10 Best Skin The Cat Alternatives for Scapular Strength

If you can't perform Skin The Cat, use progressions that train shoulder flexion, scapular depression/retraction, and thoracic mobility. Try ring or bar Australian pull-ups with controlled scapular movement — cue a long spine and depressed scapula while tucking the elbows — to load the upper-back without full inversion.

Original Exercise: Skin The Cat

Skin The Cat
Primary Muscle
Upper-back
Equipment
Body-weight
Difficulty
Intermediate
Type
Compound
Secondary Muscles: Shoulders, Core
How to Perform Skin The Cat
  1. Start by hanging from a bar with your arms fully extended and your body relaxed.
  2. Engage your core and lift your legs up, bringing your knees towards your chest.
  3. Continue to lift your legs up and over your head, allowing your body to pass through the arms.
  4. Once your legs are fully extended over your head, begin to lower them back down towards the starting position.
  5. As you lower your legs, allow your body to pass back through the arms until you are hanging with your arms fully extended again.
  6. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

Best Skin The Cat Alternatives

Best Match
Back Lever

1. Back Lever

84.7% Match
Upper-back Body-weight Advanced Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Start by hanging from a pull-up bar with an overhand grip, hands slightly wider than shoulder-width apart.
  2. Engage your core and pull your shoulder blades down and back.
  3. Bend your knees and tuck them towards your chest.
  4. Slowly lift your legs up, keeping them straight, until your body is parallel to the ground.
  5. Hold this position for a few seconds, then slowly lower your legs back down to the starting position.
Elbow Lift - Reverse Push-up

2. Elbow Lift - Reverse Push-up

79.6% Match
Upper-back Body-weight Intermediate Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Start by lying face down on the ground with your legs extended and your hands placed directly under your shoulders.
  2. Engage your core and press through your palms to lift your upper body off the ground, keeping your elbows close to your sides.
  3. Pause at the top for a moment, squeezing your upper back muscles.
  4. Slowly lower your body back down to the starting position.
  5. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.
Elevator

3. Elevator

78.8% Match
Upper-back Body-weight Intermediate Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and your knees slightly bent.
  2. Place your hands on your hips or cross them in front of your chest.
  3. Keeping your back straight, slowly bend forward at the waist, lowering your upper body towards the ground.
  4. Pause for a moment at the bottom, then slowly raise your upper body back up to the starting position.
  5. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.
Cable Upper Row

4. Cable Upper Row

71.9% Match
Upper-back Cable Intermediate Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Attach a straight bar to a cable machine at chest height.
  2. Stand facing the machine with your feet shoulder-width apart.
  3. Grasp the bar with an overhand grip, hands slightly wider than shoulder-width apart.
  4. Keep your back straight and your core engaged.
  5. Pull the bar towards your upper chest, squeezing your shoulder blades together.
Barbell Pendlay Row

5. Barbell Pendlay Row

69.9% Match
Upper-back Barbell Advanced Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and your knees slightly bent.
  2. Bend forward at the hips, keeping your back straight and your chest up.
  3. Grasp the barbell with an overhand grip, slightly wider than shoulder-width apart.
  4. Pull the barbell towards your upper abdomen, squeezing your shoulder blades together.
  5. Lower the barbell back down to the starting position.
Barbell Bent Over Row

6. Barbell Bent Over Row

69.3% Match
Upper-back Barbell Intermediate Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and knees slightly bent.
  2. Bend forward at the hips while keeping your back straight and chest up.
  3. Grasp the barbell with an overhand grip, hands slightly wider than shoulder-width apart.
  4. Pull the barbell towards your lower chest by retracting your shoulder blades and squeezing your back muscles.
  5. Pause for a moment at the top, then slowly lower the barbell back to the starting position.
Barbell Incline Row

7. Barbell Incline Row

65.9% Match
Upper-back Barbell Intermediate Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Set up an incline bench at a 45-degree angle.
  2. Lie face down on the bench with your chest against the pad and your feet flat on the ground.
  3. Grasp the barbell with an overhand grip, slightly wider than shoulder-width apart.
  4. Keep your back straight and your core engaged.
  5. Pull the barbell towards your chest, squeezing your shoulder blades together.
Ez Bar Reverse Grip Bent Over Row

8. Ez Bar Reverse Grip Bent Over Row

65.3% Match
Upper-back Ez-barbell Intermediate Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and knees slightly bent.
  2. Hold the ez barbell with an underhand grip, palms facing up, and hands shoulder-width apart.
  3. Bend forward at the hips, keeping your back straight and chest up, until your torso is almost parallel to the floor.
  4. Pull the ez barbell towards your lower chest, squeezing your shoulder blades together.
  5. Pause for a moment at the top, then slowly lower the ez barbell back to the starting position.
Dumbbell Reverse Grip Row (female)

9. Dumbbell Reverse Grip Row (female)

65.3% Match
Upper-back Dumbbell Intermediate Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and knees slightly bent.
  2. Hold a dumbbell in each hand with an overhand grip, palms facing your body.
  3. Bend forward at the waist, keeping your back straight and your core engaged.
  4. Let your arms hang straight down, fully extended, with a slight bend in your elbows.
  5. Pull the dumbbells up towards your chest, squeezing your shoulder blades together.
Bodyweight Standing Row

10. Bodyweight Standing Row

65.1% Match
Lats Body-weight Beginner Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and knees slightly bent.
  2. Grasp a bar or handles with an overhand grip, palms facing down.
  3. Keep your back straight and core engaged.
  4. Pull the bar or handles towards your body, squeezing your shoulder blades together.
  5. Pause for a moment at the top of the movement.

Why You Might Need a Skin The Cat Alternative

You might substitute Skin The Cat due to limited shoulder ROM, prior rotator cuff or labral issues, lack of rings, or simple programming preferences. Skin The Cat stresses glenohumeral rotation, scapulothoracic rhythm, and requires thoracic extension, which can overload unstable shoulders. Alternatives reduce rotational shear, emphasize eccentric control, or isolate scapular depression and retraction to develop same upper-back musculature safely. For instance, perform slow eccentric ring pull-throughs while initiating movement from the scapula and keeping the elbows tucked to train lower trapezius and rhomboids without full inversion.

How to Choose the Right Substitute

Match the substitute to the movement pattern, joint stress, and equipment you have. If your priority is scapular control and upper-back hypertrophy, choose exercises that bias scapular depression and retraction and allow progressive overload. Use cues like pull the scapula down and back, maintain thoracic extension, and perform 3–5 second eccentrics to increase time under tension and rotator cuff engagement. If mobility limits range, start with partial-range ring rows or band-assisted pull-throughs and advance to deeper ranges as passive shoulder rotation and thoracic extension improve. Also consider grip type, load progression, and pain response when selecting the best option.

Frequently Asked Questions

What muscles does Skin The Cat work?

Skin The Cat primarily trains the upper-back: lower and middle trapezius, rhomboids, posterior deltoids, and latissimus dorsi, with secondary rotator cuff activation for shoulder stability. Keep the scapula retracted and depressed through the motion to emphasize lower trap and rhomboid engagement and reduce unwanted glenohumeral shear.

What is the best bodyweight alternative to Skin The Cat?

A strict ring or bar Australian pull-up with controlled scapular pull and a slow eccentric is the best bodyweight alternative because it trains the same scapular mechanics without inversion. Cue a long spine, depressed scapula, and 3–5 second lowerings to maximize upper-back and rotator cuff activation.

Can I build muscle without doing Skin The Cat?

Yes. You can build the same upper-back mass with progressive overload using variations like weighted pull-ups, tempo-controlled ring rows, and eccentric-focused bar pull-throughs. Emphasize scapular retraction and slow eccentrics (3–5 seconds) to increase mechanical tension on the rhomboids, traps, and posterior delts.

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