Standing Cable Fly: Video Exercise Guide & Tips - Muscle & Strength

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Exercise Profile
  • Target Muscle GroupChest
  • Exercise TypeStrength
  • Equipment RequiredCable
  • MechanicsIsolation
  • Force TypePush (Bilateral)
  • Experience LevelBeginner
  • Secondary Muscles Shoulders, Triceps
Target Muscle Group

Chest

Chest Muscle Anatomy Diagram

Standing Cable Fly Overview

The standing cable fly is a variation of the chest fly and an exercise used to strengthen the pushing muscles of the body including the chest, triceps, and shoulders.

The standing cable fly can be tough to overload as it requires a great deal of core stability, so it is probably best used as an accessory movement for those looking to increase their chest muscle mass.

This movement can be included into your chest workouts, push workouts, upper body workouts, or full body workouts.

Standing Cable Fly Instructions

  1. Set both pulleys directly at (or slightly above) shoulder height and select the desired weight.
  2. Grasp both handles with a neutral grip and take a step forward to split the stance.
  3. Press the handles to lockout while flexing the pecs and extending the elbows.
  4. Keep a slight bend in the elbows, move entirely at the shoulder joint, and slowly allow the arms to open while the pecs stretch.
  5. Return to the starting position by flexing your pecs and bringing the handles together at chest height.
  6. Slowly lower back to the starting position and repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

Standing Cable Fly Tips

  1. Imagine you’re trying to hug a tree while completing the exercise.
  2. Don’t squeeze the handles excessively tight as this can over recruit the forearms and biceps thereby reducing activation of the pecs.
  3. Avoid touching or banging the handles together at peak contraction to keep constant tension on the intended muscle groups.
  4. Always keep a slight bend in the elbows and never lower the weight to the point where you get any sort of pain and pressure at the front of the shoulder joint.
  5. Ensure you maintain some tension in your abs and don’t allow your lower back to arch excessively.
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Notify me when new comments are posted All comments Replies to my comment Jesse Sinclair Posted on: Sun, 03/26/2023 - 23:25

I’m starting the 6 day push pull leg power building program.

It states rep goal is 50 reps x 5 sets I feel like this is a lot? Or am I missing something Same with a few other excersises aswell

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M&S Team Badge Roger Posted on: Thu, 03/30/2023 - 15:54

That is for 50 total reps over 5 sets. So, 10, 10, 10, 10, 10 would be 50. That is how that program works. Same with the other movements. It's total reps, not for each set. Hope this helps.

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Fredrick Posted on: Thu, 10/24/2019 - 16:30

Can I do these with dumbbells

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josh Posted on: Tue, 08/23/2016 - 11:00

When I do these i feel my shoulders tighten up and my chest gets soft. Obviously I'm not doing these correctly, any advice?

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Chris Dabel Posted on: Tue, 04/10/2018 - 15:45

Make sure to retract your shoulder blades. Pull your shoulders back and then down.

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Josue Posted on: Sun, 01/05/2014 - 16:31

Can I do Pec-decs instead of this exercise?

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Justin Posted on: Mon, 01/07/2013 - 08:44

Dumbell Flyes

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Paul Posted on: Fri, 01/04/2013 - 10:18

What can I do instead of the cable cross over?

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Q Posted on: Sun, 01/06/2013 - 22:30

Paul, you can do dumbbell flys instead of cable crossovers. Here's a link to show you how to do dumbbell flys: https://www.muscleandstrength.com/exercises/dumbbell-flys.html

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Paul Posted on: Thu, 12/13/2012 - 02:02

What can I do instead of the cable cross?

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mary giordmaina Posted on: Fri, 09/14/2012 - 15:24

My 11 year old son has a sunken chest due to marfan syndrome. He is interested to build and improve his chest to avoid surgery later in life.What set of chest exersizes are fit for him.

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dennasd Posted on: Sun, 10/07/2012 - 15:04

You really should go to a profesional therapist for this.. but I hope you already did since you posted this comment a month ago.

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gursewak Posted on: Mon, 10/27/2025 - 07:58

what is his progression, is he alright after and doing great or not,

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  • reply
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