Core · Bodyweight
Seated Alternate Back Rotation on a Chair
How to do the seated alternate back rotation on a chair, the muscles it works, and the mistakes to avoid. Pulled straight from the Kovo app's exercise library.
- Equipment
- Bodyweight
- Difficulty
- Beginner
- Logged as
- Weighted reps
- Movement
- Rotation
- Mechanic
- Isolation
How to do it
Sit tall on a chair with your feet flat and hands crossed over your chest or behind your head. Rotate your torso to one side under control, return to center, then rotate to the other side. Keep the movement driven by your trunk, not your arms.
- 1Obliques pulling your ribcage around toward each hip
- 2A tall spine and braced lower core throughout the turn
- 3Hips and knees staying square to the front
Common mistakes
- Yanking with your arms instead of rotating from the trunk
- Slumping or rounding the lower back as you turn
- Letting the hips swivel along with the shoulders
Muscles worked
The seated alternate back rotation on a chair mainly works the obliques, with the upper abs, lower abs, and lower back assisting.
- ObliquesPrimary
- Upper AbsSupport
- Lower AbsSupport
- Lower BackSupport
Kovo programs the seated alternate back rotation on a chair 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 abs & core exercises
- How to do the ab wheel rollout
- How to do the ankle tap plank
- How to do the ankle taps
- How to do the resistance band dead bugs
- How to do the resistance band pallof press
- How to do the rollout
Last reviewed June 2026.