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Exercise library · Shoulders

Band rear delt fly

Rear delt work for the shoulders with a resistance band.

How to do it

1 of 3

Band in front of your chest

  1. Starting position

    Stand firmly and hold a band between your hands with your arms nearly straight in front of your chest.

  2. The movement

    Pull your hands apart and move your arms out to the sides, then return slowly in front of your chest.

Most common mistake

Don't bend your elbows further during the movement, keep your arms nearly straight and pull the band apart.

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Muscle group
Shoulders
Equipment
Resistance band
Where
Home or gym
Logged as
Reps

Muscles worked

The band rear delt fly, often called the band pull-apart, trains the back of your shoulders, along with the middle trapezius and rhomboids between your shoulder blades. The external rotators of the shoulder help keep your arms in position. Grip width sets the difficulty: the closer together your hands hold the band, the further it has to stretch. You can also pull the band apart diagonally, one hand up and the other down, switching sides every other rep.

Common mistakes

  • Arching at the end of the pull. As the band gets heavy, it is tempting to push your ribs forwards and arch your lower back. Hold your ribs down and brace lightly, and use a lighter band if that is not enough.
  • Shoulders hunched and rolled forwards. Your upper trapezius then takes over. Start every rep with your shoulders down, and let your shoulder blades slide together as your arms move out.
  • A grip too narrow for the band. Your arms never reach out to the sides, and every rep becomes half a movement. Move your hands apart until you can pull the band all the way in towards your chest.

Variations and alternatives

  • The rear delt fly is the same movement with dumbbells and your torso hinged forwards, a natural next step once the band is too easy.
  • The cable rear delt fly trains one arm at a time in the gym, useful if one side lags behind.
  • Reverse snow angels are done lying face down, for sessions with no band at all.

Sets and reps

This exercise handles high reps well, and two to four sets of 15 to 25 suit most people. It takes little time and almost no equipment, so many people slot a set into the rest between sets of a pressing exercise. The guide to sets and reps goes into more detail.

The simplest way to progress is your grip: move your hands a little closer together on the band. When you cannot bring them any closer without losing form, it is time for a stiffer band, and you start again with a wider grip. More reps or a short pause with the band against your chest also work, in line with progressive overload.

Swap for

Taken, or missing the equipment? The same movement with something else.

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