Killer Back Workouts With Cables [For a Massive Upper Body]
Aug 31, 2022 • 8 min read
Published on August 31, 2022 | Updated on July 31, 2025
August 31, 2022
Registered Dietitian Nutritionist, Certified Personal Trainer, Certified Dietitian/Nutritionist in NYC, Certified Diabetes Care and Education Specialist
Build a colossal upper body using only a cable machine! Add these explosive back workouts with cables to your routine.
If you are not sure how to incorporate back workouts into your training program, use the Muscle Booster app, a workout planner that creates a personalized plan focused on your target zones.
A cable machine is an excellent piece of gym equipment that offer various uses, but they’re especially effective for building a solid and muscular back. This is primarily due to the directed plane of motion, progressive loading, and safety.
Dedicating sufficient time to training back muscles can do wonders for posture, performance, and aesthetics.
A balanced approach to building a strong and resilient body should include an adequate volume of upper body pulling exercises to offset pushing movements.
This article overviews the benefits of training back muscles using the cable machine, highlighting the exercises and back workouts with cables best programmed for back-building.
Cable machines are incredibly versatile and might just be perfect for building a strong and muscular back. The natural design of the cable machine creates constant tension on the way in and out. If you’re an avid user of free weights, integrating the cable machine into your workouts will be a breath of fresh air and it will create an entirely new training challenge.
Benefits of cable machine training
Build muscle safely
Constant tension for each arm during exercises
Quickly switch between various cable exercises
Improve athleticism from multiple angles
Effective use of time under tension
Many exercise variations
Cable machine training offers a challenging stimulus while minimizing the risks associated with traditional free weights, like improper technique, strains, dropping, etc.
Using free weights is more associated with muscle hypertrophy as they require more than one muscle group while performing an exercise. To put it simply, free weights engage more muscles than machines, meaning they do allow building muscle faster.
However, it’s not that simple. Here is why:
Cables allow creating resistance in any direction which helps engage muscles free weights can’t.
Free weights allow for more wholesome, ’rounded’ movement that strengthens many muscle groups at once.
You can find a ‘dupe’ for almost every free weights exercise on a cable machine.
Cable machines usually target specific muscles (unlike free weight exercises).
Cables provide the directed plane of motion that limits instability while allowing you to gradually add weight to exercises.
Free weights are still much better at developing greater power than cable machines.
So, what’s the final point?
You can build a massive back and gain serious muscle mass using both free weights and cables. There is no single piece of equipment that fits everyone and gives noticeably better results than others.
Do you have to choose one, cables or free weights? — No
Actually, it’s better to mix them in one workout routine. For example, do your dumbbell rows, then pulldowns with cables.
Below is a curated list of the best back cable exercises and they are ranked from beginner to advanced. Take notice of the recommended exercise technique, sets/reps, and pro tips to help you get the most from each movement.
The number of sets and reps we offer in the following exercises and workouts are meant to help you reach hypertrophy, i.e., building muscle. If you have a different goal, use the table below to adjust your sets and reps.
A seated cable row is one of the most basic cable exercises for the back and arms using a weighted horizontal cable row machine.
Technique
Sit down on the machine and place your feet on the front platform.
With your knees flexed and natural alignment of your back, lean forward and grab the handles.
Pull the handles toward the abdominals with the torso at 90 degrees to the legs, while engaging your core for stability.
Keep the torso stationary and squeeze the shoulder blades.
Slowly bring the handle back toward the machine.
Sets/Reps
3-5 sets of 8 repetitions
Pro Tips
Avoid flexing at the waist to gain momentum.
Keep elbows tight to the rib cage.
Return the handle to the start position SLOWLY.
The seated single-arm row resembles the two-arm variation, except that the work is performed one side at a time. This exercise can be helpful in situations where adequate loading is not available or you’re looking for an indirect core training stimulus.
Technique
Sit down on the machine and place your feet on the front platform.
With your knees flexed and natural alignment of your back, lean forward and grab the handle with one hand.
Pull the handle toward one side of the torso at 90 degrees to the legs, while engaging your core to keep your back stabilized, especially at higher weights.
Keep the torso stationary (avoid rotation) and squeeze the working side shoulder blade.
Slowly bring the handle back toward the machine.
Sets/Reps
3 sets of 8 repetitions
Pro Tips
Do not allow the pull of the cable to alter body position.
Use a weight that allows for a full range of motion pull.
Adding rotation to the rowing exercise creates a natural feel. As effective as the isolated rowing technique can be for building a strong and muscular back, the reality is human movement rarely happens in an isolated fashion. Rotation is a critical component of various athletic movements and daily tasks.
Technique
Sit down on the machine and place your feet on the front platform.
With your knees flexed and natural alignment of your back, lean forward and grab the handle with one hand.
With the torso at 90 degrees to the legs, lean forward and allow the torso to rotate slightly while keeping the core engaged to assist stability.
Reverse the rotation as you pull the handle toward the side of the rib cage.
Hold the contraction before allowing the cable to pull you back in.
Sets/Reps
3 sets of 8 repetitions
Pro Tips
Rotate from the waist up as the hand approaches the torso.
Use lighter weight to groove the mechanics.
Lat pulldown is one of the cable pulls for back variations that provide an effective stimulus for the latissimus dorsi muscle, the largest muscle in the back. The lat muscles are essential for good posture and creating spinal stability. As noted earlier in this article, lat pulldowns are a fantastic lead-in exercise for pull-ups.
Technique
Sit at the cable machine with the bar attached to the top pulley.
The knee pad should be snug on the knees.
With arms extended overhead, exhale and bring the bar down until it lightly touches your upper chest.
Squeeze the shoulder blades back and down on each pull.
Slowly return the bar to the starting position with arms straight overhead.
Sets/Reps
3-5 sets of 8 repetitions
Pro Tips
Keep the chest upright and avoid leaning during the pull.
Pull down fast, raise slow.
Use lighter weight for strict form and progress the loading over time.
Straight arm pulldowns resemble triceps push-downs, except the elbows remain straight, and the movement is initiated from the shoulders. This is an example of an isolation exercise targeting the upper back, arms, and shoulders.
Technique
Using a short straight bar, start from a high pulley position.
Step back a few feet.
Bend the torso forward about 30 degrees at the waist, and extend the arms at the elbow.
Tighten the lats and pull the bar down until your hands are beside your thighs.
Slowly return to the start position.
Sets/Reps
3-5 sets of 12+ repetitions
Pro Tips
Avoid any change in posture.
Use light weight and strict form.
Many people encounter shoulder injuries throughout life and face pulls are excellent for improving shoulder health. This exercise targets the muscles surrounding the shoulder joints, which include your posterior deltoids and rotator cuff muscles. If you find yourself performing lots of pressing exercises such as push-ups and bench presses, adding a steady volume of face pulls could be a game changer.
Technique
Set the pulley to chin height.
With arms at shoulder height and fully extended, pull the triceps rope toward the face.
Nearing the face, allow the hands to separate and make a “W.”
Hold the midpoint of the exercise for 1-2 seconds before starting the next repetition.
Sets/Reps
3 sets of 10 repetitions
Pro Tips
Tricep ropes are ideal for this exercise.
You can perform face pulls 3-4 days per week.
Cable machines are excellent for training explosive pulling variations. The squat-to-stand row is a prime example of how you can combine two basic exercises to create a whole new training stimulus.
Technique
Set the cable height low and the weight light.
Grab the handle and step back from the machine a few inches until the cable is under load.
Squat down, reaching the arm to the pulley, and stand up with speed and row.
Perform all repetitions with a fast cadence before changing sides.
Sets/Reps
3 sets of 8 repetitions per side
Pro Tips
Stand up from the squat as you complete the row.
Use lighter weights to encourage speed.
Add in torso rotation to train the core.
Designing a back workout with cables is simple. Back cable workouts can be only focused on back training or integrated with other exercises to create a whole-body training stimulus. The choice is yours and will depend on your preference.
This workout is short and sweet yet delivers a potent training stimulus to the back muscles. Three exercises were selected: a rehabilitation movement, a horizontal row, and a vertical pulling pattern.
Back Focused Tri-Set (5 sets)
Face Pulls x 8 reps
Seated Row x 8 reps
Lat Pulldown x 8 reps
Cardio or Cool-down
Alternating between pushing and pulling is a time-tested workout strategy. While the anterior muscles of the upper body work (pushing exercises), the posterior muscles can rest. While the posterior muscles of the upper body work (pulling exercises), the anterior muscles can relax.
Warm-Up
Push & Pull #1 (3 sets)
Bench Press x 8 reps
Lat Pulldowns x 8 reps
Push & Pull #2 (3 sets)
Overhead Press x 8 reps
Squat-to-Stand Explosive Rows x 6 reps on each side
Cardio or Cool-down
Related article: Back and Bicep Workout for Muscle Gain
By alternating upper and lower body exercises or pushing and pulling, you can give your muscles a break while still performing work. This is a great way to keep workouts time efficient.
Warm-Up
Tri-Set #1 (3 sets)
Single-Leg Squats x 10 reps
Seated Single-Arm Row x 8 reps each side
Flexion/Extension Core Exercise
Tri-Set #2
Slow Eccentric Weighted Push-Ups x 8 reps
Lat Pulldowns x 8 reps
Rotational Core Exercise
Cardio or Cool-down
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Cable machine back workouts offer a wide array of benefits and complement free weight training extremely well. Transitioning entire workouts to training exclusively with cable machines is a valid tactic to acclimate to the demands and unique training stimulus.
Explore the benefits of cable training by substituting free weight drills for high-reward back-building exercises like seated cable rows, lat pulldowns, or postural restoration movements like face pulls. The unique design offers a directed plane of motion that can allow you to focus on technique and move to heavier weight while reducing the risk of injury.
This article is intended for general informational purposes only and does not address individual circumstances. It is not a substitute for professional advice or help and should not be relied on to make decisions of any kind. Any action you take upon the information presented in this article is strictly at your own risk and responsibility!