How is the Ring Reverse Fly different from a ring face pull or a ring row?

In the reverse fly your arms stay straight and sweep out to the sides into a T, so the rear delts and the muscles between the shoulder blades do almost all the work. A Ring Face Pull and a Ring High Row bend the elbows and pull the rings toward you, which lets the biceps help (and in the row, the lats), so both usually allow a steeper lean than the straight-arm fly.

How do I make the Ring Reverse Fly easier or harder?

Change your lean. Standing more upright with the rings set higher makes it easier, while walking your feet forward so you lean back further makes it harder, and a slow lowering phase or a pause at the top adds difficulty without changing your setup.

Should my elbows be straight or bent?

Keep them straight, or with only a slight bend that stays fixed for the whole set. If the elbows bend and pull back during the rep, the movement becomes a row and the rear delts lose most of the work.

Can I do this exercise on a TRX instead of rings?

Yes, the reverse fly on suspension straps is the same movement. Rings hang separately and turn freely, so each arm has to steady its own ring, while the handles of a suspension trainer usually sit a little closer together.

How many sets and reps should I do?

Most trainees do 2 to 4 sets of 10 to 15 slow, controlled reps as accessory work near the end of an upper-body session. Choose a lean that lets you finish every rep with straight arms and a clear squeeze between the shoulder blades.

Ring Reverse Fly

What Is the Ring Reverse Fly?

Ring Reverse Fly is an isolation exercise that primarily targets the shoulders, specifically the rear deltoids, and also engages the trapezius and rhomboids between the shoulder blades. It is a beginner-level movement in which you lean back from a pair of gymnastic rings on straight arms and sweep your arms out to the sides, pulling your body up toward upright.

The main purpose is to strengthen the back of the shoulders and the muscles that pull the shoulder blades together, using nothing but body weight. That work balances the pressing most programs are built around, supports an upright shoulder position, and gives calisthenics trainees a way to train the rear delts directly without cables or dumbbells. It usually sits late in an upper-body or pulling session as accessory work, or early on in light sets as a warm-up for the shoulders.

Because the elbows stay straight, the arms cannot row, so the lats and biceps do far less than they do in a Ring High Row. The rear delts sweep the arms back, and the trapezius and rhomboids squeeze the shoulder blades together to finish each rep. In a lab study of healthy adults doing this straight-arm movement on suspension straps while leaning back at 45 degrees, the rear deltoid and the upper, middle and lower trapezius all worked above 60% of their maximal effort. The rings hang free, so each arm has to steer its own ring along the same path, and the long straight arm makes the load feel heavier than a row at the same lean.

The exercise suits almost anyone, because the lean sets the load: standing nearly upright makes it light, and walking the feet forward makes it hard. If even an upright stance is too much, build the pattern first with a Band Pull Apart or a light Dumbbell Reverse Fly. It pairs naturally with its pushing opposite, the Ring Chest Fly. Focus on feeling the shoulder blades draw together at the top rather than simply throwing the arms wide.

Muscles Worked

MuscleActivation

Deltoid: Primary
Lower Trapezius: High
Rhomboid Major: High
Upper Trapezius: High
Erector Spinae: Medium
Infraspinatus: Medium
Teres Minor: Medium
Latissimus Dorsi: Low
Rectus Abdominis: Low
Triceps Brachii (Long Head): Low

Instructions

Set the rings at about chest height and stand facing them.
Take one ring in each hand with an overhand grip, knuckles facing up.
Step your feet forward, close together, and lean back until your arms are straight in front of your chest and take your weight, with your heels on the floor.
Squeeze your glutes and brace your abs so your body forms a straight line from head to heels.
Pull your shoulders down and away from your ears.
Keeping your arms straight, sweep them out to the sides in a wide arc at shoulder height, pulling your body up toward upright.
Finish with your arms out in a T, level with your shoulders, and squeeze your shoulder blades together for a brief pause.
Lower yourself back slowly, bringing your straight arms together in front of your chest as your body leans back.
Repeat for the planned reps, then walk your feet back under the rings to stand up before letting go.

Common Mistakes

Bending the elbows
Letting the elbows bend and pull back turns the fly into a row, shifting the work from the rear delts to the lats and biceps.
Shrugging the rings apart
Lifting the shoulders toward the ears hands the work to the upper traps and neck instead of the rear delts and the muscles between the shoulder blades.
Arms drifting off shoulder height
Letting the hands drop toward the hips brings in the lats, while letting them rise toward the head turns the movement into a shrug, so keep the arms level with the shoulders.
Sagging or piking the hips
Breaking the straight line from head to heels lets the hips do part of the work and strains the lower back.
Leaning back too far
Starting at a lean the shoulders cannot control forces jerky reps, bent elbows and a shortened range, so stand more upright until every rep is clean.
Dropping back down
Falling back into the start position instead of lowering slowly skips half the work and yanks the front of the shoulder forward.

Injuries

Ring Reverse Fly is a low risk exercise when performed with proper technique. The load is your own body weight and you set it with your lean, so there is no heavy weight to lose control of. The most common strain points are the front of the shoulder, which gets pulled forward if you let the shoulder blades spread and the shoulders roll in at the bottom of each rep, the neck and upper traps if you shrug the rings apart, and the lower back if your hips sag out of line.

Keep the shoulders down and away from the ears, move slowly on the way back down, and keep your body rigid from head to heels. Keep the arms at shoulder height as they open, and stop short of the widest point if that end position pinches the top of the shoulder.

To make it easier, stand more upright, raise the rings, or learn the pattern with a Band Pull Apart or a Lying Prone T Raise. To progress, walk your feet farther forward, slow the lowering phase, or pause for a second or two in the T position at the top.

Stop if you feel sharp pain in the front or top of the shoulder, a pinch as the arms open, or numbness or tingling down the arm. Anyone with a recent rotator cuff strain or ongoing shoulder pain should get clearance from a physical therapist before loading this movement.

Overview

Primary Focus: Shoulders
Equipment: Rings and body weight
Modality: Strength
Difficulty: Beginner

Alternative Exercises

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: How is the Ring Reverse Fly different from a ring face pull or a ring row?: In the reverse fly your arms stay straight and sweep out to the sides into a T, so the rear delts and the muscles between the shoulder blades do almost all the work. A Ring Face Pull and a Ring High Row bend the elbows and pull the rings toward you, which lets the biceps help (and in the row, the lats), so both usually allow a steeper lean than the straight-arm fly.
Q: How do I make the Ring Reverse Fly easier or harder?: Change your lean. Standing more upright with the rings set higher makes it easier, while walking your feet forward so you lean back further makes it harder, and a slow lowering phase or a pause at the top adds difficulty without changing your setup.
Q: Should my elbows be straight or bent?: Keep them straight, or with only a slight bend that stays fixed for the whole set. If the elbows bend and pull back during the rep, the movement becomes a row and the rear delts lose most of the work.
Q: Can I do this exercise on a TRX instead of rings?: Yes, the reverse fly on suspension straps is the same movement. Rings hang separately and turn freely, so each arm has to steady its own ring, while the handles of a suspension trainer usually sit a little closer together.
Q: How many sets and reps should I do?: Most trainees do 2 to 4 sets of 10 to 15 slow, controlled reps as accessory work near the end of an upper-body session. Choose a lean that lets you finish every rep with straight arms and a clear squeeze between the shoulder blades.