Mountain Climber: A Bodyweight Exercise Bariatric Patients Should Try

A mountain climber isn’t actually what it sounds like. There’s no mountain involved. No flights to the Himalayas. No special cold weather clothes. In fact, you don’t even need any gear. A mountain climber is a bodyweight exercise that helps to burn calories for weight loss, build stamina, and strengthen your core muscles.

Exercise is integral not only for weight loss, but for general health. Bodyweight exercises help build strong muscles. Strong muscles are important for our mobility, endurance, and balance. Exercise helps burn calories, which contributes to weight loss. Exercise can help lower blood sugar, blood pressure, and cholesterol levels. Exercise can even help improve our mood and build self esteem.

Mountain climbers are an exercise you can do at home. For gastric sleeve, gastric bypass, and lap band patients, having the option to exercise at home is important. It increases the chances of weight loss patients being able to incorporate exercise into their daily lives. Mountain climbers can be done in a spare few minutes while you wait for laundry to finish drying, while a pot boils, as soon as you get out of bed, right before you shower, or during a commercial.

How to do a Mountain Climber

• Get in plank position- Toes holding you up, arms straight below your shoulders, body forming a line (don’t let your back or buttocks sag)
• Pull one knee up toward your midsection- keep your other leg planted firmly in place, try to touch your leg to your chest
• Return you leg to the starting plank position
• Repeat with the other leg
• Continue alternating leg movements while keeping your back straight

It’s OK to start slowly to get the hang of the movements. When you feel comfortable with the mountain climber, speed it up to really get your heart racing and burn calories that will contribute to weight loss. Your arms will also get a workout as they hold your body up. This exercise combines strengthening with burning calories, which can help build lean muscle and further contribute to weight loss.

One very important thing to consider is that gastric sleeve, gastric bypass, and lap band patients should always get Dr. Shillingford’s approval before they start exercising after their surgery. Dr. Shillingford will assess to make sure your body is ready to begin exercising. Once you’ve been cleared to exercise by Dr. Shillingford, start slowly and learn to incorporate exercise into your new lifestyle. Having a few exercises you can perform in your home is a good idea for when it’s raining outside or too hot to exercise outdoors. Other at home strengthening exercises include the plank and the bodyweight squat.

Dr. Shillingford, MD, PA is a Center of Excellence Surgeon specializing in gastric sleeve, gastric bypass, and gastric band surgery. Dr. Shillingford’s reputation for excellent surgical skills and comfortable bedside manner attract patients from all over Florida, including Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Boca Raton, Naples, Port St. Lucie, Orlando, and Jacksonville. His bariatric surgery patients receive top notch care during their hospital stay at Northwest Medical Center’s Center of Excellence in Bariatric Surgery, where he serves as Medical Director, and during their follow up care in his Boca Raton office. Dr. Shillingford encourages his weight loss surgery patients to incorporate exercise into their daily lives to make the most of their weight loss efforts.