Three in One Flow

My name is Rael Isaak Woods and I'm delighted to be here at Pele's anytime with three wonderful, wonderful people and we're going to go through a session on the Cadillac, the one the chair and the reformer all at the same time or following a similar format but of course doing slightly different repertoire in joy. So if we can begin with some roll downs. Thank you Sarah Meredith and Christie. Inhale and exhale as you roll down. This is an opportunity for me to check alignment and an opportunity for them to bring themselves body, mind and spirit into the session and inhale and exhale as you roll down and inhale and exhale as you roll now and last one. Inhale and exhale as you roll down and inhale and exhale. As you roll up, Kristi will work on the reformer.

She's going to start on the same setting as the footwork. She is on three full springs on the second gear and she's going to put her heels on the ball and start with a pelvic. Cole Meredith is going to lie on the floor. She is on one spring, one black spring, heavy spring. On the third level, just one spring and she will start with a feet in more or less a prehensile position for the pelvic curl. You could move back just slightly Meredith. Yep. Just back that way.

And Sarah is starting with a roll up. This is the warmup and they will also go in their own time as they move into this warm up on the different apparatus and slowly rolling back. We always try do a warm up rather than going straight into the more intense workout. You could move your feet down just a little bit that way. That's perfect. So literally in a prehensile position.

Okay. Lifting a little higher and exhale. I went to five repetitions of these exercises from each person keeping the arms nice and long. Beautiful articulation. Was that five good. One more from Meredith and we'll wait for Sarah to do one more.

Christie, in the meantime, you can reach your arms around holding onto the handles, moving the legs into a table, top position. Meredith, taking the arms out to the side. Thank you, Sarah and Sarah. You can hold onto the pose. I love that position. They there for support, giving us this open chest position, lifting into the tabletop, moving to the right and inhale as you go over and exhale, coming back to center. Beautiful work in there. Now the arms do not just hang or sit. The arms are very active in creating stability for the Scapula, stability for the upper body and the movement. That rotational movement occurring in the spine.

The legs move together with the pelvis, the pelvis in the legs or one unit. Pure rotation. And inhale as you come over. If I can have five to each side, please. I hope you remember to count. Think it's four. Okay, one more to each side. But we started to the right, so we're going to do one more now to each side and inhale and exhale and inhale and Xcel. If you could place one leg down and then the other leg down. Sarah, you are going to go into your mini roll-ups and Meredith, you're going to push off way down. Chest lift, chest lift with rotation with the pedal halfway down all the time. And Christie, you're going to do the double leg stretch and single leg stretch and everyone does 10 repetitions. Meredith, you can do five of straight and then five to each side on the oblique.

There are the same five straight, five to each side on the oblique. Inhale, and yes, Christie, don't bring the legs in quite so deep, just beyond 90 degrees and pulling in. It's beautiful. Meredith. She's got these hamstrings engaged all the time. Keeping that pelvis as close to neutral as possible.

You can see that beautiful height she's getting there. If you need a little assistance to get more height, you can put your hands behind the legs and pull yourself up. Okay. Notice how Sarah changed from an overhand grip to an underhand grip keeping this elbow absolutely straight, Sarah. That's the tough exercise. This many roll up over bleak and reaching.

Yes, Christie. Beautiful. I love that. I love that. Yes, yes, yes. Christy watched that. You hide that. Let that, that medial line, that midline with that bent leg and hug that midline. Yes. Hugging that midline, hugging that midlife. So important. She's keeping that beautiful height. You're all good.

You're all smiling. Yes, absolutely. And coming to center. Very nice. Thank you. If you could please set up for the footwork. Meredith, I just want to roll up from you while everyone is setting up and Christie's already set up for that footwork. Christie, you feeling good? I love it. You looking good, that's for sure. She her hamstrings already nice and engaged and Meredith, if you could put your hands on the pedal as you pull back.

I know the pedal goes down, but it's the sensation of pulling back and straight and then roll back and as we can see, Sarah set herself up with two red springs and that you can be ready with from the get go, putting your heels on the ball. She's in a beautiful position. If you're very tight, of course you could go further up and either have a headrest or put a stool with a cushion on it to support your head and lost when Meredith and coming up. And thank you. Everyone can begin their footwork on the heels and setting Meredith up on three, three the third level to black springs and everyone is on their heels. Beginning the footwork arms.

I'd like just actually I want them back here. I love this position. It opens the chest. It's a very classic Palabra. His position could even have you on just a bit further. I'd like 10 from everyone and oh good. Okay. And keep that flow going.

Notice the different ranges of motion on the Cadillac. We're working that end range, that end range here. We're on working to full extension of the knee, but we all going as far as we can. And of course the reformer. We working the biggest range of motion. The next position we move from the heels to the toes and again, 10 repetitions.

They keep the heels absolutely still heels stay still. And the pivot is around that ankle joint. Okay. Here there should be a sense of pulling all the time that you feel so good to pull. Pull. Good, beautiful.

And once you repeat the 10 please move to the Small v position. Eh, Meredith, I think we're going to put our hands behind our head. This is one of my favorite positions to know. Fast position, very clean. And you look so good. Challenges the stability of the trunk of the pelvis. She's sitting quite forward on the chair.

Okay, you could give me slightly more plants. Affliction, Sarah, thank you. And pushing up and again I'm relying on you to count to 10 no, just how they is. Christie is reaching right to the end of that extension of the knee and extension of the hip. We moved to the wide v position. Notice they're all doing the same footwork. If you could take your arms out to the side, Meredith, thank you.

On the Cadillac of course it's a quite a unique position and you can go Sara and push. Now there's a temptation to go a little too deep. Sarah went slightly too deep there, so we're going to stop right there and push up so that sacred does not start lifting off the mat and curling and you can actually put a bit of pressure into my hand. Absolutely love that. Absolutely love that. Three amazing melodies, professionals, [inaudible] and they can all to 10 which is amazing and toes on the ball still in that wide v position and push up. Okay. I have a great deal of difficulty counting to 10 so thank you ladies for helping me today.

[inaudible] arms just slightly lower and slightly wider. Yes. [inaudible] when I cue the ribs I typically put my hand on the back as well because people tend to over flex. All I want really is a relaxation of the back muscles. Not completely relaxation but not too much tension, too much tension thrusts the ribs forward.

We're going into our beloved carbs so what Meredith will do is actually get off. She put one foot on the pedal and lets go. She is doing a single cough. They are going not just lowering the foot but actually pulling into Dorsey flection. All of them meaning she pushes down and then she pulls into Dorsey flection.

Sarah is pulling into Dorsey flection, keeping those quads, keeping those quads working. Yes, and pushing up. Remember the quads and the hamstrings clo contract to provide that stability to the knee as you focus on working the carbs. [inaudible] Sarah and Christie, if you could do 10 and move into the [inaudible], you do 20 on each foot if you smile nicely. 15 but I'd like to try and work up to 20 it gives those cars a beautiful sense of work. We need to reach that point where you feel the muscle intensely.

This is my favorite for working on. Correct. The alignment of the foot. Good. Meredith, let's keep moving. So your friends do not overtake you, Christie. I want even higher when you go up there. I want to feel that sense of length and reach.

That's what the process is all about. Feeling that, ah, up and uh, ah and uh, up and down. Ah, the prancing horse up. Yes. Yes. Okay. I'm going to lower Christie a little in weight. I don't want her to have to get up. I'm going to go down Hoffa spring. She now is on two full, one light spring on the second gear.

She's putting the foot there and for today we will just keep that other leg in a tabletop position. Nice and simple. When you're finished, Meredith is going to move down to two, two, two heavy springs on a lower level. And of course Sarah moved to one spring here. You don't have to. Personally, I like working a little heavier. I leave it on two springs, but of course anything to accommodate my friend Sarah and notice this beautiful hip flexor stretch and 10 on each leg. Please ladies and pushy. Yes, I love this and push and cool. And this is so hard. This is so hard.

Of course Meredith's doing a great job, but this is tough. You have to work that hip flexor. So to race this on a ball on a box or simply been the knee helps a great deal. I like to work that hip flexor. We need the strength in those hip flexes. Of course. After 10 please change.

Yes, and away you go. Yes, there is nothing like a wake up call fee keeping that leg in the air. It is a wake up call for the body. Okay, Christie, we will move this leg under the bar now to give a nice, simple, elongated position. If you could move on, Sarah, thank you. You're moving into the toes and Meredith, I'm going to take your arms out. Yeah, just because of my grades.

Affection for you. I want you to work so deep and you are, you are. Dig Right deep into that hip flexor arms. A little lower [inaudible]. Excellent. I want you to think of using your lower back a little bit more. That correction was perfect. What you did there was perfect.

If you want to bend the knee slightly you can. That's perfect. A lot of hamstring work here. Christie's so you don't push back into the knee but feel that hamstring and gastrocnemius supporting the back of the knee [inaudible] so you still straighten all the way but there is that moment. Excellent work ladies. Excellent work. We are finishing off our footwork, the footwork I regard as part of the warmup. It's a transition into the main part of the session.

Meredith is going to set up for the full pike and Meredith if you could turn around she's going to do the full pike. We are going to be very nice to Meredith. We're going to leave it on that same setting challenging but kind. Christie, I am changing Christie to one and a hot springs. She is going to do her abdominal work.

We are starting with the coordination please and my friend Sarah. On the same spring we doing the roll up, bottom loaded and incredible exercise that integrates both flection, extension of the spine and some great upper body work. As an added bonus and excellent and up, I want you to notice the incredible flow, the precision that these ladies embody. Meredith, pull away from our arms. My hands are hot. You want to be away from me? Yes, that's exactly it. Notice how her shoulders are above the hands.

Head down and rolling all the way down and inhale as you lift up and exhale, beautiful. She reaches that perpendicular position. Just the elbows go out to the side, no lower than that position. Otherwise the scapular will start pulling together and she is very far forward. Her shoulder flexibility allows it. Some people may need to move further back, otherwise it will be too much tension on the shoulder.

Thank you lady. Sarah. You can just complete that and Christie, you can actually put your feet in the straps. Same setting, one and a half springs. I want one more exercise from you before. One more abdominal exercise. If you could come around the side and you're going to do the cat stretch and then we're going to go into some hip work. So I'm gonna leave her on that same spring one. Then I don't have to bother with changing and you don't have to bother changing the spring but it gives you quite a lot of support. Kristi, if you could start with your basics. One basic frog, I'm sorry, I'm getting my animals mixed up and we are going to turn around and do hip work.

So we're doing for Sarah single leg line side hip work, one of my favorite over here. We're on a long spring along yellow, which is quite light. You could use a heavier single spring. Make sure it is a leg spring and along spring and we start with the changes and up and down up. Notice how Meredith reaches that back extension.

She does it so beautifully. He had between the arms that long back, hips above the knees, and then she draws up deep and that slightly heavier weights allows you to keep your body weight forward over the pedal. And Christie moved from her frog into the down circles and Christie or pelvic stability is stunning. Absolutely gorgeous. If there's such confidence, there's hours, there's hundreds and thousands of hours or certainly tens of thousands of hours of practice in these circles. You can feel it. You can see it. You can see that flow.

Good Meredith, and that was your last one. She comes up. I want you to roll up all the way. Take the arms above the head to feel that elongation of the body. Look at that upright alignment pelvis slightly forward. Thank you. Bringing the arms around and Meredith is now going to go into her hip work.

They're all doing hip work in different ways. Sarah has now gone from the changes into the scissors. If you can do the hip opener please. So I'm going to change her to one spring on number four, challenge her little. We'll do hip opener and we'll do hamstring comb. Christina goes, she did down circles, reverse the circles to up circles and she now does the infamous openings during the openings, I want you to think of a little more hamstring works.

Those knees are just slightly bent and you going into her big circles. She moves around and around and around keeping slight tension in that Spring, Sarah moves around and Meredith here is doing this wonderful exercise called the hip opener and once you've done that direction, five in that direction, Sarah, please reverse the direction. Notice how her pelvis is absolutely still absolutely still and she only lifts the pedal halfway up. Christie, I haven't forgotten you. I will be back to you. You. I know your adductors are crying and she lift the legs just halfway up and halfway down. We don't want the movement in the knee. The movement, ms come from your external rotators and I'm back to my friend Christie who will do leg changes and how many have you done? Sarah is my second. Second.

Okay. We can keep the flow going and then hop onto other side. Beautiful. Or doing hip work or doing variations of hip work here. You want to feel both thighs opening and then both thighs closing and both open. Yes and both close and both open and both close and I love it.

That and change over Sarah, keep it moving and thank you Meredith. You can now slowly lift up and move into the Hamstring Co. This one we put the heels on the bar and we press down. Yup. And thank you Christie. That was beautiful.

If you could bend your knees and into the frog position, we're actually going to do the short spine and and down and down and down and down and [inaudible] rolling over. Can See Christie gets that beautiful reach there and bending the knees and then rolling down through the spine. She gets that great stretch flexing the foot. Christie, I don't want you to bring the legs down from there, the sacrum goes down, bring the legs across so they go all the way even further to there. There's no change in the angle of the knee at that point. Rather, there is simply an extension of the hip joint. No knee flection. And if you could do three more Christie and [inaudible].

I see you moved your position just a little bit. I'd like to to stay on the hill right on that hill. Keep your feet a little flicks the little Dorsey flicks. Yes. And then up and down and then up and and flip around. Meredith, you're going to do the jackknife turning around.

I leave her on that same setting for the Jack Knife. There's no problem. And Sarah You keep moving there. You are looking good and come straight across. Christy, one more for me. There's one other thing I want to just focus on as you rolling up, go, go, go. At this point Christie, I want your body to stay so lifted and a little bit of tension on the spring as you bend the knees so those straps they nice and tense.

There's no collapse here in that the back extensors with the abdominals are working from here. You get that roll down and flex and over. Thank you. You can get out of the straps, putting one leg on the bar, the other leg on the ball and set up for push through sitting forward please and lifting, lifting, lifting and slowly down that beautiful articulation of that spine. Meredith, for you and for me one more because that looks so beautiful. I want to enjoy it one more time. Christy, up. We get knee stretch, knees off please. Knees up, up, up we go. And slowly rolling down.

Excellent. Thank you so much. We leaving on the same setting for Christie one hot springs. She simply gets that Spring Nice and charged and then lift up and then goes in. Look how low she stays. Even Lower Christie, even lower. Christine. Meredith, if you could do the backwards, step down please and draw in deep.

Draw in deep Meredith's doing a similar exercise and she'll be on three, three and one more. Christie and in hold it Christie and slowly down. Christine to your down stretch. We going on one spring for the down stretch, one spring. I want married as to get that same sense as the knee stretch.

Knees off a little round, not round, but drawing the ribs a little deeper and lean a little further forward, Meredith and come down slightly lower. Good. Good. If you could do 10 on each leg, please change. Keep it a little lower. Draw the ribs in a little deeper and forward. Yes. Sarah, I want you to work on the flection of the spine here. There's a nice inhale as you flatten the back and then she do draws.

Nice and deep back in and slowly forward and up and one more and draw deep and reach and flatten the back and then draw deep and in. Thank you Christie. Christie, I want you to stay here and go straight into your kneeling lunge. We usually do the stretches before what we call full body integration, but I knew she's going to need a stretch after that. Knees off. So if you could go into your kneeling lunge and thank you Meredith, you are going into the stretch on here and we're going to do it on one spring on three facing that way. Okay. And do you remember it? No. So I will demonstrate that. Sarah, if you could please from here, go into the side. Reach.

You stand here, Meredith, you push down. You wiggle your foot forward slightly so the knee is above the ankle and present yourself to the world. Get that nice stretch in the hip flexor going down and you stretch. We come back. We'll do it. A Oh yes. A second time.

Yeah, and down. Feeling that back. The back extensors are working slowly. Bring the foot back slightly. Lift the pedal, change legs. Put that other leg down and away you go. And doing it on that side. Thank you very much.

And keeping the flection here, Sarah Mu flection. Thank you. You want to push those feet into the bar, particularly the side that you pushing with reaching out. Yes. Putting that stretching hip joint back. Nice. Sarah, that looks a lot better. Sara pushing that left foot into the ball right now. Sarah, wait, wait. I want to spoil you. I want to spoil you.

They they and back you go Christy. Was that both sides? Lovely. Christy, if you could please now leave one spring on same spring setting. I minimize the changes of the springs we are doing on sitting. Yes. Yes. And have you done at least three to each side? Yes. Thank you Meredith. A little more extension of the back please. Christie, I'd like you to move all the way back to the end of the carriage.

So Christie is sitting right at the end of the carriage and Sarah is going to do what we call the standing series, but she is going to do a kneeling today on the Cadillac. The, I want those arms very straight. Very straight. Yes. Lovely. Use that quadricep here. Meredith. Beautiful. Do you feel the stretch in the hip flexes? Yes.

Drawing up this anterior sling of the body like a sling and you lifting it up. Good, Sarah. Lovely, lovely. Sarah, I want to feel upright. Christy, once you've done the chest expansion, moving into biceps, keeping the upper arm absolutely still as if it's on a shelf. Yes, looking beautiful turning around Sarah and we do hug a tree. Sarah, we will not do the circles which we often do standing, but there is a slight leaning into the spring. Sarah. That's about as much Leni as I want. If that's too much spring, you could simply move your body back. Christie, from here we move into the rhomboid exercise. Interestingly enough, in the beginning, we actually want to keep the scapular still. She is going to do five with the scapular still and five with slight add action retraction of the Scapula, so you will be able to see the difference.

Meredith is going to go into the shrugs and then the triceps setting. We put a box there simply to give a little more range of motion and away you go. Thank you. Nice Christie. Now Christie, when you do that, I want less focus on the arms. It's just now the ons are finished. Their work, it's just the scapular and the scapular open and then move.

That was better. The arms don't do anything at that point. They stabilize and Sarah, once you've done 10 hug a tree, I'd like you to go into the salute. Meredith is coming up and down with those steps. Meredith, I like it a lot. Yes. Good. Christie. Christie, what I'd like you to do as a gift for you today. I like the single leg skating. Please.

I am going to leave it on that same one. Spring one full spring on the second year. Single escaping on both sides. Lovely and lovely. Thank you Sarah. Sarah, you have not done a stretch yet. We did not forget you. Believe me. So we're going to set you up here. If you could allow me, we put this on one spring. We've put her foot there and you can use these bars to help you as you first bend the knee. Feel that hip flexor. Stretch, straighten and move down into the hamstring.

Feeling that hamstring coming back and the second time you'll actually put your hands here, straightening out and feeling that more intense stretch of the hamstring coming up very slowly and carefully release it and onto the other side. First one, holding onto the boss. They can. One holding onto that ball. Thank you. And Meredith, you can put the box back and we now going to do the frog back for this frog back. I've given her quite a lot of left meanings. She's on four, four for her light body. That's perfect. They'll give you a lot of lift. You'll be able to focus on those triceps, whichever already received a lot of work.

Christy into the side split. We've worked the hip abductors now we work the hip adductors. I just support her to make sure that she is perfectly in position and away you go. Five of these. We notice how slowly she does. She pauses and then she comes in and she pauses and then she goes out and yes Meredith up that that leg should be straight right now. Sarah don't go too low.

That is perfect right there. And then coming up, bringing it in, bending this knee. And is that the both sides? One side. Okay, so putting it in again, remember the hip first hip flexor stretches with it here and then on the ball of the foot and then the first hamstring stretch you stretch it out and simply just lightly. And then the second one you go into it and pushing up. Yes, and down and up and down and up.

Okay. That is absolutely beautiful. Meredith. Absolutely beautiful. Have you come? So Meredith is going to do one more difficult exercise. If you could hop off. I take one spring off.

She is on two right now. I'm sorry, one heavy spring on number four, one heavy spring on number four. She puts the legs up, crawl slightly forward. And Meredith, I want you to do the same as up stretch too. So we go up reaching up and down and Sarah I will be with you right now, up and down. Kristy, if you could prepare for balance control friends down and down. I went five up and down, up and down and in five pushups.

Thank you very much Sarah. What we are going to do is I, we are going to do the push through sitting side push through sitting side. So we'll take first the s the scapula glide all the way through and then lifting and reaching over. Now Sarah, those ribs need to be slightly more controlled and you can reach all the way over there and then slowly lifting and then down and up. Yes. Both of you are ready reaching here and I love that.

Look at that stability of that trunk and [inaudible] boom and that's done. Now she is going to to balance that out. She's going to do the balance control back prep, the prep and down and down. Good. Meredith, you are now going to go into the side Pike. I'm putting two heavy springs on on the third level, third level, so it's a reasonably heavy setting. Side pipe please.

Kristy lifts herself up and pushes back and back and back. [inaudible] and lift and back and lift and back and lift and one more. That's a beautiful, beautiful execution into the mermaid. Please. We stay on the same setting. She's still on one spring and Meredith, I want your shoulders over your hands so I've been very kind to you in terms of the setting but I'll be a little crueler in terms of where we go with it and lifting up and down.

Send your pelvis more over the chair and pull this shoulder back. This front shoulder is always going to want to come forward, so preempt by keeping it back and up. Good. Christie and and slowly down. I'm going to show Meredith give her a visual cue for the other side and Sarah d looking good notes that Christie's back stays flat here. Good Meredith. So notice how I get my body in position.

Notice how I'm already leaning against that chair. That's fine. And then as you come up you want to pull this arm back more so it's Oh and I'm pulling on that left shoulder of mine to go back and up. Almost lifting off that chair and back over to you, my friend into prone one knowing that we will go into prone to, I think one spring for you is going to be good. If you want a little more support, two springs is better. I know for Sarah, one spring will be perfect.

I'm going to spoil Christy right now as I give her this beautiful stretch. She just feels that stretch the body, opening up the body, opening up, keeping those scapulas though she gets this gorgeous stretch of all those back and slowly lifting up. That's it. And up. Head down, Meredith, head down, head down. Meredith, this is so much better now. Pull away from me. Meredith, Christy, you can put a box on the reformer please. And you're going to go into breaststroke. Lifting, lifting, lifting, lifting, lifting, lifting, lifting, lifting. Yes. Yes. Rails. Magic, foot helped just a little bit there. Okay.

Meredith Swan on the floor will be a perfect one for you. Notice our Christie gets onto that box, very controlled. That sets the tone for the exercise and lifting up. So Sarah, you slightly adducted the scapular will come together, but you did it almost too much. So from here, I want the head already to go down. You're hanging off the ons at this point, giving this beautiful stretch to the shoulder extensors and then the elbows go out to the side as they push through and then coming up and now push up and lifting, lifting, lifting. Meredith, if you could do three of those and then three swan on top of the chair to give yourself a little more height and let that head go. Let it go this area and slowly down and then push. Yes, Christie, Christie.

I'd like two more of those and if you could just slow it down a little. I want to feel that reach that you flying into the air, bring it around and uh, and now pushing up, pushing up, pushing up and down. Thank you. Meredith, if you could give yourself just two more or three more, I'm sorry. On the top of the chair. Yes. Lovely. If you could go into a rest position, [inaudible] and Christie, you can just go into a risk position right on that box. [inaudible] giving that back a little rest for them. And Christie, you could actually bring you come forward slightly on the box so you can rest your arms on that foot on that football.

And I went to spoil them a little for their hard work. Thank you, Meredith. One more. Meredith, we could just wait for Meredith to do one more notice how articulate through the spine she pushes back into that pedal to get that height slowly going down and that ease yourself back. Meredith, put your feet on the floor, slowly bring the pedal up and round the back and push here. Here. Meredith gets the equivalent, bending your knees, have that nice rest position as she holds onto the chair, and I give her a slight little tug here and she feels my appreciation for her. Absolutely beautiful work. Thank you. Ladies. If we could finish with three roll downs the way we began, and inhale and exhale as you roll down, bending your knees in these ones because your back has worked so hard.

We don't want to put any more tension on that back. Inhale and exhale as you roll up and inhale and exhale, bending the knees a little more. Sara, feel that sacred dropping to the ground as the head drops to the ground and slowly up. And one last one. Inhale and exhale as we roll down and feeling the elongation of your spine, ladies being that neck nice and calm. Give yourselves this moment to set your alignment for the rest of the day, rest of the week, rest of the year, and for a lifetime. First and foremost, I want to bow to my friends, Christy, Meredith, and Sarah. Thank you to everyone.