What It Works

The cable face pull trains the upper back and the rear of the shoulders. It is one of the best movements for posture and for balancing all the pushing work we do.

In everyday life this pattern shows up when you pull something toward your face or upper chest with both hands — drawing a hoodie over your head or pulling a box down from a shelf toward you.

How to Perform

Set a cable at face height with a rope attachment. Grab the rope with a thumbs-up grip and take a small step back so there is tension. Stand tall with a soft bend in the knees.

Pull the rope toward your face, splitting the ends apart as they come in. Lead with your thumbs pointing behind you. At the end, the hands finish near the sides of the face or just outside the ears. Return under control.

Setup & Movement – Quick Bullets

• Cable at face height
• Rope attachment, stand tall
• Pull the rope toward the face
• Thumbs pointing behind you
• Split the rope ends apart at the end
• Hands finish near the sides of the face
• Controlled return

Common Mistakes

The most common issues are turning it into a row to the chest, using too much weight, shrugging, and failing to rotate the hands apart at the end.

Watch Out For

• Pulling the rope to the chest instead of the face
• Too much weight → jerky movement
• Shrugging the shoulders
• Not splitting the rope at the end

Quick Fixes

• Aim for the face, not the sternum
• Think “thumbs pointing behind”
• Use a weight you can control
• Keep the neck long and quiet

Key Cue

Pull to the face. Split the rope.

Thumbs back and a finish near the face keep this an upper-back and rear-shoulder move instead of another mid-back row.

Scaling

Easier: Use a lighter stack and focus on a smooth, full finish.

Harder: Add a brief hold with the rope split at the face.