Chest · Bodyweight
Standing Elbow Clap
How to do the standing elbow clap, 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
- HorizontalPush
- Mechanic
- Isolation
How to do it
Stand tall and raise both arms out to the sides at shoulder height with elbows bent. Squeeze your chest to bring your elbows together in front of your face, then open them back out wide and repeat.
- 1Feel your chest squeeze as the elbows meet in front
- 2Keep your shoulders down and away from your ears
- 3Open wide to stretch across the chest each rep
Common mistakes
- Do not shrug your shoulders up as you clap
- Avoid arching your lower back to drive the arms
- Do not let your elbows drop below shoulder height
Muscles worked
The standing elbow clap mainly works the mid chest, with the upper chest, front delts, and internal rotators assisting.
- Mid ChestPrimary
- Upper ChestSupport
- Front DeltsSupport
- Internal RotatorsSupport
Kovo programs the standing elbow clap 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.