Chest · Bodyweight
Bent Arm Chest Stretch
How to do the bent arm chest stretch, the muscles it works, and the mistakes to avoid. Pulled straight from the Kovo app's exercise library.
- Equipment
- Bodyweight
- Difficulty
- Beginner
- Logged as
- time
- Movement
- Isometric
- Mechanic
- Isolation
How to do it
Stand beside a wall or doorframe and place your forearm against it with your elbow bent at about 90 degrees, upper arm parallel to the floor. Slowly turn your torso away from the arm until you feel a stretch across your chest, and hold.
- 1Feel the stretch across your chest and front shoulder on the planted side
- 2Keep your forearm fixed and rotate your body away
- 3Breathe slowly and let the chest open gradually
Common mistakes
- Avoid forcing the rotation past a comfortable stretch
- Don't shrug or let your shoulder roll forward
- Don't hold your breath; relax into the position
Muscles worked
The bent arm chest stretch mainly works the mid chest, with the front delts and upper chest assisting.
- Mid ChestPrimary
- Front DeltsSupport
- Upper ChestSupport
- Lower ChestMinor
- Mid TrapsMinor
- Internal RotatorsMinor
Kovo programs the bent arm chest stretch for you and tracks it every session.
We build your whole program, drop the right lifts into each workout, and adjust your weights as you get stronger. Free on iOS and Android.
More chest exercises
- How to do the archer push-up
- How to do the assisted dip
- How to do the resistance band chest flyes
- How to do the resistance band push-up
- How to do the barbell bench press
- How to do the paused bench press
Last reviewed June 2026.