Upright Barbell RowMuscles Worked
The upright barbell row works your shoulders, mainly the side delts, with your upper traps helping as you raise your elbows. Grip width changes the balance: a closer grip puts more work on the traps, a wider one more on the delts.
How to do it
- Stand tall holding a barbell in front of your thighs with an overhand grip about shoulder width apart.
- Brace your abs and keep your chest up and your shoulders relaxed.
- Pull the bar up close to your body, leading with your elbows so they stay higher than your hands.
- Stop when your elbows reach about shoulder height and the bar is near your lower chest.
- Lower the bar slowly back to your thighs.
Form tips
- If your shoulders feel pinched at the top, widen your grip a little and end the pull a bit lower.
- Keep the bar brushing close to your body, because letting it drift forward makes you lean and swing.
- Keep your torso still and lift with your shoulders, not by rocking your hips.
Why it made the list
No. 10 of 13
Best Shoulder Exercises
Compound that hits traps AND lateral delts. Narrower grip = more trap emphasis, wider grip = more delt.
No. 4 of 12
Best Trap Exercises
Compound that hits traps AND lateral delts. More functional than shrugs alone. Narrower grip = more trap emphasis.
More shoulder exercises
See it on your own body map
Log your Upright Barbell Row sets in KasMaker and watch your shoulders and traps fill in on the map, weighted by how much you did. Logging and the body map are free on iPhone.
