Core · Bodyweight
Twist Turn Chop
How to do the twist turn chop, 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
- Rotation
- Mechanic
- Compound
How to do it
Stand with feet shoulder-width apart and clasp your hands together in front of you. Rotate your torso to swing your hands up high to one side, then chop them down diagonally across your body to the opposite hip, pivoting your back foot. Reverse the path and repeat both sides.
- 1Your obliques driving the rotation through the chop
- 2Your core bracing as you decelerate at the bottom of the chop
- 3Your hips and feet pivoting to let the torso rotate freely
Common mistakes
- Moving only your arms instead of rotating from the trunk
- Keeping your feet planted and grinding the knees
- Rushing through with no control at the bottom
Muscles worked
The twist turn chop mainly works the obliques, with the upper abs and lower abs assisting.
- ObliquesPrimary
- Upper AbsSupport
- Lower AbsSupport
- ForearmsMinor
- LatsMinor
- Lower BackMinor
- Upper TrapsMinor
- QuadsMinor
- GlutesMinor
- CalvesMinor
- Front DeltsMinor
Kovo programs the twist turn chop 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.