Hi beauties! It's Robin from The Balanced
Life. I'm back with part three of Pilates
for Beginners. If you're just joining us,
be sure to check part 1 and part 2 to
get caught up. Today we're focusing on
flexion and extension, along with just a
nice gentle beginner Pilates workout. So
as you read in the blog post, our spine can
flex and extend - that's going forward and
going back. Most of us are going to find
that flexion is the more natural
position for us, especially with all of
the computer work we do, the driving, the
phone stuff - all of that forward motion
puts us actually in kind of a constant
state of flexion. So what's very
important for a lot of us to work into
our routine - which is why Pilates is so
great for you - is extension, and just
getting the spine to go the other way,
right? It's something we don't do very
often and so it's something that I
actually try to get my clients to do
almost every day at home, just a few
times a day, to make sure that they're
keeping their spine healthy and able to
move in all directions. So go easy on
yourself in the beginning and of course
always check with your doctor to make
sure that this kind of movement is
healthy for you. And as always, if you
feel pain, stop. So let's get started on
our back. Talking about flexion first. So
lying on our back, knees bent, feet flat
on the floor.
We're going to just talk about basic
upper spine extension - or I'm sorry
flexion. So interlace your hands behind
your head and actually use your hands
for support, so they feel like a hammock
behind your head. Your elbows should just
barely be in your peripheral vision and
spine is in neutral. We'll take an inhale
and as you exhale, first I just want you
to
come up in whatever way you're used to
coming up in. So chances are, you've
flattened your back and you pushed your
chin forward - just guessing. Let's do that
again, lower back down.
Now keep your neutral spine and I want
you to think about the fifth rib, right
in the middle of your chest. That's where
you're going to flex. So right at that fifth
rib, lift yourself up.
Notice how much easier that is on the
neck. And lower yourself back down. Here
we go,
flex at the fifth rib, lift up. Notice how
you can get up on your shoulder tips
that way and all of a sudden, your head
is over your shoulders and you no longer
feel strain in your neck. We're going to do
that eight more times, ready? Flexing at
the fifth rib, lengthening the spine
back down. Exhale we come up, inhale
lengthen down. Exhale, inhale. Exhale,
inhale. Good, so if you're doing this
right, you're focusing on all the
concepts. Ten is more than enough. Gone
are the days of a hundred crunches, thank
goodness! And lower down. Uh oh, I lost count -
let's do four more. And three, and two, and
one, and down. From here, take your right
knee to tabletop, bring your left knee to
tabletop, grab behind your thighs. Again,
maintaining neutral spine, little nod of
the chin as you come up with that fifth
rib, finding that neutral pelvis. We're
going to take both hands to the right
knees, we stretch the left leg out, and
switch. This is called single leg stretch.
Nice and slow, pressing into that foot,
so you reach away...and really hug the
knee in towards you to get the
opposition in both legs. Shoulders are
broad down the back, spine is neutral,
chest is lifted at that fifth rib.
Good, one more to each side. Knees come
in, rest the head. Now we're going to
take them to double leg stretch. So we
gently grab behind the thighs, we nod
and lift at that fifth rib - still
maintaining neutral pelvis. From here the
arms and legs reach, circle them around
to touch your shins. Inhale and exhale.
Good, if you need to reach your legs a
little higher, that's totally fine. Just
stay here. Four more - whichever option
you're choosing. 3, 2, 1. And rest it down.
Good, let's roll on to our stomach to do
a little bit of extension. So lying on your
stomach, go ahead and just take your
hands and place them directly under your
shoulders and rest your forehead down on
the mat. Yeah, right there. Okay
think of pressing your pelvis down into
the mat and all I want you to do is
think of bringing your heart forward to
the front of your chest,
causing you to naturally come into an
extended spine...and lower back down. So
notice I did not say lift your head,
because I don't want you to do this -
because that's not extension, at least
that's not thoracic extension. So that's
not really that good for you. Keep your
head in line with your spine, picture
your heart coming forward towards the
front of your ribcage, and notice how you
naturally lift up through the thoracic
spine...and lower back down. If yours is
only about this high, you're doing great.
Don't worry about it. Just work within
your own body, lengthening and lifting.
Try to reach out longer through your
spine and through your toes. And lower
back down. Three more - lengthening and
lifting. My shoulders are actually
drawing down my back for this exercise.
Belly button is lifting up off of the
floor.
One more time - shoulders draw back and
down as I reach my heart forward...and
lower it down.
Good, take both arms forward. Now we're
going to do an exercise called swimming
prep. So you're going to rest your head
down on your mat. You're going to draw
your abdominals in, lifting the belly
button up off of the mat, and you're
going to raise your left arm and your right
leg, and back down. And you're resting
your head on the mat. I just have mine up
so you can hear me talking. And back down.
Switching sides and really trying to
reach the opposite walls. So reach across
the room, so you're long through arms,
long through legs. Good, now lift your
head so it's hovering above the mat and
continue. Good, side to side, stable pelvis,
strong abdominals. Now from here, lift all
limbs and hold...breathe...and hold. If it
doesn't feel good on your lower back,
place the feet down and just keep the
arms up...and lower back down. We're going
to do that one more time. Head comes up,
arms come up,
optional legs. Listen to your body and do
what feels best to you. Breathe and hold...
and lower back down. Good, rolling back onto
to your back. So that was a bit of an
extension. It's good to give yourself a
break after doing extension, so we'll
return to a little bit of flexion with
the Pilates Hundred. So since this is
beginner Pilates, I'm going to keep my
knees in tabletop and if you want to
extend yours, you're more than welcome to.
Grab behind your thighs, nod your chin
towards your chest. From here, reach your
arms long and pump as you inhale, two,
three, four, five. And exhale, two, three,
four, five. Inhale...out... Good, really use those
arms. So don't be afraid to put some
energy into it. Out, two, three, four, five.
Remember that fifth rib concept,
lift right at the middle of your
chest. In, two, three, four, five. Out... If
you need to rest your head, feel free to
rest your head. You have three more
breaths...one. Good, hug your knees in
towards your chest and rock yourself up
to seated. Nice job, you guys! That's a
short beginner workout, focusing on
flexion and extension.
Feel free to repeat it or do it
throughout the week. It's just a great
opportunity for you to move your spine
in both directions and maintain a
healthy spine. So if you have any
questions, don't hesitate to ask.
Otherwise, I'll see you back here on
Friday for your next video!
