Training guide
A renegade row is a row from a high plank: your hands on two dumbbells or kettlebells and your feet wide, you row one weight to your ribs while the other arm and your feet hold your body still, then swap. It's a plank and a row at once, and in our view your plank, not your back, decides how heavy you can go.
Nobody has studied the renegade row itself, so this guide uses what studies of planks, push-ups and one-arm rows show: rowing with one arm makes your trunk fight the twist, holding a plank raises your blood pressure, and how your wrists bend changes the load on them. The doses and the ladder here are our editorial starting points.
It covers the steps on the 3D figure, easier versions, dumbbells or kettlebells, your wrists, how heavy and how many, and who should swap it for something else.
From a high plank on two dumbbells or kettlebells, row one weight to your ribs without letting your hips turn, lower it, then row the other side. The American Council on Exercise (ACE) adds a push-up between rows and rates it advanced; a National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA) article lists it among the complex rows.
We found no study of the renegade row's muscle activity, spine load, wrist load or training effect. One small report in 10 archers had no comparison group. Everything below comes from studies of planks, push-ups and one-arm rows.
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Rowing with both arms drew only 37 to 41% of the side-trunk (external oblique) activity of rowing with one in 15 trained men, and one-arm dumbbell presses worked the obliques far harder than two-arm presses. In push-ups, holding yourself on one arm gave the highest spine load of the styles tested in 10 people.
Use light weights: your plank, not the row, sets the limit (our editorial view). Feet wider than your hips are steadier, and hex dumbbells or kettlebells that sit flat won't roll, as the move page says. Keep your hands under your shoulders, as ACE describes.
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Gripping the handles keeps your wrists straight. In 8 donated wrists, a bent-back push-up position raised pressure in part of the wrist joint, and in 14 volunteers force passed more evenly through a straight wrist. The evidence is mixed (see below), but handles suit most healthy wrists.
Once a straight-arm plank is steady, start with 2 sets of 6 to 8 each side and end each set when your hips start to turn (our editorial starting point). Blood pressure climbs in a plank, so keep sets short and breathe. Leave it out with heart failure, as the British Heart Foundation advises for planks, and in the first weeks after a birth, when the NHS advises avoiding planks to start with.
A row from a push-up plank: one hand presses its weight into the floor while the other rows its weight up beside your ribs, your hips staying level and square to the floor. The move page and our 3D figure use two kettlebells; ACE's version uses dumbbells and adds a push-up between each pair of rows. People also call it the plank row or the push-up row.
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The rowing arm's lats, middle back, rear shoulder and biceps; the supporting arm's chest, shoulder and triceps; and your trunk, which stops your body twisting towards the lifted side and sagging. No study has measured it, but one-arm rows worked the obliques at the sides of the trunk far harder than two-arm rows.
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"A solid plank and the supported single-arm row", as the move page puts it: in practice, 3 straight-arm plank holds of 30 seconds with your hips level, and one-arm rows on a bench without twisting. ACE rates it advanced and the NSCA calls it complex, so start with the knees-down version.
Everyone's body weight goes through their hands in a plank, so larger bodies carry more through the wrists and shoulders; wider feet make it steadier for everyone. Wrist and shoulder comfort varies: handles keep your wrists straight, and a bench under your hands takes some weight off. Row only as high as you can without your hips turning (our view).
From the move page's steps and cues ("Widen the feet to steady the hips"; "Hold the plank first; only the row moves") and ACE's set-up. The figure uses kettlebells; hex dumbbells work the same way. The bracing and breathing cues follow our plank and breathing guides; the counting and stopping rules are editorial.
Loading the 3D figure…
The movement on the figure: Renegade row
We searched the research and found no study of muscle activity, spine load, wrist load or controlled training in the renegade row. The one training report we found had 10 female archers do renegade rows 3 times a week for 18 sessions; a push-and-pull test rose from 38.5 to 43.9 points, but with no comparison group it shows nothing any training wouldn't.
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In 15 trained men, two-arm rows drew only 37 to 41% of the external oblique activity of one-arm rows. In 15 men, external oblique activity was about 81% lower seated and 68% lower standing in two-arm than one-arm dumbbell presses, and in 11 adults one-arm chest presses raised the activity of all the trunk muscles measured. A renegade row loads one arm at a time from a plank, so it very likely asks a lot of the obliques (our reading; untested).
In 10 fit university-age adults doing up to 12 push-up styles, the one-arm push-up gave the highest compression of the lower spine, and staggered hands switched which side of the abs worked harder. A renegade row has you on one arm for each row, so it isn't a gentle exercise for the back (our reading).
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In 62 healthy adults (average age 27, about half of them women) holding a plank until they tired, 97% passed the study's safety limit for the lower blood pressure number (115 mmHg) after about 50 seconds; nobody came to harm. Holding your breath under load drives blood pressure higher still. Keep sets short and breathe out on every row.
Muscle activity measured in one session isn't a validated predictor of muscle growth, so none of these studies shows what renegade rows build over months.
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Our editorial ladder: work up when the step you're on is steady. The knee plank, 3 holds of 15 to 30 seconds (our plank challenge workout), or the knee hover, 3 holds of 15 to 30 seconds (its move page's dose); the straight-arm plank, 3 holds of 15 to 30 seconds (its move page's dose); plank walk-ups, 3 sets of 6 to 10 (our plank challenge workout), for shifting your weight between arms; the one-arm row on a bench, 3 sets of 10 to 12 each side (our pull day workout B), for the row; then the renegade row, first with your knees down and then on your feet, 2 to 3 sets of 6 to 8 each side (our editorial starting point; the move page gives no dose); and finally ACE's version with a push-up between each pair of rows, 2 to 3 sets of 4 to 6 rounds (our editorial starting point).
3D demoKnee plankBeginner · No equipment
3D demoKnee hover (Pilates tabletop hover)Beginner · No equipment
3D demoStraight-arm plank (high plank)Intermediate · No equipment
3D demoPlank walk-upAdvanced · No equipment
3D demoSupported single-arm dumbbell rowIntermediate · A dumbbell + A bench or box
3D demoRenegade rowAdvanced · A kettlebell
3D demoPush-upIntermediate · No equipmentNone of these has its own 3D demo: follow the renegade row on the figure with the change described.
The same row from a kneeling plank, the easiest version. The NSCA article lists a "dumbbell quadruped row (on knees)" as an intermediate row, a step before the renegade row.
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Grip the dumbbells on a sturdy bench so your shoulders are higher than your feet; like an incline plank, it takes weight off your hands (our suggestion).
Wider is steadier; bring your feet in to make it harder once 3 sets of 8 each side are steady (our suggestion).
ACE's version: a push-up from the dumbbells, then a row with each arm. Our push-up guide teaches the push-up.
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One hand on the floor or a block and one on a single kettlebell, rowing one side at a time; finish one side, then swap (our suggestion).
A gorilla row rows two weights alternately from a bent-over stance, not a plank, as our Pendlay row guide explains.
In 8 donated wrists, a push-up with the wrist bent back raised pressure in one part of the joint. In 14 volunteers, force passed more evenly through a straight wrist, which the authors judged likely safer, and in 14 men a straight wrist moved load from the elbow to the shoulder. But in 6 donated wrists with an existing ligament injury, the straight position widened the gap between two wrist bones more. So handles suit most healthy wrists; with a known wrist ligament injury, follow your hand therapist.
Grip the middle of the handle with your wrist straight, go lighter, put your knees down or your hands on a bench, and warm up your wrists first. Our wrist pain in push-ups and planks guide has a staged plan.
The supporting shoulder carries a lot in each row. Press the floor away so your upper back doesn't sag, as our plank guide cues, and stop if a shoulder pinches. After a recent dislocation, leave out holding your weight on one arm until your shoulder guide or physiotherapist says so.
Their flat sides stop them rolling, and the handles keep your wrists straight. Round dumbbells can roll under your hand: avoid them here (our view).
They work if they sit flat and steady, as the move page warns; a tall, narrow bell can tip as you press into it. Our figure uses kettlebells.
Light: much lighter than your one-arm row. If your hips twist to finish a rep, the weight is too heavy for now (our editorial rule).
Widen your feet, use a lighter weight and row a little less high, as the move page's cues suggest.
End the set, rest, and go back to the knees-down version, as our plank guide does for a sagging plank.
Use hex dumbbells or bells that sit flat.
Grip the middle of the handle with a straight wrist, or go lighter.
Lower each weight under control and set it down before you shift your weight.
Breathe out as you row. Holding your breath drives blood pressure up sharply in hard efforts, as our breathing guide explains.
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No study has tested renegade row doses. These are our editorial starting points, matching our dumbbell row and plank guides and our plans.
Straight-arm planks, 3 holds of 15 to 30 seconds (the move page's dose), until 3 holds of 30 seconds stay level, as our plank guide moves people on.
The knees-down renegade row, 2 sets of 6 to 8 each side, light (our editorial starting point).
2 to 3 sets of 6 to 8 each side, stopping 2 or 3 reps short or when your hips start to turn (our dumbbell row guide's editorial 2 sets, with a third set added). You don't need to reach failure: it added a trivial amount of growth at most across 15 studies, and people misjudge the reps they have left by about one.
About 90 seconds, as our plans advise for compound moves; resting more than about a minute gave a small growth benefit in a review of 9 studies.
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Add reps up to 10 each side, then bring your feet closer, then use the next weight, then add the push-up (our editorial order, in the plans' reps-then-load pattern). Adding reps and adding load both worked in 43 trained people.
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Once or twice a week as part of your core or upper-body work (our suggestion; our plank guide puts core work at 2 or 3 times a week). The NHS asks for strength work on at least 2 days a week.
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3 to 5 minutes of easy movement, wrist circles and rocks, and a few scapular push-ups, then a light first set, as our plans and the NHS suggest.
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For building your back, the one-arm row on a bench lets you row heavier and progress; the renegade row adds a plank, so it trains your trunk more and your back less (our view). Our dumbbell row guide covers it.
A renegade row is a straight-arm plank with a row added: harder for your trunk, and harder to keep short and breathing. Our plank guide covers holds.
ACE's renegade row includes one. Our push-up guide covers the push-up and its wrist advice.
Both train your trunk against twisting or bending sideways without loading your wrists: good partners or swaps. Our Pallof press and side plank guides cover them.
A longer chain that adds a squat, clean and press to the renegade row; it's a conditioning exercise, and we have no guide to it.
Warm up with the wrist and forearm flow, 60 seconds, and quadruped wrist rocks, 10 rocks each hand position (our wrist and forearm routine), and scapular push-ups, 10 reps (our dumbbell upper body workout). Train the rest of your trunk with side planks, 2 sets of 20 to 30 seconds each side (our full-body dumbbell workout B), the half-kneeling Pallof press, 2 sets of 8 to 10 each side (our full-body gym workout B), dead bugs, 2 sets of 6 to 8 each side (our full-body gym workout), bear crawls, 4 crawls of 8 to 10 metres (the move page's dose), and suitcase carries, 2 walks of 20 to 30 m each side (our dumbbell leg workout B).
3D demoWrist & forearm flowBeginner · No equipment
3D demoQuadruped wrist rocksBeginner · No equipment
3D demoScapular push-up (push-up plus)Beginner · No equipment
3D demoSide plankIntermediate · No equipment
3D demoHalf-kneeling Pallof pressBeginner · A band + An anchor point
3D demoDead bugBeginner · No equipment
3D demoBear crawlIntermediate · No equipment
3D demoSuitcase carryIntermediate · A dumbbell + A kettlebellNone of our workouts includes renegade rows yet. Build the base with our plank challenge workout; the advanced core and full-body dumbbell B workouts suggest them as an option once a straight-arm plank is steady; the oblique workout trains the same anti-twist job without loading your wrists; and our kettlebell workout has the one-arm row.
A 12-minute plank session for the 30-day plank challenge: front planks that get harder, not longer, plus side planks and bird dogs for the whole trunk.
12 minBeginner12 movesNo equipmentHard core training: ab wheel rollouts, hanging leg raises, L-sits, Copenhagen planks, plank walk-ups and dragon flags.
30 minAdvanced6 movesAn ab wheel, Pull-up barHome dumbbell workout B: reverse lunges, push-ups, bent-over rows, single-leg glute bridges, lateral raises and side planks.
35 minIntermediate11 movesA wall, A dumbbellA 25-minute oblique workout at home: side planks, a band Pallof press and a suitcase carry to hold your trunk steady, then slow Russian twists and side-lying crunches.
25 minIntermediate8 movesA band, An anchor pointA 30-minute full-body kettlebell workout: deadlifts, swings, cleans, presses, rows, halos and carries.
30 minIntermediate9 movesA kettlebell, A dumbbellLeave renegade rows out. The British Heart Foundation advises people with heart failure to avoid lifting heavy weights, holding their breath and "using your whole body as a weight, such as press-ups or planks".
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Blood pressure climbs in a plank. Keep sets short, breathe out on every row, use the knees-down version, and get advice first if your blood pressure is uncontrolled. The American Heart Association calls low- to moderate-intensity strength training with proper breathing safe when blood pressure is controlled.
Eye pressure rose during planks in healthy volunteers, as our plank guide explains: ask your eye team before long plank-based sets.
The NHS advises trying to avoid exercises such as sit-ups, planks and high-impact exercises to start with, and seeing your GP if the gap between your tummy muscles is still obvious 8 weeks after the birth. Our diastasis recti guide brings planks back in stages; renegade rows come after full planks feel solid (our view).
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Don't start renegade rows new in pregnancy: the NHS doesn't recommend starting new vigorous activity. If you already do them, move to the knees-down version and then to a one-arm row with a hand on a bench as your bump grows. A pregnancy charity advises avoiding exercises where a weight could hit your bump or you could lose your balance and fall. Stop if your tummy bulges into a ridge, as our plank guide says.
After an umbilical or incisional hernia repair, leave planks out at first and build up through gentler core work, as our hernia guide says. With a hernia, leave out any move that makes it bulge.
Use the forearm plank and a one-arm row on a bench instead, and see our wrist pain in push-ups and planks guide or our shoulder pain guide.
If you get chest pain or pressure, feel faint or dizzy, are unusually breathless, or your heart races or beats irregularly during exercise, as our plans advise. The American Heart Association says these need immediate medical evaluation.
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For chest pain that comes on suddenly and doesn't go away, feels tight or like squeezing, spreads to your arms, neck, jaw, stomach or back, or comes with sweating, feeling sick, light-headedness or breathlessness; severe difficulty breathing; someone who faints while exercising; palpitations that don't go away, or come with chest pain, shortness of breath or feeling faint; or a headache that starts suddenly and is extremely painful, especially while lifting or straining, or comes with numbness or weakness, difficulty speaking or loss of vision. The NHS says a bleed on the brain may be more likely when lifting something heavy. Don't drive yourself to A&E.
Call 999 or go to A&E: loss of feeling or numbness around the genitals or bottom, new trouble peeing or controlling your bladder or bowels, changes in genital sensation during sex or problems with erections or orgasm, or pain, tingling, weakness or numbness in both legs. These are signs of cauda equina syndrome, which needs treating in hospital urgently. Don't drive yourself.
Same day (GP or NHS 111): back pain and you feel hot, cold, shivery or generally unwell, or severe pain that starts suddenly or is getting worse quickly.
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See a GP if wrist pain stops normal activities, is getting worse or keeps coming back, hasn't improved after 2 weeks of treating it at home, or comes with tingling or loss of feeling in your hand or wrist. Contact NHS 111 for severe wrist pain, a snap, grinding or popping noise at the time of an injury, a wrist you can't move or hold things with, a wrist that has changed shape or colour, or lost feeling in part or all of your hand.
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Ask for an urgent GP appointment or get help from NHS 111 for sudden or very bad shoulder pain, an arm you can't move, a shoulder that has changed shape or is badly swollen, pins and needles that don't go away, no feeling in your arm or shoulder, an arm or shoulder that's hot or cold to touch, pain after an injury or a fall, or severe pain in both shoulders. Go to A&E if, after an injury, you can't move your arm or your shoulder looks out of place or has changed shape. See a GP if shoulder pain is getting worse or hasn't improved after 2 weeks.
See a GP if you think you have a hernia, a bulge or lump that may get bigger when you strain and smaller when you lie down. Get help from NHS 111 if you have a hernia and pain in or around it, a bloated tummy, you feel or are sick, you're vomiting blood or your vomit looks like coffee grounds, you're constipated, you have a high temperature or feel hot, cold or shivery, or you've suddenly become confused. Call 999 or go to A&E for a femoral hernia (a small lump at the top of your thigh, in your groin) with very bad tummy pain, sickness, being unable to fart or poo, a high temperature or sudden confusion.
Speak to your GP first if you haven't exercised for some time or have medical conditions or concerns, as the NHS advises. Get advice before heavy lifting or hard straining work if your blood pressure is uncontrolled, or you have heart disease or chest pain when you're active, a pacemaker or defibrillator, diabetic eye disease, glaucoma, a hernia, recent eye or tummy surgery, or you're pregnant, as our breathing guide lists. After a recent shoulder dislocation or shoulder surgery, follow our shoulder dislocation guide or your surgical team first.
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No study has compared renegade rows with a plank or any other trunk exercise. One-arm loading raises the work at the sides of your trunk, and holding yourself on one arm raises the load on your spine, so it's demanding; but muscle activity isn't growth, and our plank guide explains that core exercise helps back pain about as much as other exercise, not more. A good harder plank, not the best anything.
Your plank, not your back, sets the weight (our view). For back size, use rows you can load and progress, such as the one-arm or chest-supported row, and count renegade rows mainly as trunk work.
Ab and core exercises don't remove the fat over your abs, as our plank and get abs guides explain. Your overall activity and eating decide that.
Strengthening programmes, rows among them, improved measured forward-shoulder angles in the 18 trials that measured them (of 28 small trials, 901 people, in the review), but their effects on pain and function were inconsistent, and strengthening changed upper-back and neck posture in a review of 23 studies. We found no trial of rows on their own, and a review of 41 reviews found no consensus that posture causes back pain. Heavy loads aren't needed either. Row because it builds your back; our rounded shoulders guide covers what posture work can change.
Across 15 studies, training to failure gave a trivial growth advantage at most. In a renegade row, failing means your plank collapses: stop while your hips are still level.
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Get into a high plank with your hands on two dumbbells or kettlebells and your feet wider than your hips. Row one weight to your ribs without letting your hips turn, lower it, then row the other side. Use a light weight.
The rowing arm's back, rear shoulder and biceps, the supporting arm's chest, shoulder and triceps, and your trunk, which has to stop you twisting and sagging. No study has measured the exercise itself; one-arm rows work the sides of the trunk harder than two-arm rows.
They're a demanding plank: holding yourself on one arm makes your trunk fight the twist. Nobody has compared them with a plank or other core exercises, so they're one good option, not the best.
Either, if they sit flat. Hex dumbbells won't roll, and kettlebells must be steady enough not to tip as you press into them. Avoid round dumbbells.
Usually your wrists are bending back over the handles, or the weight is too heavy for your plank. Keep your wrists straight, go lighter, or put your knees down. Severe pain, a popping noise at the time of an injury or a wrist you can't move needs NHS 111.
Put your knees down, widen your feet, use a lighter weight, or put your hands on a bench. Practise straight-arm planks and one-arm rows on a bench first.
Light: much lighter than your one-arm row. Your plank sets the weight, so if your hips twist to finish a rep, it's too heavy for now.
Start with 2 sets of 6 to 8 each side, stopping when your hips start to turn, with about 90 seconds' rest, building to 3 sets. These are our editorial starting points; no study has tested renegade row doses.
That's ACE's version: a push-up, then a row with each arm. Add it once 3 sets of 8 rows each side are steady.
Don't start them new in pregnancy. If you already do them, move to the knees-down version and then to a one-arm row with a hand on a bench as your bump grows, since a weight could knock your bump or you could lose your balance.
For your back, the one-arm dumbbell row on a bench, because you can row heavier and progress. The renegade row adds a plank, so it trains your trunk more and your back less.
Not at first: the NHS advises avoiding planks to start with after a birth. Our diastasis recti guide brings planks back in stages, and renegade rows come after full planks feel solid.
Exercise education, not a personal prescription, and clinical review of these guides is pending. Check with a GP before starting hard training if you have a heart condition, chest pain, dizziness or breathlessness when active, and stop for sharp or increasing pain. Health disclaimer.
