The Single-Arm Cable Fly is a intermediate-friendly cable strength exercise that targets the chest, with the shoulders, triceps and abdominals working alongside. Here's how to do it right — and what to stop doing.
Primary musclesChest
Secondary musclesShoulders, Triceps, Abs
EquipmentCable
LevelIntermediate
TypeStrength
3D demo in the EGON app
01 Execution
How to do the Single-Arm Cable Fly
Set one pulley to roughly shoulder height and select a light load.
Take the handle in the hand furthest from the stack and step out until the cable is taut.
Move into a staggered stance with the outside foot forward and brace your abdominals.
Keep a soft bend in the working elbow and sweep the hand across your body to the midline.
Hold the contraction briefly without letting your torso rotate toward the pulley.
Let the arm travel back out under control until the chest lengthens, then repeat and switch sides.
02 The payoff
Why it earns its spot
Lets the hand reach the midline, giving a longer chest adduction range than a two-arm fly.
Trains one side at a time, which exposes and addresses side-to-side differences.
Recruits the abdominal wall to resist rotation while the chest does the pressing work.
03 Don't do this
Common mistakes
Letting the torso rotate toward the stack turns the exercise into a twist and takes tension off the chest.
Straightening and bending the elbow makes it a one-arm press, moving the work to the triceps.
Standing square with a narrow stance leaves no base, so the load pulls the hips out of position.
Overloading the working side forces the shoulder to finish the rep and shortens the adduction range.
EGON Put it on record
Track it in EGON.
Log every set of the Single-Arm Cable Fly, get your PRs detected automatically, earn aura for the work — and climb five leagues of statues, from Stone to Ego.
