How to do a Single Arm Cable Press
Reviewed by JP Michelsen, CPT, B.A. Kinesiology
About Single Arm Cable Press
Instructions for Proper Form
Single Arm Cable Press is a compound movement that targets your chest, shoulders, and triceps. You’ll be isolating each side of the chest, which forces you to address any strength imbalances between sides. The movement itself closely resembles throwing a punch, and is a great way to build functional strength, especially for combat sports.
- Lock the cable machine’s pulley into a rung that’s close to level with your solar plexus.
- Attach a handle to the cable machine.
- Position yourself in front of the machine so that one hand is inline with the cable’s handle.
- Grasp the handle in one hand with your palm facing in.
- Step away from the machine until there is tension in the cable.
- Get into a shallow lunge position.
- Maintain proper form by engaging your core, straightening your back, and gazing forward.
- Fully extend the arm that’s not holding the handle out in front of you and position the hand with the handle to your side at about chest height.
- Engage your chest to extend the arm holding the handle as if you were throwing a punch while driving your other arm back.
- Hold this position at the end of the movement for a moment. Avoid twisting your trunk to assist yourself.
- Return to your starting position with control while maintaining tension in your chest.
- Repeat this exercise on your other side.
Weight & 1 Rep Max Calculator
Average Single Arm Cable Press standards by male, female, weight, age and height
Use this calculator to see Fitbod's possible first recommendations for you. This would be your starting line, based on more than 4.5 billion logged sets from 1.1 million users.
- beginner8reps17.5lbs1 Rep Max22.5lbs
- intermediate8reps20lbs25lbs
- advanced8reps22.5lbs30lbs
Enter your stats to calculate your Reps & Weight
Alternative Exercises to Single Arm Cable Press
1. Cable Crossover Fly
97.3 mSCORESWAPPED 4,579 TIMESCable Crossover Fly is an isolation exercise that targets the chest. It’s a variation on the more standard Dumbbell Fly, and can easily be adapted to further isolate specific areas of the chest. Using cables to add resistance allows you to keep more consistent tension on your chest, as well as control the angle that the resistance is coming from.
- Beginner
- Chest
- Cable Crossover
2. Machine Fly
98.2 mSCORESWAPPED 4,350 TIMESMachine Fly is a variation on the more standard Dumbbell Fly. This isolation chest exercise primarily targets the chest, but also recruits the shoulders. The use of a machine makes the exercise more stable allowing you to focus on exertion or learn the movement with minimal risk of injury. This is a great exercise for beginners looking to learn the movement, or advanced lifters looking to push this movement to it’s limit.
- Beginner
- Chest
- Fly Machine
3. Dumbbell Bench Press
99.7 mSCORESWAPPED 4,246 TIMESDumbbell Bench Press is a variation on the standard Bench Press. Like Bench Press, this compound exercise primarily targets the chest, while also training the triceps and shoulders. The use of dumbbells allows for greater instability which can help you become more stable on pushing movements in general, while also isolating each side of the body to prevent you from compensating for any weaknesses between sides.
4. Dumbbell Fly
98.3 mSCORESWAPPED 3,780 TIMESDumbbell Fly’s are one of the most common isolation chest exercises, and for good. It primarily targets the muscles in the chest, but also recruits the shoulders for stability. The use of dumbbells ensures that you’re targeting each side of the body independently, and prevents compensating for any weaknesses between sides. In addition the isolated nature of this exercise is a great way to fatigue your chest, and focus on building both muscle mass and increasing strength in your chest.
5. Machine Bench Press
93.5 mSCORESWAPPED 2,789 TIMESMachine Bench Press is a compound exercise the primarily targets the chest, shoulders, and triceps. The use of a machine forces you to use a fixed range of motion which can be a great way to learn the movement, or to focus your effort on exertion rather than stability.
- Beginner
- Chest
- Bench Press Machine
6. Dumbbell Incline Bench Press
99 mSCORESWAPPED 2,440 TIMESDumbbell Incline Bench Press is a variation on the more standard Barbell Incline Bench Press. This compound exercise primarily targets the chest, but the incline also places more emphasis on the shoulders. The use of dumbbells makes this exercise more unstable than its barbell counterpart, while also forcing you to address any strength discrepancies between sides.
7. Barbell Bench Press
99.2 mSCORESWAPPED 2,395 TIMESBench Press is one of the three Powerlifting movements, and one of the most common upper body exercises. It’s a fantastic compound exercise that can help you build strength in your chest, shoulders, and triceps. It’s a staple in most fitness programs, and is often used as a metric for tracking upper body strength in general.
8. Hammerstrength Chest Press
94.3 mSCORESWAPPED 1,976 TIMESHammerstrength Chest Press is a variation on the more standard Barbell Bench Press. Similar to Bench Press, this compound exercise primarily targets your chest, shoulders, and triceps. The use of a Hammerstrength machine forces you to use a fixed range of motion. This can help you either learn the movement, or focus your efforts on exertion rather than stability.
- Beginner
- Chest
- Hammerstrength (Leverage) Machine (all forms)
9. Dumbbell Squeeze Press
91.1 mSCORESWAPPED 1,742 TIMESSimilar to other Bench Press variations, this compound exercise primarily targets your chest, shoulders, and triceps. Unlike many other variations, some of the tension from this exercise is caused by pressing two dumbbells together rather than simply relying on the weight of those dumbbells. This helps maintain more tension in your chest throughout the movement without relying on other pieces of equipment. The positioning of the dumbbells can also take some tension out of your shoulders, and helps to further isolate your chest.
10. Low Cable Chest Fly
86.8 mSCORESWAPPED 1,436 TIMESLow Cable Chest Fly is an isolation exercise that primarily targets the chest. By using a low pulley setup, you emphasize the lower part of the chest more than other Fly variations. The cables provide consistent tension throughout the movement, and allow for greater control over the angle of resistance, enhancing muscle activation.
- Intermediate
- Chest
- Cable Crossover