Quick Reformer Class

Hi. I'm Meredith, and what we're going to do today is a short reformer flow using the box. So the way the reformer is set up is with a long box on the carriage. And I have the foot bar set up on a low setting. And in this moment, there is one blue spring attached to the reformer. So with all that information, shall we start?

We're gonna come around to this side near to the foot bar. Take yourself into an upright spinal position, lifting tall, taking a moment just connecting your mind and your body and inhale. As you exhale let the arms reach forward to the corners of the box, get into a flexion roll through the spine, allowing the box to move as the spine moves. What I like to do here is I like to lean a little into the bar and then let it support me as I look for more range. You can try that if you like.

Bend your arms. Stretch the arms, bring the pelvis back away from the bar. And then push into the box as you roll back up. Bringing the carriage into the stopper and roll up and find your upright position. We'll do that three times.

So head first, hands to the box, articulate out into a flat back. So establish that first. Then maybe you can just shift a little forward. Use the bar to I don't know. For me, it kind of feels like traction and then bend the arms.

Straightate in the arms. Take the legs away from the foot or an roll, pushing the box away, standing on the feet, and coming back to upright. Last time in here and exhale as you go. Find the box. So there's work here and reach out. I like to try to find work in every shape.

Press the box out. Press the spine out. You can lean into the foot bar. Go a little lower. Bend the arms.

Stretch the arms. Remove the thighs from the foot bar. And roll up, dig deep, and come up to standing. We're gonna change the spring right now. We're gonna take it to a red instead of a blue.

Come around to this side of the box. Sit down. Take the straps. So I'm holding onto the straps below the hardware. We're starting in an upright position in the body.

Gonna exhale and rock the pelvis back. Press your feet down. Try to roll back and feel the lower back come down into the carriage. And if that's difficult, here we go, we're coming up. If that's difficult for you, just roll back to your maximum flexion. And then come up From the round spine, take the arms back in a chest expansion and lift the spine.

And then as the arms reach forward, go back into your c curve and roll back. Pressing the legs together. I like to kind of wedge my legs against the edge of the box. That's also helpful. Inhale. And exhale. Resist the spring.

Find a round spine. Come from round into upright as you take the arms through a chest expansion and reach forward and roll. And inhale. Squeezing the legs together, exhale to lift up. Stay working.

Stay working. And pull back. Active and reach forward and round and go back. This is the last one that's exactly the same. And roll up.

Just so you're prepared. We're gonna make a transition at the end, at the bottom of the next one. And press up. And reach forward and round. So here it is. Go back.

Hold it back. Lift one leg. And down, the other leg. Pull the leg to the body and feel that as the leg is lifting, we can pull the chest to that moving leg. Doesn't look like a lot of movement, but there can definitely be some intensity there and pull reach the arms and down and pull reach the arms. And down I like to push down with the non moving leg and down how many more you ask, one more to each side.

Let the spring pull you forward. One and down, and let the spring pull you forward. And both legs down, and roll. Finding your round spine going into your chest expansion, keeping the body straight, hinge bringing your arms with you, and then bend and straighten. Hinging forward and straighten.

Three more. Two more. Last one with the arms back, sit back up and round and roll back. And then we're gonna lift one leg and turn. Let the spring pull you to that leg and turn, ringing out the spine and center.

And that leg pushes down as the other leg pushes into there and center and a cross spiral twist and center. And three and center. And three, and center. And two, and center. Guide yourself with the straps.

And center. Last time, both ways. And center. Pull across. Center. Roll up into the round back.

Chest expansion into your straight back. Keep your arms with you as you hinge and bend and straighten. Bend and straighten. Think of pushing not just back, but also down and back, last two, and last what? Sit back up, bring the arms forward and slide your hands into the loops.

Starting with the arms out in front, bend your elbows, bring your arms to your sternum hands. Roll back. Go low. Reach down, take the arms back, send the head forward, bring the arms to the base of the pelvis, go around to the front letting the spring pull you into the stretch, continue the arms coming forward until they're back and front and roll up and bend and bring your arms with you as you roll down and reach press back into the box as you take your body forward and take the arms up and around to the front. As you lose the tension, turn the palms face in and sit up, and bend and rotate back and take the arms and then they come back and then we come around into the rowing and up.

And last time, go back. Go out. Come forward. Go up and around. Come all the way up arms in the front, bend your elbows, and roll back. Bring your arms down with you.

Hold your low position and five biceps one, and two, make it feel like an abdominal exercise three, and four, and five, lift the arms forward and hinge the body back, and then up to upright and bend. And go back. And bicep curl. Five. Four deepen into the abdominals.

Three, two, one, reach up with the arms and back through the spine. It's a lot of shoulders. And sit up for this human and bend and roll back. And five four three two, one, and reach up, and sit tall, and last time. And go back.

Five. Keeping the elbows in close for three. Two. One and reach up and come all the way up to sitting and put the straps down. We're gonna step off the box, turn it towards a short box.

Come in onto the front of the box. I like to get my body in first and then we're gonna add another spring. So now I have two reds. We're gonna bring the feet up onto the So the box is supporting us from behind. Gonna bend over, put the hands up against a carriage, edge of the carriage, and press against the edge of the carriage.

And here we go out. Using the support from the box and in, and at. And under. So I'm really feeling like my abdominals are pressing back into the box and under. And I'm very active in the arms. So it's a full body experience, down and up and in, and press and down and up and in, and two, and down and up and in.

And one, and down and up and pull in and sit up and press and down and up and in and press, lifting up on the box. And bend and press and down and up and in and ah. Okay. I'm trying to start it saying something and then I totally lost the ability to make words. So pull back with your waist. Think of every single movement, maximize two.

And down up and in and one. And down up and in and take the arms forward palm space in and we press out and rotate and bend and press out and rotate. And bend and lift as you reach and bend. And lift as you reach and bend and press up tall. And in and press up tall and in last time and in.

And last one, and in. And then we're gonna take the feet a little wider on the foot bar. Reach your hands in between your feet and pull opening the knees. Pull your chest up and forward. It's a nice hip stretch and push out, letting the knees straighten, laughing because my knees don't wanna straighten, but there they go.

And then bend and pull up and forward. And then let the legs go. Pull back against the box. Take that spinal stretch, hamstring stretch, and pull up. And then push enough out so you can remove your feet.

Come in. Put your hands on the box behind you. Here's our transition. Get the elbows straight back from the shoulders. I'm standing on the frame of the reformer.

I'm gonna push up and bend and straighten and bend why not? Do a few triceps while we're here and straighten and keep the pelvis near to the box as you go down and up with your body. And four three two one and bring yourself up onto the box and step down. Change back to a blue spring. And then I think I like to take my straps onto the ground. Take the box bring it towards the far end of the frame.

Fussy about making it straight. Pilates teach your brain and then come up onto the carriage with your knees. Gonna reach out with the arms, putting the forearms on the box. Pulling through the waist so you're supported through your spine. The carriage is closed in this moment.

What we're gonna do is find the upper back muscles and drag yourself forward and resist. And drag yourself forward. So you can go as far forward over your arms as you want, bending the arms and back and mid back shoulder glide. And back and stay in the work. Focusing.

One more. So there's a change coming. We're gonna go halfway back. So the shoulders are right over the elbows. Keep your shoulders over your elbows as you round your spine.

Maybe the carriage will come in under that box, come back and go back shoulder glide halfway back. Keep the shoulders over the elbows as you glide the carriage in. It should feel hard. Challengeing. Return and back and shoulder glide.

And elbows under shoulders and flex the spine and back and reach and pull and halfway back and spinal flexion, pressing the shins down, lifting up, keep those shoulders right over the elbows. That's what makes it so challenging. And last time back, and in and flex and back and reach all the way back. And just allow your arms to adjust on the box as you sit down. Taking a shoulder stretch.

And we're gonna step off. Take the box, put it back on the reformer, keeping the same spring. Retrieve the straps if you move them. Put them there and come up onto the box. Taking the straps in your hands the loops, bring your arms right next to your sides.

And what we're gonna do here is we're gonna externally rotate the shoulders. Press out through your arms as you go into extension. Keep the extension as you bring elbows in, hands or still pulling back and then return to upright. Extra rotation. Press out.

Extend the spine, bend in, and come back and open and reach out and bend in and upright. Two more. Really focusing on the upper back. And in and last one, for a quick class, we sure got a lot of shoulder work in. It's my opinion. And back.

We're gonna scoot a little forward on the box. Take the arms forwards. Roll back. The reason we scooted for it is because when we're on the box, I want us to be not too far over the edge. Bend your elbows. Reach overhead.

Allow the arms and the straps to open bringing yourself back towards the foot or lift your head and lift your body. It's a hard flexion on that light spring. So you could always give yourself a little heavier spring or you could just do arm circles in front of you. Go back. Bend and reach. Keep the back down as you extend just the upper back. Didn't really make sense.

What I meant was keep the low back down. And then back up. All the way. Last time, go back. Bend your arms.

Reach overhead. Keep the low back connected. Take your time as you enjoy and explore that stretch. Come up. And lift up and put the straps down.

And that's it. Hope you liked it.