Pendlay Row
Muscles worked: Back (assisted by biceps, rear delts, traps).
How to do it
- Holding a barbell with a pronated grip (palms facing down), bend your knees slightly and bring your torso forward, by bending at the waist, while keeping the back straight until it is almost parallel to the floor.
- Now, while keeping the torso stationary, breathe out and lift the barbell to you.
- Then inhale and slowly lower the barbell back to the starting position.
- Repeat for the recommended amount of repetitions.
Coaching cues
The two cues IronPack shows on this exercise's card mid-workout:
- Bar starts dead on the floor each rep
- Torso parallel, explosive pull to the chest
Logging it
IronPack suggests working in the 5 to 8 rep range, progressing in 2.5 kg jumps when you own the top of the range. Records are tracked automatically at every rep count from 1 to 12. Check your estimated 1RM from any hard set.
Related exercises
- Deadlift - back, glutes
- Pull-Up - back
- Chin-Up - back, biceps
- Lat Pulldown - back
Track the pendlay row properly
IronPack logs every set, tracks your records at every rep count, shows these form photos mid-workout, and turns the training into a card game you play with your mates.
Get IronPack free on the App StoreFree download, iPhone. Currently on the New Zealand App Store, wider rollout to follow.
Photos and steps: free-exercise-db (public domain). Cues, muscle weighting and logging guidance are IronPack's own app data. Last generated 2026-07-17.