Lying Cable Fly

How to do the Lying Cable Fly

1. 1Attach the handles to the cables and lie flat on a bench with your feet flat on the ground.
2. 2Hold the handles with your palms facing each other and your arms extended straight above your chest.
3. 3Keeping a slight bend in your elbows, lower your arms out to the sides in a wide arc until you feel a stretch in your chest.
4. 4Pause for a moment, then squeeze your chest muscles to bring your arms back to the starting position.
5. 5Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

Tip: Imagine hugging a barrel rather than pushing a weight.

Muscles worked

Common mistakes

• Elbows bending as you tire — this turns a fly into a press; set the elbow angle at the start and keep it constant for the whole set.
• Going too heavy — flies are a stretch and squeeze movement, not a strength lift; you should be able to pause at the bottom without the shoulders rolling forward.
• Stopping short of the stretch — let the arms open until you feel the chest or rear delts lengthen, then bring them back under control.
• Not squeezing at the finish — the last few inches are where the muscle shortens most, so hold the contraction for a count before opening again.

Where it fits in a workout

Flies are an isolation movement for after the pressing or rowing is done. Pair a chest fly with a rear delt fly for a balanced superset.

How many sets, how heavy and how hard: see what the ACSM position stands support.

Variations and alternatives

When to talk to someone

• Chest discomfort, feeling faint or lightheaded, or trouble breathing during or after exercise can be signs of a heart attack. In the US, call 911 right away; elsewhere, call your local emergency number.
• Heart, metabolic or kidney disease, or symptoms like these when you are active: talk to your doctor before you start or step up training.
• Pregnant: ask your obstetric care provider which exercise suits you.

More exercises

• All chest exercises
• All cable exercises
• Cable chest exercises
• Band Rear Delt Fly
• Low to High Cable Crossover
• Mid Cable Crossover
• Single Arm Bent Over Cable Fly
• Bent over Cable Rear Delt Fly
• High Crossover Cable Rear Delt Fly

Sources

1. ACSM position stand on exercise quantity and quality (Garber et al., 2011)
2. ACSM preparticipation health screening (Riebe et al., 2015)
3. ACOG Committee Opinion No. 804 on exercise in pregnancy (2020)
4. CDC: About Heart Attack Symptoms, Risk, and Recovery (2024)

Sources checked on October 17, 2026. Full citations are in the exercise library.