Class #2988

HIIT Reformer Fusion 3

65 min - Class
691 likes

Description

Strengthen your entire body with this challenging Reformer workout by Courtney Miller. This is the third class in her Reformer fusion series that incorporates HIIT circuits, yoga, and Pilates. These are the exercises she has been doing to restore her strength, flexibility, and sanity after having her baby.
What You'll Need: Reformer w/Box, Theraband

About This Video

Transcript

Read Full Transcript

Hi, everybody. So, here we are in class number three of the series of three Reformer fusion classes fusing these HIIT circuits, these high intensity interval circuits into our workout. A little bit of yoga, lots of yummy Pilates. If you've done class one and two, you are raring and ready to go for number three. These are the workouts that I've been doing to restore my strength, flexibility, and sanity post-baby.

So have some fun with me, and you're gonna get your sweat on, so have a towel close by. You'll also wanna have some water, and for this class, we will be using the resistance band as well as your long box, but we can just forget about that for now. Let's set up our springs for the next flow. So, this is not what we're gonna do right now, but I have two springs on for a bridge series, and I have my bar in mid position, locked in and ready to go. Okay, so we can just transition to that when we're ready.

But here's how we're gonna get started. Coming to a kneeling position, knees are gonna be hip distance apart, aligned with the shoulder blocks, and hands are gonna go onto the rails. Let's just start with an easy cat-cow here. So exhale, flex the spine, pushing down into the rails, dropping the head and scooping the belly. Inhale, lengthening through neutral into extension, pulling the heels of the hands back forward to the knees, so you get a little traction.

Exhale, flex. Inhale, lifting. Try to extend evenly through the spine. Don't just dump into the low belly. Exhale, flex, and inhale, lengthen.

From here, walk the hands forward onto the rails. Curl the toes under. Come to a plank position to start. Feet again are the width of the shoulder blocks. And press back to a downward facing dog.

So, choose your version of down dog here. I'm gonna keep my heels high for now, bend my knees a little, and really work on pressing my chest back so I can open through the front of the shoulders. Head is down. Neck is free of tension. On an inhale, round the spine, and come into a high pushup position, high plank.

Bend the elbows. You're gonna rest your femurs onto the shoulder blocks. Just get low for a moment, so you're one long line. Lift the chest up. So you're in a modified upward facing dog here.

Curl the toes under. Exhale as you press back again. (Courtney exhales) If you'd like to stay here for a few breaths, go for it, 'cause this is your warmup, and you've got a lot of work ahead. Round the spine. Bend the elbows.

Lift the chest. Curl the toes under. One more time here. Press back. You may wanna paddle the feet out.

Let the hips sort of sway side to side, whatever feels natural for your body. Flex, scoop, lower down. And lift. Press back to your downward facing dog, except this time, narrow your stance. Lift one leg up high.

Nod your chin towards your chest. Bring the leg through the shoulder blocks onto the floor. Inhale the arms up. Bend the knee. Tap it down.

Exhale, lift the chest. Interlace the hands behind you. Keep lifting the heart high. Fold forward so that the chest comes to the inside of the leg, opening through the shoulders, taking the hands down onto the rails and pushing back to your downward facing dog. Other leg.

Inhale, it lifts up. Exhale, it pulls through. Inhale, you lift the arms. Bend the knee, lift the chest. Interlace the hands.

Reach down as the heart goes up. Lean forward to your humble warrior. Get a nice chest opener here. Place the hands down onto the rails. Push back to your downward facing dog.

Let's do that one more each side. Inhale, lift the leg high. Exhale, step it through. Inhale as you lengthen. Bend and open.

Take it down. Lift the heart. Fold forward opening the chest. Placing the hands onto the rails, using your abdominals to lift the leg and step back, one more time. Inhale, up.

Exhale through. Inhale up. Take it down. Reach down as the chest opens. Lean to the inside of the thigh as the arms draw up and back.

Placing the hands down in line with the shoulders, curl those toes under if they're untucked, using the abdominals to press back. Hips are high. Chest is low, and knees come down. Roll it up, and that's our warmup. So it only gets crazier from there.

Let's go into our first Reformer flow. We'll need the band for this. So find your band. Keep it long. Our springs are already set up.

If you remember, we had two springs on. Foot bar's ready to go. Headrest is down. Coming into a bridge position, taking the band underneath the heels of the feet. Now, you'll want about equal extra band on each side, okay?

So you go, you can approximate it. The band is gonna stay because the heels are pressing into the foot bar. Make any little adjustments you feel fit. And then grab a hold of the band. The more resistance you have, the more your upper body is gonna work.

Elbows are down, chest is open. Breathe in to prepare. Exhale, scoop the belly, flex the spine, and roll into your bridge. Close those ribs. Lift the hips high.

Keep the collarbones open. Bicep curl as you press out. So really pull those thumbs toward your shoulders. Inhale, release the hips come high. Exhale, and inhale.

Exhale, and inhale. Push evenly into the inner and outer part of the heels. Exhale, press, inhale, lift. Two more here. Exhale, pull, inhale, lift.

One more time, exhale, pull, and inhale, lift. Now, from here tilt one hip higher than the other. Exhale as you flex and roll down that side. Tailbone's heavy. Exhale, roll up that same side.

Find center. Tip the other hip high. Exhale as you roll, using your abdominals to articulate through the spine. Tailbone stays in line with the sacrum here, so you're not swinging your hips from side to side. You're just massaging down one side of the spine and then the other.

Come back through center and roll down through the center. And go ahead and release to your neutral pelvis. Reduce the tension by walking your hands all the way to the end of the band. Inhale as you prepare. Let's keep those elbows down for now.

Exhale, flex, scoop, and roll to come up, taking the arms long and low by the thighs. On a breath in, press the arms up as you push the band out. Exhale, hips come high. So think of an overhead reach and exhale, lift, scoop. Press, wrapping the abdominals around you three-dimensionally in this bridge.

Inhale, exhale. Two more times. Knees traveling like train tracks in parallel throughout the series. Hands are down, same as before. Tip one hip high, the other hip low.

Flex, scoop, roll down that side of the spine. Release. Exhale, roll up. Tip, roll down. Now, I've got scoliosis, so you can probably see, I'm a little bit more mobile through one side.

You may feel the same thing. Find your center and exhale, roll down through it. Progress, not perfection, though. Take one foot out from the band. So now you've got one foot in, one foot on the foot bar.

Inhale as you prepare. Exhale as you reach the leg that has the band up towards the ceiling. Now, here's a little tip. The more you choke up, the harder this series is, because the band is gonna restrict the movement. So play with it and find what works for you.

Keep your elbows anchored onto the mat. Leg stays in a straight position. Foot is dorsi flexed. Use the power of your seat to pick the hips up and tap them down. We're gonna do six of these.

Two. (Courtney exhales) Three. (Courtney exhales) Four. (Courtney exhales) Five. (Courtney exhales) Six.

Bring the leg down, plantar flexed. Nod the chin, flex, and scoop up, finding a neutral pelvis position, switching the legs. (Courtney exhales rhythmically) Hover the elbows to increase the challenge. In and out. (Courtney exhales) Look down at the pelvis.

Do you see shifting or rocking? Try your best to find stability. Four more here. Three. (Courtney exhales) Two.

And one. Both feet go in the band. Reduce the tension if you need to. Arms go long, bending it in. Exhale, reach. (Courtney exhales)

Inhale, exhale, reach. (Courtney exhales) Inhale, release. (Courtney exhales) So, warming up those abdominals for what's to come, feeling warmth through our shoulders. Work through that upper body. Two more. (Courtney exhales)

Hold the arms, lift the legs. They go up, they go down. (Courtney exhales) They go up, they go down. (Courtney exhales) Up, down, last two. And one.

Switching legs and lowering down. Now, I particularly like that one, because the resistance is supporting the flexion. You're getting so much good upper body work at the same time. So play with it and have fun. Leg is up.

Choke up on the band. Make things more challenging. Bend the elbows. Your pressing leg is in line with your sit bone on that side. Exhale. (Courtney exhales)

The whole thing goes up. Remember, the more resistance, the harder it is. Lift six times. One. (Courtney exhales) Two.

(Courtney exhales) Three, trying to keep the carriage still. Four. (Courtney exhales) Five. (Courtney exhales) Six. Take it down, send it long.

Nod the chin. Flex up. Little alternating presses. So this reciprocal motion is preparing us for that high-intensity interval work we're gonna do. Stabilize through the pelvis.

Hover the elbows to make things more challenging. Three. (Courtney exhales) Two. And one. Take both feet in.

Press out when the legs are long. Lower the arms as the legs come in. Push. Now I'm going slightly wide with my arms. This helps to reduce tension in the neck.

(Courtney exhales) Because I'm up in this flexed position, I can see what's happening in my abdominals, and I can see what's happening with my pelvis. I can make necessary corrections. (Courtney exhales) Just the legs. Inhale up, push down on the band. Inhale up, push down on the band.

Three more. (Courtney exhales) Two. (Courtney exhales) And one. (Courtney exhales) Bring it in and take it down. Awesome job.

All right, the band can go beside you. Help yourself, come on up. Let's go into our first circuit of high intensity interval work. Now, with this class, we're doing two rounds of our, our HIIT training or our high intensity interval training. We did three in the past.

We're doing two this time. It doesn't mean it's gonna be easier, though. I took one spring off, so I have one spring left on now, and for me, that's one red spring. That's the only change I need to make. Standing beside your equipment, placing one foot back against the shoulder block and coming into a lunge position.

Remember, these exercises are meant to get your heart rate up. Taking the hands onto the foot bar, shoulder width apart, lifting the back leg up, on an exhale, I'll flex my spine, drawing the knee across the body. So I'm scooping in for those low abdominals. On an inhale, I land. Now, the next one I work hard to stay in a plank position as the leg opens out to the side.

Little bit easier when you go a little bit faster, but don't let momentum take over. Scoop and twist. Kick. Scoop and twist, and that scoop is from the lower belly. And we're gonna see this scoop sensation come up again.

Two more times. (Courtney exhales rhythmically) One more. Plant the foot. Get low, shift back. Open up the palms of the hands.

Push with the back leg. So I want you to feel like you're pushing away from the floor with your hands. Elbows are soft, spine is long, scooping the abdominals in and away from that front thigh. 10 in total, so we've got four more to do. Four, (Courtney exhales) three, (Courtney exhales) two, and one.

Now, we're not ready to go to the other side yet. There's a third part. One foot is gonna be on the floor. One foot is on the Reformer. Add a spring to keep the carriage stable.

Likely, it's not gonna move, but let's just be on the safe side. Three lowers, one lift, and then we go over the Reformer. Check it out. Here's what it's gonna look like. One, two, three, up and over.

One, two, three, up and over. One, two, three, up and over. Shift your weight back. (Courtney exhales) One, two, three, up and over. One, two, three.

One more time. One, two, three. One, two, three. Yes. Other side.

Placing the foot against the shoulder block, reduce your spring so you only have one. Come into your lunge position. Exhale, round the lower back. So scoop the belly in as the knee crosses. Land and open.

Sweep that out to the side. Exhale. (Courtney exhales) Really work that cross. (Courtney exhales) Exhale. (Courtney exhales) And inhale, open.

Exhale to the opposite knee. (Courtney exhales) Two more. (Courtney exhales) Landing light. (Courtney exhales) One more. (Courtney exhales) And open.

Bring it in. Bend into both knees. Get low. Shift your weight back. So you can let go.

Push with the back leg. (Courtney exhales) Both heels are lifted high. Stay low. My preference is exhale to pull. (Courtney exhales) Four, three, two, one.

Whoo, whoo, whoo! Second set. So, we've got these carriage hops. We're gonna finish on that side. We're gonna repeat it again. (Courtney sighs) You can take a 10-second break in between, but that's it, no more than 10 seconds.

Okay, I think that's it. One foot is on, one foot is off. You can add a spring to stabilize the carriage. You get low, and you stay low. Shift your weight back.

Choose a position with your arms that helps you find your balance. Get lower and shift back three times. One, two, three, switch. One, two, three, switch. Down and back, and up and over.

One, two, three. Use your abdominals to pull the knee up. Land light here, guys. One, two, three. One, two, three.

One, two, three. (Courtney exhales) One more set. Up and over. And. (Courtney exhales rhythmically) Yes, ma'am.

Other, second set, other side. So here we go. Foot goes against. Since you have two opportunities to do this, this second set really should be better, right? We know it, we understand it.

We know how to anticipate the challenge. So I have one spring on. Here I am in my lunge. Fingers are wrapped, chest is lifted. Exhale, going across, pulling with the low belly.

And sweep open to the side. (Courtney exhales rhythmically) Again, scoop and lift. (Courtney exhales) Should be very quiet. The only thing you can hear is yourself groaning. (Courtney grunts) And up.

One more. (Courtney exhales rhythmically) Plant the foot. Get low, shift back. Push, pull. Pull.

Yes, I'm out of breath. You should be too. Legs are shaking. (Courtney exhales) But there's a light at the end of the tunnel. Three more.

Three, (Courtney exhales) two, (Courtney exhales) one. Okay. Foot is on. Tell yourself, this is the last time you're doing these carriage hops until you do the next class. (Courtney laughs) You can do it.

Easy, we got this. Get low, shift back. Three, two, one, switch. Three, two, one, up and over. (Courtney exhales) And up.

One, two, three. One, two, three. One, two, three. One, two, three. Two more times.

One, two, three. One, two, three. One, two, three. Yes, reduce the spring. One spring on.

Come into your lunge. Whoo, lunge is not so bad. Chest is lifted. Shoulders are down. Here we go, guys.

Scoop, cross, land, lift. Sweep open. It doesn't have to be high. (Courtney exhales) And lift. And lift.

And sweep to the side. Four. (Courtney exhales) Three. (Courtney exhales) Two. (Courtney exhales) One.

(Courtney exhales) Plant the foot. You got this, Courtney. Heels high. Get low. Shift back.

Push, exhale, pull. (Courtney exhales rhythmically) Both heels are up. Shift the weight back. Legs are shaking. Five more.

Five, four, pull the belly up away from that thigh, three, two, one, and we made it. All right. That's our first circuit. We've got two more of those to go. But until we get there, let's change the pace a little bit.

We have a yellow spring on. We're gonna grab the long box. So come on over. Grab your long box. Place it onto the Reformer against the shoulder blocks.

Let's get this foot bar out of the way. So we have a light tension on, yeah? You think it's gonna be easy? It's not. We lay onto our abdomen.

Chest is comfortably off the box. So we have a reduced tension for two reasons. One, we're doing single arm work. The other is we're not holding onto the loops. We're gonna really choke up on those ropes, and you'll see why.

Option to keep the legs extended. To modify, bend the knees, cross the ankles. I'm gonna keep my legs apart and my pubic bone heavy. One hand goes onto the headrest. The other hand grabs up onto that rope.

So you wanna reach the arm as far as it'll go the length of the arm, and that's where you're holding. We'll do three pulls per variation. So straight arm. One. I'm working to keep my body straight in one long line.

Two. (Courtney exhales) And three. For our second set, this hand that's on the headrest goes out to a T. Three more pulls. Now, it's harder for me to keep my body straight.

One, and two, and three. Now, for your last variation, the arm goes forward, like Super Woman, and we inhale. Exhale, one. (Courtney exhales) Pubic bone heavy. Two.

(Courtney exhales) And three. And that yellow spring's not feeling so light anymore. Look up. Grab a hold of the riser that's closest to you. Now, if you've got a Reformer that has a tower, it's fine; just grab a hold of that vertical frame.

Keep the arm up, 'cause you're gonna need it later. Pull yourself forward. Now, this is a weight transfer, so I'm working a ton through the stabilizers of my spine as I pull with the opposite arm now. Six in total, so three more here. (Courtney exhales) I'm thinking about creating length and traction in my spine as I pull, reaching my toes away from the crown of my head.

(Courtney exhales) Now, because I did not let go of my rope, I can release the riser, and I'm good to go. Place the hand back onto the headrest. Pull the elbow out by the side. Round two, three times. One.

Keep that elbow stable. Two. (Courtney exhales) And three. Second set has the airplane arms. One.

Two. And three. (Courtney exhales) Third set, Super Woman. One. Two.

Three. Look for the riser. Grab it. Keep the arm up. Pull, six times.

Legs are long, legs are active. This is about precision. This is about length. So create that in your body, reaching the head as if you're peaking through a window and away. Two more.

(Courtney exhales) And one more. And because you didn't let go, you can release the riser without crashing in. Good. Before we do the other side, hold onto the strap. You're gonna need it.

Come to a side-lying position on your box. Now, I've got a smaller base of support than the carriage, so I have to work to keep my head and neck lifted, and you'll see in a moment, we're gonna add those legs in too, so it becomes some good core work as well. Try to square your hips and your shoulders. Grab a hold of the strap. Reach it up to the sky.

Press into it a little bit to begin, so you've got some tension. Reaching the arm straight out in front of you, exhale, pulling the arm back to the thigh. Inhale forward. Exhale, pull from the back. Inhale forward, reaching again through the crown of that head.

Press back and forward. Let's add on, extending one leg, pressing, and resisting. No momentum, guys. Keep resistance in that strap. And that's three.

Both legs. Inhale, arm forward. Exhale, my legs are lifted. I'm squeezing my legs together. (Courtney exhales) And press.

(Courtney exhales) Bending the elbow. As I extend the arm, my legs will lift up higher, because I'm using my obliques to do that. So I lift, squeeze, and release. Lift, squeeze, and release. Draw the navel in.

(Courtney exhales) One more time. (Courtney exhales) Freeze. Take the arm up to the sky. Stay connected through the lats on that side. Lift the legs, lift the legs, lift the legs, lift.

Four, three, two, one, and relax. Let's start the whole flow on the other side. So hook that strap up. Roll onto your belly. Chest is comfortably off the box.

Legs are engaged. Hand is on. This is your training wheel. Remember, we reach the length of the arm, and that's where we're holding, so a yellow is not so light, if you think of it. Legs are staying engaged as we pull, straight arm.

Three times. One. Anticipating that there will be a challenge, 'cause you're gonna be pulled to one side, so starting to feel that stability in your body. Arm goes to an airplane as we pull straight back. Hey, at least you're not jumping up and down on the Reformer, right?

(Courtney laughs) And one more time like this. Super Woman. Inhale, arm goes down, pulling the belly up and away from the box. One, and two, (Courtney exhales) and three. So we've made it through that.

Look to the riser. Grab a hold. Keep the strap arm lifted as you pull. Now, you're focusing on creating length through the spine, length through the neck. Exhale, pull.

So become the turtle, lengthening your head and neck away from your shell. (Courtney exhales) Find your inner turtle. (Courtney laughs) And exhale, pull. Two more times here, belly up, up, up. (Courtney exhales) And last time.

This is also nice traction through your wrist on that pull-up arm. Now, because you didn't let go of the rope, you can let go of the riser without crashing in. Take the hand back down. Lift the elbow up. Exhale three times.

One. (Courtney exhales) Two. Three. Arm to a T, same thing. Three times.

One. (Courtney exhales) Two. (Courtney exhales) And three. (Courtney exhales) Overhead. One.

(Courtney exhales) Didn't think a yellow could make you shake so much, huh? (Courtney laughs) Two. And three, look for it. Pull. Inhale, release, six times.

(Courtney exhales) Keeping that shoulder blade stable. Back body is working, all the way from the heels of those feet up to the crown of the head here. (Courtney exhales) Last two. (Courtney exhales) And last one. (Courtney exhales) Lengthen it away.

Let go, and take your turn, a quarter turn on the box, onto one side. Start with the knees bent in. Know that you can leave them in. Take the same strap you were working with up to the sky. Take this opportunity to set your shoulders.

Abs are engaged. Bring the arm in front of you. Three times, we pull back and resist forward. So, I'm trying to keep the work as I go forward. Remember, it's not work and release.

There's work in both directions. One leg extends, making it more challenging for the core system to stabilize here. (Courtney exhales) And pull. Both legs are long. Squeeze them together.

Lift them up. Leave the legs. Three times with the arms. (Courtney exhales) Two. (Courtney exhales) And three, bending the elbow.

As you extend the elbow, the legs lift higher. Squeeze bottom leg into the top leg. How are those shoulders doing? (Courtney exhales) Three more here. (Courtney exhales) Two.

(Courtney exhales) And one. (Courtney exhales) Arm goes up. Arm stays up. Just the legs, six times. One, (Courtney exhales) two, three, four, five, (Courtney exhales) six, and rest.

Great job, guys. All right, be careful as you come off. Body might feel a little bit like a limp noodle. Place the box out of the way for now. But we are going to use it later.

So, let's close, okay? Leave your yellow spring on. I'm gonna come around to the front. So we've got our next high interval, high intensity interval circuit, our next HIIT circuit. We keep the yellow spring.

We're in a standing position. Again, these are one of those ones that are gonna get your heart rate up. It's gonna bring that little glow to your brow. From a standing position, place your inside foot around the loop. You'll have to play with where you wanna be.

The further you stand from that pulley, from that source, the heavier this is gonna feel. So I'm gonna test the waters here, but I might change my mind, and you might too. Come into a low squat position with your hands on your hips and shift your weight over your outside leg. That's the one closer to the foot bar. Now, you should be able to extend the leg without the carriage crashing in here.

Stay low as you pull the leg in using inner thighs. Inhale as you tap. Exhale, we pull. Exhale, we pull. Hands are on the hips for two reasons.

One, at least we're not keeping them out here and working those shoulders, which are tired, but really, they're here because we wanna feel that our pelvis is staying totally still in space as we pull. 10 times, so I've got four more to do. The lower you are, the harder this is. (Courtney exhales) Last time here. (Courtney exhales) Open it up.

Good. Balance your weight between both legs. Pivot and turn so you're on a diagonal facing front. So here I was, and here I am. Bend into your front knee.

Lean into it. Extend your arms long. Now, as you exhale, you'll pull your back leg in, circle, scoop, hug the knee. You're using your belly to pull. Inhale, lengthen.

So think of your mat repertoire here. Exhale. (Courtney exhales) Inhale. Exhale. (Courtney exhales) Inhale.

Exhale. (Courtney exhales) Two more times. (Courtney exhales) One more. (Courtney exhales) And send it back. Standing leg, I know.

Pivot and turn so you're facing towards your carriage, placing your knee on. Now just take a moment to adjust. You're in four-point kneeling to start. Slide the shoulders into a strong position down the back. Adjust that strap, my bad I didn't tell you earlier, so that it's around the arch of the foot.

That way, it won't slide up your calf. Send the leg behind you. Keep the leg straight as it crosses your midline and open it out to the side. The challenge is keeping the leg high. (Courtney exhales) Inhale, cross.

Exhale, open. Inhale, cross. There's a lot of obliques here too. Keeping those hips behind the shoulders is not an easy task. (Courtney exhales) Four more.

(Courtney exhales) Three. (Courtney exhales) Two. (Courtney exhales) And one. (Courtney exhales) Plant the foot. Step yourself off.

Hook the strap. And as we make our way over to the other side, we're gonna do a little core work. (Courtney laughs) Why not? We're already here. Take the hands onto the shoulder blocks.

The elbows are low, in line with your shoulders. Press out. You're on yellow, right? So, let's go slow here. Press out, one leg at a time.

Turn the feet to one side. Round the back as the hips lift. Inhale, lengthen out. Let's do five per side. So that was one.

(Courtney exhales) Two. (Courtney exhales) Three. (Courtney exhales) Four. (Courtney exhales) Five. Turn the feet to the other side.

(Courtney exhales) That's one. (Courtney exhales) Two. (Courtney exhales) Three. (Courtney exhales) Four. (Courtney exhales) Five.

One knee goes down. So does the other. And we do the same thing on the other side. Come on up to standing. So, no need to change the equipment.

Just grab that other strap. Put it through, put your foot through. You want it on the ankle. Get low. (Courtney exhales) Shift towards the foot bar side, hands on the hips.

Tap in, tap out, 10 times. (Courtney exhales) Remember, these are intended to get your heart rate up, but we imbed all of our Pilates principles into everything we do. So control, breath, precision. Exhale. Your center of gravity is right below your belly button, and it transects through the front of your body to your back.

So right here, right? Wherever this is, this is where I can stay stable. So, tighten that tummy. Align your shoulders over that center point. (Courtney exhales) Open it up.

Pivot turn. I'm on a slight diagonal here. Bend into the front knee. Lift the arms. Hug.

(Courtney exhales) Lengthen. Exhale, hug. (Courtney exhales) Inhale, lengthen. (Courtney exhales) Lots of core to pull that leg in. (Courtney exhales) And lengthen, four more.

Three. (Courtney exhales) Two. (Courtney exhales) And one. (Courtney exhales) Lengthen and come up. Turn once you've adjusted your strap so it's around your arch and come to four-point kneeling.

Don't be in a rush here. Build a strong foundation. Shoulders over wrists, hips directly behind the shoulders, neutral spine. Leg extends. It comes towards the midline.

Keep it lifted. Exhale, open. Inhale. (Courtney exhales) And inhale. Elbows are a little bit soft here, guys.

Think about holding up your body weight via your strong back muscles. Not from the wrists, not from the hands. (Courtney exhales) Four more. Four. (Courtney exhales) Three.

(Courtney exhales) Two. (Courtney exhales) And one. (Courtney exhales) Well done. The foot goes down. Step back.

Remove the strap. Here we go, guys. Let's get into those obliques. So, here's our second set, pikes on rotation. Come down to the elbows carefully, 'cause you're just on a yellow.

So take your time. Press out. Both legs are out. Turning the toes to one side, rounding the spine and pulling in. Five.

(Courtney exhales) Four. (Courtney exhales) Three. (Courtney exhales) Two. (Courtney exhales) One. Pivot the legs.

(Courtney exhales) Five. (Courtney exhales) Four. Three. Two. (Courtney exhales) One.

Bring it in, tap it down. Yes. Standing, same thing, other side. This is your second set. This is your last set.

This is your opportunity to do it better. Straps around the ankle. Find your standing position. Get low, hands on hips. Pull and tap.

(Courtney exhales) Pull and tap. Take this opportunity to release that upper body. Roll those shoulders down and back. The lower you are, the more you're gonna work. (Courtney exhales) Four more here.

Four. Three. Two. And one. You open, you pivot, you get low.

Pull it in. (Courtney exhales) Send it back. (Courtney exhales) Send it back. Really round and hollow out that spine. Four.

Three. Two. One. Yeah. Adjust so the strap is around the arch of the foot.

Come into your kneeling position. Leg extends. Cross and open. Sometimes I find a new sense of strength, energy that I didn't even realize that I had, when I know that it's the last rep or the last set. So harness that power, guys.

(Courtney exhales) This is the last time you're gonna be doing this exercise. (Courtney exhales) Inhale. Four. (Courtney exhales) Three. (Courtney exhales) Two.

(Courtney exhales) And one. (Courtney exhales) Take it down, step it off. Pikes on rotation. Again, last one, last set. We do not have to do it again after this.

Push out slowly. Strong shoulders. Pivot the toes. Neutral, long spine. Flex and lengthen.

The flexion comes from your thoracic spine. Two. (Courtney exhales) Three. (Courtney exhales) Four. (Courtney exhales) Five.

(Courtney exhales) Other side. Pivot those toes. (Courtney exhales) One. (Courtney exhales) Two. (Courtney exhales) Three.

(Courtney exhales) Four. (Courtney exhales) That's five. Whoo! Yes. Other leg. We've got this, guys.

Step through, foot on the ankle. Second set. Means you've come close to perfecting this movement. You know what to expect. Shift your weight.

Tap it in, tap it out. (Courtney exhales) Go to your happy place. Feeling that standing leg working to support you. Notice how you get this co-contraction of those inner thighs and deep abdominal muscles, drawing in and up. Four more.

Four. (Courtney exhales) Three. (Courtney exhales) Two. (Courtney exhales) And one. Pivot turn.

Bend into that standing leg. Stretch the arms long. Circle hug. This is core. Inhale.

(Courtney exhales) Work to draw that knee up and in. (Courtney exhales) And four. And three. And two. And one.

Awesome. All right. All we have to do is wag our little tails. I'm adjusting the strap, coming into my four-point kneeling position. Shoulders are down.

Abs are in. Cross, push. (Courtney exhales) Leg is high, controlling both segments of the movement. Toes are angled down towards the ground, and exhale, press. How you doing?

(Courtney laughs) And press. Just be glad we're not doing three sets of these. And press. (Courtney exhales) Last three. Two.

(Courtney exhales) And one. (Courtney exhales) Good work. We're gonna leave that tension on. If you're got your glow on, wipe your brow. We are gonna use the long box.

So remember, I said keep it close. We're gonna place it against the rail, forward of the carriage, right about there. Now it's coming up. So, taking it down a little in intensity, still super high precision. We're back to this four-point kneeling.

We're gonna grab a hold of our strap in our outside hand. Inside hand is down. The further you move away from the shoulder blocks, the more work you're gonna be doing. Let the strap give you a little bit of a pull here. So you're opening through your back body.

As you come to your four-point kneeling position, your elbows bend. Extend the arm while stabilizing the spine. Bend the elbow with control and stretch back. Eight of these. (Courtney exhales) Three.

(Courtney exhales) Four. (Courtney exhales) Five. (Courtney exhales) Six. Seven. And last one here, eight.

(Courtney exhales) Take it through. Hook up the strap. Stay for a second. Take a stretch. Head goes down.

Push away from the shoulder block. You know you've earned it, right? Rise on up. Come a little bit closer to your shoulder blocks. Take your hands onto your box.

Now, you may be regretting how far you've moved your box. I may also regret it. So you can always move your box a little closer if you need to, but I feel like we totally got this. So the hands are onto the box. You might have to use a little bit of momentum to get into a position where your knees are in line with your shoulders.

Inhale, the knees sway. Exhale, (Courtney exhales) pull, six. Tons of obliques here, guys. (Courtney exhales) Keep the upper body stable. Use the abdominals to pull.

(Courtney exhales) Two more. (Courtney exhales) One more. (Courtney exhales) And bring it home. Yes, it is hard. Take your inside foot up forward onto the box.

Move your knee against the shoulder block. Rise up. A little inner thigh work. So go ahead and lean towards the box leg, knee traveling right over that mid foot. Arms can be up.

Exhale, pull. Little inner thigh loveliness. Inhale, release. Exhale, pull. Just when you think life was gonna get really hard, this one happens, and it's lovely.

Here, we're thinking length and space. Length through every segment of the spine, and space in every joint. As the knee draws under, the crown of the head goes up to the sky. Last two. (Courtney exhales) And last one.

(Courtney exhales) Good work. All right. Well, we'll need to move the box over to the other side so we can repeat the series. And we do have one more HIIT interval coming up here. So savor this.

Coming to four-point kneeling, grabbing a hold of the loop with the outside hand. The further you are away, the more work that's gonna happen. Twist towards the riser to begin. Square off your shoulders. Extend the arm.

Bend the elbow and twist through. Neutral spine. You've got eight of these. Exhale. (Courtney exhales) Inhale, twist.

Exhale. And inhale. Four more here. Elbows soft on that stabilizing arm. Twist through.

Three. (Courtney exhales) And through. Two. (Courtney exhales) And through, one more. One.

(Courtney exhales) And twist. Hooking up your strap, taking a stretch. So just lower the shoulder down. Let your head rest. Use the shoulder block to give yourself a little bit of a press, letting that back body open.

Rise on up. Walking the knees towards the shoulder blocks, taking the hands onto the box. Now, you have to use a little momentum to get started here, but then we slow it down, a lot of eccentric control with those abdominals, pulling the hips so that they're in line with the shoulders. Swing to the side. (Courtney exhales) Pull, six times.

One. (Courtney exhales) Two. (Courtney exhales) Three. (Courtney exhales) Four. (Courtney exhales) Five.

(Courtney exhales) And six, yeah. Rise up. Walk your inside knee all the way against that shoulder block. Foot goes on the box. Find your balance.

Shoulders roll down. Arms can go forward. Exhale, pull. Inhale. Exhale, pull.

Sort of use this as a reset opportunity. So we did a lot of powerful work today, and we've got another powerful series coming up. So we just get into that pelvic floor, into the abdominal wall. Think of a three-dimensional contraction. Create space, length, and just a sense of efficiency and ease in the body as you move.

Last three. (Courtney exhales) Two. (Courtney exhales) And one. (Courtney exhales) Awesome. Okay, guys.

Big one coming up here. We'll reduce, excuse me, the tension's already light. So we're gonna keep a light tension. I have a yellow on. You could do this series on a yellow.

I'm not going to. I'm gonna do it on a blue. Give myself a little extra support here. So, play with the blue versus the yellow in your own body. Now, our resistance band comes back into play, and the resistance band is gonna go over the foot bar.

The foot bar needs to be locked in, so that when you pull on it, it doesn't move. If you have a foot bar that doesn't lock in, you may be able to thread the band around the platform, or you may be able to thread the band under your safety strap, your foot strap here. So, play with that, 'cause you've got lots of options. One will work for you. Holding on to the band so it doesn't go anywhere, and carefully come to a standing position.

One foot comes forward onto the platform. Now I want to have the majority of my heel on this platform. So my toes are hanging off, and that's okay. My other leg is gonna be halfway back. So, now all the way against the shoulder blocks.

Halfway back. I'm gonna come into a lunge position and just see how I feel about this resistance, and I feel pretty good about it, okay? When you're ready to add the upper body component, you'll rise up. The band is looped under the foot bar for me, and I'm gonna come to a bicep curl position. So the extra band is coming through the thumb side of my hand.

I'll bend into my front knee so my shin kisses the bar, and then I'm gonna keep that position. As I go low, I do a bicep curl. As I lift up, I do a chest expansion. Bicep curl when I go down, and chest expansion when I come up. Six reps.

I've already done two. And up. (Courtney exhales) Bend, and up. (Courtney exhales) Two more times. Bend, and up.

(Courtney exhales) One more. Bend, and up. (Courtney exhales) Now, bend and stay low. Take both band into one hand. Opposite hand comes onto your thigh.

Lean into it here, guys. Six tricep kickbacks. Two, three, four, five, and six. Leave the band at the bar. Moving on.

Hands go onto the foot bar. Bring the legs forward. This is where we see that scoop again that I talked about. Heels are gonna lift it high. Feet are towards the front edge of the carriage.

One leg comes up. Lengthen out. Exhale. Using the low belly, scoop. Think about the knee touching the nose.

Inhale, out. Exhale, turn, knee to elbow. Six of these. (Courtney exhales) Press, turn. (Courtney exhales) Out.

Super deep work here, guys. Scoop. (Courtney exhales) Again. (Courtney exhales) Focus on pulling the feet forward, (Courtney exhales) because you're flexing the abdominals. (Courtney exhales) Last time.

(Courtney exhales) (Courtney exhales) Place your foot down. Walk your hand forward. Push the carriage out. Just stretch for a second. Ahh! Little wild thing.

Pivot turn. Hands go on. You come back in. You're ready for the other side. So, the band is ready for you when you're ready for it.

Step one foot halfway back, the other foot forward. Most of my heel is on. My shin can touch. And I like to kind of just test the waters here. How do I feel about the resistance?

Do I need to make any adjustments? I feel pretty good. So I'm gonna rise up from my bicep curls. Holding onto the band, chest is open. Thumbs are up.

Good. I'm in a bicep curl position. As I come up, press back. Bicep curl position. As I come up, press back.

Bicep curl, press back. Curl up, press back. High intensity is right. And press back. Two more.

Chest stays lifted. Back leg stays straight. (Courtney exhales) And up. Press back, stay back. Grab the band.

Push, six times. Two, three, four, five, six. Leave the band, grab a hold, bring it in. Opposite leg. Hands are on, heels are high.

Bring the knee in. Inhale as you press out. So don't work from your hips here, guys. Scoop to pull, knee to nose. Pivot.

(Courtney exhales) Knee to elbow. (Courtney exhales) Knee to nose. (Courtney exhales) Knee to elbow. (Courtney exhales) Knee to nose. (Courtney exhales) Knee to elbow.

(Courtney exhales) Pull in. (Courtney exhales) Twist, two more times. (Courtney exhales) Pull in. (Courtney exhales) One more. (Courtney exhales) Pull in.

(Courtney exhales) Good, take your twist. Adjust the hands. Pivot turn, open the heart. (Courtney sighs) Fake break! Find a reason to stay here extra long. And when you're ready, pivot turn.

We're ready to go again. Nice, guys. Your band's ready for you. You're ready for it. Thumbs up position.

Step the foot forward. We're doing this two times. This is the end. Get low. Come into your bicep curl position.

Rise up. Get low. Rise up. Get low. Rise up.

Get low. Rise up. Get low, and push. One more. Get low.

Push. Get low, stay low. Band in one hand, lean forward. Press it back. Two, three, four, five, six.

Both feet on. Feet are towards the front edge. Lift up to a flamingo position. Lengthen out. Pull, twist.

(Courtney exhales) Pull, (Courtney exhales) twist. Scoop. Pull, (Courtney exhales) twist. (Courtney exhales) Pull, (Courtney exhales) twist. (Courtney exhales) One more time.

Up through the center. (Courtney exhales) Out through the side. Plant the foot. Push, pivot open. Oh, I don't know if it looks as good as it feels, but it feels so good.

(Courtney exhales) Other side. Then we are done, this one. All right, guys. Grabbing a hold. Opposite foot.

Halfway back. There you are. Bicep curl. You're up, you're pushing back. Bicep curl.

(Courtney exhales) Two. Bicep curl. Three. Bicep curl. Four.

Yes, that's a bead of sweat dripping down my forehead into my eye. You're probably feeling the exact same thing. (Courtney exhales) You're down. Grab a hold of that band. Kick it back, guys.

Six. Five. Four. Three. Two.

One. Grab a hold. Bring it in. All right, we just have to do this core work on the other side. Bringing the leg up, inhale it out.

Scoop, scoop. Pull, (Courtney exhales) and twist. (Courtney exhales) Pull. (Courtney exhales) Pivot, twist. (Courtney exhales) Obliques.

Pull. And twist. (Courtney exhales) One more. Pull. (Courtney exhales) Twist.

Open, step, lift the heart. Bring that carriage in. And, give yourself a pat on the back. That was not an easy one. That was certainly a great workout.

Remember, this is a series of three classes that go together. I'd love for you to join me for all three. We can do them together every week. We can watch our bodies change, and we can get stronger, more flexible, more balanced together. Thank you so much for joining me.

Drink some water, take a break, and I'll see you guys again soon.

Related Content

Comments

11 people like this.
Courtney, this was my favorite of the 3. Loved the vinyasa flow warm up. I mean, how fun was that?! Loved the creativity throughout, and it's always so nice to be a student. As teachers, if we don't continue to receive, we can't possibly give.Thank you for the time, effort and inspiration you put into these online classes.
Z A
3 people like this.
A gift :)))))) cannot wait to try this in the afternoon. Please continue to these series or similar HITT programs. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.
1 person likes this.
Fabulous! Love the increased heart rate! ❤️
Awesome class...awesome series!
2 people like this.
Courtney your creativity is definitely a gift! Not only in these 3 series but also in all of your classes you create these fun but challenging excercise sequences! I loved the 3 workouts you just filmed, thanks for sharing your energy and knowledge!
4 people like this.
Courtney you are so beautiful to watch, you make the movements flow and your technique is just wonderful. I love all of your classes and you inspire me to be a better Pilates Teacher every day. Thank you, thank you, thank you ❤️
Another great class! You are truly inspiring. Thank you
Wow. Creative. Challenging and amazing. Made me sweat. Lol. Loved it. Thank you Courtney Miller :))))
Very creative use of the reformer. It is never-ending. I loved the flex band variations. I also loved the leg strap sequence.
2 people like this.
I've loved all 3 of this series Courtenay...as a teacher I've been challenged to work hard and I've also got lots of fresh ideas for my students. The concept of HIIT interspersed with flow work on a reformer is brilliant and works so well! Please do some more!
1-10 of 33

You need to be a subscriber to post a comment.

Please Log In or Create an Account to start your free trial.

Footer Pilates Anytime Logo

Move With Us

Experience Pilates. Experience life.

Let's Begin