If you’ve been around the lifting game for a while, you have heard the term, “you need to row to grow.” Rowing, whether a vertical or horizontal pull, helps build a thick upper back, giving you that much-desired wingspan. But vanity is not all the back is good for because a strong and muscular back plays a vital role in and out of the gym.
These roles include:
Keeping a neutral spine during the squat and deadlift.
Preventing excessive leaning forward during squats.
Supporting a better pressing path during the barbell bench press for better technique.
Regularly adding some variation of rows to your routine will help you look better and perform better, leading to happy and healthier shoulders. Oh yeah, rows also work your biceps hard and heavy.
Why Rows Can Be Tricky
Regardless of the rowing variation or tool, rows should form the foundation of your strength training routine. But many rowing movements can be tricky to nail down because all the action happens behind your back.
Maybe that’s why some exclusively train the mirror muscles.
There are many moving parts with larger muscles driving it, and because you cannot ‘see’ what’s going on back there, it makes it a challenge to know if you’re doing right or not and where everything should be going. Here we’ll clear up a few common mistakes with the row so you can train in the knowledge that you are rowing right.
Rowing Non-Negotiables
There are many rowing variations and body positions; you’ll lift with many tools to complete the job. But there are certain non-negotiable to performing the row, and here they are.
Keeping Your Back Straight: Everyone has different limb lengths, but ensuring your entire back is in a neutral position is vital for good form.
Shoulders Down And Chest Up: Probably the number one personal trainer cue of all time. Doing this ensures that the correct muscles are doing the work.
Full Range of Motion: There is a time and a place for partial reps or a shortened ROM, but generally, a full range of motion allows you to get the full muscle-building benefits of this movement.
There are slight variances in form within many row variations, but we won’t concern ourselves with that. Here we’ll take a big-picture approach that applies to almost all rowing variations.
1 of 4
Per Bernal / M+F Magazine
Not Using Your Shoulder Blades
Your shoulder blades are made to move, and some lifters, in the effort to load up, don’t protract and retract their shoulder blades through a full range of motion. They turn the row in a biceps and upper trap movement, not an upper back and lat movement. It might stroke the ego to go heavy, but it will be at the expense of back gains.
The Fix: Pay attention to your setup. You need to have the shoulder blade direct the movement by starting with it protracted. How do you know? You’ll feel a slight stretch between your shoulder blades. Then you should feel your scapula wrap around the rib cage as it retracts, feeling a muscular contraction in your upper back.
2 of 4
Benoit Daoust
Upper Back Position
Like with almost all strength exercises, you need to pay attention to your setup because this will dictate how the rep will be performed. A common rowing error is when the upper back starts in a flexed position, and the shoulder blade winds up dangling off the individual’s ears like a set of earrings. The elevated scapula leads to the upper trap and neck doing the work, not the upper back and lats.
The Fix: The most used exercise cue of all time is “chest up and shoulders down.” Heard that one before? This cue keeps your spine neutral and ensures the correct muscles are doing the work.
3 of 4
Per Bernal
Too much ‘Hump Back”
When the upper back muscles start in a flexed position, the thoracic spine often begins in a hump or a flexed position. When this happens, you’ll need more retraction from the shoulder blade, leading to the movement coming from the elbow with little lat involvement.
The Fix: To get the thoracic spine out of hump city, you must extend the spine. Here, think of stretching the chest as you pull the shoulder back, drawing the shoulder blade down into the back pocket of your pants versus up into the neck. You should feel a stretch in your collarbone and the longest neck in the world.
4 of 4
Per Bernal
Too Much Body English
Rotating the torso, jerking up the weight, or shrugging your upper traps makes rowing easier, and then you lose the benefits of this great movement. Sometimes you need an extra oomph to begin, but we’re not discussing that. Here, we are talking about ego lifting and using every means possible to move the weight from A to B. You’ll lose muscular tension and find it difficult to lower it with control.
The Fix: Rowing is an accessory movement and not an absolute strength movement, so don’t let your ego get in the way of your gains. Using a weight can perform eight to 16 reps with the excellent form described above is a great start.
