You must crawl before you can walk!

How often have you heard the terms “sedentary lifestyle,” in recent years? Why? Because chances are, you are living it. Even if you go to the gym on a daily basis – you could still be labeled as “sedentary!”

Sitting at a desk most of the day? This includes you. Long periods of sitting result in muscles and connective tissues weakening, posture changes and instability, dysfunction, and then tight joints and discomfort typically follow.

Crawling exercises are as effective in adults as they are in infants, and in many cases can help restore optimal musculoskeletal health that has declined as a result of a sustained period of inactivity (aka – sitting at a desk all day).

The benefits of crawling include:

• Improved bilateral coordination, a skill that is required when performing many sporting activities, like throwing and kicking a ball or swinging a tennis racquet.
• Improved scapular stabilization, because each hand placement requires a stable shoulder in order to effectively transfer bodyweight.
• The development of optimum shoulder function; as the scapular stabilizers fix the scapular, the shoulder joint (glenohumeral joint) remains mobile which is how this region performs best.
• It truly is a total body workout and an excellent calorie burner.
• Portability – crawling can literally be performed anywhere there is space to do so.
• Versatility – there are so many different variations of this exercise, including reptilian crawling, bear crawling, crawling forwards, backwards, sideways and from a stationary position. And all are beneficial.

Crawling can help you restore your original strength and allow you to improve your life in many areas. Your physical strength will improve improve, your mobility will improve, your mental focus will improve – this is a game changer!

Try these for starters:

1) Bear Crawl:

• Begin on your hands and knees
• Lift your knees off the ground, balancing on your toes and keeping your hips low
• Move one hand and the opposite knee forward simultaneously to pedal yourself forward.

2) Army Crawl:

• Begin in an elbow plank position
• Pull yourself forward across the ground on your forearms, keeping the rest of your body in a strong plank. Your legs and feet do not move or assist in the forward motion

Give crawling a try! You’ll be surprised how much it can benefit you by helping to restore optimal musculoskeletal health that has declined from sitting around too much.  So, get out of that chair and start moving! Take it slow at first, then increase your efforts.  You’ll be amazed as the difference it can make!

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