Crawling

CRAWLING, a type of physical exercise, movement over the ground using the lower and upper limbs. The significance of crawling for the purposes of physical development is limited; it is used only in some gymnastics systems as a means of combating spinal deformities (round shoulders) in schoolchildren (e.g., the Klappe system). The corrective effects of crawling are explained mainly by the intensified contraction (exercise) of the spinal extensors and the stretching of its flexors, i.e., by a position opposite to that usually assumed by schoolchildren when sitting at their desks. The main significance of crawling (prone progression) is military-applied, as a type of movement in combat situations where one needs to approach the enemy secretly from his sight or at least reduce the probability of being hit by his fire. In conditions of modern combat, with the increase in the fire power of armies and the growth of technology (improvements in the field of optics), crawling acquires exceptional significance. Therefore, training in crawling is becoming an obligatory element of the physical preparation of a fighter and is conducted in all exercises of the Red Army conscript and draftee at training grounds and in the field, in conjunction with their general rifle-tactical preparation in summer and winter (crawling on skis). From this point of view, crawling is also an important inclusion in the programs of military-style classes and competitions of civil physical culture organizations. The main ways of crawling can be distinguished into four: 1) Crawling on the side - in the starting position the body rests on the left (right) elbow and forearm, the left (right) thigh and the right (left) heel. Advancement is performed mainly at the expense of straightening the right leg, which is strongly bent in the starting position, while the body moves forward together with the left leg, almost dragging, and the left arm is brought forward. When crawling on the left side, the main work falls on the muscles of the right leg (working movements) and the left arm (together with the left leg - supporting levers), while the muscles of the trunk carry out mainly the work of fixing the body. 2) Crawling prone (the "plastun" way) - in the starting position the body lies face down, at the beginning of movement the support is on the right (left) side, the right thigh and the right toe. The left (right) hand is prepared to be brought forward, the left (right) leg is bent in the hip and knee joints. The movement is performed mainly at the expense of the extensors of this leg. The work is distributed between individual muscle groups more evenly. 3) Crawling on half-knees - in the starting state the body rests on bent forearms and shins, the legs are spread to the sides, thanks to which the pelvis is lowered so much that the abdomen is raised from the ground by only 10-15 cm. Forward movement is performed by changing the position of the hands and dragging the legs. The load, as in the previous way, is distributed between individual muscle groups quite evenly, with more significant work than in the previous one falling on the abdominal muscles and the extensors of the spine. 4) Crawling on all fours - a way more advantageous in terms of the speed of advancement and expenditure of energy, but permissible only under conditions of sufficiently concealed terrain (low shrubbery, tall grass, etc.). By the nature of the movements and the load of individual muscle groups, they are close to those that occur during the previous way. - Data by Velikson and Lifshitz show that, if we take the expenditure of energy during crawling on the side as 100%, then during crawling prone it is spent 90.3%, and on all fours - 57.8%; the speed of prone progression during a competition over a distance of 75 m by these ways was respectively: 2 min. 30 sec., 3 min. 20 sec. and 1 min. 30 sec. The large coefficient of friction (especially during the first two of the above-described ways of crawling), the unevenness of the load and the nature of the work of individual muscle groups, the unnaturalness for an adult human of the general position of the body and in particular the inconvenient position for breathing and the difficulty of coordinating it with the working movements - all this makes crawling, in terms of general load, one of the difficult military-applied types of movement. An approximate idea of this is given by the studies of gas exchange conducted by Serebrennikov and Kravchinsky, who found that during movement for one minute the following is expended: during prone progression - 24.9 cal., during a calm march - 4.8 cal., forced march - 10.8 cal., during overcoming obstacles - 22.2 cal. and during an attack - 27.1 cal. In full accordance with this stand the results of physiological observations by Vaksleyger and Shechin, who found significant changes in the physical state of Red Army soldiers during prone progression over a distance of 60-120 m: a significant increase in pulse to 118%, breathing to 105%, increase in systolic blood pressure to 40% and decrease in diastolic to 15%, decrease in weight to 1.1 kg, etc. - The general load of the organism, the small speed of movement (on average 1 m in 5-6 sec.) make it necessary, on the one hand, in all cases where the combat situation allows, to alternate crawling with other types of movement in the combat zone (walking and running bent over, running across), and on the other hand, to introduce periodic short rests for preserving the fighter's strength during crawling over significant distances, approximately every 20-25 m for 50-60 sec. (depending on the combat situation). The requirements regarding rest have special significance during initial training and training both from the point of view of correctly involving Red Army soldiers and from the point of view of their successful assimilation of correct techniques of prone progression.