Today's Gym Lesson

Row the right way.

Whenever you do a dumbbell, cable, bent over, chest supported row and any other variation, you need to make sure you are getting the most out of the exercise. This also applies to chin-up and pull-up variations.

Let's take the cable row as an example.

At the beginning of the movement, your arms should be completely straight and your scapulae should be protracted (separated). As you initiate the movement, you should pull through your elbows, first off all. Also, make sure you focus on squeezing your shoulder blades back and down. If you aren't retracting (squeezing together) your scapulae, then you are not doing the movement correctly. At the end of the movement, they should be squeezed back hard.

Those same instructions apply to chin-ups and pull-ups.

Make sure you follow these instructions for these exercises. If you want to get the benefits of these exercises, make sure you do them properly.