ExploreGymsharkFitnessHealth
10.10.24
/
Last Edited 09.10.24
Alex Kirkup-Lee
If you’re a fan of Back Day, you likely give more than enough time to your barbell rows, press-ups, and pull-ups.
But with an estimated 1 in 4 people struggling with shoulder pain, and even more of us suffering from hunched posture thanks to working in front of a screen all day, what better exercise to add to your back day workout than one that keeps your shoulder health in tip-top condition while building a muscular v-shaped upper back [1]?
We’re talking about Face pulls: An isolation exercise performed on the cable machine targeting the upper back and rear delts, while promoting shoulder health and good posture. They’re a great exercise: well-suited to high-volume work, activating and fatiguing the slow-twitch muscle fibers that comprise most of the back. But… the majority of us are doing them wrong, meaning we often don’t feel them in our back.
If this is you, then look no further: We’re sharing exactly how you should be doing face pulls, including a step-by-step guide and tips on form, along with a guide to the different grip positions, attachments, and variations.
Once you get them right, they’re a golden ticket to enhancing the size of your back, better posture, and stronger presses–not to mention reducing the chance of a shoulder injury along the way. So stick with us to discover how to perform them correctly.
. . .
What Are Face Pulls, And What Muscles Do They Work?
When it comes to the best exercises to build your back, face pulls are high on the list. Commonly performed on the cable machine using the rope attachment, face pulls involve horizontal pulling, which refers to moving the weight from out in front of you toward your midline. This makes them extremely effective at working the traps and rhomboids, the muscles responsible for sculpting and shaping the upper back [2]. If you want to build a v-shape upper body to look big and muscular in your muscle fit tshirt or you want to give the illusion of a smaller waist in your BBL jacket, face pulls will target the exact muscles to get you there.
If that wasn’t enough, cable face pulls also target the rotator cuffs and rear delts–one-third of the deltoid muscle that is often neglected during shoulder workouts. Neglecting the rear delts can not only make you look imbalanced but can also lead to shoulder injury and disorders, which can affect up to 69% of us during our lifetime [3]. Face pulls work to fix that, developing well-rounded, healthy shoulders.
Face Pull Benefits
Targeted Development Of The Traps And Rear Delts
As an isolation exercise, face pulls develop upper back strength by focusing work through the traps and rear delts without fatiguing other muscle groups.
Improved Shoulder Health And Stability
This makes them an excellent primer for exercises such as bench press, push press, or clean and jerk, making the shoulder less prone to injury.
Increased Muscle TUT (Time Under Tension) To Enhance Growth
Using the cable machine keeps the muscle under constant and consistent tension, proven to enhance muscle growth [4].
Better Posture
Cable face pulls promote the external rotation of the shoulders, helping to reduce hunched posture.
How To Do Face Pulls
Attach the rope extension to the cable pulley and move it up or down the tower so it sits just above head height.
Take each end of the rope in each hand (either in an overhand or underhand grip, depending on which is most comfortable).
Take a few steps back so the weight comes off the stack, and extend your arms in front of you. Your feet should be shoulder-width apart, and you should lean back slightly and engage your core.
Begin the movement by pulling the rope towards your forehead, keeping your elbows high, letting them flair out, and aiming to get the handles towards your ears.
Pause in the top position (which should look like a front double bicep bodybuilding pose), squeezing your shoulder blades together and squeezing your rear delts.
Reverse the movement, slowly extending the arms back to the starting position, letting the shoulders pull forward, then repeat the movement.
Face Pulls Form Tips & Mistakes To Avoid
Don’t point your elbows down and bring the rope to your chin. Instead, flare your elbows up and out and bring your hands to your forehead.
Don’t start by squeezing your shoulder blades together. Instead, start the movement with shoulders slightly rounded forward, pull the rope by driving your elbows out, and then squeeze your shoulder blades at the top of the movement.
Don’t use momentum and ‘swing’ back and forward as you pull. If you struggle with balance, take a split stance and brace your core. Choose a lighter weight if needed to keep the body stable through the movement. This can help you focus on
Mind-Muscle connection, helping you to focus on the muscles you are working to increase hypertrophy.
. . .
Cable Face Pull Variations
Stance
There are a few different stances you can take when performing face pulls. There isn’t a right or wrong, but slight variations come with each stance. Ultimately, you should pick the stance that feels most comfortable and the most stable:
Standing face pulls: This is the most common face pull stance, with feet directly under the hips or in a split stance. Most people find the latter provides a more solid base for balance.
Seated face pulls: If you struggle with stability, this is a good face pull variation, requiring less core engagement, allowing you to control your form better and focus load fully through the upper back and delts. To do so, place a bench in front of the tower and sit down on it. Adjust the pulley to sit just above head height when seated, then perform the movement like a standing face pull. This is a good option if hypertrophy is your main goal, allowing you to lift heavier, putting more load through the muscles, and ultimately increasing muscle growth [4].
Half kneeling face pulls: A halfway house between the split stance and seated face pull. This position requires less core engagement than the standing variation, as it offers a more stable case but requires more balance than the seated variation. Because of its positioning, it also trains hip stability. It doesn’t matter which leg you prop on the floor, but we recommend swapping legs for each set.
Grip
Again, there are a couple of different grips you can choose from, which change the emphasis of the exercise very slightly. Choose whichever face pull grip feels most natural, from the following:
Overhand grip: This is the most common grip style for cable face pulls, where the knuckles sit atop the rope. This variation prioritises work through the upper back (traps and rhomboids) and also works the rear delts.
Underhand grip: Some people find this face pull grip variation more comfortable. This is where you grip the rope from underneath, with palms facing down, thumbs towards you. This variation still targets the upper back but prioritises work through the rear delts more than the traps.
Equipment: Banded Face Pulls
Banded face pulls are a great option if you’re doing face pulls from home or looking for a way to activate your upper back before your bench press or overhead pressing exercises.
How To Do Banded Face Pulls:
Select an appropriately weighted long resistance band to challenge yourself but that is light enough to allow you to perform the movement through the full range of motion with good form.
Loop the band around a stable anchor point, such as a pull-up rig (or, if working out from home, tie a knot in one end of the band. Place the knotted end of the band in a door frame, and shut the door so it is secured in place).
Take hold of the end of the band with both hands in an overhand grip slighter closer than shoulder width. Step away from the anchor point, standing far enough so there is tension on the band, and extend your arms up in front of you.
Begin the movement by pulling the band towards your forehead, driving your elbow up and back, and squeezing your back at the top of the movement.
Pause, then extend your arms, releasing tension on the band as you return to the starting position.
Let your shoulder pull forward slightly, then begin the next rep.
. . .
How To Add Cable Face Pulls To Your Strength Workout
Unlike heavy compound movements such as bench press or strict press, where you might train in low rep ranges to build strength, cable face pulls are best trained at higher rep ranges and lighter reps.
This is because the back muscles are made up of primarily slow twitch muscle fibers (known as Type I) [5]. These muscle fibers don’t produce a lot of power but can contract for a long period of time and are essential for helping the back muscles support the spine to enable us to keep us standing (or sitting) upright for long periods of time [6]. Using cable face pulls to isolate your upper back and rear delts using higher volume training (i.e., 12 to 15 reps) will recruit these slow twitch fibers, giving them the stimulus they need to fatigue and grow.
When structuring your workout (unless you’re using the face pull exercise as an activation exercise during your warm-up), you’ll want to perform them following your compound lifts. This is because compound exercises are more fatiguing because they work multiple muscle joints and groups simultaneously. You’ll lift heavier during compound exercises vs. isolation, making them more fatiguing and coming with a higher risk of injury, whereas isolation exercises use a lighter weight and limit movement to a single joint.
. . .
Face Pull Your Way To A Bigger Back And Healthier Shoulders
Who knew that they’d be a back-building exercise that not only made your back look strong AF but kept your shoulders healthy, improved stability for pressing movements, and helped undo at least some of those hours slumped over the computer?
If you follow the face pulls form tips above (and avoid the common mistakes) you should be able to master the face pull technique and feel them exactly where you want to: in your upper back and rear delts.
Ready to get training? Download the Gymshark Training App – and don’t forget to add face pulls to your next back and shoulder day to sculpt a wide back and boulder shoulders.
FAQs
Are Face Pulls For The Shoulders Or Back?
Face pulls work both the shoulders and the back, targeting the rear delts, rotator cuff, traps and rhomboids. They are effective in shaping the upper back, to create a thick top half, but also help to maintain healthy shoulders and improve posture.
Am I Supposed To Lean Back On Face Pulls?
Before you start the pull, your body should be slightly leaning back. However, once you’ve started the rep, don’t lean back any further. Instead, use your elbows to drive the rope towards your forehead, targeting the work through the back and shoulders.
How Heavy Should Face Pulls Be?
Face pulls are an isolation exercise, which usually means you wont be lifting very heavy! Using only a few muscle groups, isolation exercises rely on only a few muscles to carry out the lift, compared to compound exercises where you can lift heavy as lots of muscle groups are involved in the movement.
Go heavy enough on cable face pulls to feel challenged for 12 to 15 reps, but make sure your face pulls form is correct throughout. That means no swinging and ensuring you perform the facepull through the full range of motion, pulling the rope into your forehead. Your last rep should be just as good as your first–if it’s not, you’re lifting too heavy!
What Grip Is Best For Face Pulls?
As mentioned, cable face pulls have two main grips: overhand or underhand. Despite what some people say, there isn’t a right or wrong grip between the two–they both target the same muscle groups, with the former with slightly more emphasis on the upper back and the latter with slightly more rear delt activation. Some people find an underhand grip more comfortable on their wrist and easier to grip the rope, but you can choose whichever face pull grip variation feels more comfortable.
. . .
References:
Luime, J., Koes, B., Hendriksen, I., Burdorf, A., Verhagen, A., Miedema, H. and Verhaar, J. (2004). Prevalence and incidence of shoulder pain in the general population; a systematic review. Scandinavian Journal of Rheumatology, 33(2), pp.73–81. doi:https://doi.org/10.1080/03009740310004667.
Hewit, J.K. (2018). A Comparison of Muscle Activation during the Pull-up and Three Alternative Pulling Exercises. Journal of Physical Fitness, Medicine & Treatment in Sports, [online] 5(4). doi:https://doi.org/10.19080/jpfmts.2018.05.555669.
Sweeney, S., Porcari, J., Camic, C., Kovacs, A. and Foster, C. (2014). ExCluSivE ACE-SPonSorEd rESEArCh. [online] Available at: https://acewebcontent.azureedge.net/certifiednews/images/article/pdfs/ACEShoulderStudy.pdf.
Schoenfeld, B.J., Contreras, B., Krieger, J., Grgic, J., Delcastillo, K., Belliard, R. and Alto, A. (2018). Resistance Training Volume Enhances Muscle Hypertrophy. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, [online] 51(1), p.1. doi:https://doi.org/10.1249/mss.0000000000001764.
MANNION, A.F., DUMAS, G.A., COOPER, R.G., ESPINOSA, F.J., FARIS, M.W. and STEVENSON, J.M. (1997). Muscle fibre size and type distribution in thoracic and lumbar regions of erector spinae in healthy subjects without low back pain: normal values and sex differences. Journal of Anatomy, 190(4), pp.505–513. doi:https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1469-7580.1997.19040505
Golden, N. (2022). Fast-Twitch Vs. Slow-Twitch Muscle Fiber Types + Training Tips | NASM Blog. [online] blog.nasm.org. Available at: https://blog.nasm.org/fitness/understanding-fast-twitch-vs-slow-twitch-mucle-fibers.
Content Writer
Meet Alex Kirkup-Lee, our Content Writer whose passion for fitness fuels every word she writes.
Need help with anything?
Got any questions about anything you’ve seen, get in touch with our friendly support team.
You may like
FitnessLevel Up Your Upper Body Warm UpAlex Kirkup-Lee
FitnessDynamic Vs Static Stretching: What's The Difference?Alex Kirkup-Lee
FitnessWhat Is The Winter Arc? The Viral TikTok Challenge ExplainedAlex Kirkup-Lee
Need help with anything?
Got any questions about anything you’ve seen, get in touch with our friendly support team.
You may like
FitnessLevel Up Your Upper Body Warm UpAlex Kirkup-Lee
FitnessDynamic Vs Static Stretching: What's The Difference?Alex Kirkup-Lee
FitnessWhat Is The Winter Arc? The Viral TikTok Challenge ExplainedAlex Kirkup-Lee
Back to top