13 of the Most Perplexing Exercise ‘Cues’ and What They Really Mean

You shoulder blades are those weird-shaped bones on your back that can move around as you move your arms. (Scapula is the medical term.) When you do exercises that involve pulling your arms toward your torso, like rows, you usually want your lats—your latissimus dorsi—to do the work.

To set up the right position for this, you’ll want to contract your back muscles in a way that brings your shoulders down and slightly back. Imagine the butt pockets on a pair of jeans, and try to slide your shoulder blades down into them. In the process, you’ll end up contracting your lats, and also tightening a bunch of the less-famous shoulder and back muscles that are part of the team here.