Core · Bodyweight
Sitting Side Bend on a Chair
How to do the sitting side bend 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
- Reps
- Movement
- Flexion
- Mechanic
- Isolation
How to do it
Sit tall on a chair with feet flat and one hand reaching down the side of the chair. Without leaning forward or back, bend straight to one side and slide your hand toward the floor, then use your obliques to pull your torso back upright. Repeat for reps, then switch sides.
- 1Feel your obliques stretch on the way down and squeeze on the way up
- 2Keep your hips planted and your spine tall
- 3Bend purely to the side, straight over the chair
Common mistakes
- Don't rotate your torso or lean forward
- Don't bend backward; only to the side
- Don't use momentum; move slowly
Muscles worked
The sitting side bend on a chair mainly works the obliques, with the upper abs and lower abs assisting.
- ObliquesPrimary
- Upper AbsSupport
- Lower AbsSupport
- Lower BackMinor
Kovo programs the sitting side bend 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.