Seated Cable Shoulder Press

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

Seated Cable Shoulder Press — Starting position Starting position
Seated Cable Shoulder Press — End position End position
Difficulty Beginner
Type Strength
Equipment Cable Machine
Primary Muscle Shoulders
AI Rep Counting Log manually

How to Do Seated Cable Shoulder Press

  1. Adjust the weight to an appropriate amount and be seated, grasping the handles. Your upper arms should be about 90 degrees to the body, with your head and chest up. The elbows should also be bent to about 90 degrees. This will be your starting position.
  2. Begin by extending through the elbow, pressing the handles together above your head.
  3. After pausing at the top, return the handles to the starting position. Ensure that you maintain tension on the cables.
  4. You can also execute this movement with your back off the pad and alternate hands.

Muscles Worked

Front
Back

Primary

Where Seated Cable Shoulder Press does most of its work.

Secondary

Assisting and stabilising muscles.

Alternatives to Seated Cable Shoulder Press

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 Leverage Shoulder Press

    Leverage Shoulder Press

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

    beginner Machines
  2. 2 Machine Shoulder (Military) Press

    Machine Shoulder (Military) Press

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

    beginner Machines
  3. 3 Seated Dumbbell Press

    Seated Dumbbell Press

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

    beginner Dumbbells
  4. 4 Shoulder Press - With Bands

    Shoulder Press - With Bands

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

    beginner Resistance Bands
  5. 5 Smith Machine Overhead Shoulder Press

    Smith Machine Overhead Shoulder Press

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

    beginner Machines
  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 Shoulder Press

    Cable Shoulder Press

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

    beginner Cable Machine
  8. 8 Barbell Shoulder Press

    Barbell Shoulder Press

    An intermediate compound strength exercise that works the shoulders, using a barbell.

    intermediate Barbell
  9. 9 Cable Seated Lateral Raise

    Cable Seated Lateral Raise

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

    beginner Cable Machine
  10. 10 Dumbbell One-Arm Shoulder Press

    Dumbbell One-Arm Shoulder Press

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

    intermediate Dumbbells

Frequently Asked Questions

What muscles do seated cable shoulder press work?

Seated Cable Shoulder Press primarily works the shoulders. The triceps assist as secondary muscles.

What equipment do I need for seated cable shoulder press?

Seated Cable Shoulder Press uses cable machine.

Seated Cable Shoulder Press: is it suitable for beginners?

Yes. Seated Cable Shoulder Press 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 seated cable shoulder press?

Leverage Shoulder Press, Machine Shoulder (Military) Press, Seated Dumbbell Press train the same primary muscles and are listed with 7 more alternatives above.

Can Fitnit count my seated cable shoulder press reps automatically?

Not automatically yet. Fitnit's AI rep counting covers push-ups, squats, dumbbell curls, crunches and pull-ups today; seated cable shoulder press 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 Seated Cable Shoulder Press 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.