Core · Bodyweight
Spider Crawl
How to do the spider crawl, 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
- HorizontalPush
- Mechanic
- Compound
How to do it
Start in a low push-up position with hips down and body close to the floor. Crawl forward by reaching one hand out while driving the opposite knee up toward your elbow, staying low the whole time. Alternate sides to travel forward, keeping your hips from rising or rocking side to side.
- 1Shoulders, chest, and triceps supporting and moving your bodyweight low
- 2to the ground
- 3Core and hip flexors working hard to drive each knee toward your elbow
- 4Quads and glutes powering the low forward crawl
Common mistakes
- Letting your hips pike up or rock from side to side
- Crawling tall instead of staying low and close to the floor
- Rushing so much that your form falls apart
Muscles worked
The spider crawl mainly works the lower abs and hip flexors, with the triceps, upper abs, obliques, quads, front delts, forearms, mid chest, and glutes assisting.
- Lower AbsPrimary
- Hip FlexorsPrimary
- TricepsSupport
- Upper AbsSupport
- ObliquesSupport
- QuadsSupport
- Front DeltsSupport
- ForearmsSupport
- Mid ChestSupport
- GlutesSupport
- LatsMinor
- Lower BackMinor
- Upper TrapsMinor
- Mid TrapsMinor
- Lower TrapsMinor
- HamstringsMinor
- CalvesMinor
- Side DeltsMinor
- External RotatorsMinor
- Internal RotatorsMinor
- AdductorsMinor
- Tibialis AnteriorMinor
Kovo programs the spider crawl 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.