Inverted Row

Horizontal pull under a fixed bar, scalable by foot position. Three sets of twelve with the chest touching the bar and the body flat before you raise the feet or move to rings.

DIFFICULTY
Beginner
EQUIPMENT
Bodyweight · Pull-up bar
PRIMARY MUSCLES
Lats · Rhomboids
ALSO WORKS
Biceps · Posterior Deltoid · Glutes · Lower back
HOW TO DO IT
  1. 01Set a bar at hip height and lie underneath with an overhand grip outside shoulder width.
  2. 02Extend the legs and set the heels on the floor so the body is one straight line.
  3. 03Squeeze the glutes and brace the trunk to lock that line.
  4. 04Pull the shoulder blades together, then drive the elbows back until the chest meets the bar.
  5. 05Lower to straight arms without letting the hips drop first.
COACHING CUES
  1. 01Blades first, then elbows.
  2. 02Hips stay level with the ribs the whole rep.
  3. 03Touch the bar with the chest, not the chin.
COMMON MISTAKES
  1. 01Hips sagging so the chest arrives before the body does, which shortens the pull and loads the low back.
  2. 02Yanking with the arms without retracting, which builds biceps and leaves the mid-back untouched.
  3. 03Choosing a bar too high, which reduces the angle so far that the set never challenges anything.

Note: Reference material, not a prescription. Load, volume and whether this movement suits you at all depends on your assessment — if something hurts, stop and get it looked at.

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