What Is a Wall Crawl Exercise?

A wall crawl exercise goes by several names, including wall walks and walk ups. The children's song "The Itsy Bitsy Spider" imitates physical movements of the exercise. Wall crawling consists of walking or crawling your fingers up a wall as a form of upper-body workout.

  1. Execution

    • Stand facing a wall, between six inches and a foot away from the structure. Your arms will be stretched out straight in front of you during the exercise. Adjust your positioning as needed to have very little or no bend in the elbow. The beginning position consists of placing your fingertips on the wall directly in front of you at chest level. Slowly walk your fingers up the wall until your arms are over your head. Keep your arms straight if possible for a deeper stretch. If you are unable to straighten your arms, that's fine, too. Hold the stretch at your uppermost point for 10 seconds before crawling back down the wall. Perform the crawl three times.

    Purpose

    • The main purpose of a wall crawl is to strengthen and regain mobility in the shoulder. People who have had shoulder surgery to repair rotator cuff injuries often perform wall walks to improve shoulder abduction function. Breast cancer patients are also among the group of people who use wall crawls as a type of rehabilitation. Mastectomy or lumpectomy can limit your range of motion as well. Wall crawls help you develop a wider range of motion and may stimulate lymph drainage.

    Variation

    • The side wall crawl is another form of the exercise that improves your shoulder function, but also targets your oblique muscles. The obliques are the long muscles that run up and down the sides of your torso. Performing side wall crawls instead of or in addition to front crawls can strengthen your core. Core stability is important for balance and helps you continue to participate in activities of daily living independently. Instead of facing the wall, stand with your left side to the wall. Walk your fingers up the wall as in the front wall crawl. When you have completed one side of crawling, turn around with your right side facing the wall and repeat the exercise with your right arm.

    Safety

    • Discuss the possibility of doing wall crawl exercises with your doctor if it's been a long time since you have exercised, or if you have any chronic health problems that make exercise difficult, such as asthma. While wall crawls are often prescribed as part of a physical therapy or rehabilitation program for certain conditions, there may be some people for whom the exercise is not appropriate. Be mindful of your limitations when wall walking; ease up if you begin to feel pain. Beginning your workout routine with a five- to 10-minute warm-up session of walking or range-of-motion exercises can help you limber up so that wall crawls will be more comfortable and effective.