Cable Rear Delt Fly

A beginner isolation strength exercise that works the shoulders, using a cable machine.

Cable Rear Delt Fly — Starting position Starting position
Cable Rear Delt Fly — End position End position
Difficulty Beginner
Type Strength
Equipment Cable Machine
Primary Muscle Shoulders
AI Rep Counting Log manually

How to Do Cable Rear Delt Fly

  1. Adjust the pulleys to the appropriate height and adjust the weight. The pulleys should be above your head.
  2. Grab the left pulley with your right hand and the right pulley with your left hand, crossing them in front of you. This will be your starting position.
  3. Initiate the movement by moving your arms back and outward, keeping your arms straight as you execute the movement.
  4. Pause at the end of the motion before returning the handles to the start position.

Muscles Worked

Front
Back

Primary

Where Cable Rear Delt Fly does most of its work.

Alternatives to Cable Rear Delt Fly

10 movements that train the same primary muscle, closest substitutes first — same kind of training, then variations of the movement itself, then a similar difficulty.

  1. 1 Barbell Rear Delt Row

    Barbell Rear Delt Row

    A beginner compound strength exercise that works the shoulders, using a barbell.

    beginner Barbell
  2. 2 Bent Over Dumbbell Rear Delt Raise With Head On Bench

    Bent Over Dumbbell Rear Delt Raise With Head On Bench

    A beginner isolation strength exercise that works the shoulders, using dumbbells.

    beginner Dumbbells
  3. 3 Cable Rope Rear-Delt Rows

    Cable Rope Rear-Delt Rows

    A beginner compound strength exercise that works the shoulders, using a cable machine.

    beginner Cable Machine
  4. 4 Lying Rear Delt Raise

    Lying Rear Delt Raise

    An intermediate isolation strength exercise that works the shoulders, using dumbbells.

    intermediate Dumbbells
  5. 5 Seated Bent-Over Rear Delt Raise

    Seated Bent-Over Rear Delt Raise

    An intermediate isolation strength exercise that works the shoulders, using dumbbells.

    intermediate Dumbbells
  6. 6 Alternating Cable Shoulder Press

    Alternating Cable Shoulder Press

    A beginner compound strength exercise that works the shoulders, using a cable machine.

    beginner Cable Machine
  7. 7 Cable Internal Rotation

    Cable Internal Rotation

    A beginner compound strength exercise that works the shoulders, using a cable machine.

    beginner Cable Machine
  8. 8 Cable Seated Lateral Raise

    Cable Seated Lateral Raise

    A beginner isolation strength exercise that works the shoulders, using a cable machine.

    beginner Cable Machine
  9. 9 Cable Shoulder Press

    Cable Shoulder Press

    A beginner compound strength exercise that works the shoulders, using a cable machine.

    beginner Cable Machine
  10. 10 External Rotation with Cable

    External Rotation with Cable

    A beginner isolation strength exercise that works the shoulders, using a cable machine.

    beginner Cable Machine

Frequently Asked Questions

What muscles do cable rear delt fly work?

Cable Rear Delt Fly primarily works the shoulders.

What equipment do I need for cable rear delt fly?

Cable Rear Delt Fly uses cable machine.

Cable Rear Delt Fly: is it suitable for beginners?

Yes. Cable Rear Delt Fly is rated beginner. Movements you can learn in a session, with a low skill floor and a forgiving failure mode.

What can I do instead of cable rear delt fly?

Barbell Rear Delt Row, Bent Over Dumbbell Rear Delt Raise With Head On Bench, Cable Rope Rear-Delt Rows train the same primary muscles and are listed with 7 more alternatives above.

Can Fitnit count my cable rear delt fly reps automatically?

Not automatically yet. Fitnit's AI rep counting covers push-ups, squats, dumbbell curls, crunches and pull-ups today; cable rear delt fly can be logged manually in the app, and tracked movements are added over time.

Photographs and step-by-step instructions from free-exercise-db, a public-domain exercise dataset. Muscle mapping and alternatives by Fitnit.

Track Your Cable Rear Delt Fly with AI

Fitnit automatically tracks push-ups, crunches, squats, pull-ups, and curls with advanced body tracking technology — and you can manually input any other workout too. Start free — Pro is $8.99/month.