The cable seated twist is an exercise targeting the abdominal muscles, particularly the obliques, using a cable machine. It involves rotating the torso while seated, providing resistance throughout the movement.
Also Works
Obliques
How to Perform
1
Sit on a cable machine with your feet flat on the ground and your knees slightly bent.
2
Hold the cable handle with both hands and extend your arms straight in front of you.
3
Keeping your core engaged, slowly rotate your torso to one side, pulling the cable across your body.
4
Pause for a moment at the end of the range of motion, then slowly rotate back to the starting position.
5
Repeat on the other side.
6
Continue alternating sides for the desired number of repetitions.
Pro Tips
•Sit upright with your chest lifted and rotate from your thoracic spine, not by pulling with your arms.
•Keep your arms extended and locked in position so the rotation comes entirely from the core.
•Use a slow, controlled tempo and pause for one second at the end of each twist to maximize oblique activation.
Common Mistakes
•Pulling the cable with the arms instead of rotating the torso, which turns it into a pulling exercise rather than a core rotation.
•Allowing the hips to rotate along with the torso, which means the spine is not actually twisting and the obliques are not being challenged.
•Using too heavy a weight, which makes it impossible to control the rotation and leads to jerky, momentum-based reps.