Ring Row
The ring row is a bodyweight row in which you hang back from two gymnastic rings or suspension handles with your heels on the floor and pull your chest up to them. It works the mid-back, lats, rear shoulders and biceps, and the free-moving rings add work for the shoulder stabilisers and let your grip rotate naturally.
Also called: Gymnastic Ring Row, Ring Inverted Row, Bodyweight Ring Row · Equipment: suspension · Pattern: pull
Step by step
- Set the rings about shoulder-width apart at around waist height. Rings set nearer the floor make the row harder.
- Grip the rings, walk your feet forward and lean back until your arms are straight and your body forms one straight line from head to heels, with your heels on the floor.
- Brace your abs and squeeze your glutes so your hips stay in line with your shoulders and ankles.
- Start the pull by drawing your shoulder blades back, then pull the rings to the sides of your chest with your elbows travelling back close to your body.
- Let the rings turn as you pull, so your palms face each other or slightly up at the top.
- Pause for a moment with the rings at your ribs and your shoulder blades squeezed together.
- Straighten your arms under control to a full hang, letting your shoulder blades spread apart.
- After the last rep, walk your feet back until you are standing before letting go of the rings.
- Body in one straight line, glutes tight
- Shoulder blades back first
- Rings to your ribs
- Let the rings turn as you pull
- Elbows close to your sides
- Straight arms at the bottom
In VALDA, these cues are one tap away on the exercise while you train.
What it trains
| Muscle | Role | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Latissimus dorsi | Prime mover | C |
| Trapezius: middle | Prime mover | C |
| Rhomboids | Prime mover | C |
| Posterior deltoid | Secondary | C |
| Biceps brachii | Secondary | C |
| Brachialis | Secondary | C |
| Erector spinae | Stabiliser | B |
| Gluteus maximus | Stabiliser | D |
| Rectus abdominis | Stabiliser | D |
| Rotator cuff | Dynamic stabiliser | C |
Evidence grades: A = strong research base · B = good · C = limited · D = coaching consensus.
What goes wrong, and the fix
Hips sagging
Fix: Squeeze your glutes and brace your abs to hold one straight line from head to heels.
Pulling with the arms only
Fix: Draw your shoulder blades back first, then bend your elbows.
Cutting the top of the pull short
Fix: Pull until the rings reach the sides of your chest and pause for a moment.
Holding the rings rigid
Fix: Let the rings turn freely so your palms face each other at the top.
Shrugging towards the ears
Fix: Keep your shoulders down away from your ears as you pull.
Dropping into the bottom
Fix: Straighten your arms under control to a full hang on every rep.
What the research says
Rehab & prehab · first choiceGeneral fitness · first choiceSport performance · first choiceEndurance · first choiceStrengthMuscle growthFat loss & conditioning
- Body angle — A common way to scale the ring row is body angle: walking the feet forward towards horizontal makes it harder, and stepping back towards upright makes it easier. No captured research measures the load at each angle.
- Instability — A systematic review of gymnastic ring work describes high muscular and stabiliser demand from the free-moving rings.
- Load and effort — Research finds muscle growth is similar across a wide range of loads when sets are taken close to failure, and true failure adds only a small extra benefit, so higher-rep bodyweight sets can build muscle.
- Volume — Research links more weekly sets for a muscle to more growth, with diminishing returns.
Swap it mid-workout
With VALDA Pro, FLEX offers alternatives like these when you swap an exercise mid-workout.
Log the ring row 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.