The Helms row is a chest-supported dumbbell row named after Eric Helms, the researcher and coach behind the Muscle and Strength Pyramids. The bench takes the lower back and hip hinge out of the movement so the pull itself is the limiting factor, and it keeps the torso in the same place from the first rep to the last.
Several different chest-supported rows get called a Helms row online. This guide describes the bilateral dumbbell version listed in Brolic as Helms Row (Dumbbell): a low-incline bench, feet on the floor, and both dumbbells pulled along a roughly vertical path.
Muscles worked
The latissimus dorsi is the primary target, with the mid and lower trapezius, rhomboids and posterior deltoid working alongside it, and the biceps and forearms as in any row.
The lat emphasis follows from the setup. With the torso close to parallel to the floor and the dumbbells pulled more or less straight up, the arm path runs along the torso rather than out away from it. Rowing back toward the hips or flaring the elbows wide shifts the work toward the rear delts and upper back — a fine exercise, but a different one that belongs in a different record.
Set the bench
Set the bench to a low incline — around 30°. Stand behind it and rest your upper chest against the top of the pad, feet flat on the floor, knees soft, so your torso ends up close to parallel with the ground.
Do not use a steep incline. It is the most common setup error here. A steeply inclined bench stands you up, shortens the range and pushes the movement toward a rear-delt row, which is not what this variation is for.
Two checks before you load it:
- The pad should meet your upper chest, not your throat or chin. If you have to crane your neck, adjust the seat height rather than living with it. Padding the top edge is common and worth doing.
- The dumbbells must hang and travel freely without hitting the bench legs or the floor at the bottom. Rehearse with a light pair before choosing a working weight.
Write the setting down and keep it.
Row
Pull the dumbbells more or less straight up, with the elbows moderately tucked rather than flared wide, until the upper arms are about level with the torso. Lower under control to a full stretch.
Do not row back toward your hips. That is the other common error: it turns the pull into a rear-delt and upper-back movement and takes the lats out of the exercise the setup was chosen for.
Let the shoulder blades move. Trying to hold them pinned while rowing removes part of the exercise. What you are avoiding is different: the chest lifting off the pad, the body rocking to start each rep, or the dumbbells being curled upward while the upper arms barely move.
Check the last few reps of a set against the first. If the chest is coming off the pad to finish, that is where the set ended — not two reps later.
How it differs from nearby rows
- Incline chest-supported row: usually performed lying more fully along the bench, often at a shallower angle. Similar family; check whether the support arrangement actually matches before merging histories.
- Seal row: prone on a raised flat bench with clearance underneath, usually with a barbell. Different position and loading convention.
- Pendlay row: a barbell row from the floor with no chest support. Different starting position and much higher demand on your hinge.
These are distinctions for organising a log, not a ranking.
Logging
Enter the weight of one dumbbell, not the pair — three sets of twelve with two 22.5 kg dumbbells is 36 reps at 22.5 kg, not 72 reps at 45 kg. Record the bench angle beside it, since that is the setting most likely to drift between sessions. The free workout log has room for both, and the RPE and RIR chart covers recording effort without replacing the rep count.
Common questions
Is any chest-supported row a Helms row? In practice the name is used loosely. Define your version by the bench angle and elbow path, then use the same name for repeat sessions so the history means something.
Can I use straps? Yes, and they are common here, because grip often fails before the upper back does. Record whether you used them — a strapped set and an unstrapped set are not directly comparable.
What if my bench does not adjust? A fixed 30° bench is close to ideal. A fixed 45° will work at the cost of some range. Note the angle you actually have.
My bench is too tall and the dumbbells hit the floor. Stand on a low platform, use a bench with a higher seat, or pick a different row. A supported exercise is only useful when the equipment permits the full movement.
Sources and method
- Buff Dudes: how to perform the Helms row — dedicated tutorial, credits Eric Helms by name, and the source of the low-incline and vertical-path cues above.
- Jeff Nippard: rowing technique, Pendlay and Helms rows — covers the Helms row from 6:58 as a substitute for the Pendlay row; describes a near-parallel torso and a lat-dominant pull.
- SportCoaching: Helms row exercise guide — coaching description and setup reference.
- Brolic catalog version 2026-09-05.3 — the dumbbell entry and its bilateral logging convention.
Eric Helms’ own demonstrations are not on free YouTube; they sit in the paid 3DMJ Lifting Library, so the videos above are second-hand instruction rather than the originator’s. Bench angle and elbow-path figures are starting points drawn from those demonstrations, not values established by a trial.