Short Spine Massage

We're here to take a look at short spine massage. The setup, you'll have your long leg straps or loops. We're on two springs. Again, I'm on two red springs on my balance body reformer. The foot bar is down as is the headrest. We want this headrest down.

This is an exercise that involves some inversion skill, which includes some balance when you're slightly upside down. The head and neck position is essential to be in line with the spine. Okay. So head, rest down. The way to get situated is we roll on to our back and place our back first It's a good idea to have a little space between your shoulders, the top here, and the shoulder block so that you don't bunch up into this, shoulder rest. Place your straps in your hands lift your feet.

You want to try to place your feet in the loops at the same time. Frog your legs. Now we'll be showing three options for the rollover element to the short spine. All of this includes the connection of the feet into the strap, which keeps us engaged in the back of the legs with abdominals. It helps for regulating the the speed and the control of the carriage, meaning you are in full control with your strength and your connection. So if we begin from our frog position and take the legs in front of us, just do a few little frogs.

So you feel the feet in those straps. Version one, let's bend our knees maybe half of your frog. Heels are together. You're in that external rotation. The rollover begins with the tailbone.

I'm still pressing my feet into the straps, but I'm rolling up onto my upper back with control. My feet are pressing in as as if they're pressing it over to the wall opposite me. And the hips are above the shoulders, but, not the weight is very much on the upper back. Abdominals are in. Now we can deepen the knee bend or the frog.

Short spine has a massage element, so go slowly You're in this rolling like a ball shape, vertebra by vertebra, it's a sense of articulation, it's a segmental articulation. Once again, you can go to full straight, come into your frog. Now with breathing, we'll inhale Exhale, engaging the abdominals, that's that spinal rolling, pelvis above shoulders, now deepen the flexion of the knees inhale. Keep this ball position. Remember, abdominals are contracted to facilitate the spinal articulation.

One more time like that, they stretch the legs, refrog, take a breath. It's okay to press the back of the arms and shoulders into the mat as well. That will help you regulate where to stop on your upper back. Deep in the frog, take a breath. Exhale again, engage the abdominals deeply inward, place vertebra by vertebra by vertebrae you place your tailbone.

Version two, take your legs either on a 45 degree angle here or take to 90, maintain the 90 and start the articulation. Same challenge. You get to regulate your speed. My feet are still pressing into the straps. I stop when I'm right on my upper back. Inhale as you've deepened into your frog, exhale as you come down the spine.

Vertibra by vertebra. The whole entire time, the collarbone is open, the shoulders are back into the mat. Right? This is a a beautiful exercise for spinal control, abdominal control, You bring that carriage all the way to the stopper. Frog your knees. Take your breath.

Engage. So this will help your rolling like a ball element on the mat. Any of your rolling skills. One more time here. Legg's at 90. Let's take a breath. Exhale and roll up your spine.

Carriage comes to the stopper with control. Frog the legs take a breath. And roll down with control. Alright. The last version will be a different leg angle. And this and challenges the flexibility of the hamstrings as well as the deep contraction of the abdominal. So we're endeavoring to get the carriage to the stopper to start the roll up.

And I'm not quite there yet, but as I roll my spine up, I'm still bringing the carriage to the stopper. Little bit higher up on my upper back for deeper stretch, breathing in to that deep frog, and we roll down segmentally. I will add This particular version might be where you could start to experiencing experience a little bit of neck pressure. If you feel anything in your neck, possibly stop doing the exercise and come back to the 90 degree version. It just might mean that perhaps your proportions are such that the leg angle is too extreme on your neck.

You might need to learn how to stop at your rib cage a little bit and practice that element. All of these versions are the exercise, and we like to remind everybody that we have options to do so. So we take that breath. And but a lot of the work is where or knowing where to stop right on the top of the shoulder girdle, the deep center of the shoulder girdle, breathing in, and exhale. It has you a massage your spine to come down. And you'll finish with your pelvis in the level, reach in, take the straps off at the same time place the straps on the shoulder blocks at the same time, come up to standing, and that is our short spine massage.