Cable Machine Advantages Most Bodybuilders Underuse

You probably don't use cable machines as much as you could be. When you use cables instead of free weights, your muscles stay tight throughout the whole movement. Plus, they're easier on your joints, so you can safely train until you fail. You can work on weak spots, reach muscles that barbells can't reach, and make sure your growth is balanced.

Why Constant Tension Builds Muscle Free Weights Can't​

Free weights naturally lose their resistance near the top or bottom of most movements. For example, a dumbbell curl loses its tension as it gets close to full contraction, and a bench press loses its load as it gets close to lockout.
The way cable resistance works is different. The weight stack pulls through a fixed line instead of straight down. This keeps the cable tension constant throughout the whole range of motion, even at the points where free weights would normally loosen up, when you're trying to keep a certain muscle moving without any help from movement or joint position.
You can change where the tension feels the strongest by changing your stance or the direction of the cable during exercise. As soon as you start to notice it, this is one of the best things about cable machines.

Why Cables Are Easier on Your Joints​

Cable resistance doesn't fall straight down as free weights do at the bottom of a squat or when you press all the way up. Your joints don't have to deal with the sudden loads that free weights do at those points. Because the resistance curve is smoother, a cable machine can keep the tension the same without putting your joints in dangerous positions when they are under a lot of stress.
When you push close to failure, your shoulders, elbows, and knees will feel less stressed. This joint comfort doesn't mean less work gets done. Because tension stays active throughout the range of motion, you still get a lot of muscle growth. When you mix up your cable exercises, you can change the angles to avoid painful situations while still working out hard. This means that you can keep up resistance training for a long time without losing intensity or progress.

Fix Your Weak Points With Cable Exercises​

When you want to work on a muscle group that isn't moving as well as the rest of your body, cables let you do it directly without having to rely on momentum or lift heavy things at weird angles. That's when cable machine isolation comes in handy. You can change the angle of your cable workouts so that they hit a muscle in a way that makes it work hard instead of letting bigger muscles do the work.
That's why bodybuilders love cable workouts for strengthening parts of the body that aren't working as well as they should. You can fine-tune your range of motion with lateral raises, rear delt pulls, and single-arm presses until the muscle you want to work feels the stress.
When you use cables to choose exercises, you don't have to guess what to do. You can change the way you're set up until weak spots start to respond to focused, consistent work.

Target Muscles From Every Angle With Cables​

Not only can cables fix weak spots, but they also let you change the angle of the cables, which is something that barbells and dumbbells can't do. You can move in more than one direction when you use a cable machine for exercise. Change the height of the pulley to do a high-to-low chest press, an upward fly, or a straight-on row. Each change affects the muscle in a different way.
In weightlifting, this is where cable range of motion really comes in handy. Cables let you change angles during your workout without having to switch spots like most gym equipment does. Because of this, working out with a cable machine can hit muscles in ways that free weights can't easily do. This will help you build more muscle over time.

Add These Cable Moves to Your Workout Split​

As soon as you understand how changes in rope height and angle affect tension, it's time to use what you've learned with specific moves. To build thickness in the middle of your back while keeping tension on your lats, start with wire rows set at chest height. Before you do cable curls, switch to a low pulley system. This will make your arms work through a wider range of motion than a dumbbell does. Start with high-to-low cable flyes to work the lower chest muscles. Next, use a low pulley for shoulder-width and switch to lateral raises. You can finish with face pulls and rope triceps pushdowns to finish off your pressing and pulling balance. Change the attachments and positions on these once a week to keep your muscles adapting.

 

[bigdave]

A cable attachment on my rack was the best upgrade I’ve made. It’s cheaper than buying a bunch of machines and you can do almost anything with it.

 

[marlene_fit]

Rows at three pulley heights are basically three exercises. High hits my upper back, mid builds thickness, and low hits my lats. I used to rotate machines for this, and now I just move the pin.