Arms · Bodyweight
Elbow - Flexion
How to do the elbow - flexion, the muscles it works, and the mistakes to avoid. Pulled straight from the Kovo app's exercise library.
- Equipment
- Bodyweight
- Difficulty
- Beginner
- Logged as
- Reps
- Movement
- Flexion
- Mechanic
- Isolation
How to do it
Start with your arm straight, then bend the elbow to bring your hand toward your shoulder by contracting the front of your upper arm. Squeeze at the top, hold briefly, and lower under control. Repeat for reps on each arm.
- 1Feel the biceps on the front of your upper arm pull the hand up
- 2Curl through a full range until the elbow is fully bent
- 3Keep your upper arm and shoulder still and quiet
Common mistakes
- Do not swing or use momentum to bend the arm
- Avoid letting the elbow drift forward off your side
- Do not rush the lowering portion
Muscles worked
The elbow - flexion mainly works the biceps, with the forearms assisting.
- BicepsPrimary
- ForearmsSupport
Kovo programs the elbow - flexion 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 biceps exercises
- How to do the resistance band bicep curl
- How to do the resistance band hammer curl
- How to do the barbell bicep curl
- How to do the cable bicep curl
- How to do the cable hammer curl
- How to do the overhead bicep curl
Last reviewed June 2026.