Rope Cable Curl (High Pulley)

Also known as: rope high cable curl, rope cable curl, cable rope curl, cable curls with rope, rope cable high curl, high pulley rope curl

In SetGrip: Cable High Curl (Rope)

Secondary muscles
Forearms, Delts
Body part
Upper Arms
Position
Standing
Laterality
Bilateral (both sides together)
Category
Strength

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Despite living among the pulldowns, this one is a biceps movement: standing at a high pulley, you curl a rope toward your forehead with the upper arms held high. The overhead cable line keeps tension on the biceps at peak contraction, where dumbbell curls go slack, so keep the weight light and squeeze every rep.

How to do the Rope Cable Curl (High Pulley)

  1. Attach a rope to the cable machine at the highest setting.
  2. Stand facing the machine with your feet shoulder-width apart and take a step back.
  3. Grasp the rope ends with a neutral grip, palms facing each other, and raise your arms so your upper arms point toward the pulley.
  4. Keep your back straight, your core engaged and your upper arms still.
  5. Bend your elbows to curl the rope toward your forehead, squeezing your biceps.
  6. Pause for a moment, then slowly straighten your arms back to the starting position.
  7. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

Tip: Pull the elbows toward your hips, not the bar toward your chin.

Muscles worked

Primary

Biceps · Arms

The biceps bend the elbow and take a bigger share with an underhand grip; if they tire before the lats, widen the grip or use a neutral handle.

Secondary

  • Forearms — Grip endurance can limit heavy sets, so use straps if the hands give out first.
  • Delts

Common mistakes

  • Rowing the bar — a slight lean is fine but if the torso swings past 30 degrees you are rowing, not pulling down; sit tall and let the elbows travel straight down.
  • Pulling behind the neck by accident — unless you are deliberately training the behind-the-neck version light with good shoulder mobility, bring the bar to the top of the chest and no further.
  • Starting with the arms — initiate by pulling the shoulders down away from the ears, then let the elbows follow.
  • Stack slamming on the return — control the bar all the way back up until the arms are straight and the lats are stretched.

Where it fits in a workout

Pulldowns go after pull-ups or as the main vertical pull if you cannot do pull-ups yet. Superset with a straight arm pulldown or cable row on the same stack.

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

Variations and alternatives

Similar exercises

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.

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More exercises

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.

Animation and exercise data: ExerciseDB, licensed to SetGrip. General information, not medical or coaching advice.