Towel Door Row

How to perform the Towel Door Row

1. Use a closed door that opens away from you, and loop a thick towel around the handle on the far side so both ends reach you.
2. Hold one end in each hand, walk your feet forward until the towel is taut, and lean back with your arms straight.
3. Set your body in a straight line from heels to head, feet near the door, with the glutes and trunk braced.
4. Pull your chest toward the door handle by driving the elbows back past your ribs and squeezing the shoulder blades together.
5. Lower slowly until the arms are straight again, keeping the towel taut for the whole set.
6. Step your feet closer to the door to make it harder, or farther back to make it easier.

Suggested working range: 8–15 reps. Default progression: double progression.

Common mistakes

• •Hanging the towel on a door that opens toward you, or one that is not fully latched.
• •Letting the towel go slack at the bottom so the back stops working between reps.
• •Pulling with the arms and bending the elbows out wide rather than driving them back past the ribs.
• •Letting the hips pike or sag instead of keeping the heels-to-head line.

Variations & alternatives

Swap in one of these when the equipment is taken or the main lift has stalled.

Conventional Deadlift

Back · Barbell

Barbell Row

Back · Barbell

Pull-Up

Back · Bodyweight

Lat Pulldown

Back · Machine

Seated Cable Row

Back · Cable