Chest · Cable
Cable Lying Fly
How to do the cable lying fly, the muscles it works, and the mistakes to avoid. Pulled straight from the Kovo app's exercise library.
- Equipment
- Cable
- Difficulty
- Intermediate
- Logged as
- Weighted reps
- Movement
- HorizontalPush
- Mechanic
- Isolation
How to do it
Set both pulleys low and lie on a flat bench positioned between them. Grip a handle in each hand and press them up over your chest, then open your arms wide in an arc with a slight elbow bend. Bring the handles back together over your chest and repeat.
- 1Chest stretching as your arms open wide at the bottom
- 2Mid-chest squeezing as the handles meet over your chest
- 3A fixed elbow angle held through the full arc
Common mistakes
- Pressing with bent elbows instead of flying
- Dropping your arms so low the shoulders strain
- Clanging the handles together with momentum
Muscles worked
The cable lying fly mainly works the mid chest, with the front delts, upper chest, lower chest, and internal rotators assisting.
- Mid ChestPrimary
- Front DeltsSupport
- Upper ChestSupport
- Lower ChestSupport
- Internal RotatorsSupport
- ForearmsMinor
Kovo programs the cable lying fly for you and tracks it every session.
We build your whole program, drop the right lifts into each workout, and adjust your weights as you get stronger. Free on iOS and Android.
More chest exercises
- How to do the archer push-up
- How to do the assisted dip
- How to do the resistance band chest flyes
- How to do the resistance band push-up
- How to do the barbell bench press
- How to do the paused bench press
Last reviewed June 2026.