TRX Mountain Climber Push-Up
What Is the TRX Mountain Climber Push-Up?
TRX Mountain Climber Push-Up is a compound exercise that primarily targets the chest and core and also engages the front shoulders, triceps and hip flexors. It is an intermediate-level movement that joins two suspended exercises into one rep: a push-up with both feet in the foot cradles, followed by a single knee drive toward the chest from the top position while the other leg stays straight in its strap.
The push-up half works much like the TRX Push-Up. A study of healthy young adults found that push-ups with the feet in suspension straps drew no more chest, front shoulder or serratus activity than floor push-ups, but more rectus abdominis and oblique activity. The knee drive then adds the demand of the TRX Mountain Climber: with one foot out of line, the abs and obliques have to keep the hips level and stop the body twisting toward the moving leg while the straps try to swing.
What the combination adds is fatigue and timing. The knee drive starts as soon as the arms lock out, with the chest, shoulders and triceps already working, and the body never leaves the suspended plank between reps. That makes it a good fit for circuits, conditioning blocks and upper body or core finishers, where trunk control under fatigue matters. It is a poorer choice for building maximal pressing strength, which slower sets of the plain TRX Push-Up handle better.
Two neighbors are easy to confuse with it. The TRX Spider-Man Push-Up swings the knee out to the side toward the elbow during the lowering, while this version drives the knee straight forward under the hips with the arms straight. Pulling both knees in after each push-up, as in the TRX Jack Knife, is the harder next step.
It suits people who already do strict floor push-ups and can hold a steady TRX Plank. When the combined rep falls apart, train the halves on their own first: the TRX Push-Up and the TRX Mountain Climber as separate sets, or a floor Push-Up paired with floor Mountain Climbers.
Muscles Worked
- Pectoralis Major
- Primary
- Rectus Abdominis
- Primary
- Deltoid
- High
- External Oblique
- High
- Rectus Femoris
- High
- Rectus Abdominis (Lower)
- Medium
- Serratus Anterior
- Medium
Instructions
- Adjust the straps so the foot cradles hang about mid-calf height off the floor, directly under the anchor.
- Start on the floor under the anchor, place one foot in its cradle, roll onto that side, add the other foot, then turn face down.
- Place your hands on the floor slightly wider than shoulder-width, directly under your shoulders, with the tops of your feet pressed down into the cradles.
- Press up to straight arms, brace your abs and squeeze your glutes so your body forms a straight line from head to heels.
- Bend your elbows, keeping them about 45 degrees from your torso, and lower until your chest is just above the floor.
- Press back up to straight arms without letting your hips sag or rise first.
- Once the straps are still, draw one knee forward under your hips toward your chest while the other leg stays straight in its cradle.
- Keep your hips level and your shoulders over your hands as the knee comes in, then extend the leg back into line with the other one.
- Do the next push-up, then drive the opposite knee, alternating legs each rep.
- After the last rep, lower your knees to the floor and take your feet out of the cradles one at a time.
Common Mistakes
Sagging hips
Letting the hips drop at the bottom of the push-up or as the leg returns puts the strain on the lower back instead of the abs.
Rushing into the knee drive
Starting the knee drive before the arms lock out and the straps settle makes the body swing and shortens both halves of the rep.
Piking to make room for the knee
Lifting the hips well above the shoulders to fit the knee in turns the drive into a pike and takes work off the abs.
Twisting toward the moving leg
Letting the hips rotate or drop toward the driving knee means the obliques stop resisting rotation and the free strap swings.
Flaring the elbows
Pressing with the elbows out wide stresses the front of the shoulder, which is already working hard to hold the plank.
Cutting the push-up short
Shallow push-ups that save energy for the knee drives skip the hardest part of the press.
Injuries
TRX Mountain Climber Push-Up is a medium risk exercise when performed with proper technique. The lower back takes the most strain, mainly when the hips sag at the bottom of the push-up or as the leg returns from the knee drive, and both get more likely as fatigue builds through a set. The front of the shoulders and the wrists carry a large share of body weight for the whole set, and getting into and out of the cradles can cost you your balance.
Set the cradles at about mid-calf height directly under the anchor so the straps hang straight, and keep the hands under the shoulders with the elbows about 45 degrees from the torso. Let the arms lock out and the straps settle before each knee drive, and end the set when the hips start to sag or the straps start to swing rather than finishing the planned count with poor form.
To regress, split the movement into the TRX Push-Up and the TRX Mountain Climber as separate sets, or step down to a Push-Up and floor Mountain Climbers, with the TRX Plank to build the suspended hold. To progress, slow the lowering, pause with the knee in, or pull both knees in after each push-up as in the TRX Jack Knife.
Stop if you feel sharp pain in the shoulder, wrist or lower back, a pinch at the front of the hip as the knee comes in, or if you can no longer keep your hips level and the straps steady.
- Equipment
- Suspension trainer and body weight
- Modality
- Strength
- Difficulty
- Intermediate
Alternative Exercises
Frequently Asked Questions
- Q: How is it different from doing a TRX Push-Up and a TRX Mountain Climber separately?
Linking them means each knee drive starts with the chest, shoulders and triceps already tired and no rest out of the suspended plank, so it trains trunk control under fatigue more than either half alone. For more pressing strength, slower sets of the TRX Push-Up on their own do that job better.
- Q: Is it the same as a TRX Spider-Man Push-Up?
No. In the TRX Spider-Man Push-Up the knee swings out to the side toward the elbow as you lower, while here the knee drives straight forward under the hips after you press back up to straight arms.
- Q: How should I count reps?
Count each push-up with its knee drive as one rep and alternate legs, so 10 reps gives 5 drives per leg. Start with 6 to 10 reps and count the same way every session so you can track progress.
- Q: Why do my feet slip out during the knee drive?
A cradle that hangs too low or a foot that is not fully seated slips easily once one leg starts moving. Shorten the straps to about mid-calf, keep the tops of both feet pressed down with the toes pointed, and slow the drive.
- Q: What if I can't keep my hips level through the set?
Do the two halves as separate sets until each is steady for a full set, then put them back together for fewer reps. The TRX Plank and floor Mountain Climbers are good ways to build the hold and the knee drive.