Class #5411

Fun-Filled Mat

45 min - Class
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Get ready to sweat in this fun-filled Mat workout with Laura Hanlon. She teaches a straightforward class designed to keep you moving from one exercise to the next. Throughout the class, she includes variations that will challenge your balance, control, and strength.
What You'll Need: Mat

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Hi, I'm Laura Hanlon and today we will be practicing a fun-filled mat class yet again. Let's get started. We'll sit in the middle of the mat facing either end, bringing those feet about hip distance apart. Reach your arms forward, take a deep breath in and exhale to round and roll all the way back. Lining yourself up with a beautiful long, straight back.

Flip the palms down flat to the mat and then walk your feet a little bit closer towards your sit bones here, getting ourselves situated long spine, out through the crown of the head, out through that tail, neutral pelvis. Palms firmly pressing into the floor to feel length, this beautiful openness across the shoulders and the collarbones. Take a deep breath in and as you exhale, begin to float that right leg up to a tabletop position, 90 degree bend of the knee, knee stacked over the hip, keeping that neutral pelvis. Another breath in. Exhale, left leg comes up to meet the right, hip distance apart.

It's so important that we set ourself up, particularly here across the pelvis, engaged in the low belly, keeping that relaxed neck and throat. As you inhale, start to float that right toe down towards the floor. Exhale, deepen the belly, lift it right back up to tabletop. Same thing with the left. Inhaling down and exhaling to lift.

Starting slow and controlled as we often do, really getting into the low belly, those transverse abdominals, pelvic floor, below where a seatbelt would lie in the car, using the breath to access those muscles a little more deeply. Inhale, lower. Exhale, think of a corset around the waist to lift. We inhale to lower the left. Exhaling to lift.

One more time each side. Inhale, down. Making sure that right sit bone stays long as the right leg lift. Same thing on that other side. We're not lifting or shifting our pelvis.

From here at the top, knees draw together. Little more challenging as we lower both toes towards the mat, maybe they hover, maybe they tap, maybe they don't go as far. Exhale, ribs draw tight, belly button pulls deep to lift. Inhale, double legs lowering down towards the floor, keeping that 90 degree bend of the knees. Breaking at the hips to lift.

Inhale, down. Exhale, think of that tight zipper zipping up through the inner thighs towards your belly button. Inhale, twice more. Exhale, up. Last time, inhale, lower.

And exhale to lift. Take a deep breath in at the top. And exhale, slowly lower those feet all the way back down to the mat with control. We'll separate the feet hip distance apart. Flip the arms straight up towards the ceiling over the chest, breathing in and then exhale, peeling up to the tips of the shoulder blades, lowering those palms to hover off the mat by the hips.

Lowering the head back. Arms straight up, inhale. And exhale, curling up and over the rib cages. We blow all that air out of the lungs. Inhale, take it back.

And exhale, reach up and forward. Making sure the sit bones, the tailbone staying long. Once again, we don't wanna tuck the pelvis here and grip in the hips or the low back. Instead, we want to work those low abdominals. Exhale, curl up.

Once more, using that breath, inhale back. Exhale, curl up. Reach up, making sure that neck is right in line with the spine. Chin over the chest. Never here, that only strains the neck muscles.

If it's feeling tight, rest it back. Inhale, back. This time, we'll curl up to stay. Setting up in a nice strong high upper body contraction. Right arm floats up towards the ceiling, again, on the inhale.

Exhale, press it back down to hover off the floor. Left arm lifts to the ceiling. Pull the belly button a little bit deeper as you reach the fingertips a little bit longer. Inhale, right arm up. Exhale to reach.

Think about a box across your hips, across your shoulders. Everything stays square. We're not shifting up and down side to side. We're moving from that shoulder. We're reaching the arm a little longer, maybe curling a little higher.

You should feel your abdominals. I feel mine. Exhale, reach, one more time each side. Right arm lifts. Press and reach, pull the belly a little deeper.

Left arm lifts. Press and reach. Hold it here, curl up one more inch. Deep breath in. Exhale to stay, zip up through that low waist.

Lower the head down, arms straight to the ceiling. Keep those arms here. Shoulder blades pulling down into the back. Deep breath in. As we exhale, right and left leg come back to that tabletop position, hip distance apart.

From here, we'll reach the right arm back right by your ear. This time, without lifting the shoulder, without letting it plop. Left leg extends in the opposite direction. Feel the length through the fingers and toes. Take a breath there.

Exhale, draw that arm and leg back up to center. Again, thinking about this box, everything stays connected. Left arm floats back, right leg long. Deep breath in, gaze is up. Exhale, zip up through that waist to bring it back to center.

Again our first side, we reach and lengthen, inhale. Exhale, bring it back in. And second side. Warming up through the body, lengthening out through the limbs, deepening across that waistline. Inhale to reach.

And exhale, bring it to center. Second side, reaching long. And exhale to center. Last time each side, inhale. And exhale.

Once more. Reach through the fingers and toes. Pull that belly button down towards the back, bring it back up and in. Glue those inner thighs back together. Deep breath to prepare.

Curling back up to the tips of the shoulder blades without moving those legs. A little more challenging with the legs at tabletop, always option to keep the feet flat on the mat. Head goes back. This time, let's let those arms float back overhead with control. Exhale, curl up, reach up.

Lengthen through those arms. Inhale, reach back. Keep that length. This time, maybe your right leg extends. Left leg stays where it is.

Inhale, bend the knee, head and arms reach back. Left leg this time, reaching long. Taking our time, warming up those abdominals here. Inhaling. Thinking about the whole body.

Arms lengthen, leg lengthens. Right leg reaches into the other direction. Bring it in. Take the head and arms back. Left leg, last time, reach up, up, up.

Take it back, inhale. Both legs together, whatever level of diagonal works best for you. Inhale, back. Exhale, belly button pulls deeper to the floor. Reach it long.

Two more times. Bending with control, knees to tabletop. Always working in the core. Never really a rest position here. How fun is that?

Once more, inhale, back. Exhale, curl up. Reach up, we hold for one deep breath, inhale. Reach a little higher. Pull the belly a little deeper as you exhale.

Draw those knees into rest for a moment. Give them a hug. Relax your shoulders, shake your head side-to-side. Maybe rock your knees side-to-side or circle those knees. Wherever you're feeling tense in the body, the neck, the hips, the low back, try and let it go.

We wanna work those abdominals here, get into those muscles that we often under work. Try and let the ones that overwork just relax for a moment, especially up here. Now we're working into our hundreds core work. We feel it, we're warm. Start to peel the head, neck, and shoulders up.

Forehead to the knees. Reach those arms back long. Start with the legs at tabletop today. Begin pumping and breathing in fives. In two, three, four, five, exhale.

Exhale, two, three, four, five. Inhale. And out. Start to extend the right leg. And exhale out, two, three, four, five.

Again, inhale. Zip up through that waist, right knee bends in. Keep the pumps, left leg long. Inhale, two, three, four, five. Exhale, two, three, four, five.

In. And out, both legs straight. Whatever diagonal works best for you, pull that belly button a little bit deeper. Four more breaths, in. Exhale, out.

We have three. And out. Last two. One more, finishing strong. And exhale out, two, three, four, five.

Hold, reach, lengthen one more inch. Draw those knees all the way back into rest. Lower the feet down to the mat. Walk those legs out nice and long, toes are reaching forward, arms reaching behind, feeling that elongation through the body. Flex through the heels, reach of the fingertips.

Deep breath in. And exhale, to round and roll up. Opening up through the back, reaching those heels long, always holding up behind the legs if you need more support. Let the crown of the head release, arms stay lifted, parallel to the floor. Deep breath here.

And exhale to round and roll back vertebra by vertebra. Zipping up through the inner thighs, pulling back in that waistline in opposition. As the heels reach forward, head and arms float behind. Inhale, arms up. Use the breath, use the belly, rounding and rolling up.

The roll up is as much abdominal work as it is spinal articulation. Inhale at the top. Exhale, we're working to open up through the back, through the bones. Knowing that every body, every spine is different here, feel free to modify, bent knees, holding on, half roll up. Inhale and exhale, listen to your body.

Never forcing it. Trying not to use momentum. Really working with care here. Inhale. This exercise should feel good.

Zip up through the inner thighs all the way from those heels, all the way up towards your belly button. Last time, inhale, arms float up. Exhale, round and roll up. Reaching one inch further towards the toes, opening up across the shoulders. Inhale at the top and exhale, taking our time rolling all the way down vertebra by vertebra.

Continue to reach your fingertips forward. Pull your belly button back, hover at the shoulder blades. Lower your palms down, your head back. We'll draw the right knee into the chest and extend that leg nice and long to the ceiling. Chest and chin stay lifted and open.

Deep breath to prepare. Exhale as we circle our right leg across the body. Down around and straight back up. Inhaling at the top. Exhale to circle.

Thinking about that seatbelt across our pelvis, across our hip bones, across the pubic bone so the hips stay completely square. We are using those low abdominals. Inhale at the top. One more circle this direction. Lengthen, lift, hold, inhale.

Exhale, reverse, out down across. Lengthen that outer thigh, lift a little bit higher. Circle around, belly pulls deep, toes lift up. For three. Lengthen and lift.

Two and up. One more time around. Lift and stay. Bend the right knee into the chest. Take your left hand right below that right kneecap, right hand towards the right ankle pointing through the toes, breathing in.

Exhale, we'll peel up to the tips of the shoulder blades, hovering that left leg to about eye level. Deep breath in and exhale, switch to the other leg, left knee and right leg long, opposite hand to knee, other hand by that ankle. Back to the right side, inhale and back to the left as we exhale. Switch and switch. Feel a length through that extended leg.

Really reaching through the toes, finding a beautiful lift in the knee and the thigh so we get that full extension, elongating the muscles here. Inhaling, deepening the belly as you exhale. For three, can we curl up a little higher? Two. And switch, last one.

Left knee stays in. With control, lower that right leg right in line with the hip and reach through the heel. Lower the head back. Shoulder blades pull down. Palms press down, left toes reach up high.

Deep breath to prepare. Exhale, left leg circles across, down out. Deepen the belly as the toe lifts straight back up over the hips to the ceiling for four. Lengthen and lift and three, inhale. Exhale at the top for two and lift.

Once more. And hold. Inhale, prepare, exhale, we circle around. Lengthening a little higher each time. Feeling that same lift and stretch in the thighs.

Three, pressing into the palms for support. For two and up. Once more around. Lift and hold. This time, take the back of the left leg with both hands wherever you can hold on, hamstring, calf.

Give it a beautiful elongating stretch and pull for those hamstrings. Reaching out and up through both toes. Deep breath in. Exhale, use the abdominals to curl up, not the arms or the shoulders. The arms are here to give that left leg a little closer pull.

Right leg hovers, then we scissor and switch, left leg hovers. Right leg pulls closer to the nose. Inhale back to the left. Exhaling back to the right. Switch and switch.

Chin remains hovering right over the chest here, protecting our head and neck with our alignment. Keeping those shoulder blades pulling down away from the ears. Curling up over the ribs. Using those abdominals. Switch and switch.

We have three. And two. Give that leg a little extra pull to the nose. Last one. And switch.

Both legs lift and we hug them back into the chest to rest. Relaxing the head, neck and shoulders here. Lowering the hand placement to the lower parts of the shin or the ankles. Give your body a little rock side-to-side. Deep breath in.

We'll rock our way back and all the way up. Maybe not even letting those toes touch the mat if you're ready. From here, if they are, bring them to a hover. Knees pull close to one another towards the heart. Chin tucks over the chest, elbows wide.

We rock back in this tight ball shape. Breathing in, and exhale, breathing out. And four. Find the balance at the top. For three.

And lift, keeping that chin tucked over the chest, two. Find it, lift. Once more, inhale. Exhale and hold. From here, pull the shoulder blades down, lengthen through your spine.

We're gonna work a little bit on balance today. Left leg shoots back out long, left hand right below that right knee cap pulling the right knee close, keeping the shoulder blades down into the back. Take a breath in. Begin to slowly roll down one vertebrae at a time. Maybe that left leg lowers to eye level as we hover off the shoulder blades.

We take a breath in. We go into one single leg stretch, left leg and right leg long and stay. Taking another breath here at the bottom. Press that left shin into the hands, palms, fingertips. Use it as you lift the body and that right leg up a little higher.

Shoulder blades down, deep breath in. Exhale, we roll down. Pulling that left knee with us. So the opposite of that quick rolling like a ball. How slow can you go articulating through your spine?

Pull the left knee a little closer, breathe in. Back to that right side, breathe out. Inhale here. Exhale, curl back up. Belly button pulls back.

Body, chest, toes lift, inhale. Exhale, making our way down vertebra by vertebra. Right knee and left leg long. We switch. We inhale.

Exhale, curl up. Zip up through the waist. Use those abdominals to lengthen through the chest, through the leg, inhale. Last time, rolling back down vertebra by vertebra. Back to that right side, inhale and exhale, curl all the way back up.

From here, both knees pull back in. Back to our ball. Keeping this lift, legs lift to tabletop. Arms stay holding on or we reach forward. Deep breath here, finding that balance.

With that same slow control, we roll down vertebra by vertebra in four. Back of the pelvis, three. Low back. Two, middle of the waist. We arrive hovering at the tips of the shoulder blades.

Curl up maybe even higher. Pull the knees into the nose. Double leg stretch, legs long, arms behind. Inhale, hold. Exhale, circle, hug it in.

Four more, reach. Zip up through the low belly, exhale, hug. Legs stay tight, arms lengthen long and wide. Hug it in, last two. Curl up a little higher, pull the belly deeper.

Once more, reach and hug. Whew! Rest that head for a moment. Really finding a release for the neck here. Imagine a hammock for your head. That's what our hands get to do here, they support it.

Taking a little rock in those fingertips and palms. Take a breath in. Use your hands to press into the base of the skull and curl back up. From here, take a breath in. Begin to extend the legs long on a diagonal.

This ensures we have this neutral pelvis. Tailbone, sit bones are reaching long. Soften those knees if you need. From here, legs lower a little bit further down on the inhale. Then lift up only as high as you can without lifting your hips.

Sit bones, tailbone stay long. Maybe they're perpendicular, maybe they're a little lower or bent. Inhale, down. Exhale, up. Legs don't have to lower all the way to hover off the floor.

Maybe they lower an inch. Listen to your body. Do what works best for you. Working into the low belly, not gripping in the quads, not straining in the neck. We have two more, inhale.

Exhale, curl up a little higher. Pull the belly a little deeper. One more time, legs lower. Deepen the belly to lift. Bend them in, hug them in.

Release the head down once again. Take a moment to relax the shoulders. Moving into our last part of the vacation special. Going into our crisscross with a similar setup with that diagonal, so listen to your body. Hands behind the head first, deep breath there.

Curling back up, forehead to the knees. Trying to hover off the tips of those shoulder blades. Take another breath in. Extend the legs along on the diagonal. We breathe in at center to prepare.

Never a rest position. Exhale, twist to the right. Your right knee draws in towards your left elbow. Maybe you tap it, back to the diagonal. Hovering off the shoulder blades in center, we inhale.

We twist left, right. Elbow, left thigh. Inhale, center. I like to think of my left collarbone now reaching towards my right thigh so it's not just my elbow. Think about your chest lifting up as you curl over that left rib cage.

Inhale, find center. Exhale, lift as you twist. Inhale, lifting in through center. Exhale, pull the belly deeper to twist. One more each side, inhale and exhale.

Center and twist. Meet me at center, long legs lifted high. Draw those knees in and hug them into rest. Taking another gentle rock with the head, the back, the hips side-to-side. And a deep breath and a rock back in up to a seat.

That series always gets me warm, woo. That's why we call it vacation special. Do it on vacation, you never lose your abdominals. We're going to some spine stretch here. Make sure you're seated in the middle of that mat.

Heels reaching towards the front corners, edges of your mat. Arms reaching forward. I like to imagine my hands are against a tabletop. I'm engaged in my lats and my triceps. My back is imagining it's against a flat wall.

I know my ribs like to splay here, so keeping that core connection is so important. Deep breath to prepare. Exhale, chin tucks over the chest. Round up and over. Reach past the toes, pull back in the waist.

Crown of the head releases through towards the thighs. Inhale, back up tall and exhale round and reach up and over. Think of a little bit of fire underneath those sit bones here. Squeezing in the buns so we don't just sit down, we lift up. Inhale.

Exhale, round and reach. Once more. Stacking up a little longer, a little taller. Exhale round and reach up and over. Stacking back up tall, we have a fun transition here.

Modify if you need. Point through your toes, rock back slightly. With a little momentum, we lift those legs up. We grab the backs of them. We find our balance, we stick it.

Chin tucks over the chest, legs pressing into those hands for support. Open leg rocker rocks us back, inhale rocks us up. Find it. Again, inhale back. Chin stays tucked over the chest, gazing through the thighs, pulling that waistline back for three and lift.

And two, maybe a little momentum here, lift. Once more, inhale. Exhale to lift. Lengthen up long through the crown of the head. We keep those legs open, reach for your toes, lower them all the way down, and open those arms wide.

Flex through the heels. We're going right into our saw. Twisting to the right, finding a lift out of the hips. Left fingertips reach for the right pinky toe. I like to flip my right palm up to get a little bit of a tricep exercise there.

Feel that length across the shoulders. Lengthening back up, palms down and moving through center. Inhale to twist left, although that right sip bone stays anchored to the mat, dive up and over. Crown of the head to the outside of the left thigh. Right toes, we're reaching, right fingertips towards the left toe, left palm to the sky.

Inhale to lift. Exhaling through center, one more each side. Lift and twist, inhale. Exhale, round and reach. Lengthen up.

And center. Once more, lift and twist. Exhale, round and reach. I mean all the way back up and center and rest. From here, we'll flip around.

My body is very ready for some extension work, hyperextension work for the spine. We'll move into some swan prep here. Inner thighs nice and zipped up tight. Feel the buns connected. Palms will be underneath or to the sides of our shoulders here.

That way, our elbows can relax down so we're not lifted here. Tightening in the shoulders. Tops of the feet press down into the floor. Pelvis presses down, but belly button stays lifted. We begin by hovering the forearms and the palms away from the floor.

Take a breath in. Then next, we'll begin to hover the forehead and the chest away from the floor. Keep the tops of the feet pressing down. Think of lifting in your knees and your thighs. Lift your chest a little higher.

Squeeze between your glutes and shoulder blades, hold. And exhale, lower back down with control. Again, palms hover, inhale and chest lifts as we exhale. Inhale, maybe a little higher. And exhale to lower.

Adding on from there. Palms hover on the inhale. Chest and back lift as we exhale. Keeping this lift, press the palms right down underneath those shoulders, elbows remain hugging and tight to the ribs. Take an inhale to prepare.

Exhale, begin to press firmly down into the palms as you lift your chest and your heart a little bit higher. Making our way into a little bit deeper extension, hyper extension, you know your body best. Do what it needs here. Shoulder blades pull down, heart lifts up. Beautiful stretch, inhaling at the top.

Exhale, belly button pulls up and away from the mat. As you lower, keep using those triceps, hugging those elbows tight. Imagine lengthening longer through the crown of the head, longer back through those toes. We start the same way at the bottom. Palms hover, inhale.

Chest hovers as we exhale. Inhale, pressing down into those palms. Exhale to lift up a little bit higher, pulling that belly button up to the spine, squeezing those glutes really tight to support and protect our low back. Shoulder blades pull down. Maybe you're at a full extension here, whatever agrees best with your spine, inhale.

Exhale to lower and lengthen. Think of that corset tying tighter around your ribs, lowering with control. Once more, palms hover, inhale. Chest and back begin to lift as we exhale. Press down into the palms, squeeze the elbows tight.

Deep breath in. And exhale to lift up a little bit higher. Pull the heart forward. Open up across the collarbones. Deep breath in.

And exhale to lower all the way back down with control. From there, carefully press yourself back into a child's pose. Knees can be together or apart here, fingertips crawling forward. Sit bones reaching back. Taking a moment if this doesn't agree with your knees in this deep flexion, maybe you're on your hands and knees with a of couple cat cow stretches or just taking a moment to catch your breath.

Whatever your body's craving. One more, inhale. And exhale, let it go. From here, we'll crawl forward making our way into a forearm plank. One hand into a fist, other hand wraps around.

If you've done this with me before, maybe you switch that fist this time around. Shift your shoulders forward of those elbows and extend the legs back, meeting in a forearm plank. Tucking that tail, reaching back through the heels, long through the crown of the head. We hold for three deep breaths. Inhale through the nose.

As you exhale, press the forearms more firmly into the floor to lift up the heart. Again, inhale. Exhale, zip up through those inner thighs, pulling up in the low belly to support the low back. Exhale. One more breath in.

Exhale to stay. With control, gently lower the knees. Untuck the toes. Begin to pull the heart and the chest forward through the fists. The pelvis maybe lowers or hovers off the floor, but we keep the belly really lifted.

The glutes really tight, tops of the feet pressing down parallel here. We move into our single leg kick. Right heel in, inhale. Exhale, press the foot into the mat, left. Inhale.

Exhale, press, heart draws forward, shoulder blades back, inhale. And exhale with as much press down into those forearms as we had in that forearm plank. Last set, as much lift in the core as we had. Last time. Press and hold.

Lower all the way down. Right face cheek to the mat. Hands clasp behind the middle of the back. Really get those hands up there and then see how much you can let your elbows open wide to the sides for a beautiful stretch across the upper back. Zip up through the inner thighs, so much that your legs begin to hover, like someone's pulling your toes to the back of the room.

Take a breath in. Now clasp those hands, reach them back. Lift the heart. Gaze is down towards the front edge of the mat so our neck is in line with this spine. We're not crunching here, we're not tucking here.

Lift everything a little higher, deep breath in. Left face, cheek down, elbows bend, knees kick to the heels. Heels kick to the glutes for three, two and one. Lengthen and left, inhale. Right face cheek down, we kick for three.

Try and press your hips down. Lift your knees up, one, lengthen. Left face cheek. Kick for three. Squeeze those buns, two, one, lift.

Last time. Kick for three and two and one. Lift and hold. Stay, lift everything up one more inch. Take a breath in.

Reach your fingertips back, exhale out. Squeeze between your shoulder blades. Squeeze between your inner thighs. Imagine you're going to clap behind your glutes with your palms for five. Squeeze those triceps and shoulder blades, four.

Three, a little bit tighter, a little bit more firm. Two, stay lifted. One, let everything release. Great work for the whole backside posterior chain of the body. Once again, we'll press back into a child's pose.

Just taking a moment to not be in extension or hyperextension. Letting that back, shoulders all relax. Take a breath in. And exhale. Crawl those hands on up.

We'll spin back around, seated in the middle of the mat. Extending the legs out long in front of us. Working into a little bit more rotation of the spine. A lot of the Pilates mat work is primarily flexion, so I find it so important for us to squeeze in those bits of extension and rotation. So here we go again.

Heels reach forward, inner thighs tight, lifted in the waist. Hands behind the head, head pressing back into those fingertips for our spine twist today. Take a breath in at center and exhale, twist to the right for three. We're gonna go in threes again, just like that double leg kick, two. Getting a little further, one.

Pull back in that right waist. Center, inhale. Twist to the left for three. So important those legs stay dipped, zipped, heels square. One, center, inhale.

Again to the right for three. Pull back in the right waist a little further, two, little further, one. Center, inhale. Last time to the left for three. For two, for one.

Back to center. Let the crown of the head release down towards those knees and enjoy a moment of a forward stretch with gentle pressure of the hands behind the back of the neck and skull. From here, roll your spine back up to vertical and separate your heels about hip distance apart. We will make our way into neck pulse, starting with just the top half, so those hands can stay behind the head. Even if you aren't familiar with neck pull or this becomes challenging, try them here for this first half.

Sit a little taller, squeeze the buttons tight to get out of those hips. Take a breath in and exhale, hinge back just an inch or two. Thinking about that zipper up in your low belly to really lengthen through the crown of the head. Hold it, chin off the chest, inhale. And exhale, use your hands to press into the back of the skull.

Use your belly to lift you back up onto those sit bones again, like that. Inhale, lift a little taller and exhale, lengthen up and back. Think of the ribs pulling away from the hips, going longer through the crown of the head, out through the heels. Inhale, hold and exhale, lift back up to vertical. From here, we will add on.

Sit a little taller, shoulder blades pull down. Inhale at the top. Same beginning, exhale, we start to hinge. Now if any point in time you wanna reach those arms forward, cross them over your chest, hold on, you do what you need. Take another breath here on this diagonal.

Exhale, lower a little further on the diagonal. Keep those ribs connected. Keep that zipper feeling through your waist to protect your back. One more breath in. Can we go one inch further back?

Keep that diagonal, keep that heart lifted. Elbows wide if they're behind the head, inhale. From here, we roll all the way down. Exhaling bone by bone. Low back, back of the pelvis, middle of the waist.

Hover off the shoulder blades. Pull the belly a little deeper before letting it all go at the bottom. Now on our way up, again, do what you need with your hands. Inhale, imagine imprinting your face straight to the ceiling. Exhale, dive it all the way up and over.

We're back to that lovely forward stretch. Forehead is released towards the thighs. Crown of the head releasing down, opening up through that cervical spine. Inhale, lift up. Deep breath at the top.

Exhale, we lengthen and lower. Two more breaths here with this flat back, inhale. Exhale a little lower. Keep that back flat as a board. Again, inhale.

A little lower. Hold it, fight for it, reach forward and down through your heel bones. Inhale here. Exhale, roll it down and zip up through that waist. Tuck your tailbone, reaching it forward, pulling that belly button back, hover and lower with control.

Last time, inhale, lift straight up to the ceiling. Exhale, dive it up and over. Enjoying this moment, this bit of relief now that you know what's coming. We lengthen and lift. Take your time here.

Don't get ahead of me. I can't see you, or maybe can I? I don't know. Lift, inhale. Exhale, start to hinge.

We're gonna add on here. So if you're already halfway to the floor, you're going to be in trouble. Lengthen, zip up a little tighter. Inhale, lower a little further. Chin remains lifted off the chest.

Think of your posture. Inhale, think of your whole body. Exhale, one more inch. Now remember our spine twist, it comes back here. We inhale to prepare at center.

We twist to the right as we exhale. Those knees and toes stay straight to the ceiling. Inhale, center on the diagonal. Exhale, twist to the left. Pull back in your left oblique, elbows stay wide, heart stays lifted.

One more time each direction. Inhale. Twist to the right. Your core should be trembling. Inhale, center.

Exhale, twist to the left. Back to center, we hold, deep breath in. Exhale, lower and roll down in four. Take your time, three. Use your breath, hover, pull the belly deeper, two and let it go on one.

Love some neck pull. Another one of my favorite exercises. Lower your palms to the mat. Your feet and knees stay hip distance apart, but we bend those knees, heels come in line with those sit bones, fingertips reaching along towards the heel bones. Take a breath with this beautiful long spine and then exhale, begin to tuck and curl those hips high.

Scooping from the low belly, squeezing the sit bones and butt cheeks together. We're aiming for a straight diagonal from the knees to the hips, to the shoulders. So we should find this lovely stretch across the front of the hip flexors, across the thighs. If those were tightening during that last exercise, this should feel fantastic. Squeeze your buns a little tighter.

Press into your heels and palms. Take a breath in and then exhale and net the ribs together. Slowly melting, I'm literally melting, all the way back down onto that mat vertebra by vertebra. Reaching long through the tail, long through the crown of the head. Releasing that connection at the bottom so you have a moment.

We don't wanna constantly be clenching our glutes. Exhale, scoop and initiate from the low belly. Now squeeze the buns tight. Press down into your heels, down into your palms. Lift and stay.

We'll press firmly into that right heel, maybe even wiggle your toes. The more you press into your heel bone, the more you get into the posterior chain of the body, allowing this to lengthen out. Left leg hovers. We draw it to tabletop, left toes reach high to the sky. Flex through the heel, lower that left leg long.

Thighs meet parallel to one another. Chin stays lifted, point and kick the left toes straight back up for four. Inhale, down. Exhale, up, three. And up.

Last two and lift. Once more, lower, lift and hold. With control, bend that knee. Place that foot back down. Make sure those thighs are parallel, hips are lifted, belly is engaged.

Right foot hovers, drawing that leg to tabletop. Press down into the left heel. Reach the right toes nice and high. Flex through the heel, lower leg long, inhale. Point and kick up, exhale.

Inhale down. Deepen the belly down. Kick those toes up for three. Lengthen and lift, two and up. Once more, lower, lift and stay.

Bend that right knee. With control, place the foot back onto the floor. Squeeze both cheeks. Lift those hips. Press into the palms, open through the heart.

Deep breath at the top. Exhale to melt all the way back down. Rolling bone by bone. Upper back, middle back. Low back and release at the bottom.

Let the arms open wide, maybe goalpost, palms up. Taking a moment to sway those knees over to the right side. Feeling stretch across the left collarbone all the way through that left side of the waist, out through those hips. Pausing here for a breath in. Exhale to stay.

Then bring the legs back through center with control and drape them over to the left. Keeping that right shoulder blade anchored as best as you can on the mat so you feel the stretch across the chest through the sides of the back and the body. One more breath in. And exhale. And draw those knees back to center.

Give them a hug in, hands behind the hamstrings, behind the knee crease. And then begin to move the legs towards a tabletop position. Firmly pressing legs into hands. Chin will begin to peel over the chest. Taking a breath here.

Use your abdominals, use your hands for support and exhale to curl up, finding a balance. The shoulder blades pull down, the heart and the chest lift. Right leg extends up, inhale. Exhale, bend it in. Left leg extends, inhale.

Deepen the belly, bend it in. Both legs together a little bit or all the way straight. And resist. Once more, this time to hold wherever you can, inhale. Exhale, stay.

Maybe you reach. We go into our teaser one. Legs don't move from wherever they are. Maybe they're bent, take a breath in. Maybe they're straight, exhale, roll back only to the tips of the shoulder blades.

Squeeze your inner thighs and heels together. Keep the energy, reaching through your fingertips to your toes, pause as you breathe in. Exhale, curl right back up. We're just doing one of them, 'cause they're so fun. Teaser two, legs lower.

Inhale, zip up through the waist. Legs lift, exhale, Again, we're just doing one. Hold it here, deep breath in. Now our full teaser. Everything lowers vertebra by vertebra, bone by bone.

Find that hover of the shoulder blades and the heels and then let it all go at the bottom. I think by the time we get to teaser three, it feels downright easy compared to those ones and twos. We'll go into our full teaser here. Doing what you need. Arms begin to float up, deep breath in.

Exhale, chin over the chest and deepen in the waistline. Hovering those legs. Floating everything all the way up with control. From here, arms float up by the ears. Maybe the knees are bent, maybe you omit.

We go into a brief hip circle here, lift through your heart. Press gently into your fingertips, legs go right down and around, straight back up, inhale. Reverse, left, down and around. Deepen the belly to lift one more each direction, inhale. Exhale, circle.

Inhale, lift. Exhale, circle. Hold at the top. Float your fingertips back all the way up. If you're feeling strong, you keep those arms by your ears.

You lift everything up one more inch. We take a breath together at the top. We roll down together in four. In three, can you keep those arms by your ears? You hover shoulder blades, heels, two.

And you lengthen long and low on one. From here, we think about this position, but we flip-flop over, meaning lying on the stomach. Reach those fingertips long in line with your shoulders. Toes back in line with your hips. Take a deep breath here at the bottom.

As you exhale, lift everything up like Superman, Superwoman, flying here, feeling a stretch through the side body. Zip your inner thighs back together. Pull your elbows back to your ribs and lift up through your heart. Feeling that stretch and that engagement in the back, take a breath in. Exhale, reach the arms back overhead.

Lowering the forehead to hover off the mat. Framing ears with biceps. Again, we lift the chest, those legs stay lifted, backside engaged. Reach the arms forward. Three more times.

Inhale to lift through the heart. Squeeze between the shoulder blades. Exhale, belly button pulling up and away from the floor for two and reach it forward. One more time, lift and hold. From here, exhale, press the palms into the mat.

Tuck the toes towards the floor. Option to press into the knees or simply press into the toes and the palms. We'll take a breath in to prepare. As you exhale, meet me in a plank position. Lifted in the low belly, lifted in the heart.

Take a gentle shift back into those heels. Deep breath in. Gentle rock forward. Shoulders over the fingertips. Inhale, rock it back.

Deepen the belly, rock it forward. One more time, shift it back. Zip up through the waist. Shift forward and stay. Option for that single leg pull here.

Right leg lifts. Shifting back into just the left heel. Shifting forward, lower the right toes. Left leg lifts, shift it back. Deepen the belly, forward and lower one more each side.

Right, take it back. Deepen through the waist, forward and lower. Last time, left, take it back. Deepen the belly, forward. Lower and stay.

Inhale here. Exhale where you are. One more breath, finish strong, inhale. And exhale. Gently lower those knees with control.

Let's separate the knees maybe a little bit wider. We'll finish with a stretch here today. Crawling those fingertips along in one direction. Sit bones reaching a little further back towards the heels. Keep those hips reaching back.

Crawl your hands over to the right side of your mat, getting a gentle stretch for that outer left waist. Breathing in and exhaling it out. And slowly crawl those hands back through center. Now over to the left side, pulling back in that right sit bone, reaching the fingertips long in opposition, opening up across the shoulder blades, take in a breath here. And exhale.

And then crawling those hands back to center for one more deep breath in. And exhale to let it go. Slowly crawling those hands all the way back up and in. Carefully sitting off to the side, however your body needs. Thank you again for a fun, very sweaty workout today.

I hope you had a great time.

Comments

3 people like this.
Your peppiness and precision are a great combination! I enjoy your classes very much.
1 person likes this.
Hi Laura, this was a great class! I enjoyed the detail in each exercise and your energy! Thank you!
Loved this class. Can you give us a clue about what and when to expect next in terms of variation or progression?
Whoops!
Laura Maria
great class! didn't know there was a way to make neck pull worse ;) 
Colleen
1 person likes this.
Thank you for this sweaty, equipment-free mat workout! It was a joy!
Busra K
1 person likes this.
Brilliant class. I don't sweat easily but this one did the job! Thank you Laura.
Carrie
1 person likes this.
Love love love this class!  I enjoy all your classes and your teaching style!!  Thank you!
Kaisa L
1 person likes this.
Thanks for the great lesson! You have clear instructions and you are easy to follow (but the movements were tough)! Greetings from Finland!
1 person likes this.
Fantastic class! Thank you, Laura!
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