Confession: I freaking hate mountain climbers. Without fail, when I’m about 20 seconds into them, I slink back into a downward dog or child’s pose stretch for a few seconds before I can continue. I don’t know what it is, but we all have those moves that just kick our butts. For me, that’s the mountain climber. Even though I hate it, I know it’s an effective move. As a group fitness instructor, it was a big part of many of the bootcamp classes I lead (sorry students!).
When there’s a move I hate or that I suck at, instead of shying away from it, I try to do the opposite. I focus in on it and figure out how to get better at it.
If there’s a move that feels really hard to do or is uncomfortable, there are a few possibilities at play:
- I’m doing it wrong
- I’m engaging the wrong muscle groups
- Or mentally I know I hate it so I give up early
If you have similar hatred towards the good ‘ole mountain climber, let’s break it down. We’ll master the move and hate it just a little bit less. They are a great move for at-home workouts (no equipment!), so as much as they may suck, we should all try to embrace the mountain climber.
Benefits of Mountain Climbers
When done correctly, mountain climbers will strengthen your core and your upper arm muscles as well as challenge your endurance. During a mountain climber, you’ll also feel strength coming from your hip flexors. They are a great move to encourage stability from multiple muscle groups, will get your heart rate up and are low impact on your lower body.
Proper Mountain Climber Form
To get into proper mountain climber formation, first go into a plank position. As with when doing a plank, your shoulders should be directly over your wrists. Have a micro bend at your elbows (you don’t want a big bend in your elbows but you also don’t want to lock out your elbows), abs tucked in, head facing the ground with a neutral neck. In the proper set up, you should be looking at the ground between your hands (which are shoulder width apart). Once in this form, do a few moves slowly by bringing one knee towards your chest, returning to plank position, then the other knee comes in towards your chest. When you feel like your form is rock solid, bring up your speed and start running your knees into your chest.
Common Mountain Climber Form Mistakes
The most common issue I see with mountain climbers (from my students, and also from myself), is when your body to moves away from over your wrists. Instead of your shoulders aligning right over your wrists, you find yourself looking behind the heels of your hands. Other common mistakes: not engaging your core, letting your butt raise up towards the sky (as if in downward dog), and not bringing your knee close enough to your chest (instead just doing a little skip forward).
When You Need a Break From Moutain Climbers
The mountain climber position can put a lot of strain on your wrists. If you have wrist issues, it may be best to skip them all together. Instead of a mountain climber, do high knees. While standing and running in place, aim to get your knees up to your waist line. Keep your core engaged and remember good posture and a straight back.
Wrist issues aside, if you’re doing mountain climbers and your form is starting to fall apart, don’t just go into child’s pose or fall flat on the ground. Take a few seconds. Take a deep breath and realign yourself to find that perfect plank again. Slow your mountain climber down, going back to the slow steps in until you can once again pick up the speed. If you need a bigger break, hold a strong plank.
Mountain Climber Variations
The standard mountain climber has your knees coming in straight. If you want to engage your obliques, cross each knee so it comes in towards your opposite elbow (known as a cross body mountain climber).
Mountain Climber Workout
Here’s a mini workout to practice and strengthen your mountain climbers. I like to combine mountain climbers with a traditional crunch as it gives your body an opportunity to take a break and lay on your back for a few moves before getting back into the plank position, all while targeting your core. Give this workout a try!
Now tell me, Mountain Climbers: love ’em or hate ’em?
Have a great weekend all!
