How many sets of the cable incline fly should you do when you are new to the exercise?

Run it after your pressing for three sets of 12 to 15. Because the cable holds tension at the top where dumbbells give it up, the same number on the stack feels heavier: start one or two plates below what you would guess. Pause where the handles meet for a full second before you add load, since the setup is fiddly enough that you want to earn every jump.

What can I do instead of the cable incline fly if no cable station is free?

An incline dumbbell fly is the direct swap, with the trade-off that the dumbbells stop resisting once your hands meet. At home, anchor a band low behind an incline bench, or sit back against a chair and pull two band ends up and together along the same diagonal.

What is the cable incline fly for, and when is it not worth the setup?

It is upper-chest isolation with tension that never drops off, including the fully squeezed position, so it suits hypertrophy work after pressing. It is not worth the setup in a busy gym, where you tie up a cable station and a bench for a light accessory. As your only chest work it falls short too, since nothing about it builds pressing strength.

Intermediate

Cable Incline Fly

Lying back on an incline bench inside a cable station gives you the upper-chest stretch of an incline fly plus the constant tension cables provide from bottom to top, including the fully squeezed position where dumbbells go slack. Bracing against the bench removes the balance work of a standing fly, so you can focus on a clean adduction. Use it to add quality upper-chest volume after pressing.

Equipment: Bench, Cables
Body part: Chest
Type: Strength
Browse by muscle: Pectoralis Major Clavicular
Browse by movement: Horizontal Adduction

How to do it

1
Set both pulleys low and place an incline bench at about 30 to 45 degrees between them.
2
Grab a handle in each hand and lie back with arms out to the sides, elbows softly bent.
3
Pin your shoulder blades to the pad and feel a stretch across the upper chest.
4
Keep the elbow angle fixed and sweep both handles up and together over your upper chest.
5
Squeeze at the top where the handles nearly meet.
6
Lower under control back to the stretched position along the same arc.

Tips

Keep a soft, unchanging bend in the elbows; do not press the handles.
Let the hands travel up and in on a diagonal to follow the upper-chest fibers.
Go lighter than you press with, since the long lever makes flyes deceptively hard.

Variations

Common mistakes

The bench sits too far forward of the pulleys, so at the bottom the cables pull your arms toward your head instead of out to the sides; slide it back until the cable lines up with your arm.
At the stretched position the stacks touch down and the tension disappears for a beat; leave a plate of travel underneath so the cable stays loaded through the whole arc.
Both feet push into the floor, which slides your shoulders up the pad and shortens the arc; keep light pressure through the feet and let the blades stay where you set them.
Once one side tires, the stronger arm reaches the top first and the handles arrive unevenly; end the set when your hands stop meeting together.
Loading the stacks with what you use for a dumbbell fly is too much here, because the cable keeps pulling at the top where dumbbells go slack.

Frequently asked

How many sets of the cable incline fly should you do when you are new to the exercise?: Run it after your pressing for three sets of 12 to 15. Because the cable holds tension at the top where dumbbells give it up, the same number on the stack feels heavier: start one or two plates below what you would guess. Pause where the handles meet for a full second before you add load, since the setup is fiddly enough that you want to earn every jump.
What can I do instead of the cable incline fly if no cable station is free?: An incline dumbbell fly is the direct swap, with the trade-off that the dumbbells stop resisting once your hands meet. At home, anchor a band low behind an incline bench, or sit back against a chair and pull two band ends up and together along the same diagonal.
What is the cable incline fly for, and when is it not worth the setup?: It is upper-chest isolation with tension that never drops off, including the fully squeezed position, so it suits hypertrophy work after pressing. It is not worth the setup in a busy gym, where you tie up a cable station and a bench for a light accessory. As your only chest work it falls short too, since nothing about it builds pressing strength.

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