11 Upright Row Mistakes and How to Fix Them

This series will zoom in on one exercise at a time and point out common errors and how you can fix them. At the end of the day, nothing is dogma, and your technique should be the one that gives you the highest stimulus at the lowest cost of fatigue. To make sure you're getting the best of both worlds, check out our SFR video: • Technique Problems Ser...
If you have suggestions for future exercises we can break down, please comment below. If you know the answer to another commentor's question, please feel free to reply to them!
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[@blitzjazz4107]

*AthleanX has left the chat*

[@PatrickKusebauch]

This is comedic gold. Bravo Den, Bravo.

[@r.lohengramm8709]

Good. Hope he never comes back.

[@jwubwub]

You're weak Sasuke, you lack external rotation

[@luq7805]

😂

[@curlean-x4443]

@@r.lohengramm8709 LMAO

[@humayunbutt8451]

This guy comes as the most legitimate and nicest person I’ve come across on KZbin for top drawer fitness information. Needs a million times more exposure than some of the silly content that I’ve seen all over the place.

[@Boteronation]

Straight facts

[@danielmccarthy2445]

Word

[@WolfCoaching]

TIMESTAMPS 0:00 Intro 0:30 Mistake #1 - Not enough range of motion (ROM) 1:24 Mistake #2 - Too much ROM 2:27 Mistake #3 - No eccentric control 3:20 Mistake #4 - Bar is too far forward 4:07 Mistake #5 - Looking for a single optimized grip 5:40 Mistake #6 - No standardized ROM 7:08 Mistake #7 - Body English 8:07 Mistake #8 - Technique being too strict 9:24 Mistake #9 - Grip being the limiting factor 10:33 Mistake #10 - Poor stimulus 12:04 Mistake #11 - Going too heavy 13:36 Summary and outro

[@Lee.volver]

thx!!!! i really need this

[@SortaFresh]

Thank you

[@SynG4t3s]

no excuses for these clowns not to put in their own time stamps nowadays, it's 2022. you da man

[@r.t.8082]

Dr. Milo, how about lengthened partials in the upright row?

[@ecercisedaily]

"They're not called upwrong rows they are called upright rows. Not to be confused with cornrows" - Dom Mazzettii

[@Barkotek]

"upright rows will loosen up these uptight hoes" ~chinese proverb

[@nasashadavis1726]

Lmao 😆

[@colekismet]

I love how Mike really emphasizes how you should be creating your own technique to suit your body type. I've always stayed away from Upright Rows and only ever trained Lateral Raises for side delts even though they don't feel good on my shoulders. Recently I've switched to Upright Rows and they feel 1000x better on my joints and hit my side delts far better. Everyone is different, experiment and see what works best for you!

[@King_Gatorade]

Just found your channel but I love how honest you are when you explain things. There's no magic, nothing to sell, just straight forward advice and tips to make things easier. Sometimes we get so caught up in our workouts that over years we develope bad habbits or dont even realize some of the stupid things were doing.

[@VictorLeucos]

Your wife's impression of bad reps is hilarious 😂 I like these guides you should do more if it's not already planned (or filmed 🤔?)!

[@Weak1987]

I was thinking the same, impressions 5/5! 😅

[@YamanoRyuu]

I can tell she is a funny woman

[@JoeyCentral]

Wait that is his wife? Are you sure?

[@MP-mz7un]

@@JoeyCentral yes

[@TypicallyUniqueOfficial]

@@JoeyCentral why is that hard to believe?

[@MikeBarbell]

This guides are amazing. I love the whole way of explaining and you guys bring the information in a comprehensible way

[@patrickg6032]

Sup Doc I really enjoy your videos, big fan of your work in general btw! Whenever I see "Dr. Mike Israetel" in the video discription I know im in for a high quality information video. I could name 10+ exercises I would love for you to break down but im gonna be humble :) Like Rajarshi I would like to see the bent over row or the pendlay row! Thanks!

[@jeffogrady2065]

Great video Mike. Letting people know learning to listening to your body and figuring out your perfect positioning of grip.

[@pablobonilla973]

Thank u for spelling that out. I especially liked the explanation of the 5-10, 10-20 n 20-30 Rep range. Good job. Sounds exactly what the Doctor ordered.

[@patrick-anourishingpursuit1772]

Very timely video for me as I've just added cable upright rows to my MPT program. 👍

[@Deciden0w.]

Definitely a great shoulders/traps builder for me! Cable upright rows are my favorite for constant tension and monster kettlebells when I want something heavier!

[@TheDanishDuke]

Great video Mike! 😀👍💪 Your wife did an awesome job there too!! You should definitely make more videos like this ! 👌

[@chrisknightnaturalwellness9697]

good demonstration video Dr. Mike... ✨💪🏽🤙🏽✨

[@2Rugrats9597]

Very good explanation on the upright row. Thank you very much

[@paullloyd5361]

RDL variations would make a great video or contrast vs good mornings

[@fd-pj3uk]

Good idea

[@danielstephenson146]

Yessss

[@frodothehobo9938]

good mornings are generally better than RDL's, the caveat would be if one hurts and the other one doesn't. if neither hurt, pick the good morning, why? the muscle activation is about the same but you use significantly less weight on a good morning. it's easier to recover from so you can do more of them.

[@gracefool]

@@frodothehobo9938 RDLs work the lats more though

[@CarlosSanchez-ev3bn]

Dude I’ve been trying to get my shoulders up even though they’re a strong point but my shoulder joints hurt with certain exercises. Thanks doc I’m going to give these one more chance today

[@dchyperstrength]

Great video!!

[@steveblah5]

Now that exercise selection is limited due to the quarantine, i've been experimenting with the 20-30 rep range. It really does work!!!

[@nilo7727]

Excellent video excellent content once again Dr Mike always very helpful for better consistent lifting!!!👍👌👏👊😎💯

[@Dexatron]

I find that determining a point to end the movement at using the bar as a point of reference is huge for me when repeating the same movement from rep to rep, set to set. For instance, in this upright row, her best reps bring the bar about to her eyebrow height. It can be super beneficial to remember that when performing the movement and repeating it.

[@rajarshichakraborty8862]

Great video Mike 👏.. do a similar one for the bent over row

[@fd-pj3uk]

Good idea

[@colinhudson9808]

Yes please.

[@benatjuaristi2095]

Hi Dr. Mike, at the end of the video, on your wrap up, you mention the objective of stimulating the target muscle and avoiding joint damage. I've got a pretty bad right shoulder from swiming as a youngster and would it be safe to say that higher reps with lower load can work for me best because I can still hit/stress the target muscle, and joints can handle this better? I guess that I'd like to gain knowledge on how to strengthen my joints as well as the desired target muscles at the same time. If that is possible ofcourse.

[@anymouse6202]

Almost forgot to like and comment. Thanks for the video.

[@prescottosegie]

I appreciate it very much💪💯

[@jaipaddam101]

video on T bar row technique ( eg: difference between pulling to chest or pulling to stomach) would be great!

[@maxxxmodelz4061]

Well, you convinced me to try upright rows for traps and side delts. I used to avoid this exercise because for some reason I felt it was hitting too much front delt. I'm going to lighten up the load and widen the grip.

[@bricka.6810]

I would love a video on overhead press, barbell or dumbbell.

[@johnmckeron3663]

Great tip DR Mike on the upright row😅

[@c.j.howard2857]

I tried these thanks to Mike (as well as BB face pulls) and my shoulders are opening up. Nice.

[@egobambi6763]

Thank you

[@song0219]

Last time upright raw was my most favourite exercise, always! Then, one day 1 man call AtleanX share a video and said that it is not good. So I stop it. But now, i watched this, and upright row become 1 of my best favourite exercise again.

[@krishnagodale3200]

If you watch Athlean-X long enough, you'll stop doing everything that you do in the gym and will end up following 10 of his 'Do this everyday' routines

[@Richard-th8js]

Dude exactly, my delts grew so much when I was doing upright rows and they felt great then athleanx made me scared that my arms were gonna snap off. Jeff robbed me of delt gains

[@licktin1091]

Yup, same

[@SpaghettiToaster]

@@Richard-th8js Why? Athlean-X says do them with dumbbells. There's no way in hell you're maxing out dumbbells on a shoulder exercise so why did you stop doing them in the first place?

[@RedfishCarolina]

Listen to him about that concentric. I do these on the Smith and use a 5 second concentric and DAYUM does it give an insane pump.

[@AtesiStyle]

OMG thank you so much its crazy man reaaly

[@JamesHarveyDavies]

Dr Chrystal is clearly the best actor of your various stand ins!

[@kanyeeast451]

Damn I didn't do the upright cuz of athleanx demonised it so much.

[@brandonmarcos5422]

Awesome thanks for the video! It was really helpful in fixing my upright row. Next up can you show me how to fix my marriage?

[@Barkotek]

no cheating, no swinging and control your weight on the way down

[@tommyb4960]

Versa grips are phenomenal when it comes to the uprightrow for me it was worth getting them just for this exercise but they are great at so many other exercises to 💪🔥

[@IAmGabe777]

Plzzz do the Behind The Neck Press, save this exercises life!!

[@braskers7]

the first time I did upright rows, it felt all kinds of wonky. Both my wrists and should were agitated while doing it. I wasn't really sure what I was doing. I kept at it for 2 or 3 more sessions and found a form that worked for me. No wrist or shoulder pain. It just stimulates the muscles really well.

[@marcol6413]

Hi, any news about the hypertrophy book release? Thanks.

[@MikeHawk04]

People bash AthleanX, but you all need to understand that he’s a physical therapist. His whole training style is to eliminate injury risk as much as possible. Literally every single physical therapist I have ever spoken to has said to eliminate upright rows due to higher impingement potential. For me: I choose to eliminate as much stress on my shoulders as possible, because upright rows have hurt me in the past and they feel extremely uncomfortable now. For others, it’s probably not a big deal as long as you don’t abuse the exercise.

[@DCJayhawk57]

Not to mention he trains a lot of baseball players, so using them with overhead athletes is not ideal.

[@MikeHawk04]

Neck Man How is he a clown?

[@MikeHawk04]

Neck Man I don’t think you watch his whole videos. He suggests safer alternatives to exercises to prevent injuries, and the “circus moves” he puts out there are not for beginners. Also, he likes planks, he just thinks that a standard plank for too long is too 1-dimensional and doesn’t challenge you in enough ways (and he’s right).

[@TheAnovotny]

People are dumb. Jeff Cavalier says to eliminate the exercise for the exact same reason this guy is pointing out. Most people are doing it safely and incorrectly that it is resulting in a lot of injuries. He isn't saying anything different people just want to be part of the in crowd by complaining about the guy.

[@cyruscruz90]

The acting of Dr. Christle is superb hahaha #legit

[@Magnus_Loov]

The Cable upright row version with a rope is great when having the thumbs up and pushing the elbows back toward the end (in the "up position"). No possible impingement problem and getting great "contact" with the delts.

[@spidy10]

Bent over row - chest and belly ?? Need a video on this and what's the difference ??

[@MikeBarbell]

Nakul Pandey the closer you pull to your pelvis the more shoulder extension you get thus more lat involvement usually. the higher you pull more transverse abduction more traps and upper back

[@spidy10]

@@MikeBarbell thanx mate

[@sloopycat1954]

Hi I was always told the upright shoulder row is harmful for a person, I don't see many people doing them as I once did about 20 years ago when they were a lot more popular, like military rear barbell shoulder press, the same with that I was told that it is harmful and again I don't see as many people doing them as I did about 20 years ago before people started saying these 2 excercises are harmful, I hope someone can shed some light on these whether they really are harmful, I hope that all makes sense. Great video thankyou.

[@roobsrooby6589]

It all comes down to a persons physiology, we're all diiffernt. I had been doing upright rows and presses behind the neck for decades I had no problems until I got to my fifties and I ended up with chronic tendonitis in my shoulders. I blamed it on both those exercises and creeping old age. Recently after a lot of research via KZbin I've found that I can press behind the neck again without any problems an exercise I truely love so my attention was focused on the upright row. I now know that taking the upright row to the chin gave me too much internal shoulder rotation creating impingement. Some people can do this without experiencing any problems although as they get older they may have a similiar experience as myself. As Mike said how high you go is up to the individual and whether they feel any discomfort although I didn't for many years. I have just started using the exercise again as it is a fantastic movement for the shoulders and traps. The difference is I only take the bar as high as my nipples and my arms are 90 degrees to the vertical with a grip of 12" wide. This works beautifully for me. I hope this helps, experiment and see what works for you.

[@yoelmorales208]

What a good video

[@Dinoah1]

Mike, what about potential "shoulder impingement "problems when you put your elbows higher than your hands?

[@Ericliaoo]

Appreciate the video Mike! 1. Low ROM 2. Too much ROM 3. Uncontrolled Descent 4. Bar too far forward 5. Searching for an ideal grip 6. No standard ROM in reps 7. Swinging with body / going too heavy 8. Form is too strict / rigid 9. Weak Grip 10. Poor Stimulus 11. Going too heavy

[@tyrvinodinson9790]

I use the upright row fairly heavy, and don't go above shoulder height. Then I'll do side delt fly later to finish them off. Not sure if it's good but I'm stronger and the muscle is bigger so...

[@edstalmakov]

Can I just have one of Those barbells in the corner 🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻. 😭😭

[@johnwoyurka5373]

I can't believe this was filmed at Iron Sport Gym, I live two minutes from there and I had no idea.

[@kylestaker9279]

I notice when I try these at times I get wrist pain at the top of the movement? What can I do to fix this?

[@colinhudson9808]

Could you please do a video on bent over rows.

[@johntrains1317]

Those wind chimes in the background 😆

[@rp1710]

Thoughts about doing upright rows with an ez bar?

[@shirtlessviking9225]

for me on upright rows, i feel them way better at just about a little higher than nipple height, it feels weird to go higher, even with just the bar, and my lateral delt head has gotten a good amount of growth since i implemented them

[@danstafford5977]

Do you know the difference between upright row and high pulls.... do you know the difference between paralysis and activation??

[@zaynmalice7106]

I was literally about to ask about high pulls and you mentioned it 0.2 seconds later.

[@d12kiem7]

I just love it when big burly men have such gentle voices! Gives me teddy bear vibes and I can't!!!! 😍 🥰😍 🥰😍 🥰

[@mema4922]

Alright calm down

[@android4371]

can i just do 90 degrees if i want to eliminate the most of the trap activation?

[@ninoninov6044]

I wonder if dr Mike will revisit mistake number 2, because later I've seen him do upright row wayyyy above the head...

[@danstafford5977]

Do you know the difference between an upright row and a front raise?

[@steveblah5]

My vocab just got a pump after googling perseverate

[@mklightemup3567]

Dr Mike….yup lool you’ve definitely definitely packed on size since this

[@kinginthenorth1437]

My forearm muscles/grip isn't a limiting factor but my wrists feel fucked up by the motion reguardless of grip width. Would Versa grips help with this?

[@belt1749]

King in the North maybe try an EZ bar or dumbbells instead

[@skinnyectomorph823]

Try an underhand grip

[@HemanthKumar-lw1bg]

can you give a Demo on Upright row using Cables

[@skinnyectomorph823]

I like doing underhand grip on thoose.

[@micahhaji-sheikh7117]

Whats up Dr. G,

[@dr.christle]

HI!

[@Moose92411]

Athlean-X pushed me away from upright rows years ago, and now I feel like I’ve been scammed.

[@jawbaw6471]

I agree with those who say that all forms of upright row are dangerous.

[@scottw3780]

Me too, horrible exercise... even when your younger you can feel the gristle in your shoulders

[@gerardt3284]

@@scottw3780 The shoulders should not be fucked around with. Not worth doing this exercise when there are far safer alternatives

[@josptyoutube5832]

Old science. The whole impingement theory has been debunked 1 year ago. Subacromial structures DO NOT impinge with elevation/internal rotation et cetera.

[@majungasaurusaaaa]

@@josptyoutube5832 Who cares about science when you do it and it hurts.

[@phoenixx5882]

@@majungasaurusaaaa yeah who gives a shit if ut hurts? just fight through the pain right? as high as you possibly can! the upright row belongs in the iron graveyard

[@ChriSX13]

i did my rotator cuff years ago doing pec decks.... should i even consider upright rows?

[@lilcoke4069]

No

[@gerardt3284]

Just looking at the thumbmail (both pictures) made my supraspinatus tendon sieze up in agony

[@ProphetFear]

Hope this is a joke aha

[@directorgtr]

Upright row VS. side lateral raise... what's your vote and why?

[@TheGreektrojan]

Upright rows if your shoulders like them. The extra trap work is nice and its easier to overload personally. I also personally feel it hits my side delts better but its often personal preference. I have rather mobile shoulder joints so I've never had issues with pressing work (if only that extended to my rickety knees).

[@kaisuminski6958]

Pull-up! (not assisted just regular)

[@ItsRaitisLV]

Pullups target different muscle groups.

[@lhoffmom]

When it is hard to make your technique look bad that’s pretty bad ass.

[@MrStrutxD]

You must go over the YATES ROW.

[@mattdennis6281]

Kubensis I can’t imagine it’s in Mike’s playbook. The range of motion is so limited.

[@GVS]

@@mattdennis6281 Likely true. Freaking amazing exercise, though. ROM isn't everything, when done for 10-15 reps they are absolutely brutal, I attribute a lot of my overall back gains to it.

[@gilaxia]

You should do stand up. Full set 🙃

[@teokotaiaukino7153]

Oh well! Stuff it! I’m going back to old school! Db Flyes too!

[@fd-pj3uk]

Whats The benefit from The upright row vs The lateral raise?

[@seanissomething]

Compound vs isolation. Upright row hits the traps a bit more due to the scapular upward rotation, plus if you pre-exhaust/superset with lateral raises its a good combo.

[@yotdanz]

seanissomething I do feel my traps in lateral raises, especially my left one

[@Outstanding.Bill87]

seanissomething try doing a lateral raise without upwardly rotating your scap....dont worry, ill wait

[@MrStrutxD]

i think upright rows are easier on my shoulders, more consistent.

[@ProphetFear]

@Dan Lee Dr Feigenbaum, Dr Baraki, Dr Schoenfeld and Dr Israetel all disliked this comment. Lol

[@Bthast62]

You fill out that t shirt better than a sporting goods store manikin.

[@nevermindlaughs]

dr.mike looks like superman, his physique is just money

[@caen4557]

Pull ups

[@sitdod17]

But I wanna be an upright row hero!

[@danstafford5977]

Do you know the difference between weightlifting and bodybuilding?

[@ItsRaitisLV]

Weightlifting focuses on lifting more weight, bodybuilding focuses on building muscle

[@calle6075]

I love Athlean X

[@batroll1]

I suggest you watch Athleanx vid on this subject

[@tentucki5573]

I have seen countless videos on the upright row and it seems that nobody agrees on whether this exercise is safe or how to perform it.

[@ProphetFear]

Mike Israetel Barbell Medicine and Brad Schoenfeld all agree this exercise is safe

[@phoenixx5882]

@@ProphetFear brad says that you can mitigate the chance of impingement by not pulling it above 70 degrees. mike says as high as you can. he also states that it is not risk free. he posted an article about the upright row.

[@gerdsiebern9648]

Please tell me: Is this lady Christie from the Overheadpress Video, 9 months ago?

[@dr.christle]

yep!

[@gerdsiebern9648]

@@dr.christle Respect lady 🤘🤘🤘🤘🤘💪💪💪💪💪😘

[@stefanomagaddino6868]

Love your vids Dr. Mike, but I'm Really in love with Crystal ! Wowza ! What a cutie.

[@stefanomagaddino6868]

oops ! Didn't know she was your wife ! No disrespect meant. Mea Culpa, Mea Culpa, Mea Maxima Culpa.

[@JoeyCentral]

Stefano Magaddino That isn’t his wife.

[@MaxBadstibner]

Joey Central Yes she is

[@JoeyCentral]

@@MaxBadstibner doubt it

[@MaxBadstibner]

Joey Central She is bro look at Mike’s Instagram lol

[@marcwittkowski5146]

When your bicep veins are so thick, they show through the sleeves of your shirt...

[@philosophicalmonkachu7711]

It would be better 📸 camera is focused straight on her ,its bit difficult to learn from side view.Really Appreciate the video . #1 #not high enough (smoke it up) #2toohigh range of motion #3 uncontrolled #descent #4 Bar #toofar from body #5 looking for ideal grip #6no standard range of motion #7 using whole body/too much momentum #8 super strict but no muscle activation #9 grips ache before shoulder #10 can't feel anything ,but effects joints_ sol :prexhaust,you don't have to do this

[@Moose92411]

“This guy’s just a roided out muscle head, how smart can he be?” Mike throws “persevorate” into a lecture on training. 8:59

[@stevenzak199]

I personally would never do an upright row (barbell or otherwise) because I think the internal rotation is harmful to the shoulders. You do suggest trying different widths and so on to see what feels comfortable. The problem I have with that is that upright rows don't have to hurt in order to cause damage. Such rows can feel perfectly fine for months or even years until one day that supraspinatus tendon gets inflamed enough to hurt. You may not get any advance warning that anything is going wrong, but you'll find out eventually. Now, in another video you had a guy doing what you called dumbbell upright rows kzbin.info/www/bejne/q5KQhKGuppeYl5o, which seemed to be shoulder friendly. The reason these were shoulder friendly is that, by some people's thinking, these are actually not upright rows at all but are more properly characterized as high pulls, because the hands come up ahead of the elbows, as opposed to the elbows leading, so that instead of getting internal rotation, you get (shoulder friendly) external rotation. Semantics, maybe. But whatever you call those (and the somewhat similar "Urlachers"), they seem much safer than any of the internally-rotated moves you showed here. People, of course, can do whatever they want. But I can attest that an inflamed shoulder tendon is a really horrible and debilitating condition that you never want to have. (It can be very persistent and hard to get rid of.) If you've ever suffered from it, you might not want to risk getting it again by doing upright rows. Stick with the external rotation moves like the high pulls (your "dumbbell upright rows") or just do lateral raises (without the internally rotating "pouring the water"). My humble opinion.

[@ProphetFear]

That's reductionist AthleneX thinking. We're past that point.

[@stevenzak199]

@@ProphetFear Putting aside that the word "reductionist" has no discernible meaning here, YOU'RE past Jeff Cavaliere? On what planet?

[@ProphetFear]

@@stevenzak199 reductionist injury prevention. I have someone saying it on my last video.

[@DCJayhawk57]

I agree, I just don't see a reason to do this exercise. You likely won't know if you're getting impingement until you do. Why not do the dumbbell high pull you mention? Why not superset face pulls with lateral raises? Honestly, you can internally rotate on lateral raises as long as you lean forward a bit to create relative external rotation. Upright rows I think are just an overrated exercise with more potential harm than others. I put them in the same category as good mornings (why?!?!).

[@ProphetFear]

@@DCJayhawk57 More reductionist shit but let's dissect the good mornings; "why some someone use good mornings" *Uh because they can use half the f*cking weight of an RDL to achieve the same goals. Less weight is less stress is less systemic fatigue is better potential gains for the entire body.*

[@MCAIO89]

Too fun reading all these comments about Jeff Cavalier and Athlean-X after the fake weights scandal which has exposed him as a clown

[@cdrtej]

I want to be an upright row hero!

[@darkpier96]

Demonstrator looking like Android 19 , while Jared seems to be C-16

[@CredibleHulk10]

Pinkies in the #1 groove and thumbs along the top of the bar is the ONLY position that doesn't hurt...so that's what I do.

[@351clevelandmodifiedmotor4]

I use a lot of weight on the cable machine for upright row, 125kg 12 to 15 reps then the next set I drop the weight back to 90kg and and do more reps 20 reps , then the 3rd set I drop the weight back even more and do even more reps, 36 reps at 66kg,