Mountain climber is one such amazing exercise which is both cardiovascular as well as strengthening. As the name suggests, it is indeed an exercise which is much similar to climbing a mountain, only with some variations here.
History
Since time immemorial, people have been climbing the mountains to reach the top, for trekking, for witnessing the beautiful and scenic view of sunset and what not. It is always considered as an arduous task.
Mountain climbers exercise got its name from this very thing, only it is done on a plain surface unlike that of the mountains’.
How to do a proper mountain climber exercise?
Well performing mountain climbers is painstaking, but, nonetheless, the results are simply amazing. It is one of those daunting exercises targeting your whole body !!
Here’s how you need to perform this:
1. Get into a plank
The very first step to perform this exercise requires you to get into a full plank position.
How to get into a full plank position? Lie down in a prone position on the floor with only your palms and toes touching the floor. The rest of the body will not be in contact with the ground. Make sure to keep your core straight and in alignment with the shoulders and the hips.
2. Try to climb
The next step to do mountain climbers is trying to climb while remaining in the plank position. To do this, bring your one knee closer to the chest and then extend it back again. Then go for the other leg and then bring it closer to the chest and extend.
3. Maintain the rhythm
Now perform this alternatively in a regular manner and with a rhythm. Speed is purely a person’s discretion. Try inhaling, while bringing the leg closer and exhaling, while extending it backwards.
Where do Mountain Climbers target?
Mountain Climbers is a vigorous exercise that targets the major muscles of your body, such as
- Biceps and triceps: While holding your body weight on your upper limbs, these two muscles are targeted and made fitter.
- Shoulder muscles: While being in a plank position, the shoulder muscles are worked out in a very fine way.
- Core muscles: Planks are tremendously helpful for making your core muscles stronger.
- Abdomen muscles: Mountain Climbers are a great way to reduce that nasty lower belly fat.
- Glutes: While performing the hip flexion, your Glutes are targeted.
- Quads: Quadriceps are a group of four muscles in the front of the thighs which are targeted finely during performing mountain climbers.
- Calf and tendo Achilles: These are targeted in a modified version of mountain climbers. Under this modified version, the calves and tendo Achilles are stretched while doing dorsiflexion of feet.
How can you modify the mountain climbers?
1. Making it easy
- Do it on a platform: To make it easier, go for a platform. Place both your hands on a raised platform and then do it. The advantage of doing like this is the distribution of the body weight on the platform a little, so the person doesn’t have to bear that amount of weight. This will make it very easy and is perfect for the amateurs.
- Slow down: The pace of doing this can be slowed down to make it easier.
2. Make it more challenging!!
- Add on some weight- To make it more challenging, add some weight on either the waist or the ankles. This will make it more challenging and resistant. You can use tie around sandbags for this.
- Faster: You can increase the pace at which this exercise is being performed to make it more challenging and also increasing the vital capacity of the lungs.
- Obliques: To target your obliques, you can add a twist to the regular mountain climbers by twisting and turning your legs while pulling them closer to the torso.
- Glide: You can again spice up your regular mountain climbers by placing a disc or a towel or a fabric which can glide easily. So each time when you perform a mountain climber, you can glide too. This will exert your abdominal muscles more.
- Stretch a bit: While doing mountain climbers, you can stretch your calves by doing dorsiflexion of feet during planks.
What are the benefits of doing mountain climbers?
If mountain climbers weren’t healthy, we would not have classified these under one of the best exercises, would we? Yes, mountain climbers are one of the best exercises targeting your whole body.
Following are some of the benefits of doing mountain climbers:
- Great for your lungs if you do it faster.
- Good for strengthening the major muscles of your body including your core muscles, abdomens, Glutes and others.
- Reduce the lower belly fat.
- Helps in weight management and burning more calories in a shorter time.
- The greatest advantage of this exercise is that this can be done anywhere and everywhere. Be it in a hotel room when on vacation or a small space beside your bed or during the lunch break in your relaxing room at workplace.
What should be done to avoid injuries while performing mountain climbers?
Mountain Climbers is a great exercise, we agree. But, if not done correctly, it may lead to serious injuries:
- While doing planks, try to maintain a straight alignment of your shoulder, back and the pelvic region. Bending your back while doing plank or mountain climbers may lead to backache.
- While pulling your legs in, make sure to have a straight cervical with you looking straight in the front. Your neck should not be twisted or turned, else this may develop painful spasms in your neck muscles.
- If you are using a gliding disc or towel below the feet, try to keep a straight alignment of your body.
- While performing planks, try to balance your weight on hands as well as on toes. Do not flex your elbows while doing planks or mountain climbers, keep them fully extended.
Conclusion
So, all the fitness enthusiasts and gym junkies, this is definitely a good to go exercise targeting your whole body and burning a good amount of calories in a very short time. However, the amount of burnt calories is a person dependent phenomenon. Higher the speed, higher will be the calories burnt. More the weight of the person, more will be the amount of calories burnt. Totally on the person.
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