Summer is coming, and it’s the best season to feel strong! Vacations, graduations, and holidays keep our schedules filled. Here are 5 full-body Pilates exercises you can easily bring as a carry on to any summer event!
Bridging is done lying down on a mat. Place your arms by your side with your knees bent and feet hip-distance apart. Begin to lift your hips up off the ground, and then return the same way you went up. This exercise turns on those glutes, gives your hip flexors a much-needed stretch, and rolls out your spine all at once improving your posture with each rep.
Corkscrew is also done lying down on your back on a mat with your hands by your side. Begin to lift your legs one at a time to a ninety-degree angle called tabletop. Then extend your legs out to a forty-five-degree angle away from your face. To begin, shift your feet without shifting your hips to one side, and roll your legs over that same shoulder. With control, return to start position and repeat on the other side. This exercise rolls out the spine giving it some much-needed space. You also get the fun challenge of keep balance while working out your abs.
The side bend with threading the needle is a must do for any Pilates practitioner. It begins seated with one hand on the ground off to the side while the legs are swept off to the other side. In one controlled motion, lift your hips off the ground into a side plank with one arm reaching to the sky. Use your top arm to begin reaching under your ribs, and then return to start. This exercise twists and bends your entire body in ways it craves to move. It works your upper body, abs, and lower body all at the same time while creating a healthy posture.
Swimming finalizes the necessary ranges of motion that your body should be moving every day. It begins lying prone on your abs on a mat with your arms and legs lifted slightly off the ground reaching away from each other. Begin to lift one arm and opposite leg a little higher, and then switch. Continue this motion slowly, and then begin to speed it up. This challenges your entire core to keep balance while strengthening your back.
The finale is saved for the teaser. It’s one of the most popular Pilates exercises where you begin lying down on your back, arms straight by your side, and legs straight on the ground. All in one controlled motion, begin to lift your head, arms, and legs simultaneously into a v-sit position. Then slowly return to start. This exercise encapsulates strength, balance, and flexibility throughout the entire body, and conditions you for your day.
Stamina, energy, and healthy joints are the qualities your body craves. Take on this summer with these 5 essential moves to kick your body into shape leaving you with good posture and more pep in your step!
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