Class #1732

Control &Stability Challenge

40 min - Class
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Based on special requests from viewers, Kristi teaches our first combination Reformer/Tower workout on Pilates Anytime. You will truly challenge your abdominal control and stability as you perform many traditional Tower exercises (such as Leg Springs, Arm Springs, and Roll Backs) on a moving carriage. Enjoy the sense of grounding and balance you will get from this class.
What You'll Need: Reformer w/Tower

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Jun 23, 2014
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So we're going to try something a little different today. Um, this is sort of dedicated to those of you who've been asking for tower reformer classes. Well this studio has almost all windows, which in every other cases a great thing, but when it comes to towers, this is our one shot at it. So what I decided to do instead of buying more equipment was to bring the reformer over and I've been playing around with it and we'll have a little fun. I hope. So. The setup for your tower springs is I have the, um, and this has a little to do with the height of my reformer where I put these, but I have a, what I call the arms springs or the short yellow spring. I'm on the lower of the two groupings. They're in the middle.

I won't be using the push through bar, so that's just kind of hanging free. I have the long leg springs or the purple springs at the, um, oh, I'm sorry. It's not the lower, the first spring attachment is not the lower, it's the middle of the three that are kind of spaced out. The like springs are on the bottom of that. And then below that even still more still is the long arms springs at the top of the lower grouping of three. Okay. So that's where that's gonna be. Um, I have my reformer foot bar can be down to go ahead and take that down if it's not already. And the one red spring is on. Okay. So this first part I've been playing with and I'm enjoying it for the sake of deceleration.

So it's going to be interesting and I'm going to encourage you to do it kind of slow and get a feel for it cause we don't want to kind of whip ourselves around it. It's kind of fun. So find your golden bar and come to your carriage. A head rest, up or down. Does it matter? I have it up just for somebody to put my feet on so you can see I'm already moving the carriage. So be careful getting on back yourself up and hold the bar at the out side. Edges of it.

Sit up as tall as you can because you want it and you'll probably have to move way back if you're taller than me and most people are, you can just walk your feet out further, um, or kind of Hook your ankles on the end. So just make yourself comfortable and so that you can sit up tall. All right, from here, we're just going to breathe. As you hold the bar with a little resistance, take an inhale. Exhale. Feel the top of the head reaching for the sky. Gently, barely think of the arms sliding downward, trying not to move the carriage much here. Inhale, knees are comfortably pointed straight up and exhale. Think of drawing, lengthening. It's almost like just letting levity into your body. Sometimes it's a choice. Inhale and exhale. I'm not trying much, I'm just allowing my spine to have the space that would naturally be there.

One more time. Inhale and exhale. We change things a little bit here. I'm not going to pull on the straps or I'm gonna try not to inhaling. My feet are apart, knees are apart. I'm going to exhale and draw the pelvis underneath me.

I'm not trying to lean back. I'm trying to send the carriage forward. Inhale, bring it back up to straight. So there'll be some motion in the springs up top where your arms are and definitely hopefully some. And in that red spring that's on the reformer. Exhale as you sin the spine underneath you and in help grow back tall. Few more. Exhale, just warming up that low back. Inhale tall again. Exhale.

Notice that the collarbones stay wide. You're not letting those shoulders go forward to create the round. There's no sense of change really in the upper body. It probably is changing, but there's not much going on there to try for that. All right, now we go forward just a little and we're going to go a little further so we exhale and this time you're going to just bring the arms with you some bringing it on down and inhale, exhale, take your time.

It's as if the bones are stuck. To the mat and then sit up tall. Try and bring that spine right underneath you. Exhale back, [inaudible] your way down. Take a big inhale, quick peek at your ads. Start the exhale. Send the belly to the spine, peel yourself up, and go for a straight as you can. Inhale, exhale, curling under. If at the end there, you can't sit fully up straight, don't worry about it. I probably crowded you a little bit and that's okay.

We're just trying to get this deep curve while supported with the ABS. Big Inhale. Exhale down. We go. Go, go, go, go, go in and exhaling up. Now what we're going to do is we're gonna straighten out our legs. I'm gonna actually put that head rest down. You can straddle the reformer to do that cause you're gonna want to be secure with all of this stretch.

Stretch out your legs and place them through the shoulder rest, leaving a little bit of space behind you, and then take your hands back out to the edge of that bar. We're tall. We're doing the same thing, a little different with the leg straight, but we roll back all the way all the way. When you get down near those shoulder blades, over the edge of the carriage, it just going to inhale. Pull the bar now don't let go too quick with your arms. Slowly let it back out so you can get used to that sense of deceleration. Inhale, poor inner thigh. Strong. Exhale. Inhale, pl.

Exhale. Keep the arm straight. Take one more. Inhale and exhale. Peel yourself back up and with a straight back. Inhale. Exhale, send the tailbone forward when you have to bring the springs w with your arms. Do get to the bottom. Inhale, pull. Just once this time. Exhale, straightened control. Inhale, hold, and exhale. Peel yourself up at the top. You grow on up. Exhale, moving it on. Take it down. If you're comfortable with it, you're going to go a little further allowing your spine to extend.

Bend the arms as you go. Exhale, bring your head up straight in the arms and roll back up to straight. Wiggle forward if you need more room x, so you can also bend your knees a little if you'd like. Roll it down, find that place. Start to bend the arms, but allow it to assist you going over with that extra spring tension. Begin your exhale. We're looking forward, rolling all the way up two more times. Inhale, exhale. We roll down, leaving the arms straight. Inhale, start pulling the bar to your chest as you extend your spine all the way over. Head comes up on this exhale and you roll all the way. Last one. Inhale.

Exhale. Roll it down. Inhale as you bend the arms and take the upper body overly that low back still and exhale all the way back up. Okay, so one more little piece here before we fully let go of this bar for now. Straddle the carriage with your feet flat if that's available to you, if it's not available to you, might be able to put your feet on the edges of the reformer. In other words, it depends on how high a reformer is. With your feet flat, we're just gonna. Again, do have that little bit of tuck row tall. Now reverse the Tuck so you get that other direction.

Minimizing how much she thrust the ribs. Roll the pelvis under without collapsing. Find the sort of middle ground neutral ish and then extend the spine back, feet stave, still peel all the way through and release to the back one more like that. All the way through, released to the back. Stretch yourself forward and let's put that bar down. If you need to get up, you should all the way.

All right now then coming off your reformer to set it up from leg work. So we're going to put that foot bar up to your normal place. Mines, Middle Way, middle way. And I'm just putting three springs on. You can go a little heavier if you want to. And like my apart way up. So off we go down. Let's get some heat in the body. I'm starting with our heels. Parallel arms are down in flat. Take your inhale, settle in and exhale. Press out. And in. Now, even though we don't have springs on our legs, technically we think as if you do. How can you decelerate on the way back in, pressing out to pull it in. Find that connection to your hamstrings.

Press just two more. Here go one and in two and in both feet together. Slide down to the balls of the feet slightly. Elevate the heels pressing out and pull in. Press out to pull in.

Basically drawing from the whole body. There's even energy in your feet. The challenge is trying to find whether or not it's tension or actively working to kind of recycled it through your body. Let's do four more. Starting now we go one, pull it in, press two, pull it in. Three. One more time. Come in, heels together, toes apart, pressing out. Hold, squeezed strongly here. Make sure it's not just coming over the top, sort of rolling in. Get that wrap all the way around.

The glutes are engaged and resist or decelerate in. Here we go. Press out and come in out and pull in. Reach gotta. Love it. Get the air all the way in or at least as much as you can with this pace and of course all the way out. Let's do two more here. One pull in, last one and out. I like the wide position. So move your heels out. Um, for the first few, let the heel knees just drop and then check your feet that they line up with it, right? So your knees aren't way low and your toes are still up.

They're to kind of have to line up where you, from your vantage point, you really don't see much of your toes if fit in, if at all. Here we go. Shoulders down and back. Press one kid have wide press two like you have a big magic circle right in between the knees that you're drawing together and resist. Ah, I just caught my neck thinking, does your next thing cause my neck thinks I'm not thinking anymore. It's relaxed. Do two more. One, two, come on down. Slide your feet to the toes. Still wide. If that's uncomfortable, you can bring them up a little so it's a little more in line with your shoulders. Otherwise we're off of one and pull in.

So there's a lot of action really happening at the knees, the ankles, the hips. Um, for that to be that way you can't let the heels drop and lift. They, they kind of have to stay where they are. Not kind of, they do have to stay for more here. Press one, pull in. It's like that infinity sign I sometimes talk about of never quite losing the energy. Oh dear. But I definitely lose the count. This is going to be for, I'm just saying, so come on down, go back to parallel toes, push out. I have a little space between my feet. Yup. And we reach under the bar. Take a moment, just reach, reach now send the head straight off that head rest right to the back of the room. Lengthen your waist. Push a little more into one foot.

Not to lift you, but just to kind of be aware of it. Switch it so there's more in the other. Make it even in your mind during your actually and press up with both. Reach under, press up and reach under. Now the sense of connecting this to your whole body is going to come from keeping the inner thighs headed in the direction of each other.

Doesn't mean they're touching or they may be touching, but it doesn't mean they're squeezing together. It's just there's energy. That way you're drawing energy up. The center will do five more, one reach way under. Feel all through the foot. Three here's four and five. Stay high. Can you just lower one? He'll pick the other foot way up and enjoy it. A little stretch worth picking your head up briefly to see about how you're turning your foot. If you are trying to keep it level, push through that bottom foot until both legs can be straight and change.

Take a stretch. Other knee is pointed straight up. Oh ooh. Check that alignment. That's always interesting. We learned so much about ourselves. Both feet are nice and high. We'll go a little quicker for a run. Even now one and up two, both up. Three push from the bottom and press and lift and press and lift and press connect. Do four more. Three [inaudible] and one both feet up. Come on, right. Okay.

Help yourself up. Take it down to one spring and then we're going to go back and get those yellow springs long arms springs, I mean with the handles, hardest part is getting back on her farmer. I liked the outside hand being ready to go and down we come. [inaudible] is that one spring and arms springs really far away. It makes for a not so great entry skirt, a little bit away from the shoulder rest. We're going to get used to that deceleration again, so bring, bring your elbows to a bent position and then pick up the knees.

Bring your elbows almost to the ground, I mean almost to the table, but not quite [inaudible]. More in line with the side of the rib cage and now just slowly reach both out and slowly bring them back in. You're going to know pretty quickly if you want this on a blue spring or a little lighter, see what you need to do. We could get used to the sense of it here. All right, next one. We're going to curl up it all the way. Reach the arms, keep them straight.

Let the springs press on you a little bit. And then from here, extend your left leg out. Pull the right knee, bend your elbows and change legs. Bend your elbows, Bend your knees and change legs so they're going to come back together. Get used to that sensation. Press Right Ben. Both elbows. Press left Ben, both elbows. If you get too powerful, you're going to be bouncing all around. So control the return. Exhale, reach and bring it back or a lap higher. Come on, reach. Now's your chance and bring it back. Breath. Bring it back one more time. Press bring it back.

Head goes down. Yes. All right, here we go. Arms back to the same place. By the way, you can do this without springs, of course, right? Lower the arms or the elbows a little bit. Start to curl up and reach the arms out. Retreat, reach. Don't get them too low. They're right out in front of you. Bend the arms only now, double leg stretch with the arms going forward, more traditional one and turn the pumps so you're almost pressing into your legs. Two, inhale, bend, elbows, bent. Knees. Exhale, press to schoolies. Oh, she's bouncing around. Inhale, bend, Xcel, Perris, not too much. Power control. Inhale, bend, exhale, prs, and inhale, exhale, press.

Come on one more time and progress and return. Oh, isn't that fun? But you fit on your bar and take your arms through the handles. If you can go up as high as you can or if it's too strange, you don't have to do this at all. It's just a little fun sometimes for the Chris Cross, which is coming up again, I'm a little bit away from the shoulder rest. Take your hands behind your head.

Actually, I got to get a little further away still and knees up. Curl up from here. We're going to extend both legs up first. Had gently pressing back. Inhale, lower the legs. Exhale, bring them up. Stay curled up though. Inhale, lower the legs. Just a little exhale, scoop and bring it back up. Inhale, reach and exhale up. Isn't this fun? And up from here, right into crisscross.

Cross bend your right knee to with, oh, that's why she did that one and switch one and two to pull it in. Three you're up there and get up there. And four, four, two more sets, five, five and six and six both knees bent. Set your feet on the bar. Carefully help yourself out of there. And I'm going to just straighten my leg so I can put these down and unfortunately I've got to get up to go get my legs springs you do to slowly yourself off there and get your longer leg springs again. I'm going to actually, I'll just leave it there.

So again, the one, two, three, it's on the third lowest one and then there's the whole nother set of eyelids down here. If you can't see that. All right, one red spring still has plenty. It feels like more than that, doesn't it? Alright, coming down, do your best. Situate yourself so that now you can put your feet in the straps. Careful. It's not a lot of spring tension that if you're used to doing this with a little more, there's one foot you can take your other foot off the bar when you get into the other one. All right, heels together for frogs.

Settle in and again, go kind of slow. So you get used to it is, it's very strange on this I think if you've never done it this way there and then pull it in. Sorry if I didn't say it out loud. Here it is. Press out, press, press, press. Keep the energy going. Keep imagining the coils opening and band kind of a little more in real time, but not fast. You kind of want to control the springs rather than this springs controlling you press and reach. What I like about this outside of just sort of the different feeling is the um, the feel of the strap and my feet. It kind of feels like I can let go around my hips more and let the bones just settle in there. And somehow that offers me more freedom, which somehow gives me even more work right where I want it around the muscles, around the hips. All right, one more time. Press out.

Stay out there now slowly bring the legs up. It's going to move your carriage. Is that going to add more spring and now we press down for circles. Go kind of slow and kind of small. If you haven't done these inhale circle round cause I don't want it. Again, you don't want to be pulled much with that carriage spring.

You want to know it's there. All right. When you're on the Cadillac of course you can't feel this or when you're, when you're on your fault, Matt, you, you have justice springs which is often blenny. Why add complexity? Because we can, okay. Oh, open the hips due to mar getting the feel for it. If you hyper extend your knees and I certainly can energize the back of the legs. It's reverse, so it's like you're about to bend them, not soften them.

That's different. That's, that's not what I'm wanting for. Inhale up. Exhale. That's why I was going to move that bar. I forgot. Inhale up. It won't hurt you if you touch your bar up. Oh, come on. It feels good, doesn't it? It's kind of fun starting to really feel it now. We haven't as one more now. Sort of settle yourself in with the legs straight. We're going to open it out slowly. Trying to keep the feet on the same level.

Exhale, bring them back together and pause. Open out. Nice Long. Imagine the sit bones just flaring or reaching open. Equally an open. Same thing with the backs of the knees. If you get into hyperextension or even if your legs look straight, but you're feeling a lot of tension at the back of the knee. It's, it's like you're literally about to bend your knees with a contraction that'll help you may fatigue really quickly cause that's typically why we are hyper extending. So you can just stop, right. Oh one more.

One more. You feel it. Hold it out there. Bring the bottoms of the feet together as much as you can. [inaudible] it's shaped like a diamond here. So the knees are wide. I'm doing the best I can to get my head, uh, all toes together. Um, without over sickeling the foot where it's just not super uncomfortable. Allow the hips to be heavy.

Legs come up to the diamond and then you press the outer leg down so that the toes are pointing away from you rather than the ceiling. Right and up settle there. And schoolies down and and prs, you do this on the reformer. Sometimes it's just different, right? That's, that's sometimes sometimes good enough reason to change things up. I'm enjoying it. [inaudible] I'm inhaling up, exhaling down when I think about it.

Last one. And they're all right. What we're going to do here is we're going to help ourselves out. Careful stretch one leg of the bar and then the other, and I'm going to try to set this on my peg behind me. I don't think it's gonna stay there. So what I'm going to, yeah, there we go.

I knew it turned sideways. Keeping that one closest to your front side with you. You're putting this strap on and then you want to get onto the side of your hip as much as possible. Okay? Once you've done that, and here's a little transition, I've still got that one red spring on, you're going to bend the lower leg and sort of stack your hips, stack almost your knees and not touching each other yet. But they're pretty much stacked 90 at the hip, 90th the knee. And then from here, we breast the Lego.

And we bend it right back up to 90 so there's, if you could see the knee, it's like the heel, the heel of this top foot is following the line of the frame of the reformer. So I'm not bringing the heel to my butt is really the message prs long and keeping the hips open. What tends to happen is you bend the knee as you drop that hip forward or you hike the hip is another thing you want. Nice long hips, feeling the good, stir it. Now we'll do it a little different. It starts the same. You push out. Now take it a little bit behind you and then bring it back up.

So it's like a almost like a big running leap and bring it back. When he gets behind you, it's going to want to go up. So be mindful of that. Don't let it you're in charge. And just two more arrests and bend. One more. Progress and bend. Okay, now we're going to press out just straight in line with a reframe. Let the light come forward a little bit. Oh, watch.

They have to keep it stacked and pull it back to in line with the middle of your body. Take it forward. There's that stretch, reached that sit bone and two and three by the way, and he's holding the shoulder rest for support. I'm doing two more. There's four. You could have your arm over the top and lying on it too. There's five. This is it and bring it back. I may show that to you on the other side. Right, so you're going to bring that bend the knee to stretch out the bottom, like defined your foot bar and take the strap off. What I was going to suggest, if you didn't like that arm placement for support, you could put the head rest down and lie on your arm like so. That might give the taller people a little more room, but basically you could, you know, find a way to get comfortable as much as possible.

For the time that we're here, primarily leaving the spine as long we don't want to curl, we don't want to be in a position where the body is really curled. It's basically neutral as we start as we start this, so I'm using my bottom leg is stability. Initially you got to pull on the spring a little bit to try to get the strap in. If you need a little jump you can do that too. And then situate your hips before you pull that bottom leg off fully.

And there you go. Here we go. Pressing out to full extension, not going for lined up just yet. Meaning I'm not pulling the leg right back underneath me. I'm keeping the heel in line with the frame. So we bend and we straight and we bet [inaudible] you're kind of letting, once again the hip itself relax. You can just think of the bones coming forward, bending at the knee joint and the bone reaching back out until the knee is straight.

Keep it going for rs and and press and nice and long initiating right from underneath the gluten or ethic gluten one more like this. And actually it's, it's that similar one, but we're just going to take it a little further back. So once it's straight, keep it sweeping back and then bring it into the bent knee position. Pushing off and stir Rach and Ben and push to reach and Ben get keep getting it as nice and smooth as possible. Reach and in one more reach and get behind your open up the front of the hip and Ben and now we go back to straight, lined up with the edge of the frame of the carrot or the reformer and we let the straight leg or it can be slightly bent. Be careful with that and press really should not be feeling this in your back. Okay?

You keep it small as it starts to pull too much or perhaps you could lower your legs. Spring three already stretched. Keep opening the spring as you get down there under almost underneath yourself. [inaudible] one more time. Nice. Long waist. Press, press, press, press breasts and bend the knee to come on home. All right, let's come down.

You can let that strap go or spring go help yourself up for some up stretch and long stretch. I will leave my red one red spring on. You may decide to go to a red and blue or to red. The point really here is what am I going to work, right? I'm, I'm going to put the focus really on the middle of the body. Um, not at the expense of everything else, but I'm going light on purpose cause I'm to emphasize the end. So this feels very late to me. Fulfilled. It doesn't feel insecure though, is a difference. So stepping up, I'm going straight actually into the pyramid shape first. So I'm going high heel or heel is really about, I don't know, midway up, arms on the carriage. My bar is locked down.

And from here looking for a nice long flat back reach, the Tailbone, I, what I tried to do really is reach away first, let the shoulder shrug, let the tailbone go up to the sky, then I, I'd pull the ribs in a little bit, usually helps my position and then I kinda drop onto some weight, onto my hands on my shoulders. Just kind of relax. I don't pull them down from here. Allow the carriage to drift back a little bit, but nothing else changes. Exhale, the belly brings it in so the front of your hips are relaxed, your legs are even relaxed, push. You can still connect to them, right? I have a sense I'm actually pressing my feet inward toward each other, so I get that inner thigh and push, pull and push. Nice and stable everywhere else. One more. We change it from this. From the closed position. We're just going to push the carriage out to a plank, so don't travel with your arms.

You're going to push the carriage and your body's going to rotate around the shoulders as well and return and open and return. Push, line it up and exhale. The impetus for returning is definitely the middle of the body. Exhale, one more time. Bring it home from there. Open up to the plank. Travel forward over the bar all the way in.

If you can push back, no need hurting your wrist. If you can't and forward your light, you're levitating up over the bar. I'm still drawing my feet toward each other. My heels are touching the shoulder rest and reaching through them backwards to a lot. Going on one more time and yeah, lift the hips back to that pyramid position. Lower the heels. And from here you're gonna lift your heels up. Same position. Otherwise, um, state backwards a little bit. So in other words, you're almost in like a down dog position rather than coming forward over the springs. Toes are up. Press the inner thighs toward each other.

Then hello the low belly, a little so you can allow for a little rounding in the low back. You pretty much have to heels are pressing down. We inhale open, exhale, return. Imagine what could you do? This is, this is theoretical to allow the spring to bring the carriage back in. You Get so light, your body's going upwards. Even as your heels press downwards, that's where you're going to start to feel it. I've, I'm actually even sliding my palms toward each other on the foot bar.

Not really. I'm just thinking about it. So everything's engaged. Just one more time. [inaudible] and that'll do come on down to your knees with your feet back to the shoulder rest. Roll yourself into a nice long down stretch position. If you want to put more spring on, now's a good time to do it. Um, before I go, I'm pressing my heels back as much as I can so that I activate this whole backside of the body again. My arms feel like I'm going to exhale back. Inhale, floating up, looking up, opening up and exhale.

And it's as if your legs are pushing the carriage away. They're not, but you want to keep active back there. One more time. Now come and keep the shape. Keep the shape, keep the shape like you're going to devil over yourself. Hit, come to the stoppers, come to the fingertips, pressing the hips forward with the pubic bone up to the sternum. Take one arm off other arm off. First arm comes back. Okay. You can look another arm back. Sit down. Come off one side of, actually, I'll change that since I'm, I don't know if you are, have a high performer like I do.

I'm going to put one foot up on the bar. Okay. So from here before you really get to pushing the carriage back. Um, it's a subtle sensor tucking under. I'm not going to appear Tuck, but that's the direction of the energy. Then I'm going to let the thigh bone go back and that's almost all I need to do today. Sorry to say. But if you can and you want to slide back more, you can. I'm kind of done here. Um, I'm feeling it to the front of the hip. I know it's doing its thing.

I need not do more or at least I know I couldn't do more, so I'm going to enjoy this. All right. Here's the fun part that basically stays the same. You can release it a little if it's too much and just straighten your forward leg. Oh Christie, get up more often, huh? Okay. So what I'm going to do, cause I'm super tight right now, is I'm going to bend my right knee. The one I'm trying to stretch that hamstring first. I'm going to pull the right hip back more and now I'm going to try for straight and I doubt you would see anything but take care of yourself and find that stretch long next.

Oh there we go. My goodness. Okay, note to self, let's change legs altogether. All right, so here we are. We're lifted as much as we can be. Uh, I'm thinking my whole spine, that means my pelvis too. Since it's basically attached, I'm now pushing through the foot to move the carriage and get the stretch. I need [inaudible] and if you want to slide back a little, you can.

But if you start moving into this other leg a lot, it's just different. I suppose. It's pretty out today. All right. Deep breath or longer breath. And here we go. Now knowing how tight I was on the other side, I'm going to stop short a little bit and just check my hips again so I don't get out of whack. And I'm going to start by pulling that hip backwards. It feels almost like a twist to me. It's not, I'm probably almost straight.

And then if I can man it, manage it, I'm going to try for straighter. But here's the deal. You got to have a straight back. And for me to get my leg straight right now I'm going to have to round and then I lose it all together. This is nothing. I can do that all day. So I'm going to straighten my back, square my hips, grimace a little and do it more often. Be Nice, be nice to Christie, be nice to yourself.

Don't hurt yourself man. Let it feel good. Find yourself getting more supple. Okay. Coming on, Ian from here. Step up for a moment and we are going to grab our roll up bar with the arm springs just as it is. Come back to a kneeling position. So if you need knee pads cause we've been on our knees for a while, get them now. I'm still on that one spring.

If you weren't lighter earlier you may be appropriate. But I would say a medium weight spring is kind of important on this one just for balance. Okay. Holding outside the buckles. If you have those are at the end of the bar. I'd wrap your thumbs around and again, we're going to have that deceleration balance thing happening again. So move with caution. Um, I'm leaning back right now cause I'm not focused on the balance part of it yet, but when I am, I'm going to first do that sense of Tuck of the pelvis just to keep a straight spine but also to activate my hamstrings. If you can't feel the hamstrings, I'd recommend curling the toes under and push into your feet more so that you can get that connection. I'll keep it like that for awhile. All right, from here, slowly your shoulders are down, you're reaching the bar down, you're gentle with it and you reach down to go back up getting used to the motion for us down, grow tall and your spine reach down and forward with the bar.

If you just let the bar go, it's going to feel a little funny and you easily could lose your balance. So we are in fact challenging that too. I'm going to put my toes down, which is just going to require a tiny bit more balanced, but also for me to just pay attention to my hamstring staying involved. It's real support when you do that. Okay, so now we'll add in. Basically pull down, hold, lift your chest a little look right. Look left center and slow release. Inhale, pull down. We're going to look left. No breath here. Really right center. Exhale.

Inhale, grow tall as you pull down and back. Look Right, left center and one last one. Pull. Look left, right center and from here, little thigh stretch to pull the bar down. Lean back carefully. Come up and let the arms up just a little bit. Be careful and pull down. Don't lean back yet. Now take it back with you.

Keep the bar with you. Bring it back. When you're over your knees, let the bar go forward. I'm gonna change it a little. We pull down, come on, use your upper back here, hinge back, pull the bar up to your chest and then from here, tuck more. Pull the bar up and see about letting your spine arch a little, not so much that your head is hanging line head. Realign the spine. Come back up and straighten the arms. It's a bit of a circle. You pull down, as you hinge back, draw the bar up and gives you a little more support there, right? Do not drop your butt here. Your Butt's going up or tucking or solid. Anyway, start to extend just the upper back, just the upper back. The hips don't really change. Bring it forward.

Let the hips of the spine come into alignment. Then hinge up, and as you straighten the arms at the same time, lining back up right over your knees. Pull down, hinge and pull the bar as you go. Extend your spine and come on up. You can go a tiny bit faster, but make sure you're under control. Pull down your shoulders over knees, hinge back, bend, arch. When you feel ready coming up, extend the arms. Do you want to bring your head back into alignment prior to straightening your arms? Okay, so pull down one more. Roll back. Bend up, up, up.

You don't have to arch, but if you're going to now as the time head comes back up, you hinge up, reach the bar out and down. Let this carriage go to the stopper. Let the Fargo back yourself up and just rest your head. Rest your arms, your feet, hang off the edge. You might even pull on your feet so that you actually get around this to your spine. [inaudible] and help yourself up. We'll call it a day with that one.

Thanks for joining me.

Comments

2 people like this.
This was really lovely Kristi!
I might've missed it, but what spring do you have on the reformer? Thanks Kristi!
Hi Marna I start with one Red Spring. I think I leave it there most of the time, though I possibly add a "half" spring (blue) when I put feet in straps.
Paola Maruca
1 person likes this.
Beautiful and creative
7 people like this.
Great use of the tower without having to move the pulleys and ropes. Would like to see more classes using the tower.
1 person likes this.
Okay, that packed a wallop. I slept like a rock after that class. Thanks, Kristi.
3 people like this.
ohhhhhhhh I cant wait to do this one!! I have been waiting for a class featuring the reformer with tower as that is what I have at home.. Thank you Kristi.. Please do more of these soon..maybe with a beginner tone as well? You're the best!
Thanks Jamie... and, let's see if after trying it you like it first!
If you do (I totally appreciate the enthusiasm btw), and y'all aren't hampered by my "made up" Tower/Reformer combo... well sure! I'd be happy too!
2 people like this.
Thank you Kristi ... a great fusion reformer tower class
You are one of my favorite teachers ..
a terrific communicator, a true pilates devotee.

Thank you so much Anne!
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