Setup
Attach a handle to a cable machine at shoulder height or slightly above. Stand sideways to the machine with feet shoulder-width apart, gripping the handle with both hands and arms extended.
How to do it
- Rotate your torso diagonally downward across your body while keeping your arms relatively straight.
- Drive the movement from your core, not just your arms, pivoting on your back foot as you chop.
- Pull the handle from high to low in a smooth chopping motion, ending near your opposite hip.
- Control the return to the starting position, resisting the weight as it pulls back.
- Keep your hips stable and let your shoulders rotate with your spine.
Watch out for
- ✗Bending the arms too much and turning it into a pulling exercise instead of a rotation.
- ✗Moving only the arms while keeping the torso rigid, missing the rotational core engagement.
- ✗Rushing through the eccentric portion instead of controlling the cable back to start.