Kids Can be a Bear

They sure can, in more ways than one.  I really do enjoy my coaching position, but it's not easy.  Kids these days (man I sound old!) seem to have a hard time listening and following directions.  Even with a small army of coaches, getting all of the kids moving in the same direction is quite an ordeal.  One fact I've learned this year that couldn't be more true is that you can get them to do almost anything if you make it into a game.  Yes, you sometimes have to trick them into getting a workout.

One fun exercise that is incredibly effective for all age levels, especially kids, is the bear crawl.  For those of you that have lived under a rock your whole life, you simply walk on all fours like a bear.  If that sounds easy, boy are you in for a surprise - go ahead, bear crawl 100 yards as fast as you can for me.  Significantly more challenging than running, wouldn't you say?  If that weren't hard enough, I like to "gallop" instead of just crawling.  It gets me winded pretty quickly, but I bet I'll beat most anyone in a "bear race."

One unique activity that the team I coach sometimes works into the warmup is one where everyone starts bear crawling all over the floor, and the coach will yell "left (or right) foot over (or under)."  This then puts everyone in a crab walk position, from which they walk around the mat some more.  The coach continues to call out movements so that they alternate between bear crawl and crab walk.  I don't even think that we have a name for it, but I think of it as "wrestler's twister" because I can't help but think of twister when you see the kids pause to think about which leg is their right or left.  Both the bear crawl and crab walk are excellent exercises for strength, coordination, and stamina.  The crab walk also increases flexibility and range of motion.  You don't need to be a kid, and you don't even need a wrestling mat.  Just find an open space and be a bear.

Get crawling,
Jeff

P.S. There was one CrossFit session I went to this summer where part of the workout consisted of 5 rounds of 50 yards of bear crawl and 50 yards of standing long jump.  Not to sound cocky, but I absolutely smoked everyone.  Perhaps no one practices this exercise as much as wrestlers, and it shows.