Core · Bodyweight
Mountain Climber Kickout
How to do the mountain climber kickout, the muscles it works, and the mistakes to avoid. Pulled straight from the Kovo app's exercise library.
- Equipment
- Bodyweight
- Difficulty
- Intermediate
- Logged as
- Reps
- Movement
- Rotation
- Mechanic
- Compound
How to do it
Start in a high plank. Drive one knee toward your chest like a mountain climber, then rotate your hips and kick that same leg out underneath your body to the opposite side, reaching the opposite hand up. Return to plank and alternate.
- 1Core driving the knee in and controlling the kickout
- 2Hips rotating open as the leg kicks through
- 3The supporting shoulder pressing the floor away
Common mistakes
- Letting the hips sag in the plank position
- Swinging the leg with momentum instead of control
- Rushing the rotation and losing your base
Muscles worked
The mountain climber kickout mainly works the upper abs and obliques, with the lower abs, quads, glutes, hip flexors, triceps, hamstrings, calves, front delts, and adductors assisting.
- Upper AbsPrimary
- ObliquesPrimary
- Lower AbsSupport
- QuadsSupport
- GlutesSupport
- Hip FlexorsSupport
- TricepsSupport
- HamstringsSupport
- CalvesSupport
- Front DeltsSupport
- AdductorsSupport
- ForearmsMinor
- Mid ChestMinor
- LatsMinor
- Upper TrapsMinor
Kovo programs the mountain climber kickout for you and tracks it every session.
We build your whole program, drop the right lifts into each workout, and adjust your weights as you get stronger. Free on iOS and Android.
More abs & core exercises
- How to do the ab wheel rollout
- How to do the ankle tap plank
- How to do the ankle taps
- How to do the resistance band dead bugs
- How to do the resistance band pallof press
- How to do the rollout
Last reviewed June 2026.