Row machines feature one of three grip possibilities, each of which targets specific muscles. For example, rowing with a wide grip in which your palms are down and your elbows are away from the body focuses primarily on the trapezius. Rowing with a narrow grip with palms facing together or an underhand grip with palms facing up keep your elbows in close to your body, making your latissimus dorsi the prime mover. Some machines are designed to allow for just one grip, and others allow for a combination of the three types.
Latissimus Dorsi
The latissimus dorsi (lats) is the most powerful muscle in your back. It's responsible for any pulling motions that bring your elbow down toward your body from the side, or bring it from in front of your body toward the back. Using the narrow or underhand grip on a row machine will focus most of the load on your lats. These muscles also help on the wide-grip row, but to a much lesser degree.
Trapezius
The trapezius (traps) is another powerful back muscle that is responsible for most pulling movements. The traps sit a bit higher than your lats and the middle and lower portions of this muscle are most actively recruited when using the wide grip handles on the row machine. You may sometimes see a row machine with a wide grip that is dedicated specifically to working the traps and labeled as a "Trap Row."
Elbow Flexors
The biceps brachii, brachialis (sometimes called the lower biceps) and brachioradialis muscles all work together to bend the elbow as your lats and traps pull backward on your upper arm bone, the humerus. All three row machine grips work these muscles.
Rotator Cuff
While the four small muscles of your rotator cuff are always working to stabilize your shoulder joint during any arm movement, the infraspinatus and teres minor, in particular, activate to assist with the pulling motion used on a row machine.
Rhomboids
Your rhomboids help pull your shoulder blades back and down, a critical factor in maintaining proper form throughout the row exercise.
Core Muscles
The natural tendency when using a row machine is to jerk powerfully back with the back muscles, using as much momentum as possible to make lifting the weight easy. Squeezing your abdominal muscles and the rectus abdominus, in particular, to press forward against the machine's chest pad helps eliminate this bad habit, reducing your risk of injury and forcing your back muscles to work that much harder.
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