Exercise library

How to do the Cross Over - With Bands

A beginner compound exercise using resistance band, working the chest.

Primary musclesChest
Secondary musclesBiceps, Shoulders
EquipmentResistance band
LevelBeginner
TypeCompound
ForcePush

Steps

  1. Secure an exercise band around a stationary post.
  2. While facing away from the post, grab the handles on both ends of the band and step forward enough to create tension on the band.
  3. Raise your arms to the sides, parallel to the floor, perpendicular to your torso (your torso and the arms should resemble the letter "T") and with the palms facing forward. Have them extended with a slight bend at the elbows. This will be your starting position.
  4. While keeping your arms straight, bring them across your chest in a semicircular motion to the front as you exhale and flex your pecs. Hold the contraction for a second.
  5. Slowly return to the starting position as you inhale.
  6. Perform for the recommended amount of repetitions.

Tracking it in OneRep

Add the cross over - with bands to a routine and your previous weight and reps sit beside every set, so the decision to add load is made by what is already on the screen rather than by memory. Exercise history and volume trends are one tap away, and logging works offline for the gyms where signal does not reach.

Because OneRep tracks food on the same timeline, a stall on this lift can be read against what you were actually eating that month — which is the difference between a programming problem and an eating one. More on that in tracking progressive overload without a spreadsheet.

Where the instructions come from

The steps above come from free-exercise-db, a public-domain exercise dataset. They are general guidance, not coaching for your body: if a movement hurts, stop and get someone qualified to look at it.