Exercise guide · evidence-graded

High Row Machine

The machine high row is a seated back exercise in which you pull two high handles down and back towards the bottom of your chest, with thigh pads holding you in place. It works the lats, the middle and bottom parts of the traps and the rhomboids, and the independent arms let each side work on its own.

Also called: Plate-Loaded High Row, Iso-Lateral High Row, Hammer Strength High Row, Seated High Row · Equipment: machine · Pattern: pull

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How to do it

Step by step

Set the seat so the handles are just within reach with your arms fully extended, and lock your thighs under the pads. Plant your feet flat.
Reach up and take the handles with your palms facing forward or facing each other.
Sit tall with your chest up and your shoulders drawn down away from your ears.
Pull the handles down and back, leading with your elbows, until your hands reach the sides of the bottom of your chest.
Squeeze your shoulder blades together and down at the end of the pull for a moment.
Let the handles travel back up and forward under control until your arms are straight and your back feels a stretch.
After the last rep, return the handles to the start position and let the weight settle before standing up.

Coaching cues

Chest tall, shoulders down
Pull your elbows down and back
Hands finish at the bottom of your chest
Squeeze your shoulder blades at the end
Reach long at the top

In VALDA, these cues are one tap away on the exercise while you train.

Muscles worked

What it trains

Muscle	Role	Evidence
Latissimus dorsi	Prime mover	D
Trapezius: middle	Prime mover	D
Trapezius: lower	Secondary	D
Rhomboids	Secondary	D
Posterior deltoid	Secondary	D
Biceps brachii	Secondary	D
Brachialis	Secondary	D

Evidence grades: A = strong research base · B = good · C = limited · D = coaching consensus.

Common faults

What goes wrong, and the fix

Leaning back to heave the weight

Fix: Keep your chest tall and your thighs pinned under the pads.

Pulling with the arms only

Fix: Start each rep by drawing your shoulders down, then drive your elbows back.

Shrugging at the top

Fix: Keep your shoulders away from your ears as you reach and pull.

Cutting the stretch short

Fix: Let your arms straighten fully at the top before the next pull.

Seat set too low or too high

Fix: Set the seat so the handles are just reachable with straight arms.

Programming

What the research says

Muscle growth · first choiceGeneral fitness · first choiceStrengthRehab & prehabEndurance

Machines and free weights — A meta-analysis found machine and free-weight training give similar muscle growth, while strength gains are specific to the tool trained.
Load — Research finds muscle growth is similar across a wide range of loads when sets are taken close to failure. The plate-loaded lever makes small load changes easy.
Effort — Studies show sets that finish a few reps short of failure capture most of the size benefit, and true failure adds only a small extra return.
Volume — Research links more weekly sets for a muscle to more growth, with diminishing returns.
Unilateral work — The independent arms allow one-arm sets. There is no research specific to the high row on this.

Alternatives · VALDA FLEX

Swap it mid-workout

With VALDA Pro, FLEX offers alternatives like these when you swap an exercise mid-workout.

Log the high row machine in VALDA, with these cues one tap away while you train and your history for it in one place.

General information about exercise technique, not medical advice. If you have an injury or a health condition, your healthcare provider is the right person to ask.