Renegade Row
Muscles Worked: Renegade Row
The Renegade Row mainly works your lats and the rest of your back because each rep is a one-arm row done while you fight to keep your torso from twisting. Your biceps and rear delts help pull the dumbbell up, while your abs brace hard to keep your ribs down and hips level. Your forearms also work overtime because you have to grip one dumbbell while balancing on the other. If you do it well, you should feel your mid-back and abs working together more than your lower back, which fits the broad strength and function benefits seen with resistance exercise.
Technique and form
How to perform the Renegade Row
- Assume a push-up position with feet hip-width apart, placing your hands on two dumbbells positioned directly under your shoulders.
- Engage your core and squeeze your glutes to maintain a straight line from your head to your heels, ensuring your hips don't sag or pike up.
- Shift your weight slightly to your left side while maintaining your plank position, keeping your body as stable as possible throughout the movement.
- Row the right dumbbell up toward your hip, keeping your elbow close to your body and your wrist straight throughout the movement.
- At the top of the movement, squeeze your right shoulder blade toward your spine, maintaining tension in your back muscles.
- Lower the dumbbell back to the floor with control, fully extending your arm without allowing your torso to rotate.
- Shift your weight to the right side and repeat the rowing motion with your left arm, maintaining the same rigid plank position.
- Continue alternating sides for the desired number of repetitions, exhaling as you pull the weight up and inhaling as you lower it down.
Important information
- Keep your hips and shoulders square to the floor throughout the exercise, resisting the urge to rotate your torso as you lift.
- If you feel strain in your lower back, widen your stance or use lighter weights until your core strength improves.
- Focus on pulling with your back muscles rather than your arms by initiating the movement from your shoulder blade.
- Maintain a neutral neck position by looking at a spot on the floor about a foot in front of you rather than looking up or down.
Is the Renegade Row good for muscle growth?
Yes. The Renegade Row can help build muscle, especially in your lats, upper back, biceps, and abs, because every rep combines a hard row with a strong bracing demand. Resistance training improves strength and physical function across many settings, and exercises that challenge pulling strength plus trunk control can be a useful part of that mix.
- Built-in back tension — Because you row from a plank, your non-working side has to hold your body steady while the working side pulls. That extra demand can make lighter dumbbells feel harder than they do in a normal row, which is useful when you want more challenge without loading your lower back heavily.
- Abs work while you row — This is not just a back move. Your abs have to stop your torso from rotating and your hips from rocking side to side, so you train pulling strength and trunk stiffness in the same set. That makes it different from dumbbell-single-arm-bent-over-row, where you usually get more support.
- Great for fixing side-to-side gaps — Since you pull one arm at a time, you can spot if one side rows cleaner or stronger than the other. That makes the exercise useful for evening out imbalances before they show up in heavier rows like the bent-over-dumbbell-row.
- Best with clean reps, not sloppy load — Muscle growth comes from giving the target muscles enough hard work, not from twisting your whole body to move a heavier dumbbell. Exercise results depend on the movement you choose and how you load it, which is why exercise-specific training matters when your goal is building muscle in a certain area.
Programming for muscle growth
Do 3-4 sets of 6-10 reps per side with 60-90 seconds rest. Use a load that lets you keep your hips square and your body still, because once you start rotating, your back does less of the work. Train it 1-2 times per week after your main pulling exercise, or use it as your main row on days when you want more core work with less total weight.
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FAQ - Renegade Row
The Renegade Row primarily targets your latissimus dorsi (lats) while significantly engaging your triceps and anterior deltoids. Your core muscles work isometrically throughout the movement as they resist rotation, making this a true full-body compound exercise.
Beginners can perform the exercise with knees on the ground or using elevated handles for stability. To increase difficulty, advanced lifters can add weight, increase time under tension, or elevate feet on an unstable surface like a BOSU ball.
The three most common errors are rotating the hips during the row, allowing the lower back to sag, and using momentum instead of controlled pulling. Focus on keeping your body parallel to the floor with hips square throughout the entire movement.
For optimal results, incorporate Renegade Rows 1-2 times weekly, typically on upper body or full-body training days. Allow 48-72 hours between sessions that include this exercise to ensure proper recovery of the working muscles.
While Renegade Rows can strengthen core stabilizers that support the lower back, those with existing back conditions should start with modified versions and focus on perfect form. Consider consulting a physical therapist before adding this exercise if you have chronic back pain or injuries.
Renegade Row
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