Have you ever seen someone in the gym crawling? Has your GRIT or Functional monitor made you walk on all fours as if you dropped a rolling coin?
We recognize that it is a strange and unusual exercise as we get older, but its benefits are immense. The crawling can be considered a more dynamic evolution of the famous plates or planks, since it is also an isometric exercise in movement.
What is crawling?
Despite the fact that crawling is one of the basic movements of the human being, in 2015, from China, this practice emerged. The aim was to improve posture, stability, resistance and flexibility. All this basing the balance on the wrists, shoulders, hips, ankles and fingers.
We can compare this practice with the crawling of babies or with the way some animals move. The main thing is to restore functionality to the body, which over the years has become sedentary. It may seem like a very easy and affordable workout, but we assure you that you will strengthen your muscles quickly.
benefits of crawling
Perhaps one of the greatest advantages of crawling is its unnecessary material beyond our own body. We will suffice with ourselves to burn calories and fat. This is an isometric exercise in which you will have to work to stay in a low position without leaning on the ground.
Mainly it helps to improve back posture and regulate blood circulation levels. It also has other benefits such as:
- Increases coordination. Although crawling is a basic human movement, as we grow we lose it. That is why this exercise helps to coordinate your lower and upper body, something that will favor any other physical activity you do.
- Improved gait mechanics. As we said before, crawling is the basis of our way of walking. You are expected to walk at least 10.000 steps a day, so good mechanics are necessary. With crawling we can improve our posture when walking and correct any problem we have when walking.
- It improves our nervous system. When we crawl, our central nervous system is also trained. Increases control of the mind and body and strengthens our core. Based on the fact that the nervous system is the key controller of our entire body, this exercise is very important to include in our routine.
- Improved flexibility. If we have little flexibility, it may be due to the stiffness of our muscles or the lack of stability of our core. With the crawling we will improve the stability of the core and we will strengthen it, thus we will expand its range of movement and with it the flexibility.
- Activation of many muscles. When crawling, almost every muscle in the body is used. This exercise works the shoulders (deltoids), chest and back, glutes, quads, hamstrings, and core. If we crawl regularly, we will be able to develop the strength and endurance of the whole body.
Crawl Variations
The base of the crawl can be modified to decrease or increase the challenge level.
Modified Bear Crawl for Beginners
If we are not ready for the full experience of the bear crawl, we can do a similar movement but without the forward movement. This variation is a bit easier. Also, since the body is not in an extended push-up position, it is not as difficult to support the weight of the body.
- We'll start on your hands and knees with your back flat, your head in line with your spine, and your abdomen contracted.
- Hands are under shoulders, feet are hip-width apart, and toes are tucked under.
- While we maintain this position, we will alternate raising each knee from the ground a few centimeters.
backwards crawling
Once you have mastered the forward bear walk, we can add a backward bear walk to the crawl routine. We'll just go forward about 5 meters, then reverse the sequence and go back another 5 meters, preferably without taking a break in between.
side crawling
We can also do the crawl by moving to the side. We'll start in the same position as we would for the forward crawl, but we'll move to the side instead of forward.
We'll make sure to do this move to both the left and right to work each side of the body evenly.
with weight
We can make the bear crawl more challenging by increasing the load. One way to do this is to wear a weighted vest or backpack while traveling forward. Another option is to place a weight plate on your back and crawl this way.
If we choose this last option, we will be careful that the plate does not fall when we move. This can be avoided by not rotating your torso as much when crawling, as well as by using a weight plate that has a larger diameter, so you're less likely to slip.
Crawling with push-ups
Adding pushups to crawls can make them even more difficult.
- We will crawl forward about four steps, then we will hold the body in place and do a push-up.
- We'll go another four steps forward and complete another pushup.
- We will continue this pattern for about 5 meters, then we will reverse the movement and come back.
Common Mistakes
We'll avoid these common mistakes to keep bear tracking safe and effective.
hips too high
It's natural to let the hips begin to rise as you bear gait. After just a few crawling steps forward, your arms tire and lifting your hips into the air helps reduce stress on your core and upper body.
The problem is that this also reduces the amount of work the body has to do, reducing the effectiveness of the exercise. So we'll try to keep our back flat (with a neutral spine) as we push our body forward. To avoid raising our hips too high, we'll imagine that we're balancing a bowl of water on our lower back as we move.
sagging back
The bear crawl is a great core exercise, but not if you let your back sag or lean. Before we begin to move, we will tighten the core so that the hips and shoulders are in a straight line. The head should not sink forward or tilt. We will hold this position as we move.
Seeing yourself in a mirror is very helpful. We can also ask a friend or coach to watch us and let us know if we are doing well. If we are having difficulty maintaining a solid core as we move forward, we will only take a few steps forward and gradually add steps as we get stronger.
Too much side to side movement
We'll try to keep all the movement under the torso as it moves. If we notice that the legs slip to the side to crawl forward, we may be taking too big steps.
Similarly, if we notice our hips swaying as we move, we may be taking too big steps. It is also possible that we lack core strength.
Precautions
During the last months of pregnancy, we may find it difficult to perform this exercise because we carry more weight in the middle part of the body. Also, hormones can change the stability of the joints, especially those of the pelvis and lower back. We'll talk to a doctor for personalized crawling advice if we want to do this exercise as the pregnancy progresses.
All the obese people they may also have more difficulty maintaining the crawling position or moving forward. And those with wrist and shoulder injuries should work with their physical therapist to determine if the exercise can be performed safely and effectively.
We'll start by taking five to seven steps forward. We'll take a break and stand up for a moment if necessary, then turn around and return to the starting pose. As we get stronger and have more stamina, we will be able to crawl further.