Smith One-Arm Row

Setup

1. 01Set the Smith bar to around knee height and stand side-on to the bar.
2. 02Hinge at the hips and grip the middle of the bar with one hand, palm facing in toward the machine.
3. 03Brace the free hand on your knee or a bench for support.
4. 04Set a flat back with the shoulders square to the floor.

Execution

1. 01Unrack and let the working arm hang straight with the shoulder blade reaching down.
2. 02Row the bar toward the hip by driving the elbow up along the ribs.
3. 03Squeeze the lat at the top for a second.
4. 04Lower under control to a full stretch, then finish all reps before switching sides.

Checkpoints

• -The torso stays square; the hips and shoulders do not twist open.
• -The elbow tracks close to the body toward the hip.
• -The shoulder blade moves through a full stretch and full squeeze.
• -The supporting arm carries the posture, not the row.

Common mistakes

• -Rotating the torso to heave the bar up.
• -Pulling with the biceps and cutting the shoulder blade motion.
• -Standing too close or too far so the fixed path fights the natural pull line.
• -Doing uneven reps between sides.