Face Pulls with Resistance Bands: Target Your Upper Back Muscles

Strength training has been part of my life for over 40 years. During that time, I’ve lifted weights to enhance my athletic performance, build aesthetic muscle, and compete in powerlifting. Now I’m in my 50s I strength train to preserve muscle, function, and health. And because I enjoy it!

However, what I don’t enjoy is shoulder pain.

While lifting weights provides a long list of health and fitness-related benefits (1), it can also take a toll on your joints. The shoulders are especially susceptible to aches and pains because they are so heavily involved in almost every upper body exercise you perform.

The good news is that prehab exercises may help prevent many injuries (2). For the shoulders, that invariably means doing plenty of horizontal pulling and external rotation training. In other words, train your rear delts, middle trapezius, rhomboids, and rotator cuff. This helps create more stable, balanced joints that are less prone to injury.

One of the best exercises for this purpose is cable face pulls. However, if you train at home, this exercise may be impractical. Still, this doesn’t mean you can’t train your horizontal pulling muscles.

Resistance band face pulls can be just as effective as the cable version, and for some exercisers, they may even be the best choice.

In this article, I explore why and how to do face pulls with resistance bands and reveal what makes it such a valuable alternative to cable face pulls.

Why Do Resistance Band Face Pulls Instead of Cable Face Pulls?   

While cable face pulls are a popular and effective exercise, there may be times when resistance band face pulls are better. Here is a list of reasons for choosing resistance band face pulls over the conventional version.

They Target the Same Muscles

Despite using different equipment, cable and resistance band face pulls both target the same muscles. These include:

• Posterior deltoids
• Trapezius
• Rhomboids
• Biceps
• Forearms
• Core

So, it doesn’t really matter which of these exercises you do, as they should be equally effective and offer almost all the same benefits.

Lack of Equipment

Working out at home offers many advantages, including privacy, low cost, and convenience. However, it may also mean you have to do without some of the equipment that gym users take for granted, such as squat racks and cable machines.

Thankfully, you can replicate most gym-based exercises with your body weight and a good set of resistance bands.

So, don’t let not having access to a cable machine stop you from doing face pulls. Grab your resistance band and pump rubber instead of iron. Research suggests resistance band training is as effective as conventional strength training (3).

Convenience

Prehab exercises often work best when you do them frequently, e.g., daily or every other day. This training frequency could be impractical, if not impossible if you don’t have easy access to a gym. And even if you go to a gym most days, you probably want to spend your valuable training time on more productive exercises, like deadlifts and bench presses.

Making resistance band face pulls your go-to horizontal pulling exercise means you can do them almost anywhere or anytime. As such, you have no excuse for not developing stable, balanced shoulders. You can even take your bands to work and do a few sets each day to break up long periods sitting at your desk.

Less Joint Stress

Most conventional strength training exercises involve a moment of inertia. In simple terms, this is the initial force needed to get a weight moving. This, in essence, “shock loads” your muscles, tendons, ligaments, and joints.

While overcoming inertia is part and parcel of conventional strength training, it could be an issue if you are suffering from joint pain.

In contrast, the load during resistance band exercises comes on gradually, and there is no moment of inertia to worry about. Instead, muscle tension increases as the band stretches, potentially putting less stress on your joints. That’s a valuable benefit if you are doing face pulls for prehab or rehab.

Related:

• Bench Press Shoulder Pain: Causes, Symptoms, and Tips on How to Prevent and Eliminate
• Shoulder Tendonitis: Symptoms, Causes, Treatment, and Prevention

It’s Easy to Adjust the Resistance

Most cable machines have selectorized weight stacks so you can quickly and easily change the resistance. However, you are stuck with the weight increments of the machine you are using, which, depending on the design, are usually jumps of 10-20 pounds.

In contrast, all you need to do to change the difficulty of resistance band face pulls is step forward or back. So, not only can you make instant changes to exercise intensity, but you can also make those adjustments as big or as small as you need.

While resistance band face pulls are a great exercise, there are also a couple of drawbacks to consider:

You Won’t Know How Much Resistance You Are Using

Most bands are graded as light, medium, or heavy resistance. They may also have an equivalent weight rating, but this depends on how far they are stretched. Consequently, there is no accurate way to determine how much resistance you are using. You may also find it hard to replicate loads from one training session to the next.

This issue makes quantifying your workout or measuring your progress almost impossible. However, provided you take your sets close to failure, it doesn’t matter if you do 10, 20, or 30 reps – your workout will still be productive (4).

Issues with Progression

You increase the tension of a resistance band by stretching it further. However, once you reach the maximum resistance level of a particular band, further progression requires purchasing stronger bands. This can be costly, and you could end up accumulating a whole lot of resistance bands that you no longer use.

Bands Have a Limited Lifespan

Even the best resistance bands wear out eventually. In many cases, you won’t know your band is worn until it snaps. This could derail your workout unless you have a spare band ready. It could even cause severe injury, especially to your face and eyes.

So, make sure you check your bands before using them, paying extra attention to where they connect to the handles. Don’t use any band that appears cracked or torn.

How to Do Resistance Band Face Pulls

Now you know why resistance band face pulls deserve a place in your workouts, let’s move on to how to perform this effective, accessible horizontal pulling exercise. Proper form will ensure you get the most from this movement.

1. Attach the center of your band to an eye-height anchor, e.g., a doorway anchor, post, or squat/power rack.
2. Hold one end/handle in each hand and extend your arms in front of you with your palms facing downward. Step back to tension the band.
3. Brace your core and pull your shoulders down and back.
4. Leading with your elbows, bend your arms, and pull your hands into the sides of your head. Keep your elbows level or slightly above shoulder height. Rotate your forearms upward to increase external rotation.
5. Extend your arms and repeat.

Pro tips:

• This exercise works best when done for medium to high reps with moderate to light resistance.
• Wrap the middle of your band with a washcloth or similar to reduce wear and tear.
• Drive your elbows back and squeeze your shoulders together to maximize muscle engagement.
• Raise your hands higher as you pull back to increase external rotation. Alternatively, keep your hands level with your shoulders to target your mid-back more.
• You can also do this exercise with a loop-type resistance band:

Resistance Band Face Pull Alternatives

Resistance band face pulls are a highly effective horizontal pulling exercise, but that doesn’t mean you need to do them all the time. Here are some alternatives you can use to keep your workouts productive and interesting:

1. Resistance Band Rear Fly

The resistance band rear fly is traditionally thought of as a posterior deltoid exercise – which it is. However, this movement also hits your mid-traps and rhomboids, just like banded face pulls. However, all the action occurs at the shoulders, and your biceps are not involved. So, while face pulls are a compound exercise, the rear delt fly is an isolation movement.

How to do it:

1. Attach the center of your band to a shoulder-height anchor, e.g., a doorway anchor, post, or squat/power rack.
2. Hold one end/handle in each hand and extend your arms in front of you with your palms facing inward. Step back to tension the band.
3. Brace your core and pull your shoulders down and back.
4. Keeping your elbows slightly bent but rigid, open your arms and pull your hands back to form a T-shape.
5. Return to the starting position and repeat.

2. Resistance Band Pull-Apart

No suitable place to anchor your band? No problem; you can still get a great rear-shoulder and upper-back workout without one. This is an excellent postural exercise that you can do anywhere and anytime. Keep a resistance band in your pocket so you never miss an opportunity to do some horizontal pulls.

How to do it:

1. Hold your resistance band with an overhand, shoulder-width grip.
2. Raise your arms in front of you at shoulder height.
3. Keeping your elbows slightly bent but rigid, open your arms and stretch the band out across your chest.
4. Return to the starting position and repeat.

3. Resistance Band YTAs

Horizontal pulling exercises are not the only way to build and strengthen your rear deltoids, trapezius, and rhomboids. This exercise involves three separate movements to hit your upper back and rear delts from multiple angles.

The name refers to the shape you make with your arms, so don’t worry if you mix up the movements and end up doing something a little different – this isn’t a spelling bee!

How to do it:

1. Attach the center of your band to a waist-height anchor, e.g., a doorway anchor, post, or squat/power rack.
2. Hold one end/handle in each hand and extend your arms in front of you.
3. Keeping your arms straight, pull your hands down and back to your hips to form an A-shape.
4. Return to the starting position and then open your arms and pull your hands back to form a T-shape.
5. Return to the starting position and then raise your arms up and out to form a Y-shape.
6. Repeat the entire three-move sequence for the required number of reps.

4. Banded Victory Raise

Are you looking for an exercise that enhances both shoulder aesthetics and function? Then this is the one for you! You can do banded victory raises with or without dumbbells, and it works all three deltoid heads, as well as your trapezius, rhomboids, and rotator cuff. This is a very functional, time-efficient workout for your entire shoulder complex.

How to do it:

1. Place a mini-band around your wrists and pick up two light dumbbells (optional).
2. Lift your arms forward and out to form a Y-shape above your head.
3. Lower your arms back down while maintaining outward pressure against the band.
4. That’s one rep – keep going!

5. Hand-Release Push-Ups

While hand-release push-ups don’t look anything like banded or cable face-pulls, they actually work some of the same muscles, as well as your pecs and triceps. This makes hand-release push-ups a very time-efficient total upper-body exercise. Plus, they ensure you use a full range of motion for your push-ups, making them a win-win exercise!

How to do it:

1. Adopt the push-up/high plank position with your arms straight, hands shoulder-width apart, core tight, and body aligned.
2. Bend your arms and lower your body to the floor.
3. Pull your elbows and shoulders back, and lift your hands a couple of inches off the floor.
4. Place your hands back down, push off the ground, and return to the high plank position.
5. Continue for the prescribed number of reps.

Conclusion

Take it from someone who knows: reoccurring shoulder pain is frustrating and debilitating. It can limit or stop your training and affect your ability to perform many activities of daily living. Even sleeping is a challenge when you have painful shoulders.

That’s why I’m such a strong believer in prehab – it can help you avoid shoulder pain in the first place.

Face pulls are an excellent exercise for better shoulder health. They’ll also help beef up your rear delts, mid-traps, and rhomboids.

While most people do them with a cable machine, resistance band face pulls are just as effective. However, because you can do them almost anywhere and anytime, most people find them more accessible and convenient.

Regardless of whether you do cable or resistance band face pulls, this exercise needs to be part of your training plan. Do 3-4 sets of 12-20 reps 2-3 times a week, and you’ll soon be on your way to stronger, more balanced, better-looking shoulders.

References:

1. Westcott WL. Resistance training is medicine: effects of strength training on health. Curr Sports Med Rep. 2012 Jul-Aug;11(4):209-16. doi: 10.1249/JSR.0b013e31825dabb8. PMID: 22777332.
2. Porter T, Rushton A. The efficacy of exercise in preventing injury in adult male football: a systematic review of randomized controlled trials. Sports Med Open. 2015 Dec;1(1):4. doi: 10.1186/s40798-014-0004-6. Epub 2015 Jan 20. PMID: 27747841; PMCID: PMC4532702.
3. Lopes JSS, Machado AF, Micheletti JK, de Almeida AC, Cavina AP, Pastre CM. Effects of training with elastic resistance versus conventional resistance on muscular strength: A systematic review and meta-analysis. SAGE Open Med. 2019 Feb 19;7:2050312119831116. doi: 10.1177/2050312119831116. Erratum in: SAGE Open Med. 2020 Sep 9;8:2050312120961220. PMID: 30815258; PMCID: PMC6383082.
4. Lasevicius T, Ugrinowitsch C, Schoenfeld BJ, Roschel H, Tavares LD, De Souza EO, Laurentino G, Tricoli V. Effects of different intensities of resistance training with equated volume load on muscle strength and hypertrophy. Eur J Sport Sci. 2018 Jul;18(6):772-780. doi: 10.1080/17461391.2018.1450898. Epub 2018 Mar 22. PMID: 29564973.

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