Seated Row Pull
The seated row pull is a horizontal pulling exercise, usually done on a cable machine, in which you pull a handle toward the torso while seated with the legs braced. It trains the mid-back, lats, rear shoulders, and biceps and is the horizontal pull in the NSW guide's upper body list.
How to Perform It
Sit at the row station with your feet on the platform and knees slightly bent. Hold the handle with the arms extended and the torso upright, chest tall. Pull the handle to the lower ribs by driving the elbows back and squeezing the shoulder blades together, then return the handle under control until the arms are straight and the shoulder blades open. Keep the torso still through the whole rep instead of rocking back and forth to move the weight. The guide's prescription is one set of 8 to 12 reps with a weight that cannot be lifted more than 8 to 12 times with maximal effort and proper technique.
Why It Matters for BUD/S
The mid-back muscles that the row builds are the ones that hold the shoulder blades in place during push-ups, keep the upper back from rounding during long carries, and pull the body through the water on every stroke. The guide asks that upper body training alternate pushing exercises with pulling exercises across several muscle groups. The row is the pulling partner of the bench press, and together they keep the shoulders strong in both directions, which matters for injury prevention under the volume BUD/S imposes. Stronger rowing also transfers to pull-ups because the same back muscles and elbow flexors do the work.
Where It Sits in the 26-Week Plan
The seated row belongs to the Upper/Core session on Monday and Friday in every week of the 26-week schedule. Sessions hold 8 to 12 exercises with one set each and fast transitions between stations. A common order pairs the row right after the bench press so a push is followed by a pull. Progress across the program by adding weight once 12 reps are clean, then working back up from 8. The guide's exercise list is a suggestion rather than a rule, so a bent-over dumbbell row or a chest-supported row works as a substitute when a cable station is not available.
Finish each rep with the shoulder blades squeezed together and the chest up. Let the arms straighten fully so the back stretches before the next pull.
Related Terms
Upper body strength training in the NSW preparation program targets the major pulling and pushing muscle groups through compound barbell and dumbbell exercises. These sessions complement the calisthenics work (push-ups, pull-ups) by building the raw strength that supports higher-rep endurance performance.
The lat pulldown is a cable machine exercise in which you pull a bar down to the upper chest from an overhead position. It is the first exercise in the NSW guide's upper body list and the closest weighted match to the pull-up, which the PST scores as a maximum-rep event.
The bench press is a horizontal pushing exercise performed lying on a bench, pressing a barbell or dumbbells from the chest to arm's length. The NSW guide lists it with the incline press as an alternative, and it is the main chest and triceps builder in the upper body list.
Pull-ups are an upper-body calisthenics exercise and one of the five scored events in the Physical Screening Test (PST). Unlike push-ups and sit-ups which are timed, PST pull-ups are performed as a single max-effort set with no time limit, testing absolute upper-body pulling strength and endurance.
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