9 Best Band Pull Apart Alternatives To Work Rear Delts

Band Pull Aparts are an extremely popular supplemental exercise for shoulder development. They’re easy to learn, beginner-friendly and are one of the most effective exercises for focusing on the posterior deltoid.

However, sometimes you may need an alternative for Band Pull Aparts.

Maybe you don’t have a resistance band or maybe you’re just looking to add some variety to your workouts.

Whatever the reason, if you’re looking for an exercise to substitute for Band Pull Aparts then you’re in the right place. I’m about to share with you 7 of my favorite Band Pull Apart alternatives.

Alternatives for Band Pull Aparts

I’ve tried to include as much variety in this list of alternatives as possible.

There are exercises that utilize all kinds of different equipment – dumbbells, resistance bands and even one that doesn’t require any equipment at all.

What all these exercises have in common, though, is that they are all target and emphasize the rear delt and rotator cuff muscles.

Dumbbell Rear Delt Raise

The first exercise on my list of Band Pull Apart alternatives is one of my favorite exercises to work the rear delts, the Dumbbell Rear Delt Raise.

Incredibly simple and extremely effective, it’s an exercise that is a staple in my programming.

Equipment Needed

• Dumbbells*
• 5 or 10-pound iron plates*

*Either is fine for most lifters. Advanced lifters may want dumbbells heavier than 10 pounds.

Step-by-Step Instruction

• Grab your dumbbells (or plates) and bend at the waist until you are close to perpendicular to the floor.
• I recommend slightly bending the elbow and keeping your palms facing each other. As you execute the movement, the palms will face the floor.
• Initiate the movement by bringing your arms out to the side and squeezing the shoulder blades.
• Pause at the top of the movement for about 1 second.
• Slowly lower your arms back to the starting position.

Coaching Points

In the setup, be sure to bend at the waist enough so that you are perpendicular as much as possible.

When doing Rear Delt Raises, the burn should be felt in the upper back and rear shoulders. If your setup is too vertical, you may feel the burn in the traps or medial delts.

Don’t hitch (bounce) into lockout. If you find yourself using your torso to hitch, go down in weight. The emphasis here is on time under tension and quality movement still matters.

Cable Rear Delt Raise

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If you have access to a cable machine, you can give the Cable Rear Delt Fly a shot. Same movement pattern as the dumbbell version, just with a different piece of equipment.

Both variations are great options to replace Band Pull Aparts.

Equipment Needed

• Cable Machine
• Single Handle Attachment

Step-by-Step Instruction

• Grab the single handle attachment with the hand away from the machine and bend at the waist until you’re torso is close to perpendicular to the floor.
• I recommend slightly bending the elbow and keeping your palm facing in. As you execute the movement, the palm will face the floor.
• Initiate the movement by bringing your arm out to the side and squeezing the shoulder blades.
• Pause at the top of the movement for about 1 second.
• Slowly lower your arms back to the starting position.

Coaching Points

Cable Rear Delt Raise can be done with one arm at a time or, if you have a double tower, both arms at the same time.

In the setup, be sure to bend at the waist enough so that you are perpendicular as much as possible. In this movement, the burn should be felt in the upper back and rear shoulders. If your setup is too vertical, you may feel the burn in the traps or medial delts.

Band Face Pulls

Band Pull Aparts and Band Face Pulls are extremely similar exercises.

Both exercises target the rear delts, both utilize a resistance band and both are incredibly easy to set up and execute, even for beginners.

Equipment Needed

• Resistance Band
• Something sturdy to anchor the band to (Squat Rack is perfect for this)

Step-by-Step Instructions

• Loop a resistance band around the vertical beam of a squat rack at shoulder height.
• Grab the band with an overhand grip, hands roughly 3 inches apart.
• Stand far enough away from the rack to get tension on the band.
• Set feet shoulder-width apart, stand tall and brace the core.
• Pull the band directly towards the chin.
• Control the band back to the starting position and repeat.

Coaching Points

The key to Band Face Pulls is figuring out the proper distance away from the rack to stand.

This will depend upon your strength and the strength of the band you are using. You want to be far enough away from the rack to create good resistance, but not so far that you can’t complete the reps with good form.

Don’t rush. This is an exercise that it’s easy to speed through it and just go through the motions. Focus on each rep and the contraction at the top of the rep.

Cable Face Pulls

If you don’t have resistance bands, you can try Cable Face Pulls.

Same basic concept and movement pattern, just with a cable machine instead.

Equipment Needed

• Cable Machine
• Rope Attachment (can also be done with a straight bar attachment)

Step-by-Step Instructions

• To begin, adjust the cable machine to a high setting and attach a rope attachment to the pulley.
• Stand facing the cable machine with your feet shoulder-width apart and grasp the rope with both hands, using a neutral grip (palms facing each other).
• Extend your arms in front of you so that the rope is taut, and step back slightly to create tension in the cable.
• Engage your core and maintain a neutral spine as you pull the rope towards your face, keeping your elbows wide and your hands level with your ears.
• As you pull the rope towards your face, squeeze your shoulder blades together and imagine that you are trying to pinch a quarter between your shoulder blades.
• Hold the contraction for a moment, then slowly release the tension in the cable and return to the starting position.
• Repeat the exercise for the desired number of repetitions.

Coaching Points

Be sure to maintain good form and avoid using momentum to swing the weight. If you find yourself rocking forward and back, lighten the weight.

Keep your chest up and avoid rounding your shoulders forward as you perform the exercise.

Focus on squeezing your shoulder blades together and engaging your upper back muscles, rather than just pulling the weight with your arms.

Experiment with different grip positions (narrow, neutral, wide) to target different muscles in your upper back and shoulders.

Scap Pushups

Much less range of motion than the other Band Pull Apart alternatives, but Scap Pushups are simple, focused and don’t require any equipment at all.

Equipment Needed

• None

Step-by-Step Instructions

• Scap Pushups begin with the athlete in a push-up position.
• Hands should be directly under the shoulders. The body should be in a straight line, core engaged.
• Retract the shoulder blades by actively lowering the chest and allowing the shoulder blades to slide together.
• Now protract the shoulder blades by elevating the chest, essentially trying to ‘reach’ the upper torso toward the sky.
• Arms should stay straight throughout the movement.

Coaching Points

Do NOT rush through Scap Pushups.

Yes, the longer you hold the position the more challenging it is on not only your shoulders but your core as well. This is part of the point of the exercise is to continue forcing the body to stabilize once fatigue starts to set in. Embrace that aspect of the movement.

Keep your arms straight!

Easily the biggest mistake I see with athletes with Scap Pushups is wanting to bend the arms on the scap retraction. Keep the arms straight and focus on the movement of the shoulder blades.

A, Y, Ts

This combo of three different movements might be the most effective Band Pull Apart alternative.

It works the rear delt from multiple angles and will have your shoulder and rotator cuff muscles on fire.

Equipment Needed

• Very light dumbbells (typically 3lb or 5lb) OR Weight Plates (typically 2.5lb or 5lb)
• Adjustable Bench

How To

• Adjust a bench up to about 30 degrees and grab two light weight plates.
• Lay on your stomach with your head hanging off the top of the bench.
• Set up in the starting position by engaging the lats and pulling the shoulder blades together.
• Now, keep the arms straight and raise the plates overhead (like the A in YMCA).
• Lower back down under control and complete 10 reps.
• Once all reps are done immediately begin doing Ys by raising the plates at a 45-degree angle, thumbs pointed toward the ceiling.
• Once you’ve completed ten Ys, finish with 10 Ts.
• Ts are done by raising the arms straight to the side, thumbs still pointing up.

Coaching Points

Keep the shoulder blades pulled back, but do not shrug up. Shrugging up takes the emphasis away from the focus of A, Y, Ts.

Stay in control of each rep. Do not allow weights to be swung up and down.

Cable Upright Row

Yet another cable exercise, Cable Upright Rows are most effective as a Band Pull Apart replacement if you take an extra step away from the machine.

This gives you a slightly more horizontal rowing angle and will do a good job of working the rear delt.

Equipment Needed

• Cable Machine

Step-by-Step Instructions

• Attach a straight handle* to a cable machine and lower the attachment pin to the bottom of the beam.
• Grab the handle with an overhand grip and stand tall, handle starting right in front of the thighs.
• Flex knees slightly and stand upright with good posture.
• Pull the cable handle upward along the abdomen and chest toward the chin.
• At the top, the elbow should be higher than the wrist, and above the shoulders.
• Lower the handle under control back to the front of the thighs.
• Do not ‘jerk’ or ‘rock’ the weight up and keep the handle close to the torso throughout.

Coaching Points

*You can use multiple different attachments other than a straight handle. The Rope Attachment is another popular attachment for cable upright rows.

Big 30

Equipment Needed

• Dumbbells

Step-By-Step Instructions

• Start in a standing position, feet shoulder-width apart, dumbbells in hand.
• Begin by doing 10 Dumbbell Front Raises.
• Once those reps are completed immediately transition into 10 Dumbbell Lateral Raises.
• Once those reps are completed immediately transition into 10 Rear Delt Raises.

Coaching Points

The key to the exercise is to do each exercise back-to-back-to-back with no rest in between and without sitting the dumbbells down until all reps are completed.

Because all three exercises are done in a row you’ll need to use a lighter weight than you would doing each individually.

Reverse Pec Deck Fly

To be honest, I’ve never really been a big fan of the peck deck machine. Whether it’s for Chest Fly or Rear Delt Fly, I’ve always preferred other exercises (any exercise) instead.

However, you may find yourself in a hotel gym one day staring at a stationary bike and universal machine and it’s time to figure something out.

If that sounds familiar, then by all means, hammer out a set of Reverse Pec Deck Fly or two. Might as well hit some Chest Flys while you’re at it too!

Final Thoughts

The Band Pull Apart is an excellent exercise for shoulder development, but sometimes Band Pull Aparts just aren’t an option.

You may not have a resistance band available to you or at other times you might just be looking to add some variety to your shoulder routine.

In these situations, you’ll need a Band Pull Apart alternative and I hope that one of the exercises I’ve listed here fits what you were looking for.

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