Hip Extension Reformer

Hi, everyone. It's Amy havens here again at Pilates anytime. Always so grateful to be here with you, with my team back there, helping me do this correctly. And this wonderful ocean that's behind us, this energy is incredible. Every time. So I'm here for some hip extension focus reformer. You do not need a box. I'm using a yoga block during footwork.

You could also use a squishy ball, although that's a little more challenging for stability. I like the block because it's nice and stable. We'll be having our sacrum on that. This class is really about let's get up in our posture, and I think hip extension, muscles are part of our postural muscle group. Right? So a lot of backside focus today Have a lot of fun.

Let's get started. We're gonna get started on a yellow spring, everybody, or your light spring if you don't have a yellow or one bungee cord if you happen to be on a reformer with a bungee cord system. Something light. Alright. So we're gonna start at the ref foot bar end quite close. Just get yourself organized, lift through your abdominal wall, drop your tailbone down towards your heels without tucking. And I want you to get a sense of levity and lightness through your upper spine in your head and your neck.

And we'll just take a nice deep breath together. Just let that air go soften your knees now. It's okay if you touch the carrot. And just round yourself forward. I'm gonna land with my letting my arms just kinda slide through the footbar and the gear system.

Just let your arms hang. Let your head hang. We'll take a breath here and press your feet into the floor, curl that tailbone and pull it down behind you right away. I want you to start thinking about your back legs and your buttocks and your back extensors. That whole line will do it again. That exhale, lift the front rounding forward, stretching that back line, right, the back wall, your hips, your hamstrings, you can soften your knees.

Now when we roll up, start to press your heels into the floor, engage your hamstrings a little. I like to think of pulling my hamstrings up the back of my body, the glutes up the back of my body, my back up Right? And then that cascades me over the top. So then we're gonna add a change. Place your hands on your carriage. Trying to keep our hips above our heels where we are.

Let's extend the carriage out. Right now, do what feels best in your spine. I'm in a little soft flexion. I'd like to start there, kinda get my parameters set. And then I really start reaching into more of a spinal extension.

So I lift those sitting bones. I try to reach the arms longer and everybody let your shoulder blades right now come up your back. Feel how lovely and luscious that is. Lots of space between your shoulders and your hips. Right? Now organize your shoulder blades more on your back rib wall and see if you can get more extension in your spine without losing that connection of your scapula.

Right? Feel the decompression quality here. Now that you have that, you can linger if you want to. I'm gonna do a little more scapular glide, so more retraction and a little bit of elevation. So we'll say depression and elevation. So there's the depression and the elevation.

And lots of mobility to bring attention here. So in some of the work today, you'll be hearing me work on your upper back posture too. We're setting that here with the beautiful stretch in our back line. Alright. One more time to reset your scapula.

Round your spine now, everybody. Bring the carriage back in. We'll bend our knees. We get to do a roll up to standing, but we'll go right back over for something else. So come all the way up to stand.

Deep breathe. Maybe feeling a little taller already and then rounding forward. Can you round with that sense of separation in between your vertebra or space? Reach the carriage out. I'm gonna do that in the extension.

Shoulders staying set. I like to add some rotation when I'm warming up. So I place one hand on my shoulder. Start to rotate. This does not have to be big.

I really think of the rotation coming from my sternum. Right? And then return to facing toward the mat. Inhale, reach to rotation, and exhale back to the mat. The working arm scapula is doing a little bit of guide. We want that rhythm.

We want that to move. Last one here. And then return, place that hand down. Change hands. So this hand will just go on your shoulder. Ready, glide and rotate.

You're warming up. So this is not meant to be a big movement, breath, inhale, exhale. Let's put some energy through the sternum. Collect your abdominals a little bit. One more, reach, and center, place your hand down.

And once again, round into your spine, you can bend your knees, bring that carriage back and then everyone will roll ourself up to standing. Now when we come up to standing, just take a note, just feel what you feel. Right? So that really that big quality of extension and decompression is one of my favorite things to bring in. We don't wanna compress. We're decompressing.

Right? With strength, of course. So let's talk about that. Lay work today in footwork. I'm taking off the yellow, and I'm placing three red springs on. My head rest is down. Years should be two.

And then with the block, we're gonna put it horizontal setting or your ball, and here we go. We're putting our sacrum on here. So why I'm choosing to elevate pelvis in this class is it might wake up a little bit more or connect you a little bit deeper in your hip extensors of your legs, right, back here. Now take note too. When you're up on this block, you wanna have the top of the block at the top of your sacrum. And, hopefully, your tailbone is somewhere near the bottom end of it.

What it's not is in the lumbar. It's not in the lumbar. It's your pelvis. It's a really nice little shelf. The challenge, though, is it can for some of us, make us feel a little like, oh, I can just be a little lazy in that posture setting, and that's not it.

So you've got a buttress, your low back extensors, get that abdominal wall connected, heels on the bar, face to the sky. Here we go. Now as soon as you push out everybody, linger on this first one. We're not locking our knees to extend our hips. We're using our buttocks and hamstrings to extend the hips. That's the difference.

So that's what we're elevated for to get more connection. So if we flow through their nine more reps, push and bend, your arms are wherever they feel most connected. Sometimes I'll reach back here and just remind, yep, wake up, gals, Get going here. Open your hips. Some of us who like to arch our ribs or indulge in our rib cage lift.

This is a challenge to keep those ribs connected. Five more reps. Let's push out. Inhale bend. Push out.

I love the block also for me. It levels my sacrum and my illiums. I love that contact, that feedback. I feel like it really stabilizes me. Last one, linger for one more stretch, everybody.

Come back in and place the balls at the feet. He'll slightly lift it. Let's go for 10. Return. Press. Return.

Very tempting to curl that tail. Let's not. I try to almost press my sacrum heavier against the block or the ball. And if you're on a ball, how are you doing right to left? There's more challenge right of going right to left.

That's why I love a block because you you're not as likely to teeter totter. Exhale. Spread those toes and get even weight across your metatarsals. Three. We're gonna stay out there on that tenth one, which is coming up next.

Because I enjoy. I think you will too. Lower your ankles, but not your full stretch. Not your full stretch. Just as if you were on the floor, can you open a year more? Maybe zhuzh up back here just a wee bit? Ready, lift and come back in.

Pilates v. Same stuff. Press. Yeah. I really feel like we're gathering the legs, the back upper leg to gather and up. Gather together and up. Five more now.

Sacrum flat on the bear on the block. Gonna say the barrel. That's because I love the spine corrector. On the block, three more. Press. Press and press.

Lovely. One set of heels wide, everybody. Here we go. May feel like the easiest position to do this from. And use your adductors as well, everybody. So we've got that upper inner thigh.

That's part of that extensor group. But again, primarily that rear leg, way up high, using that, getting out of our sitting culture. Right? So really open those hips up. Last four, press. Press. Good. So, two feet on the bar is pretty nice with this. Let's segue though for a minute here.

Come on back in parallel heels. Okay. So the britt the box is also where the block is also helping to be kind of assisting our bridge. But I know we have more in us to do a bigger bridge here. Right? So I'm gonna now posteriorly rotate my pelvis. Pull those heels down the bar, elevate your pelvis, which is more where we be from our pelvic curl. Just be there.

Use your strong legs, keep your hips up, and move back and forth about five times. Right? Press. Now your pelvis might come down relative to moving backward, but you're still working the lift. Extend your hips up.

Last one, everybody, with two heels on the bar. Now start to articulate down. You'll feel that block or your ball, and then just settle your pelvis in your neutral. Okay? Take your breath. Go to that posterior rotation, elevate again, choose a leg, bring one to tabletop, and here you go for five.

These don't need to be big. My hearing out what I say to myself is lift before you push. Lift before you push. One more five. Lift before you push. Challenge yourself not to come down.

Just step your heel. Lift before you lift. Lift before you push. Lift before you push. Strengthen those extensors?

Can you get up at 1% more? 1% more? I think I did. And then heal, you get to roll down. Now take the block away. Such a fun like, it feels like I'm down in the ground.

Doesn't that feel yummy? So wiggle your pelvis just a little bit. We have one more section on the footwork. We can do it. Heels parallel, breath in, roll up to your bridge, roll. It's way up here. Get these guys going. Okay, guys.

Take one leg straight. Lift it straight up, lower it straight down. Lift I'm lifting my hips up too and lifting my working leg. It doesn't have to move big, lift and push, one more lift and push. Let's challenge herself not to roll down, set your heel, reset, straighten the other leg. Here we go, lift and push.

How are your hamstrings feeling? So it's important to stretch them while working them a lot today. Last two, lift push. Lift push. Excellent. Everybody place your heel down. Let's breathe.

Slowly sequence down and down. Still working. Still working. Still working. And once you land, Registered decompression. Can you extend more length through your spine? I want you all to bring your legs to your chest, bring your chest toward your legs, give yourself a little hug. Right. We're gonna come up for some abdominals.

Facing the back. Alright? Head rest days down. Let's go to a medium spring, light to medium. So I'm gonna choose a blue spring here. And we'll start with our knees bent feet down. Grab a hold of your loops.

Now we'll be doing a few things here. So one of the setups, the first one here, I like at least a hand length. We need some room here to roll back. Depending on your straps or handles, When you reach your arms out, there it just start a little bit of looseness is fine, but sit up really tall. Right? That opening feeling I had you feel, levity in your head, lev it in your upper back, take a neck inhale. Can we roll back just to the sacrum without collapsing the thoracic spine or without dropping that back? I'm gonna start again.

So I'm rounding my low back as much as it can, and really lifting my upper back long. Biaseb curls, just take about six. Try to keep your arm the shoulder height. I'm not really worried about the c shape as much as I am long curve in my back. No collapse of thoracic spine. Right? Hold your arms straight.

Come back up to sitting tall. I'm leading with that levity head. Let's go back again. Just two little curls. Let the change come through the entire spine without collapsing.

Curl back up. I have attempted some one other time to put a yoga block on my head when I did this. It didn't work that well because I was teaching. And I was moving around a lot, but it's an image. Alright? You can keep your knees bent to do that again or straighten your legs. I like to do straight.

Taken in here. Same thing. If the block were on your head, don't let me. Don't challenge me. No. Right? So you can get on that sacrum, but you haven't collapsed your chest and six more curls. Alright. Let's talk about the hands. Grip those handles. Pinky finger.

All fingers grip. Use your strong hands. Three more. Tummy in. Balance that imaginary something on the top of your head, very nice, hold, and roll yourself up sit tall.

Palms facing in, lower your shoulders down. Lift that sternum and lift that head ready. This is rear shoulder. So I like to go pretty far open, like, to the t position. If that's not for you, go only as far as you can.

You could also take your arms a little lower. But what I want is to feel like we're opening that strong chest. We're not pushing our ribs. We're using the back arm muscles to open this arm shape. Sitting posture is important.

Right? We talked about that at the beginning, so hamstrings help the hips. The glutes can help the hips. The back extensors help the spine. You all know that. Not easy to stay perched up.

You can always go back to that bent knee position. I'm gonna go a couple more. Strong shoulders, strong back. There we go. Alright. Lower your arms while your side just wiggle your shoulders. We have one more facing this direction.

See the chest expansion. And I I like to credit sometimes. I've been teaching a long time, but there are people that have markers in my brain. I got this from Diane Defender fur. Thank you, Diane.

Was seated right on the edge, o on the edge. I thought I was on the edge here. And she's right? So way way back because You wanna establish that, yes, your body knows how to sit up without collapsing and falling back. Chest expansion seated. Open the chest. Here we go. We're gonna do a little variation.

So I want you to bring your arms behind your hips and hold. Turn your head to one shoulder. Turn your head to the other. We already know that pretty classically. We'll do the other side.

Right? So hold. Your back can't drop. That sternum can't drop. Now instead of just the head turn, let's add neck roll from at work. So turn.

Lift your interior yourself. Roll that neck looks to your other shoulder and center. Look to the second shoulder. Roll the neck. First shoulder and return.

Let's go again. Pull the arms. Hold your back. Neck roll and center, second shoulder, neck roll, and center. Two more just the pulls. Just pull.

God, your last one lift, lift, lift, lift, lift. Return, return, return, return. Okay. Hook your handles. Yes. That's a lot of hip flexion activity, and this is a hip extension focus we're getting there. Come on up to standing.

We're gonna open up the hip line. Kneeling arms facing the front. Okay? So we can keep a blue spring. What I like about this is it gets a little rhythm from going from a low position to upper on the high kneeling. You have to use here to get up. Yes. You're gonna use your quads as well.

But have this position, if you can, toe sitting. I think you guys know I do this everywhere. I think almost every class, there's a moment of toe sit. We have to. It's just important to keep your feet. Your toes flexible. That's another class.

Grab your straps. But when we come up, we're gonna do scoops of the arms. Four scoops into some hugs. Material, you know, think about this coming from your hip extensors. Ready? Set your shoulders. Let's take a breath.

And use the hip extensors, scoop your arms. Let them stretch as you hinge to sit, exhale, hamstrings, glutes. Yes. Lower back down. Hamstrings and glutes. You certainly can do more tension on your springs. It's up to you. I'm in a blue. That's enough.

Hold now. Hold the work. Open closed hugs four times. I'm not so interested in the the focus on my chest and arms today. Can you keep your backside working? My legs are also pulling toward the midline. Alright. We're gonna combine the two.

Rotate your arms, pull them down. Up for a scoop and then a hug. Scoop, open, hug, and down. Feel that rhythm. Scoop hold them strong, hugging down. Last two there.

Use your legs, guys. Make those shapey legs. Make those work, lift. And open your close and hold, bring your hands to your chest right by your shoulders and reach both arms forward and both arms bent. You can long fingers or reach with a fist.

Use those hip extensors. Three, user inner thighs. Last one, four, hold here. Bend your elbows. Now one arm at a time, and then we're getting our arms ready for some front front support stuff.

To alternating arm. So it's a little interesting on this blue spring single arm. Maybe tempting you to rotate. So if you can stay very strong in your center column, Keep your legs integrated. One more each side, and we have four solute or shave the back of the head. I'm gonna let you decide what your shoulders feel like.

I'm going for the back. Get your legs active. Get your pelvis organized and you reach up the whole back line. I feel like I'm decompressing my spine every time my arms lift up. Tail to head.

And lower and tail to head open and come all the way back down and rest. Alright. Set your straps down. We're getting ready for some front support. Front support, not the regular long stretch that we love so much. You can put your head rest up just because we don't need it down. Lower your springs everybody to one red, no foot bar.

And we get choices here. I'm gonna throw some options at you kind of teacher. And I like that I do that, but I need them myself. So some of this is proportion when we set up. Right? So if I you'll see this. If I set my hands up on my footbark, carriage platform and get my toes back, there's that toe sit.

If I get my hips above my knees, I'm at an angle a bit here. My proportions are just that way, but if I really wanna get my shoulders over my wrists, I'm gonna probably need to move back here. That feels better for me. You're you may not be that person. You might be here.

No matter where you are, set yourself in good quadruped length, lengthen out tail and head. Take a breath. Get your scapula ready. Right? We're gonna lift the hips. Push from your hips ex extensors bring that carriage in, lower your hips down, knees. Again, lift the knees, hip extension in. I chuckled because I like to chat.

And knees up use your butt and your thighs. Right? One more. You can also just keep with that, or you can move that plank line back and forth. Move it back and forth. Keep your legs strong.

I'm only doing four. There's my fourth. Bring it in, set the knees all the way down. Come off your wrists. I'm gonna make a little cat back. Kinda shimmy for a moment.

And come all the way up. So I like that little hip extension in planks, and I use that, of course, in a regular front support. Just nice to come down on the hands a little differently. Scooters and hip flexor stretches, green spring. Let's get heavy with that. Move your block out of the way.

I am gonna go high bar. I like a green. Our hips can handle it. Okay. So I have my right foot moving. That's the right leg that's going to move. I'd like put both hands on the same corner or even just one arm, float your knee, standing leg is a little bit bent, and everyone, let's go with flat back.

Other hand can just be on your waist or behind your back. Let's push. Right? Just like that front support, but now a little bit more. The back thigh up to the glute, exhale. We have four more. You can always add a little more spring.

I have some clients that like to do this heavier. You can. Eight more, but hands on the shoulder on the other side and a little thoracic rotation just like we did in the warm up. I like to rotate through my chest. XL.

Four more guys. Collect your abs, pull up. Always think how much longer can I go through the top of my levity head and then rest? Climate up on your reformer. The leg that was just pushing is gonna stand against the other shoulder block. The outside foot comes up on your foot bar Give this a good stretch, but you're still contracting and working back here.

We're just gonna hold that, but not just holding, lengthen and hold, lengthen and hold. Length and hold, lengthen and hold. Alright. Side two, knees down, outside foot, hand, knee. This is here. Get ready. This crouch position is all about those hips.

And go. It's a powerful push. Collect, reach, and reach for more. Through the heel, everyone, accent your heel connection on that shoulder rest. You can stay with that, or you can add your rotation. It's a little twist through your chest.

Four more. Very functional here. Lats and glutes. Back line. All that good stuff. Okay. Climate up. The leg that was just pushing gets to stand on the other shoulder rest, other foot up.

Oh, just enjoy a stretch. But again, it's not just there. You're lengthening. You're lifting light through your neck and head. Back leg is active.

One more breath. Okay. We're we're getting now. We're gonna come into everyone. Come on down. Your up stretch. And the up stretch, wipe your hands if you're a little sweaty.

What do you choose for your up stretch? I think it depends on what we're after. I am going to add on a blue. I have a red or green and a blue. I like it kind of something I wanna push.

Right? If it's too light, it's not gonna give you that feedback that you want to wake up and work back there too heavy and it might be too much on your shoulders. So Let's stand on those toes halfway up the shoulder block. It's why that toasted is very essential. One of the reasons, get those hands set. Now as we warmed up, we lifted those sitting bones. We stretched our hamstrings today.

We've worked them. We've worked the glutes. We've worked our back extensors. It really comes all in. So reach about all of this is coming from my hips.

As I float my chest a little higher, my whole back is on. I come in shoulders over hands. I push back with my hips and my shoulders fold the hips in. When you break it down, when I do, and think about the precision, what am I using for what reason and where It becomes more than choreography to me. It really does become function.

I think that's one of the things I love about teaching is that sharing that, yes, it's choreography, But we want strong posterior body. We want full strong body everywhere. Right? But use that here, shoulders, back of hips, lower back, One more for good measure. Keep those hips strong. Bring it back and lift.

And alright. Winding down. Step off your carriage safely. You can keep the springs just as they are. Doesn't matter now. We're coming back as we started around the front.

How do you feel now? I'm sure you all feel lighter and more lifted. I do. I feel like I'm floating right here. So take a breath. Round forward, land your hands on your carriage.

Now you don't have to do a big dancer turnout hip angle. You can simply reach one leg behind you. Works on hip extensors one more time with a parallel leg. Or if you wanna feel a little more, you may need to walk your hands out. I love to rotate that pelvis.

There's more room to gesture up. I like to really feel that. And 10 pulses They don't have to be big. Work that rear end for five, five more. Again, you don't have to do this one.

You can be parallel. Last two But it feels kind of nice to challenge it a little bit, especially at the end. Second leg lift. If you're going turn out, turn the pelvis on top of that femur, lift that leg a little higher. Here we go. Exit one.

Two, how about your sternum lengthen it? How about shoulders on your back? For five. Collect your tummy. Four. Three. Too good. Everyone lower that leg. Bring your hands back. Round your spine.

So I encourage us all when we're going through classes and workouts and training and all of that. Where can you just dig in with a little more meaning and for sprinkle that in and not always just the choreography? You can really liven things up and give it some spice. I think. Let me know how you feel there. Thanks for joining me, everybody.

Bye.