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Lying Cable Fly

A fly performed lying on a flat bench between low cable columns, giving the classic dumbbell-fly arc with tension that never disappears at the top.

ChestCableHorizontal adduction
GoLightWeight mediacable-lying-fly

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Primary

Pectoralis major

Secondary

Anterior deltoidsBiceps

Equipment

Cable

Pattern

Horizontal adduction

Setup

  1. 01Place a flat bench centered between two cable columns with the pulleys at the lowest setting.
  2. 02Attach single-grip handles to both pulleys.
  3. 03Grab the handles, lie back on the bench, and plant both feet.
  4. 04Start with arms extended over the chest, elbows softly bent, palms facing each other.

Execution

  1. 01Open the arms in a wide arc until a stretch is felt across the chest.
  2. 02Keep the same soft elbow bend through the whole descent.
  3. 03Sweep the handles back up and together over the mid chest.
  4. 04Squeeze the pecs for a beat at the top; the cables keep pulling so the squeeze stays loaded.

Checkpoints

  • -Elbow angle stays constant; no pressing motion.
  • -Shoulder blades stay pinned to the bench.
  • -The arc bottoms out around chest level, not below the bench line.
  • -Both handles mirror each other through the whole rep.

Common mistakes

  • -Bending the elbows at the bottom and pressing back up.
  • -Dropping the arms too deep and straining the shoulders.
  • -Letting the stack pull the arms down quickly.
  • -Clanging the handles together and losing tension at the top.

Programming notes

  • -Use 3 to 4 sets of 10 to 15 reps after primary pressing work.
  • -Prefer this over dumbbell flys when you want the top half of the rep to stay loaded.
  • -Slow eccentrics and a top squeeze beat load progression on this movement.

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