Face pull: the rear delt and upper back exercise worth the effort
Set a rope at roughly face height, pull toward your face with the elbows high and wide, finishing with your hands beside your ears and shoulder blades squeezed. Use light weight and 12–20 reps — this is not a lift to load heavily.
Why bother
The face pull trains the rear delts, the mid and upper back, and the external rotators of the shoulder. Most training programmes contain far more pressing than pulling, and almost no direct rear delt or external rotation work, so this fills a real gap.
What it genuinely does:
- Builds the rear delts, which are under-trained in most programmes and contribute substantially to how the shoulders look.
- Trains scapular retraction in a range most exercises miss.
- Adds external rotation work at low cost.
- Balances pressing volume, which matters for shoulder comfort over years.
What it does not do: fix your posture on its own, prevent all shoulder injuries, or undo years of bench pressing with no pulling. It is a useful accessory, marketed at times as a cure. Getting the total pulling volume right matters more than any single exercise — see barbell row.
Technique
- Rope attachment on a cable, set at about face height — anywhere from upper chest to slightly above the head works.
- Grip the rope ends with thumbs pointing back, or hold with a neutral grip. Some people prefer gripping above the knots.
- Step back to create tension, feet staggered or shoulder width.
- Start with arms extended, shoulders allowed to travel forward slightly.
- Pull toward your face with the elbows high and wide — elbows at or above shoulder height throughout.
- Finish with hands beside your ears, rope ends separating, upper arms roughly in line with the shoulders.
- Squeeze the shoulder blades together and pause briefly.
- Return under control.
Elbows high is the whole exercise. If your elbows drop below shoulder height, you are doing a high row — still useful, but it stops training the rear delts and external rotators in the way you set out to.
Faults and fixes
- Too much weight. By far the most common fault. It forces the elbows down, brings in the lats, and turns the movement into a cable row with a lean back.
- Elbows dropping. Keep them at or above shoulder height.
- Leaning back and using body weight. Stay upright.
- Shrugging. Keep the shoulders down as you retract.
- Pulling to the chest. Aim at the face.
- Rushing. Controlled, with a pause at the end range.
- Short range. Hands should reach beside your ears.
Programming
- 12–20 reps, 2–4 sets. This is a high-rep exercise. Loading it heavily removes the point.
- Two to four times a week. Very low recovery cost, so frequent use is fine.
- Good at the end of a session, or between sets of a press as filler work.
- Also fine in a warm-up at very light weight before pressing.
- Progress by adding reps first, then small weight increases. If you are adding 10 kg at a time, the form has gone.
Related exercises for the same area: rear delt flyes (dumbbell or machine), band pull-aparts, prone Y and T raises, and lateral raises for the side delt. Band pull-aparts in particular are the equipment-free equivalent and can be done almost anywhere.
Common questions
How high should the cable be?
Roughly face height. Slightly higher is fine; much lower turns it into a row.
How heavy should I go?
Light. If your elbows drop or you lean back, it is too heavy.
Will face pulls fix my posture?
They help balance pressing volume. Posture is more about total training balance and daily habits than one exercise.
Are they necessary?
Not strictly, but they are cheap insurance and most programmes need more rear delt work.
Face pulls or rear delt flyes?
Both work. Face pulls add external rotation; flyes isolate the rear delt more.
How often can I do them?
Two to four times a week comfortably.
Can I do them with a band?
Yes — band pull-aparts and banded face pulls are close substitutes and need no gym.
The practical version
- Rope at about face height, pull toward the face.
- Elbows high and wide, at or above shoulder height throughout.
- Finish with hands beside the ears and shoulder blades squeezed.
- 12–20 reps, light weight. Too heavy and the elbows drop.
- Two to four times a week — very low recovery cost.
- Useful accessory, not a posture cure. Total pulling volume matters more.
Key takeaways
- Set the rope at about face height and pull toward the face, not the chest.
- Elbows high and wide — at or above shoulder height — is the whole exercise.
- Too much weight is the main fault; it forces the elbows down and brings in the lats.
- Use 12-20 reps and progress by adding reps before weight.
- Recovery cost is low enough to train two to four times a week.
- It balances pressing volume but does not by itself fix posture or prevent injury.
Related reading
General information, not medical or individualised advice. Speak to a doctor before starting a new programme, especially if you have a medical condition, are pregnant, or are returning from injury. If you train with a coach, their guidance takes precedence.
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