Bear Crawl For Weight Loss: Benefits And Steps

Crawling is an important part of our growth, from babies to adults. This also applies to animals, who use all four limbs to move. As you grow older, crawling is also part of the fitness world. It is popular as quadrupedal movement training, which refers to bodyweight exercises in which people assume a four-point quadrupedal position. The bear crawl is an exercise that involves crawling on all fours. You use your hands and feet and walk like a bear to reap its many benefits, including weight loss. Let us tell you how to do the bear crawl for weight loss and other health benefits!

What is Bear Crawl?

The bear crawl is a full-body exercise that mimics the motion of a bear walking on all fours. It involves moving forward or backward on your hands and feet with your knees slightly off the ground, engaging multiple muscle groups, says fitness expert Chitharesh Natesan.

The Bear Crawl exercise involves several parts of the body:

• Shoulders: support the weight of the body.
• Chest: Helps maintain balance.
• Core: Stabilizes the body.
• Back: supports movement and posture.
• Glutes: aid stability and propulsion.
• Legs: especially the quadriceps and hamstrings, which are involved during the movement.

How does Bear Crawl help you lose weight?

Bear Crawls are a high-intensity, full-body workout that can help burn a significant number of calories. They increase your heart rate, boost your metabolism, and engage multiple muscle groups, which increases your overall calorie burn, says Natesan. This combination makes them effective for weight loss because they increase your total energy expenditure.

The number of calories burned during a bear crawl varies based on factors such as body weight, intensity, and duration. On average, you can burn about 8-12 calories per minute. A 150-pound person could burn about 100-150 calories in a 15-minute session, the expert says.

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What are the health benefits of Bear Crawl?

In addition to weight loss, the bear crawl is also a great way to strengthen your shoulders and hips. Participants who did an hour of quadrupedal movement training a week for 16 weeks saw significant increases in shoulder and hip mobility, according to a 2022 study published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research.

Here are its main health benefits:

• Strengthens core muscles, helping improve stability and balance.
• Increases heart rate and improves cardiovascular endurance.
• Improves coordination and joint mobility.

How to do the Bear Crawl?

To perform the crawling exercise, follow these steps:

• Get on all fours, but make sure your hands are directly under your shoulders. Your knees should be under your hips.
• Lift your knees a few inches off the ground, balancing on your hands and toes.
• Move your right hand and left foot forward at the same time, then your left hand and right foot.
• Keep your back straight, core engaged, and hips low throughout the entire movement.
• Continue moving forward, maintaining slow, controlled movements.

Mistakes to avoid

While performing the Bear Crawl, avoid these common mistakes:

• Lifting your hips too high: To maintain proper form, keep your hips low and in line with your shoulders.
• Does not involve the nucleus: Make sure your core is engaged to avoid strain on your lower back.
• Hasty movements: Avoid rushing: controlled movements are essential to maximize the benefits of the exercise.
• Incorrect hand positioning: To maintain stability and balance, place your hands directly under your shoulders.
• Neglecting breathing: Remember to breathe evenly to maintain endurance and oxygen flow.

Incorporating bear crawl exercises into your workout routine can significantly improve your fitness level and help you lose weight, as long as they are performed correctly and consistently.