Cable Face Pull
Also called: face pull, rope facepull
The shoulder-health superfood: high-rep pulls to the face that balance every press in your program.
Technique
How to do it
- 1
Cable at upper-chest height, rope attachment, palms down to start.
- 2
Pull toward your eyebrows while externally rotating — thumbs point back at the top.
- 3
Squeeze the rear delts and mid-traps for a beat.
- 4
Return slowly; keep the ribs down, no lean-back.
Cue bank
Two cues, picked by context
Internal cues for growth work at moderate loads; external cues when the bar is heavy. The app switches automatically.
“Feel the back of each shoulder wrap around and open.”
“Pull the rope apart as it reaches your face.”
Common faults
What to watch for
Standard coaching taxonomy for this movement. A dedicated Harry Spotter rubric is on the roadmap.
Turning it into a heavy row
Load spikes, rotation vanishes, rear delts nap.
Fix: Halve the stack; earn the external rotation.
Standing tall and leaning back
Bodyweight english replaces muscle work.
Fix: Split stance, ribs stacked over hips.
Pulling to the chin
Too low = upper traps take over.
Fix: Aim the rope at your eyebrows.
Substitutions