TRX Row
What Is the TRX Row?
TRX Row is a compound exercise that primarily targets the back and also engages the rear deltoids, biceps and the core muscles that hold your body straight. It is a beginner-level movement done on a suspension trainer: you hold the handles, lean back from the anchor with your arms straight, and pull your chest up toward your hands.
The TRX Row is a horizontal pull that uses your own body weight as the load, and the angle you lean at sets how much of that weight you lift. That makes it one of the easiest rows to scale, from almost upright for a first session to leaning well back for trained lifters. It is a common choice in suspension circuits, home and travel workouts and upper-body warm-ups, and it pairs naturally with the TRX Chest Press to balance pushing and pulling on the same straps.
With a neutral grip and the elbows kept close to the ribs, most of the work falls on the lats, the middle of the trapezius and the rear deltoids, with the biceps and forearms bending the elbows. An EMG study of healthy adults doing the TRX low row from a 45-degree lean found the latissimus dorsi, middle trapezius and rear deltoids were the most active muscles, with the biceps working at a moderate level. Flaring the elbows out to shoulder height turns the movement into a high row, as in the Ring High Row, which moves more of the work to the upper back and rear deltoids. Rowing one arm at a time adds a strong anti-rotation demand on the trunk.
The TRX Row suits beginners, people returning to training and anyone who cannot yet manage a Barbell Inverted Row or a Pull-Up. It teaches the shoulder blades to pull back and down before the arms bend, which carries over to every other row and pulling exercise. If even a near-upright lean is too hard, build up with a Band Seated Row (Straight Back) first.
Muscles Worked
- Latissimus Dorsi
- Primary
- Upper Trapezius
- Primary
- Deltoid
- High
- Rhomboid Major
- High
- Teres Major
- High
- Biceps Brachii
- Medium
- Brachioradialis
- Medium
- Lower Trapezius
- Medium
Instructions
- Fix the suspension trainer to a secure overhead anchor and adjust both straps to the same length.
- Stand facing the anchor and hold one handle in each hand with a neutral grip, palms facing each other.
- Walk your feet forward toward the anchor with your feet together and heels on the floor, then lean back until your arms are straight and the straps are taut.
- Set your body in a straight line from head to heels by bracing your core and squeezing your glutes, with your arms extended in front of your chest.
- Pull your shoulder blades back and down, then bend your elbows and drive them back past your torso, keeping them close to your sides.
- Pull your chest up toward the handles until your hands reach the sides of your lower chest, keeping your body straight as it rises.
- Pause briefly and squeeze your shoulder blades together.
- Lower yourself under control until your arms are straight again, keeping tension on the straps.
- Walk your feet forward to make the next set harder, or step back to make it easier.
Common Mistakes
Sagging hips
Letting the hips drop out of the straight line from head to heels shifts load onto the lower back, so brace the core and squeeze the glutes, or step back to stand more upright.
Shrugging toward the ears
Pulling the shoulders up instead of back and down turns the rep into an upper-trap shrug and takes work away from the lats and middle back.
Leading with the chin
Pushing the head forward to reach the handles strains the neck and hides a short rep, so keep the neck long and bring the chest to the hands.
Flaring the elbows
Letting the elbows drift out wide changes this into a high row, so keep them close to the ribs and finish with the hands beside the lower chest.
Thrusting the hips to finish
Throwing the hips forward to get the chest up uses momentum instead of the back, which usually means the lean is too low for your current strength.
Dropping into the bottom
Falling back until the straps snap taut jerks the shoulders forward, so lower yourself under control and keep tension on the straps throughout.
Injuries
TRX Row is a low risk exercise when performed with proper technique. Your feet stay on the floor, the arms work in front of the body, and you can end a rep at any point by stepping your feet back under you. Most problems come from the setup or from losing the straight body line, not from the pull itself.
The main strain points are the lower back, the front of the shoulders and the elbows. If the hips sag or pike, the lower back and hips take load the trunk should be holding. Dropping quickly into the bottom lets the shoulders roll forward and jerks the front of the shoulder joint, and high volume with bent wrists or a tight grip can irritate the elbows and forearms. Before every session, check that the anchor is fixed to a solid beam, bar or door anchor on the closed side of a door, that the buckles are locked and that both straps are the same length, because uneven straps twist the body and load one shoulder more than the other.
To make the exercise easier, step back away from the anchor so you stand more upright, or build strength with a Band Seated Row (Straight Back). To progress, walk your feet forward toward the anchor so you lean back lower, pause at the top of each rep, move to a single-arm row, or switch to a Barbell Inverted Row or Feet Elevated Ring Row.
Stop the set if you feel sharp or pinching pain at the front or top of the shoulder, pain in the elbow, low-back pain you cannot remove by bracing and standing more upright, or numbness or tingling down the arm.
- Primary Focus
- Back
- Equipment
- Suspension trainer and body weight
- Modality
- Strength
- Difficulty
- Beginner
Alternative Exercises
Other Names for the TRX Row
The TRX Row is also known as:
- TRX Low Row
Frequently Asked Questions
- Q: How do I make the TRX Row harder or easier?
Walk your feet forward toward the anchor to lean back lower and make it harder, or step back away from the anchor to stand more upright and make it easier. A study of static suspension rows found that as the straps got longer the body leaned lower and less of its weight pressed through the feet, so the lower your lean, the more of your body weight your arms pull.
- Q: Is the TRX Row good for beginners?
Yes. Standing close to upright, the load is a small share of your body weight, and you can make each set easier or harder just by moving your feet, which makes it a practical first pulling exercise.
- Q: Will the TRX Row help me do a pull-up?
It helps by building the lats, the upper back and the habit of pulling the shoulder blades back and down, but it is a horizontal pull. Pair it with vertical pulling such as the Assisted Pull-Up if a Pull-Up is your goal.
- Q: How is the TRX Row different from a Barbell Inverted Row?
In the TRX Row you start standing and lean back on straps that move freely, so you can set any angle and the handles let your wrists turn. In the Barbell Inverted Row you hang under a fixed bar with an overhand grip, which is usually harder and makes a good next step.
- Q: Why keep the elbows close to the body instead of out wide?
Driving the elbows back close to the ribs keeps the focus on the lats and middle back. Flaring them out to shoulder height turns it into a high row, which shifts more of the work to the rear deltoids and upper back.