Exercise guide · Beginner · Compound

Inverted Row: How to Do It & Muscles Worked

The inverted row hangs under a bar or rings with straight legs and pulls your chest to the bar. It is a scalable bodyweight row for the upper back and lats, and a good step toward your first pull-up.

Primary muscles
Traps
Secondary muscles
Biceps , Forearms
Equipment
Body Weight
Level · type
Beginner · Compound

Written by the FitStack training team. Last reviewed .

Demonstration of the inverted row
Front view: muscles worked by the inverted row. Primary: traps. Secondary: biceps and forearms.
Back view: muscles worked by the inverted row. Primary: traps. Secondary: biceps and forearms.
Primary Secondary

How to do the inverted row

  1. Step 1: Set up a bar at waist height on a Smith machine or use a suspension trainer.
  2. Step 2: Stand facing the bar or suspension trainer and grab it with an overhand grip, hands shoulder-width apart.
  3. Step 3: Walk your feet forward, leaning back until your body is at a slight angle.
  4. Step 4: Keep your body straight and pull your chest up towards the bar or handles, squeezing your shoulder blades together.
  5. Step 5: Pause for a moment at the top, then slowly lower yourself back down to the starting position.
  6. Step 6: Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

Form cues

  • Set a bar around waist height, lie underneath and grip it slightly wider than your shoulders.
  • Keep your body straight from heels to head, glutes tight.
  • Pull your chest to the bar, squeezing your shoulder blades together.
  • Lower to straight arms.

Common inverted row mistakes

  • Hips sagging toward the floor.

    Fix: Squeeze your glutes and brace like a plank.

  • Chin poking toward the bar.

    Fix: Lead with the chest.

Sets, reps and programming

Do 3 sets of 8 to 15 reps. Make it easier by bending your knees or raising the bar, and harder by elevating your feet or adding a pause at the top.

Suggested sets, reps and rest for the inverted row by training goal
Goal Sets Reps Rest Effort
Strength 3–5 3–6 3–5 min 1–3 reps in reserve
Muscle growth 3–4 6–12 2–3 min 1–2 reps in reserve
Muscular endurance 2–3 12–20 1–2 min 1–3 reps in reserve

Ranges follow the ACSM position stand on progression in resistance training. Muscle grows across a wide range of loads when sets end close to failure (Schoenfeld et al., 2017), longer rests between heavy sets support strength and size (Schoenfeld et al., 2016), and stopping a rep or two short of failure works about as well as training to failure (Grgic et al., 2022). Estimate your working weights with the strength calculators.

Variations and progressions

Inverted Row alternatives

More exercises that train the traps as their main target:

Inverted Row FAQs

Do inverted rows help with pull-ups?

Yes. They build the same back and arm muscles at a lower load and are a common stepping stone toward a strict pull-up.

More traps exercises

See the best trap exercises, ranked →

Sources

  1. American College of Sports Medicine. Progression models in resistance training for healthy adults. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2009;41(3):687-708.
  2. Schoenfeld BJ, Grgic J, Ogborn D, Krieger JW. Strength and hypertrophy adaptations between low- vs. high-load resistance training. J Strength Cond Res. 2017;31(12):3508-3523.
  3. Schoenfeld BJ, Pope ZK, Benik FM, et al. Longer interset rest periods enhance muscle strength and hypertrophy in resistance-trained men. J Strength Cond Res. 2016;30(7):1805-1812.
  4. Grgic J, Schoenfeld BJ, Orazem J, Sabol F. Effects of resistance training performed to repetition failure or non-failure on muscular strength and hypertrophy: a systematic review and meta-analysis. J Sport Health Sci. 2022;11(2):202-211.

Step-by-step instructions and demonstration media are from the ExerciseDB exercise dataset; cues, mistakes, programming and FAQs are written by FitStack.

This guide is general fitness information, not medical advice. Stop if an exercise causes pain and speak to a doctor or physiotherapist about injuries or health conditions before starting a new programme.