Lower Body Blast

Hi, this is Amy and I am going to a nice, kind of short, brisk, little lower body workout, kind of a lower body blast, if you will. And I recently did a 10-minute podcast on our YouTube channel, on the Pilates Anytime YouTube Channel. So, you can check that out. It's a little mini-version, and we've gotten requests to make that as a full workout. So, that's what I've done, here.

And I'm doing repetitions of 10 of everything, so, it's a little higher rep, and just have a little bit of fun. You might want a little bit of water, nearby, but it's really focused on the lower half of the body, so, you might, in conjunction, put this with an ab workout as well. So, I'm gonna start at the front end of the mat, and I'm just gonna take a nice, check through my posture, arms just relaxed, and just take a nice, easy roll-down. I'm gonna soften my knees, and just feel some stretch through your back, some stretch through your spine, and would keep my knees bent as I re-roll back up to standing. At the end, I'll stretch my knees a little bit.

Two more times. So, this just gets you into your body, into your focus (deep breaths). Give a little stretch. Start to put your focus, also, on your stomach muscles, which you'll need to support in side;ine positions (deep breaths). One more time.

And exhale (forceful breath out). This time, staying down, (deep breaths) just lift those heels up, get a little stretch under the base of the toes, want to re-stretch my legs, (deep breaths) lift, and then, one more time, coming down to a nice, crouched position. Stretch through your low back, I'm thinking of angling my sacrum down under my heels. Gonna take myself back, and roll all the way down onto my back. All right, so taking some pelvic curl, and we'll do three different sets of the pelvic curl, with some heel lifts to really focus on targeting on through the glutes.

So, the first set I want to do is with the feet parallel, legs parallel, and your sitz bones with the part. Nice breath in, and as we exhale, curling through, now this is going to be a little bit different in one regard, I'm not going to go all the way up into the diagonal, the higher part, here. I'm gonna stay a little lower, about mid-back, so I can focus on pelvic tilt, and get more glute than hamstring. And so, here I am, holding this in, heels coming up and down for 10 reps. So, as we're doing the heel lifts, in this pelvic curls series, try to keep your pelvis in the same position, as the heels come up and down.

So, one thing I'm thinking, as my heels go down, actually, press a little bit more up through the glutes. So, I'm gonna take it five more. (deep breaths) And four. (deep breath) And three. (deep breath) And two, and last one, and lower and lengthen, reaching your spine towards your knees, rolling back down to level pelvis.

Second set, ankles in and knees in, so, fully adapted, unless that bothers your knees. If so, stay with the first position. Same thing (deep breaths), contract the abdominals, pull, and hold your position. So, take a moment to engage the inner thighs, in together, pelvis is in a tilt, heel lifts for 10, So, we have an up, and a down, and two, and three, (breaths) four, and five, and six, seven, trying to hold that body still. And nine, and 10, and lower, and articulate down, all of the way, pressing those legs together.

Last set, here, feet a little wider, legs a little wider, I'm going the outer width of my pelvis, now, same thing, rolling through, about halfway up, heels up and down for a 10, and lift. Now, when you're doing this position, I should've said, with all the others, this too, is make sure that, as you're lifting your heels, you're not rolling out to the pinky toe side of your foot, you've got good alignment across all of your toes, your metatarsals, and again, squeeze the glutes to hold the hips up. Five, and four, three, and two, a little extra squeeze, last one, and coming all the way down. Now, take your body back up, and I'm gonna stay in this wider position, back up into that pelvic tilt, halfway up, actually, let's go all the way, this one, to our regular diagonal line. So, I'm gonna take an alternating, one hip down, to the mat.

I'll start with my left one. And as this side comes down, I'm gonna touch that hip down, I'm still thinking of trying to keep the opposite one up, and then, press both up by using that side. Alternate down. So, it's gonna be this side. Both sides, push the hips up.

So, we have, inhale (breaths), exhale (breaths), inhale, really feeling your glutes, this is primarily for what this one's about, up, and down, and left. There's a really nice lumbar rotation, also, however, so you might feel some twists in your lower back. It feels good for me. (breaths) And four, and three, really push, and two, (breaths) and last one, hold, and roll all of the way down to level pelvis. So, what I'm gonna do is cross my ankles, hold the feet in, just give a nice stretch, opening up the back of the hips up, back of the pelvis, nice deep breath (deep breaths).

One more time, changing legs (breaths). Okay. And then, the lower body, for me, does include some abdominals. So, I'm gonna do 10, little, rocking (breaths), three (breaths), four (breaths), five (breaths), six (breaths), seven, feel free to take that into a roll-over, if you'd like. Nine, and 10.

There we have it. So, I'm gonna come up and take a sideline position. And stretch your bottom arm out or make a pillow. I'm gonna do a pillow, today. Heels in line with your sitz bones, back here, and you're in a good side-stacked position, and we're taking clams for 10.

And two. (breaths) So, again, now, we're working lateral work. It's not just the glutes, you're gonna feel some work in the abdominals, but again, focusing on our lower body (breaths) in this workout. (breaths) Five. And four (breaths). I'm trying to press the water back (laughs), three, from the ocean, there, and two, last one, I'm gonna stay up, lift your thigh up, and we're gonna come into what I call a figure eight, or a turning in and out, so lower the thigh, internally rotating, do a little swoop, and lift it up.

And down. A little swoop, up. And three. And four. This is great for mobilizing your hip, your hip joint.

And again, stay focused on the tone around your glutes. Down, and lift. Down, and lift. And just keep a relaxed foot. It doesn't have to be perfectly pointed or flexed, this is really about your upper hip.

Whoops, excuse me, and down. I can't talk and do this at the same time. And we're gonna hold, right here, down, and turn in. Stretch your leg behind you. Now, I've got the advantage of this platform mat, where I can hook my hand over, but I don't want to do that and roll my shoulder, so I'm gonna cheat and take my hand here.

And lift and lower the leg. And two. So, again, we're doing 10 reps. Three. I'm thinking of reaching my thigh bone out to my heel, giving long, musculature connection.

(deep breaths) So, halfway there. Five. And four. And three, keeping your leg behind your hips, slightly. Two.

Last one, lift. Now, just bring it down hip level, flex your foot. We're gonna come to hip flexion. Now, depending on your hamstring length, and flexibility, you might be able to come all the way into 90 degrees, but if you're here, and your hip is up here, in your waist, that's not where I want you to go. So, you may have to take your leg at a different angle, which is completely fine.

But I'm gonna work myself out here, and get my leg up. Now, you want to sit this hip that way, again, away from the waist. Turn your leg inward, slightly, and we're going down and up, for 10. So, I'm gonna think of my heel, as if I had a little Dixie cup of water on that heel, and I'm lowering, lifting, trying to keep it balanced. Five, and four.

By now, you should be feeling this lateral side very, very much, and deep. And three (breaths), two, and one. Let's keep it up for 10 pulses. One, two, they're little, three, four, and five, six, seven, eight, nine, and hold, five circles in one direction, one, two, three, four, five. Other direction for five, and four, and three, keep breathing, two, and one, and bring your leg in, knee to knee.

Okay, then a little karate chop move. So, I'm gonna take my thigh into my chest, flex the foot, in and out for 10. And I'm moving my leg from front to back. And so, when I'm pushing the leg out, I'm thinking of squeezing through those glutes, reaching through the heel, and five, coming back, five to the front. Five, and four, and three, and two, and one.

I'm gonna do that series again for five, coming front to back. Two, three, really push the walls away, four, and five, return, push, hold your center strong, and three, and four, and five, and bring knee to knee. Good. Okay, traditional inner thigh, from the mat program. So, I'm gonna take my leg up, up onto the ball of the foot, press the sacrum under and forward, open up your pelvis, here, in the front.

This arm is freed for you. You can put it on the mat. I like to keep it pressed against my thigh to help me stay in that rotation. Bottom leg up, let's do a pointed foot, and two, can't forget the inner thighs. We focus so much on our glutes all the time, but these are just as important.

And six (breaths). Seven, shoulders are open, eight, and nine, last one for 10. Now, I like to change the foot for pulses, 10, and get that Dixie cup, again, on your heel, or ankle, six, seven, eight, nine, last one, 10. A point foot, again, for five circles, for one direction. Two, three, four, can you go a little higher?

Five, five the other way. High circle. Two, really maximize that inner thigh work, and five. Last piece, here, flex the legs, excuse me, the heels, hold, squeeze your inner thighs, right, and just hold an isometric. (deep breaths) Point your toes.

And let's bend our knees. Roll quickly over to your back and then, just bring those feet, again, into a crossed position, nice deep breath in and out, (deep breaths) other side. Now, I'm not gonna do a full rolling like a ball, but I am gonna do a little rocking, just to stretch out the low back. (deep breaths) And around (deep breaths). A little flow (deep breaths).

I'm gonna take one more and then, I'll transition to do the other side. So, stretching out, pillow the arm, knees are stacked, heels are in line with your sitz bones, your waist is engaged, and clams for 10. (breaths) And nine. Sometimes, I get a question, should the feet be pointed or flexed down there? You choose; see what feels right for you.

What makes you connect deepest in your external rotators. (breaths) And six, I like flexed feet, today, seven, and eight, nice stacked hips, nine, last one we stay, 10. Lift this side, now, this is a relaxed foot, I did say that before. So, knee in, and knee up, and mobilize the femur at the socket. So, you're doing a little, you're seeing me do a little, kind of a circular motion, down (breaths), and up (breaths), gonna free up that movement while you tone and strengthen.

And five, and six, (breaths) and seven, and eight, we're gonna be ready, next, for hip extension, last one, here, leg behind. Now, feel the stretch from the thigh bone to the heel, fingertips light, and up, (breaths), and down, and up, and now, still working the abdominal supporting the spine, and up. Visualize long lengthened legs and muscles, (deep breaths) up, and stretch, and four, three, last two, how long can you make that leg? Hold flex the foot, and now, we swing it forward, into your hip flexion, sole of the foot toward you. And again, where's the hip?

Not up, but seated. Both sitz bones should be level, back here. Slight, internal rotation of your femur, and we have down and up for 10; up, and two (breaths), and three, so this is a little different work, four, and five, and six, and the center's controlled, seven (breaths), eight, nine, do you remember what came next? The little pulses for 10. And one, and two, little bitty, three, four, and five, then, seven, that Dixie cup on the heel, nine, and 10, five circles, one, two, three, four, and five, I'm thinking about reaching my whole leg toward you, my stomach away from you, three, four, and five, and knees in.

So, we have our little last series, here, it's the karate chop. So, thigh up toward your chest, push through the heel, one, and two, and three, good, really squeeze those glutes, four, and five, five coming back from the front, back to front, and two, push the walls away, three, (breaths) four, and five. One more series, from the front to the back. (breaths) Push, use those thighs, use the back of the leg, and four, and five, guys, here we go, last one, and five. And four, if you had a kick-boxing bag, you'd be really pushing it away, four, and five, and in.

Okay. And then, our inner thigh series. So, legs extended. Take the top leg, bend, up on the ball of your foot. Here we go, and lift, and lift, again, coming from the stomach, two, but again, through that high inner leg, and five, and six, make it long, seven, and eight, and nice and strong, nine, last one, lift, 10, hold a flex, for pulses, one, Dixie cup, three, stack of books would work, five, kitty cat, seven, something on your foot, you're lifting, and nine, hold 10, back to a point for circles of one.

Can you go higher? Two, and three, and four, and five, other way, guys. And one, just five, four, three, and two, and one, hold, do that isometrics, squeeze the inner thighs. Feel long through your whole body. Breath (deep breaths).

Roll over onto your back, again. That same transitional stretch. Cross your ankles. (deep breaths) And cross your ankles. Now, I am going to do a little rocking, but more in our seal.

From classical mat. So, I'm gonna roll, change, and lift. Why I chose the seal, is I want to use that as a transition to stand up, for our last series (breaths). Four more, remember to press those knees out against the elbows. Last one coming here.

You're gonna let go, roll up, and stand, okay. So, I'm gonna stand in the middle of my mat. Keeping us working. Now, this is gonna be more quadriceps. You're in a hip hinge, so from the side view, you're flexing right at your hip.

Really sit your hips back, so you get a maximum workout in your glute muscles, your quads, you're gonna feel it in your inner thigh, too. Okay, here I go. We're gonna transfer into a little traveling squat, so I'm gonna go out to the side, and center, and side, and center. So, remaining opening your chest, trying to track, parallel. Now, push that leg off of the floor or your mat.

So, (breaths) push a little more. I'm going up and down, which is getting more pump in my legs, and it feels good. I'm gonna change my hands to my thighs. (deep breathing) And over, I feel like I'm on a pogo stick (laughs) jumping up and down. Yeah, really pump your legs, push, Sitz bones are back.

(deep breaths) Three more patterns, I think that would have been a count of 10, hopefully, so two more patterns, and over (breaths), and over, last one, I've traveled off the side of my mat. Okay, come into the center. Now, step out, and then bring that leg up to the other leg. Down to your squat, bring it up, down, and up, we will do 10. (deep breaths) Gonna hear my heart rate got up a little bit, breathing heavy, so this adds a little different element of balance.

Push, and up. And last one, you're gonna stay here, and hold, maybe (laughing), hold you balance. (deep exhale) So much easier to do on a wooden floor, not a sticky mat. That's okay, here we go. Over, and left.

Squat, really push that leg. (breaths) And up (breaths), back. So, I'm reaching my hips back, getting really low. You don't have to go that low. Four (breaths), three, get ready for the balance, that's more for me.

Here comes, last one, and hold. (exhales) Ah, that's it. Okay, I lied; there's one more piece (laughs) and I am going to come down to the floor. So, in parallel, let's work our calves. Just rise up, 10 times.

Two, and three, push your feet down against the floor, rise up, six, you can think of your sitz bones being a little closed. Eight, nine and ten. I'm gonna do the same thing. Turn out, first position. Keep your heels together.

(breaths) Four, five. So, it's the whole leg, now, inner thigh, quadriceps, the glutes, the hamstrings, the calves and the feet, lift, and up, one more. I'm gonna take us out to second position, same thing, and rise, (laughs) my balance is off, two, three, as if the inner thighs are still, pulling together and up, together and up, and six, seven, and eight, and nine, last one, and 10. Okay, let's cool down and open up your arms. I want you to turn away from me, spiral both feet; so, I'm pivoting all the way around.

So, I'm looking at the ocean. It's so divine, but I want to keep going and look at my back foot. This is a really nice stretch for the glutes on that one leg. It's a balanced piece, get some reach to the spine, and then, unspiral, go to the other side. So, I'm reaching back, I'm trying to touch that heel.

And again, so breath, take a little journey into spiral, and up. This also challenges your balance, you'll probably feel. Let's do one or two more, each side. (deep breaths) Open, and twist. I am going one more, promise.

(breaths) Open, and reach, and come to center, and rest. Thank you, very much. Do that two or three times a week. I think you'll get a little cardio, even if it's five seconds, like that for me. And you'll start to feel a little stronger, balanced, and toned in your lower half.

Thank you very much.