The Benefits of Bear Crawling for Core, Shoulder Strength, and Functional Fitness
Bear crawling is an incredibly effective full-body exercise that combines strength, stability, coordination, and functional movement in a simple, primal form. This bodyweight exercise is not only excellent for building core strength but also enhances shoulder stability, improves coordination, and reinforces functional movement patterns. Surprisingly, this fundamental movement is one of the first ways humans learn to move, as it mimics how babies develop the reciprocal pattern necessary for walking. In this blog, we’ll explore why bear crawling is such a powerful addition to your workout routine and how it can improve both performance and overall health.
Core Strength and Stability
One of the primary reasons bear crawling is so effective is its demand for core stability. When crawling on all fours, your core engages to stabilise your body as you move. This engagement works the deep muscles of the abdomen, including the transverse abdominis, which is essential for spinal stability. Because bear crawls require maintaining a neutral spine while in motion, they help improve core strength in a dynamic and functional way.
Unlike static core exercises like planks or sit-ups, bear crawling forces your body to stabilise while coordinating your limbs. This dynamic action challenges the muscles in a way that directly translates to real-life movement, making it a more functional exercise. It trains the core to work with the rest of the body, enhancing your ability to move efficiently, whether in athletics or daily activities.
Shoulder Strength and Stability
Bear crawling is also great for building shoulder strength and stability. As you crawl, your shoulders support much of your body weight, which increases the demand on the muscles around the shoulder joint. This makes bear crawling an effective exercise for developing the deltoids, rotator cuff muscles, and the stabilising muscles of the scapula.
Not only does this build strength, but it also improves joint stability, reducing the risk of injury. Bear crawling promotes healthy shoulder mechanics because it requires the scapula to move smoothly along the ribcage as your arms extend and retract. This is essential for anyone looking to increase shoulder mobility and resilience, whether you’re a weightlifter, athlete, or someone recovering from shoulder instability.
Enhances Coordination and Functional Movement
Bear crawling is a form of reciprocal movement, meaning that as one arm moves forward, the opposite leg follows. This is the same pattern humans use when walking, running, or performing most athletic movements. For babies, learning to crawl is a key developmental milestone that establishes the neural pathways needed for walking. By revisiting this primal movement pattern, adults can reinforce these pathways, improving coordination and balance.
Practicing bear crawls helps retrain your brain and body to work together in a coordinated manner, benefiting activities like running, jumping, or even lifting. It enhances proprioception—the awareness of your body’s position in space—which is critical for maintaining balance and preventing falls.
A Highly Functional Exercise
Bear crawling stands out as a functional exercise because it mimics natural movement patterns. Functional training focuses on exercises that improve strength and coordination in a way that translates to everyday activities, whether that’s picking up groceries or climbing stairs. Since bear crawling engages multiple muscle groups while challenging your coordination and core stability, it’s highly effective for enhancing overall functional fitness.
Unlike isolated movements that target only one muscle group, bear crawling integrates the entire body. This makes it more applicable to real-world tasks and athletic movements, as your muscles must work together to stabilise and move efficiently.
Conclusion
Bear crawling is more than just a challenging workout—it’s a movement that brings us back to our primal roots while offering significant physical benefits. Its ability to improve core strength, shoulder stability, coordination, and overall functional fitness makes it a versatile and effective exercise for people of all fitness levels. By incorporating bear crawls into your workout routine, you can enhance your performance in sports, prevent injuries, and improve everyday movement quality. Whether you’re a beginner looking to build foundational strength or an athlete seeking a new challenge, bear crawling is a powerful tool to add to your fitness arsenal.
