Obliques · Isolation movement

Cable Woodchopper

An isolation exercise for the obliques, with the abs working too. You need a cable machine.

Primary muscle

Obliques

Secondary muscles

Abs

Equipment

Cable

Difficulty

Beginner

How to perform the Cable Woodchopper

Set a cable at a high pulley, stand side-on with feet shoulder-width, and grip the handle with both hands over your near shoulder.
This is a rotation and flexion movement powered by the obliques, so let the trunk turn rather than pulling only with the arms.
Brace the core, then pull the handle down and across the body toward the opposite hip by rotating the trunk, not just swinging the arms.
Let the back foot pivot as the hips and torso turn together, finishing with the handle outside the far hip and the abs crunched across.
Control the rotational stretch on the way back, letting the cable rotate the trunk back toward the starting shoulder.
Keep the arms fairly straight throughout so the obliques drive the chop, then repeat all reps before switching sides.

Suggested working range: 12–20 reps. Default progression: double progression.

•Pulling the handle across with only the arms while the trunk stays square and never rotates.
•Letting the lower back do the twisting instead of rotating through the ribcage and obliques.
•Bending the elbows and turning it into a lat pulldown rather than a rotational chop.
•Using so much weight that the torso gets yanked back around, losing control of the rotation.