrong with lower reps at all, as long as you are able to maintain good mechanics. As for the shoulders, I let them come forward, but I don’t allow for thoracic flexion to maximize shoulder protraction.
Great video! I know the importance of full ROM (fingers touching sides of chest) and getting scapular retraction. I definitely feel weakest at the top of the movement. Do you recommend trying to hold and pause at the top for 1 - 2 seconds? I do a controlled eccentric of about 2 seconds already.
@@Kboges so they stay healthy with your push ups, pull ups, rows? Do you do anything other for upper body actually? Ring Push Ups ? Thanks for the answer :) !
Hey Kyle, Amazing video, as always. I've been on your daily PPL for a while now (with some personal adjustments) and absolutely love it. 2 Questions I have: 1) Chest growth: my chest is definitely my most lacking part. I now do 4 sets a day instead of 3 with the hope of it growing better. Do you have any tips on how to grow the chest better, or is it just a matter of time (considering I do good form, reach failure, and apply progressive overload) 2) Do you do any warmup or warmup sets before you start your workout? Thanks in advance Cheers Mika
Hey Mika! Glad you are enjoying! For chest growth, I really like deficit push ups with a pause at the bottom. Throw those into your training, get better with them, and you should see some solid growth over time. Just be patient. As for warm ups, it’s usually pretty minimal for me unless I feel I need something extra. I keep it intuitive.
Hlo just saw u channel ...today its amazing..best for body weight exercises.. i am gonna ask is it necessary to protracte scapula at bottom of inverted rows in each rep or not
Is there one back exercise you'd recommend when travelling and have no access to rings or a pull up bar? A kind of 'fill in' exercise that can be done temporarily with no equipment?
Yeah! Rows under a table work fine. Also, plenty of times I have taken a towel, looped it around both sides of a door knob, and used that to perform rows. It works! These days I usually travel with a pair of rings and a doorway anchor for rows if I can’t get to a park or gym.
👉🏻 When I do pull/push exercises on bar I notice my hand placement asymmetry, where my Right hand is near and my left hand is bit far. Plus I feel my right arm more while push up and pull ups. What can the reason be or it’s just physiological??
It could be structural or functional. Keep in mind that people are not perfectly symmetrical, just a visual approximation of symmetry; but we have asymmetrical organ placement, bone density, neural context ion, etc. So some observable assymetries are correctable with training. Others are not and should not be a concern unless they result in an injury or pain.
I think the best way to go about it is not to add weight but to elevate your feet and do touch hold with a false grip and as you get stronger move to advanced tuck front lever pullups and front lever touch and just increase the lever until you can front lever pullup and touch which is really mind blowing for the back
Ahh yeah that’s an interesting approach. I definitely think this is a solid path to developing strength specifically in the front lever but I’ve rarely see front lever rows performed with scap retraction. They are certainly an impressive feat of strength, but are typically done with minimal retraction. Also, due to balance, you end up having to start the pull from a position of more shoulder extension, reducing ROM in the lats even further that a regular row. So while I see tuck and front lever rows as impressive displays of strength, I don’t think they are the best ways to build a big back or good scap retraction strength. But, if skills are in your training, then this progression makes total sense. My approach is more about isolating the qualities you want to develop, and then selecting the tool that does that the best based on the biomechanics, injury risk, accessibility etc. But there are a million ways to skin a cat.
@@Kboges Makes sense, I should've said the best way to go about it from a skill perspective. But you are right it depends on your goal. Thank you for your comment, really interesting
Thank you 👍 Sir for this great video. I was wondering however,to make this an excellent exercise a qualitative one, in just my opinion,is a slow negative and get a good stretch and then pull back up quickly. Will this really work?
I do think rows are as important as pull-ups as long as u overload them with weighted or reps. Been doing a lot of weighted inverted rows recently with full ROM. I will slowly add weights to its pretty challenging on its own
It really comes down to goals. That’s if you want to work toward front lever. If you want to train scap retraction, keep the movement lighter to allow for full ROM and scap retraction. If you want to develop scap retraction strength, perform them with scap retraction. If you are using them to accomplish a different goal, train them in accordance with that goal 💪
Yeah it’s totally possible your strength necessitates a harder variation. Though I haven’t seen many people who can do multiple sets of 20-30 rows, rings to chest every rep, with a 1-2 sec pause at the top, 2-3 second eccentric, with the feet elevated on the bench. Most very strong pullers will reach failure before that. For me, my back is my strongest body part. I can do a 1 arm chin as well as 15+ reps of chest to bar pull ups and 30+ regular reps, but I still can reach failure with this simple row variation when performed as I described. I personally think it can take more people further than they think, but yes it is totally possible you need to weight it if you are an absolute beast!💪
I fully agree. In the past, I tried 10kg weighted rows, and I found the top part to be more difficult. I often had to cheat by curling or by starting the movement explosively. What do you think about addressing this issue by incorporating isometric weighted holds at the top or performing the exercise with a limited range of motion using a box or bench to assist in those challenging portions? Or by performing the eccentric portion?
Yeah these are excellent ideas and certainly have an application for those trying to get past plateaus. I like ISO’s a lot and it’s one of the reason I’m such a fan of paused reps. I think the application of these tools just depends on the context. So for most beginners, I think full ROM, controlled reps are good enough.
Definitely do that: pause at the top of every rep. For this movement is key. Also another tip: keep straps as close as possible to each other in the anchor point at the bar. Try doing sets of 8-12 RM that way and you'll notice a difference.
Alright so i'm currently able to do one arm push ups like the following: 3 sets of : 1st set: 15, 2nd set: 15 3rd set: 15. (I weight 71kg and I'm 171cm tall at 16) Let's say I get to 3 sets of 15 one arm push ups with 15kg of added weight maintaining all other variables the same (bodyweight, technique, rest periods, etc) will the growth in my pushing muscles be significant? (sorry for bad english)
I've observed something from rows that I'd like to know if I'm the only one or not: inverted rows feel like they train different upper back muscles (different emphasis) than barbell rows. I think that the barbell wide grip pronated grip rows engage not only rear delts better but also (and especially) the teres major. That's why I think it feels different than inverted rows. I've tried to replicate the sensations using a bar and a wide grip on inverted rows, but for some reason I get better activation with barbell rows. Maybe due to improved stability or whatever. I do barbell rows chest supported though, to ensure lower back is not the limiting factor and to ensure I'm not cheating with legs/hips momentum, which is very common for those who aim purely for strength For this reason, since my goal is more hypertrophy-oriented, I train weighted pull-ups (for lats), weighted inverted rows (for overall scapular retraction strength), chest-supported barbell wide grip rows (for teres major & rear delt emphasis), and cable reverse flys as a finisher for rear delts. I think this combo is perfect for back hypertrophy
Yeah I think the movements feel very different as well, and a lot of that comes down to the angle of pull, arm position (extension vs abduction), finish position, other muscle involvement etc. Sounds like you back training is spot on though. You have it covered!💪💪
This video comes at the perfect moment. I'm currently struggling a lot with chest to bar pull-ups, as I lack strength in the final part of the movement, so I always thought that I should just improve my strength when doing rows. Is there an ideal range of reps and/or sets where you would recommend to move on to a more difficult progression of the rows? Like from upright to flat on the ground to elevated feet? Thank you so much for your content btw! Would love to see/hear you on various podcasts! ;)
Brother, what can I do if I go up a little more on the left side than on the right side in the pull-ups? I want to do pull-ups but not have muscle imbalances
Thank you for the great video! Will doing this exercise with a barbell instead of rings provide the scapula with the same training effect? I'm asking because I want to work my way up to the arched back pull up. Thanks!
I think this movement is a better prep exercise for chest to bar pull ups than a barbell row, but a barbell row is a superior overall mass builder due to loading the erectors.
Hey brother can you explain to me your daily training plan If my weekly set goal is 10 sets for an exercise If I have a daily target of 50 reps for push-ups would I do that in two sets of 25 to achieve it everyday? Same idea with push-ups and squats?
Thanks for your wealth of information. I've been meaning to ask you this, and now seems like the perfect time. What is the best day to introduce rows into your 3-day Pull Up Mastery routine?
Great question, Bruh! I wouldn't run rows with the pull up program. Think of pull up mastery as a specialization cycle. It's a short term pull up blitz, hyper focused on one outcome. Rows figure in either before or after the cycle.
It’s also a great exercise to add in as ‘active recovery’ between sets in a lifting session. I did this for a while and my upper back/traps blew up. I was hitting around 200 reps every session. It was like fertiliser for the upper back!
100% agreed! All those unique features of the row make them the PERFECT light day exercise. They are easy to recover from and benefit from much more volume than a lot of other movements.
I have been watching calisthenics RUclipsrs for a few years, you are one of the view that I still can learn something materially new and useful. Many thanks.
I appreciate that and I’m happy to provide some value to the platform. Thanks for the support!
The scapular movement taught by rows is one of the most important things you can learn in the gym. It's absolutely required for proper technique in any type of press and even for proper rack positioning in the squat. Back when I started lifting, I had absolutely no connection with my back and struggled with even holding the bar in a proper position to squat.
This is such a great point. I wrote this more about pull ups, but you are 100% right. It goes WAY beyond just pull ups.
Well said!
Any tips for developing that connection? I have particularly crappy shoulder blades (they're winged, difficult to retract, and I find it especially difficult to pull with my back muscles, as opposed to my arms and rear delts.) I try to maintain good form and really squeeze my shoulder blades back and together, but it never feels like they're actually doing the work of the movement.
@@scottk1525hi, there's one important (maybe the most),and very simple; when u try to do any pulling movement, try to pull ur 👉 ELBOWS 👈, and to feel the diff between the right and the wrong movement, do a row focusing on pulling ur HANDS.Then, do another row focusing on pulling ur ELBOWS and like trying to make em touch one another jt behind ur back.
Also, when u Pull, start the movement with ur upper back like trying to bend it by sticking ur shoulders.
Hope it work bud and tell us if it worked.
@@scottk1525Use extremely light weight and work on form (you can change the angle to lighten the weight). Squeeze your shoulder blades tightly at full contraction. That should help you feel the connection.
You can literally train that squeeeeze feeling while sitting in a chair during the day.
i don't quite get it i think (english aint my first language..) the scapular movement is pulling back your shoulders when your at the top/max of the movement?
Good point about rows.
One vanity thing. I never took inverted rows seriously until at ope point I developed some tendonitis from overdoing it on pull ups. I focused on rows exclusively for a little while (few months), and boy did my rear delts double in size. I was really astounded. I’ve kept rows in my routine ever since.
Did your tendonitis go away from doin rows ? And how long did it take until you could do pull ups without pain ? I’m currently in the same exact position and switched to rows about 2-3 weeks ago
my rear delt started popping when i started doing row too
@@sn22yt It's weird how after all the "rear delt accessory" work I did back when I was doing "proper" lifting, nothing ever did the trick like a steady diet of inverted rows. 4-6 sets within 2-3 reps of failure, 2 days per week, circuited with a leg exercise and a press of some kind.
@@heeebeeegeeebeee did your tendonitis ever go away?
@@snowman1340When I had pain in the tendon in one finger because of an over doing in pull ups over a couple weeks. I stopped doing pull ups for 2months. Then I started again and always when I did a bit more - the pain started there again. I have done it also at home under the staircase - where you have a very uncompleted difficult grip 😅
My tendon pain went away - last time I did too much I had pain in another finger.
But an important note is that my tendons didn't got destroyed or so cause I stopped it - so ut wasn't that bad. BUT the first time I had this - my tendon hurt in a way that I first thought that I burned my hand there because it's a burning-pain sensation.
God bless good luck with that!
This video is a godsend. After a period of injury my pull-up max reps dropped from 16 to 6 and i've since been in a plateau. I'll try dialing back to these rows to see if I can build strength and endurance so I can do more pull-ups.
As always, thank you for your content, K. They are always gold.
Take care, brother! All the love from Brazil!
I'm the same. Haven't done pull ups for a few months and they plummeted from 15 (my max) to FIVE. I was distraught lol.
Another great video. Also holy shit, I haven't looked at the subscriber count in a while. So happy to see how much this channel is grown! It is the best on YT
Thanks, Jason!
Yeah it has grown a lot! Such a supportive and positive group on here. It’s an honor to provide content for everyone.
Thank you for the kind words!
Thank you for this information. I’ve always tried to progress by increasing too fast and end up doing shitty pull ups that lead to tendinitis. This makes so much sense. Definitely changing the way I incorporate these into my training.
Yeah this is super common. Take your time and build that foundation. 💪
Love your channel Kyle, centered on the pleasure of training, searching for a good form, not only focused on building muscles , bulking and stress your body ..very inspiring ❤
Thank you! I love treating training as a movement practice. All the good benefits come from treating with with respect and maintaining a lifelong practice.
awesome and interesting information. literally NOBODY has spoken about this before online that I can think of. thanks for always providing value, next month will be the day I committed to switching to calisthenics thanks to you. Much love!!
Glad you enjoyed, Spaceinvader! Thanks for the kind feedback!🙏
Sounds like this is an exercise that will take a few years to really exploit especially when centered around building scapular strength and consistency. Never thought of it as a stand alone for specific goals but as a bridge to pull ups and chin ups. As usual, you have me rethink my exercise plan and progressions all over again - thank you for the thoughtful look at specific exercises and what muscles they really exploit and how it can fit in an overall program. I can’t imagine how you come upon this info other than really taking the time to sit and think about movement - this is definitely a passion for you which benefits so many of us here.
I think you are spot on. It literally took me like a decade to figure out why all the rowing I was doing wasn’t actually doing what I wanted it to do. There is such a race to do “more” when we train that it can be easy to lose sight of what we are actually trying to do with an exercise, and the row displays this perfectly. So take your time, get the most out of each rep, and treat it as a specific tool to accomplish the task that it does just about better than anything else. It will pay off!
Thank you for the kind words and the support!🙏
Man your videos have perfect timing as usual, im still building up to at least one proper chest to bar pull up (i can do several with bad form with rounded shoulders, but who needs a bad form pull up :) ) so scapula pull ups and rows have been my entire focus. Always feel more reassured about trusting the process after watching these, thank you!
It sounds like you are on the right track! Keep it up and keep me posted on how it goes for you. 💪
This is true for weight training also. It's really tempting to load up to heavy with single arm dumbbell rows and lose all your range of motion.
Or just load up heavy, do 5 compound moves/workout and wonder why you stagnate or lose strength. Or end up with clinical depression because you managed to nuke your nervous system >
Yep!
This is true af pal, great information of yours yet again! ;))
I used to now reach sets of like 11-12 pull ups, chin over the bar, however I have corrected my pull ups, and it was throughout this exercice by doing it clean form! ;p (the rows) and progressing on it.
Once i came back to the pull up with so many changes in mind, retracting scapulas at it's MAX, arched back, pulling 100% with my back, ZERO keeping, controlled reps & slow negatives, while also keeping the tension in the lats, and making sure that when i start to feel like im cheating a bit, I stop the set : as a result, my reps went down from 12 to 5-6 .. It is Crazy! And i will not talk about the huge pump I do get.
And it feels better for my shoulders, arms tendons, back ect..., i MUST keep up that way, one of my favorite pull ups, are the close grip rings neutral pull ups where you go up until you touch the rings with your chest and i am glad you've mentionned that one in your vid. For me this is a sort of Rings Rows-pull ups hybrid, and this exercice is out of this world in my opinion, the combo is Excellent.
Nice work. This is probably the best most considered video of the row on the net.
Wow thank you! 🙏 I’m glad you found it useful!💪💪
Mashallah Kyle, keep grinding and posting.
Thank you, brother!
This is what I used in my progression into decent pull ups. Thank you for sharing. 💚🌱🇨🇦
Well done! That’s a perfect application for this exercise.
Me too, but I found eccentric pull ups far more effective in getting me to the 10-15 rep range for pull ups.
I've been back to doing rows consistently most days. Right now I'm really just at a 45 degree angle and trying to worry about form and lots of reps. For the first time in way too many years, my back is finally returning. I used to white water kayak a ton and took for granted that I'd just have a strong back. But I neglected it and lost it. Rows are the path back. They are offer an incredibly safe platform for me to rebuild all the movement in that area of the body, and it retrains the rest of me.. core.. legs.. posterior chain.. forearms.. neck even.. safely. I love this for balancing all the pushups I kept doing even after I stopped doing pullups from lack of having a bar.
Man, I just love your videos. Short and staright to the point with no shit talking. Your philosophy made me, for the first time in my life, work out consistently. I have a question though - will rows be effective when done not on rings but on low horizontal bar? Thanks in advance for your reply and for everything!
Thanks. No other youtuber discuss this (to my knowledge).i benefited from your video
I'm happy to hear that! Thanks for the kind feedback!
This is really quality content genuinely. This is high quality, observation, explanation, and theory.
Thank you for the feedback! Much appreciated and thank you for the support.
Top notch information always here. Thanks for sharing K Boges..
Thank you for the kind words, brother! I appreciate the support!
Amazing video as always Kyle, thank you! I've been following your pull up: unlocked program as a beginner, the squeeze at the top while doing the ring rows feels really nice. I've already progressed enough to the point where I can perform 3 clean pull ups or 5 clean chin ups, can't wait until I can properly use the pull ups in my routine. Keep it up brother, you're one of a kind!
Well done!!!! That’s exactly how it’s supposed to go. Keep me posted on your progress, Doc!
@@Kboges Will do man, I'm always aroud here haha thank you for everything!
Thanks K boges!
My pleasure, brother!🙏💪
Love this video bro!🔥 Ring rows are exactly what got me the strength to be able to pull the chest to bar finally. I am 6‘4“ and it never happened until I got extremely disciplined in my ring rowing. These should serve exactly as you described, a scapular exercise where full range of motion can be utilized to get strong in the top range of motion. It drives me nuts when I see people cheat rep their rows and barely even get their hands to their rib, cages, or chest. What a waste of time. I do these every other day or so for two or three sets after my pull-ups on my upperbody focused days. These are the perfect complementary exercise to pullups if you utilize them with perfect form and a great contraction of the upper back. These will fill out your upper back and provide your rear dealt with a beautiful cap. I owe a lot to this exercise. I want to do them right now, but have to wait till tomorrow lol.
100% totally agree, brother! You explain the power of this exercise, exactly! In past videos, I have critiqued the rows from a biomechanics perspective, pointing out some of the unique characteristics which demand special attention, and a lot of people misunderstood my point about it. In my opinion it is an exercises that is so frequently misused that the vast majority of people end up wasting SOOO much time with it, only to plateau at some "advanced" progression of it that involves no scap retraction and 3" of ROM. It took me YEARS to realize that all the rowing I had done in my 20's was essentially worthless and never translated over to anything productive. I just trained it too heavy, and that was a tough pill to swallow. I had to really humble myself, regress the movement back to "beginner" versions, and all of a sudden my upper back lit up and I ended up developing that end ROM strength that carried over to the top of the pull up. The row is one of the most important tools we have, but I really see it as a "specialist" exercise. It does what it's supposed to do EXCEPTIONALLY well (exactly what you describe), but if misapplied, it can lead to some serious disappointment.
@@Kboges that hit me hard when you said, essentially all of the rowing I did in my 20s was worthless. That’s exactly how I feel. I don’t think I ever got a single thing out of that exercise, especially when I was trying to do it with a barbell, until I really just disciplined on perfect gymnastics, ring/suspension system rows. I think people don’t like your opinion on it too because they’re so wrapped up with going big and hard on movements like this, or generally, just not have matured much with their training to see the power of calisthenics to understand that gymnastics rings are probably the most effective tool you can use. It’s great to train heavy sometimes but honestly the upper back responds a lot better to just being fully retracted with the scapula with light weight for a good reps. Like theoretically, I believe you can spam upper back exercises almost every day to a degree with a light load, perfect form, and have amazing results in your shoulder health, and the development of your upper back.
Yeah dude! I literally couldn’t agree more with all this. 💪
Another much needed banger from KBoges
Thank you, my friend! Glad you enjoyed.
I was doing bodyweight rows today and noticed how the top part of the exercise got progressively more difficult until I couldn't retract my shoulders, but could still go up until the moment where I normally would start retracting -- this syncs exactly with what you're saying here about the strength curve. Will continue to incorporate these and won't chase more (crappy) reps lol, thanks!
ugh. this makes so much sense. I've been wondering why i can do endless pullups but can't get my chest to the bar.
This is my favorite exercise for developing strength for the top of the pull up.
Awesome.
Really enjoy this exercise, as it provides an opportunity to enact strict form from varying angles.
I sometimes use the weight vest to change the rep range.
Watching this reminds me that most pulling exercises are not easy. Especially if your form is on point!
Carry on Kyle Boges 💯🔥
Well said, djj! Great hearing from you, as always!
Thank you!
Very informative video. I've been training for a year and a bit and recently dialed back the rows (Australian Pull ups in my case) and it's going well. Helping fix a huge strength imbalance I have when doing pull ups. Probs to you!
Good to hear! Keep at it, take your time with them and the benefits will accumulate. It’s an awesome exercise when treated conservatively. It just falls apart when it’s loaded too heavy, and it takes some discipline to pull back a little, train it lighter, and get the most out of it!
Enjoy my friend, and thank you for the support!
Fantastic, Kyle!!! I was thinking about stopping doing rows these very days, because I was feeling that I was losing my time (I was trying to go heavier and felt exactly that: I started to feel my muscles around that area less and less). It's like you read my mind, thank you!!!
Good timing! Yeah lighten it up, focus on good scap retraction, and only progress it as much as you can maintain that solid technique. Give that a shot and let me know how it treats you.
@@Kboges Thank you so much man, will do!!
Cancel the weekend plans, baby - new KBoges video just dropped.
Hahaha thanks brother!🙏
Now go enjoy you Sunday!
I've been loving incline rows with high reps lately as its the only pull exercise i can do that doesn't irritate my golfer's elbows. Plus it allows you to always have full range of motion, and its at the top where i really feel the lats engage, along with the scap retractors.
Rows are phenomenal:
Great for beginners to hit the back muscles for weaker individuals (getting my mum on these)
Great for addressing bad posture
Great for lighter back days or if you’re recovering from illness or injury
Thanks for the expert refined knowledge and encouragement on this difficult one for me.
My pleasure, Geoff! I hope all is well!
Quality advice as always brother!
Thanks, brother!💪🙏
One Critique: great demonstration on execution. I think it needed a "Get into proper form" for doing the exercise to target said muscles. Also a Do & Don't forms for the exercise. The brevity is nice, and the video does not lack visually, meaning the time of day is good, equipment, and location are well done also. Adding the Do & Don't aspect would round it out nicely.
Thank you for that feedback!💪🙏
this is a great exercise, I still consider myself a beginner but when I first got into the gym I started with these and they always felt great and eventually got me to the point where I could do pull ups prior to that I couldn't do a single one
Exactly! They are my favorite exercise for developing pull ups.
This is a super useful perspective. After progressing to ring rows with elevated feet, I noticed that further progressions (for example tuck front lever rows) don't allow me to retract the scapula at the top. Since I'm mostly doing calisthenics for joint health and carryover to acrobatics, missing that part of the movement felt wrong. Not to mention that hitting perfect reps with full scapular range of motion on all exercises is so satisfying :) Thanks for talking about this topic in such a straightforward way!
Fascinating. Thank you.
Thanks for the view and comment, stormcrow!
Like always gold content!
Thank you, Mathias!🙏
Great tips for this exercise
Thanks, Marc!
Kyle, great content! I got these tips from your amazing pullup pdf. One thing I'm still really concerned with when it comes rows - be it w/ rings, TRX or a bar - is lower back pain, which I get most of the times when I perform them. I know this might come from bad posture (unlike your own in the videos, which is always on point) and also lack of a strenght routine for the muscle group that embrace the region. I mention this because it could be a subject for a future video that might help a lot of people like myself. 👍
Ahh yeah that’s a great idea. Have you played around with bridges yet? I’m going to put this in the list of things to cover. 🙏💪
@@Kboges I haven't, probably not as much as I should. Maybe this explain my issue... It'd be great if you could develop this subject further. Thanks!
Great video Im strugling with rows technique this will come handy for sure thanks stay strong stay healthy 💪👍💪
Glad you enjoyed, brother! Thanks for the view and comment.
Stay strong and healthy as well💪
Great video, i used to think about rows as simply pull ups for people who cannot do pull ups, but it's great for the upper back
Yeah it’s totally both, right?! Awesome for those building up to their first pull up and excellent to build upper back strength. It just has to be done properly.
Have a good sunday Kyle 💪
Thank you, Lenny! You as well.
Just, yeah.
Gold as usual!
Grazie!
Grazie, amico! 🙏💪
My guy, I love your videos, and I love how they are straight to the point, with no annoying music distracting from the knowledge you drop on us~
I want you to know that your videos are a lot of help, they are very motivating and inspiring too~
I just wanted to say thank you so much for all that you have given to the calisthenics community~
I did want to ask;
You stated once that you practice martial arts and I would be very interested in any video you made regarding that field, I understanding if youre not really an expert on the field but I would love a video where you explain how you balance calisthenics and training martial arts in your daily life~
Noted, thanks a lot!
My pleasure!
Always interesting and always informative 👍🏻
Thanks, Paul!
Great advice.
Thanks, MR!
Good one! Going to incorporate this a lot more into my routine.
Enjoy!
ON POINT!! 👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼
Thank you!🙏
Good stuff! Doing ring pullups and ring rows lately, and the rows feel kinda meh, I will try to use an easier variation and focus on the proper form, thanks!
The most I ever got out of these was regressing then to where I could actually control the movement 100%. Give it a shot and report back!
Nice video! Retraction is a must for anyone wishing scapula control and stability! A heavy, explosive row will definitely build your traps and rhomboids very well, even though there is not so much retraction, there is an immense stretch at the bottom that might be key for traps (just like farmers' walks and deadlifts will build up your traps through stretch alone and if you choose to deadlift with a snatch grip it will even build up your rear delts, heck look at Olympic weight lifters throwing weight around.).
However that's training traps in a different way that won't carry over to sternum pullup because in the sternum pullup, you are trying to of course retract your shoulder blades actively. Whereas explosive heavy rows you are catching the weight on the way down with your traps.
Light rows are much better on recovery and are useful for every athlete's training (especially daily trainers)! Whereas heavy, explosive rows will be harder on recovery and suitable for those looking to gain explosive power in this movement pattern (Olympic lifters or people who train 2x a week). But in the end, both will build muscles through different means (heavy, explosive rows done less frequently, lower reps, focus on stretch: 6x3,4x4 or 5x5, light rows done more frequently at higher reps and focusing on retraction.).
You are right that you defiently should not leave out retraction altogether, and 1 rep max rows are basically useless, but it would be wrong to say that heavy rows are a waste of time for every athlete. All this I'm saying might be taken out of context since this is a daily training calisthenics channel from my understanding. What do you think about doing a sternum pullup isometric hold at the top for retraction?
Well said! I don't disagree with any of this. And I think for bodybuilding and powerlifting purposes, heavy barbell rows are pretty awesome for the reasons you stated, as well as for deadlift assistance movement. This video is more about the ring row and the "progressions" of the row in calisthenics, like tuck lever rows, that don't really put a big stretch on the mid traps. And to be clear, I'm not saying those don't have an application, but for the average person who is in the process of developing their strength, and working through basic BW progressions but is unable to perform basic rows with good scap control, I see the pursuit of these advanced row progressions at the expense of mechanics as a waste of time for a lot of people. My general advice for those starting out is to build excellent scap control with rows, apply that to pull ups, then use pull ups and chin ups as the primary BW strength movement. Front lever and tuck elver rows are great if you are pursuing levers specifically, but if you aren't you are better off using row variations that preserve scap mechanics and heavy vertical pulls for general pulling strength.
Loved this one, really like doing rows to hit that upper back. Maybe a full week of training video next?
Thanks, brother!
Not a bad idea!! That could be a great addition. 🙏
Thanks needed that
My pleasure! Thanks for the view and comment!🙏
Useful! I've been doing these because pull-ups hurt my elbows (the excess weight might have something to do with that).
Good call!
I've been trying to get chest to bar pullups for a long time. I'll try incorporating some inverted rows and hope to achieve good results.
Yes! Just stay strict with them. Rings to chest every rep. Pause. They will build a lot of strength at the top of the pull up.
@@Kboges Will do! Thanks.
Thanks for making this.
My pleasure, LC! Thanks for the view and comment!
I absolutely agree with @spaceinvader4565 here. Nobody emphasized going light for scapular retraction before. In convict conditioning, Pal Wade recommends performing 3 sets of 30 of these from a hip height bar before progressing to vertical pull ups. And probably that is the reason that pull ups progression in Convict Conditioning become so hard to follow.
I’m happy to hear people are finding it useful! Thanks so much for the feedback, my friend! Much appreciated!🙏💪
Extremely useful information!
Thank you, brother!🙏
Super mega phenomenon workout!! Thank you so much my friend!!🏋️♂️🏋️♂️🏋️♂️🏋️♂️🔥🔥🔥🏋️♂️🏋️♂️🏋️♂️🔥🔥🔥🏋️♂️🏋️♂️🏋️♂️🏋️♂️🔥🔥🏋️♂️🥤🤜🤛
Thanks, Michael!
Alright! Back to basics
That’s it! Basics are the foundation. 💪
I like to precede almost all sets of any pushing exercise with a set of rows. My shoulders have been pain free as a result 💪
Great application!
Agree, imo angle that allow us to do minimum of 8 reps will make sure the form is ok
I think that is a really good cutoff and exactly inline with my experience as well. 8 seems to be a good minimum for most people.
I love your content and your videos BUT the one Video were you said rows are bad was the only video I was against. Finally you cleared that up 😀
Haha yeah I think a lot of people got the wrong impression about that video. My point wasn’t that rows are bad, but that they have a terrible strength curve, have less ROM, and can’t be loaded as heavy and things like chins. These are objective facts about the row and pointing them out doesn’t mean rows are bad; it just points out limitations that need to be taken into consideration when programming. What most people think they are accomplishing with rows is WAY better accomplished with pull ups and chin ups. I don’t think a lot of people watched the whole video or read the description where I talked about some uses of rows. I look at exercises as tools; rows do some things really well, but they don’t do other things really well. I’m glad this video clears some of that up. 💪
At the top of the row are you trying to get into the position you would on a bench press? The shoulders back and down ?
Yes!
@@Kboges gotcha
Wow, that strength curve explanation completely matches my experience with rows, and explains a lot. Is there a certain rep range (or rep minimum) you find most suitable for rows? And do you keep the shoulder blades retracted at the bottom as well (seems like it)? Thanks again for a great video!
I typically like higher reps for rows, like 20-30, but nothing wrong with lower reps at all, as long as you are able to maintain good mechanics. As for the shoulders, I let them come forward, but I don’t allow for thoracic flexion to maximize shoulder protraction.
Great video! I know the importance of full ROM (fingers touching sides of chest) and getting scapular retraction. I definitely feel weakest at the top of the movement. Do you recommend trying to hold and pause at the top for 1 - 2 seconds? I do a controlled eccentric of about 2 seconds already.
Yes! Exactly. This will keep you honest (with a consistent technical standard) and train the heck out of your scap retraction strength.
Thank you very much !
For me, it's also a tool to bring emphasis on grip, by using the false grip on rings.
Great point and excellent application!💪
Hey :) , great Video again ! Do you do anything particular for rotator cuffs and external rotation in shoulders ?
I do not.
@@Kboges so they stay healthy with your push ups, pull ups, rows?
Do you do anything other for upper body actually?
Ring Push Ups ?
Thanks for the answer :) !
Hey Kyle,
Amazing video, as always. I've been on your daily PPL for a while now (with some personal adjustments) and absolutely love it.
2 Questions I have:
1) Chest growth: my chest is definitely my most lacking part. I now do 4 sets a day instead of 3 with the hope of it growing better.
Do you have any tips on how to grow the chest better, or is it just a matter of time (considering I do good form, reach failure, and apply progressive overload)
2) Do you do any warmup or warmup sets before you start your workout?
Thanks in advance
Cheers
Mika
Hey Mika! Glad you are enjoying! For chest growth, I really like deficit push ups with a pause at the bottom. Throw those into your training, get better with them, and you should see some solid growth over time. Just be patient.
As for warm ups, it’s usually pretty minimal for me unless I feel I need something extra. I keep it intuitive.
Hlo just saw u channel ...today its amazing..best for body weight exercises.. i am gonna ask is it necessary to protracte scapula at bottom of inverted rows in each rep or not
Superman professional video thank you so much my friend!!🏋️♂️🏋️♂️🏋️♂️🏋️♂️🔥🔥🔥🔥🏋️♂️🏋️♂️🏋️♂️🔥🔥🔥🔥🏋️♂️🏋️♂️🥤🤜🤛
Thanks, Michael!
Thankyou for the content as always Kyle. What are your thoughts on jacknife pullups? Especially if someone is unable to do regular pull ups?
I think they are a truly legit variation, applicable not just for beginners, but also of people with great pull up ability.
the one arm suspension row is very unique as well.
It is. The added anti-rotation element is unique.
Is there one back exercise you'd recommend when travelling and have no access to rings or a pull up bar? A kind of 'fill in' exercise that can be done temporarily with no equipment?
Yeah! Rows under a table work fine. Also, plenty of times I have taken a towel, looped it around both sides of a door knob, and used that to perform rows. It works! These days I usually travel with a pair of rings and a doorway anchor for rows if I can’t get to a park or gym.
@@Kboges Hey, amazing thanks so much for the reply!
👉🏻 When I do pull/push exercises on bar I notice my hand placement asymmetry, where my Right hand is near and my left hand is bit far. Plus I feel my right arm more while push up and pull ups. What can the reason be or it’s just physiological??
It could be structural or functional. Keep in mind that people are not perfectly symmetrical, just a visual approximation of symmetry; but we have asymmetrical organ placement, bone density, neural context ion, etc. So some observable assymetries are correctable with training. Others are not and should not be a concern unless they result in an injury or pain.
what's with the knee K ?
Poison oak 😬
I think the best way to go about it is not to add weight but to elevate your feet and do touch hold with a false grip and as you get stronger move to advanced tuck front lever pullups and front lever touch and just increase the lever until you can front lever pullup and touch which is really mind blowing for the back
Ahh yeah that’s an interesting approach. I definitely think this is a solid path to developing strength specifically in the front lever but I’ve rarely see front lever rows performed with scap retraction. They are certainly an impressive feat of strength, but are typically done with minimal retraction. Also, due to balance, you end up having to start the pull from a position of more shoulder extension, reducing ROM in the lats even further that a regular row. So while I see tuck and front lever rows as impressive displays of strength, I don’t think they are the best ways to build a big back or good scap retraction strength. But, if skills are in your training, then this progression makes total sense. My approach is more about isolating the qualities you want to develop, and then selecting the tool that does that the best based on the biomechanics, injury risk, accessibility etc. But there are a million ways to skin a cat.
@@Kboges Makes sense, I should've said the best way to go about it from a skill perspective. But you are right it depends on your goal. Thank you for your comment, really interesting
Thank you 👍 Sir for this great video.
I was wondering however,to make this an excellent exercise a qualitative one, in just my opinion,is a slow negative and get a good stretch and then pull back up quickly.
Will this really work?
I do think rows are as important as pull-ups as long as u overload them with weighted or reps. Been doing a lot of weighted inverted rows recently with full ROM. I will slowly add weights to its pretty challenging on its own
All of them are for beginners. For further progress, it's either weighted or put legs in the air for front lever progression puls
It really comes down to goals. That’s if you want to work toward front lever. If you want to train scap retraction, keep the movement lighter to allow for full ROM and scap retraction. If you want to develop scap retraction strength, perform them with scap retraction. If you are using them to accomplish a different goal, train them in accordance with that goal 💪
@@Kboges probably I'm beyond simple scapula retraction. Hard to achieve close proximity to failure with just those level of exercise
Yeah it’s totally possible your strength necessitates a harder variation. Though I haven’t seen many people who can do multiple sets of 20-30 rows, rings to chest every rep, with a 1-2 sec pause at the top, 2-3 second eccentric, with the feet elevated on the bench. Most very strong pullers will reach failure before that. For me, my back is my strongest body part. I can do a 1 arm chin as well as 15+ reps of chest to bar pull ups and 30+ regular reps, but I still can reach failure with this simple row variation when performed as I described. I personally think it can take more people further than they think, but yes it is totally possible you need to weight it if you are an absolute beast!💪
I fully agree. In the past, I tried 10kg weighted rows, and I found the top part to be more difficult. I often had to cheat by curling or by starting the movement explosively. What do you think about addressing this issue by incorporating isometric weighted holds at the top or performing the exercise with a limited range of motion using a box or bench to assist in those challenging portions? Or by performing the eccentric portion?
Yeah these are excellent ideas and certainly have an application for those trying to get past plateaus. I like ISO’s a lot and it’s one of the reason I’m such a fan of paused reps. I think the application of these tools just depends on the context. So for most beginners, I think full ROM, controlled reps are good enough.
Definitely do that: pause at the top of every rep. For this movement is key. Also another tip: keep straps as close as possible to each other in the anchor point at the bar. Try doing sets of 8-12 RM that way and you'll notice a difference.
Alright so i'm currently able to do one arm push ups like the following: 3 sets of : 1st set: 15, 2nd set: 15 3rd set: 15. (I weight 71kg and I'm 171cm tall at 16)
Let's say I get to 3 sets of 15 one arm push ups with 15kg of added weight maintaining all other variables the same (bodyweight, technique, rest periods, etc) will the growth in my pushing muscles be significant? (sorry for bad english)
what do u think about bodyweight bicep curls and pelican curls with rings?
Potentially useful isolation exercises but most people are going to build pretty good biceps from improving pull ups and chin ups.
I've observed something from rows that I'd like to know if I'm the only one or not: inverted rows feel like they train different upper back muscles (different emphasis) than barbell rows. I think that the barbell wide grip pronated grip rows engage not only rear delts better but also (and especially) the teres major. That's why I think it feels different than inverted rows. I've tried to replicate the sensations using a bar and a wide grip on inverted rows, but for some reason I get better activation with barbell rows. Maybe due to improved stability or whatever. I do barbell rows chest supported though, to ensure lower back is not the limiting factor and to ensure I'm not cheating with legs/hips momentum, which is very common for those who aim purely for strength
For this reason, since my goal is more hypertrophy-oriented, I train weighted pull-ups (for lats), weighted inverted rows (for overall scapular retraction strength), chest-supported barbell wide grip rows (for teres major & rear delt emphasis), and cable reverse flys as a finisher for rear delts. I think this combo is perfect for back hypertrophy
Yeah I think the movements feel very different as well, and a lot of that comes down to the angle of pull, arm position (extension vs abduction), finish position, other muscle involvement etc.
Sounds like you back training is spot on though. You have it covered!💪💪
This video comes at the perfect moment. I'm currently struggling a lot with chest to bar pull-ups, as I lack strength in the final part of the movement, so I always thought that I should just improve my strength when doing rows.
Is there an ideal range of reps and/or sets where you would recommend to move on to a more difficult progression of the rows? Like from upright to flat on the ground to elevated feet?
Thank you so much for your content btw! Would love to see/hear you on various podcasts! ;)
I have a question. Do you ever contract the antagonist muscles when doing an exercise to make it harder? So for the row it would be the chest.
Brother, what can I do if I go up a little more on the left side than on the right side in the pull-ups? I want to do pull-ups but not have muscle imbalances
Thank you for the great video! Will doing this exercise with a barbell instead of rings provide the scapula with the same training effect? I'm asking because I want to work my way up to the arched back pull up. Thanks!
I think this movement is a better prep exercise for chest to bar pull ups than a barbell row, but a barbell row is a superior overall mass builder due to loading the erectors.
Any tip for elbow tendonitis Kyle? Ben suffering for more than six months now.
Check out reverse Tyler curls to see if they apply to your situation.
Hi, I'm working up to doing 3 sets of 3 pullups. Could you please link me the rings you're using in this video?
You wearing knee wraps? Any specific reason? Injury or preventative measure?
Love your work Kyle!
Thank you, brother!
I got into a little poison oak on a hike. Had to wrap it up to keep the viewers from getting grossed out by it 😂
2:45 how this exercise reduce range of motion? Can you explain in detail?
If the intensity of the progression prevents you from accessing the top of the ROM, then you are missing out on scap retraction.
Hey brother can you explain to me your daily training plan
If my weekly set goal is 10 sets for an exercise
If I have a daily target of 50 reps for push-ups would I do that in two sets of 25 to achieve it everyday? Same idea with push-ups and squats?
If we had somthing with like a band that get stronger when it shorten
Wrap it around our back and to a bar that will make the strength curve better
Thanks for your wealth of information. I've been meaning to ask you this, and now seems like the perfect time. What is the best day to introduce rows into your 3-day Pull Up Mastery routine?
Great question, Bruh!
I wouldn't run rows with the pull up program. Think of pull up mastery as a specialization cycle. It's a short term pull up blitz, hyper focused on one outcome. Rows figure in either before or after the cycle.
@@Kboges I had a feeling you would say that. It makes sense. Thanks
What do you think about sprinting ?
One of my favorite exercises. Very very powerful! I’m a huge fan.