Straight Bar Bench Mid Rows

Also called bench mid row and standing bench row.

Works

Upper back, plus biceps and lats

Equipment

Barbell

Level

Beginner

Type

Compound

How to do it

Setup. Place a loaded barbell on the end of a bench. Standing on the bench behind the bar, take a medium, pronated grip. Stand with your hips back and chest up, maintaining a neutral spine. This will be your starting position.

1. Row the bar to your torso by retracting the shoulder blades and flexing the elbows. Use a controlled movement with no jerking.
2. After a brief pause, slowly return the bar to the starting position, ensuring to go all the way down.

Cues

• Stand on the bench, flat back.
• Squeeze the shoulder blades.
• Row the bar to the torso.
• Pause, lower slowly.

Common mistakes

• Jerking the bar up.
• Rounding the back.

Where to start

A starting point, not a law. Pick a weight you could lift two or three more times than the top of the range. Tempo is seconds down, pause, up. When every set hits the top of the range, add a little weight.

Go easy, or pick an alternative, if you have a cranky lower back. Pain that's sharp or gets worse set to set means stop.

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