Kids Mat: Centering

All right. How do you feel after doing that? One on concentration. Pretty good. Good. All right, so we have this volleyball player. We have a soccer player and we have a ballerina. And do you know what has to work in every single sport that you play or dance? Hmm. Okay. What else?

Your brain really good. That was with concentration. Anything else? Well, you could, all of the things, your heart, that's good. All of the, all your sports and your dance would be like amazingly better if you always use something implies we call our powerhouse, which is this five inch band and muscles. Not just in your front, but in your back. Some people call it your core, but we actually use everything from here all the way down to the bottom of your bottom. So you use your glutes a lot or your bottom or your buttocks and you use all of your stomach. That's a fun word, Huh? So I am going to teach you today how even if you're doing an arm exercise, even if you're doing your planks, even if you're kicking the ball, even if you're spiking the ball or even if you're trying to do some type of Arabesque, you have to use your center. Cause if you know how to do it, then you'll be so much better. You guys want to try? Sure. Okay.

So go ahead and take your maps. Great. And you're just gonna lie down like you did the first time. Good. So we're just going to add one exercise today and then Kinda end with some fun stuff. Does that sound good? Okay. So we have a center and the center is in the middle of your hope, your body. So you have a s align from one shoulder to the other and then align from one hip to the other and it makes this square box.

And in the middle of that is what we were just talking about. Your powerhouse. Okay? So go ahead and bend your knees and put your feet flat. Good. And see if you could pretend that I'm standing on your stomach again. Did you really want me to stand on your stomach by the way? No. Okay.

Just pretend and then see if you can feel your center. Feel your powerhouse. Can you feel it? Okay, so we're going to try to warm it up again like we did earlier by bending your knees into your chest. But then we're just going to have them like a little bit over your hips. Does that sound good? Perfect McKinsey. Good. And then I want you to lift your head up and look at your center. Good.

And we're gonna big do big pumps again. Good. And so can you make your arms like any longer so that you're not getting up any higher, but you're trying to touch me. Oh, that's really good. And keep going. Pumping. Try to keep breathing. You don't pass out on me. Yup. Yup. Don't come up any higher, but just keep laying, getting your arms like they can just reach, reach, reach. It's great. Keep going. Nice. Keep your head up. Keep reaching, reaching, reaching.

Is your stomach in? Can You keep your head up a little bit more? Good. If your stomach's in, can you make your legs really long? Your net got tired. You can lower it down if you want. Can you make them long, like a longer, longer, longer and do just two more like that. Come on Stella. Woo. Mackenzie, look in your belly. Make them really long. They're reaching from your center and hug your knees in and rest everything. Oh, that one wasn't so easy, Huh? All right.

I want you to slide your legs on the map straight. Last time we started with a rollback, but you all were a little too good with that. So we're going to advance you. So we're going to keep your leg straight and I want you to pull your belly in and I want you with your legs together. How? Like I want you to picture a Mermaid's tail. Okay.

And that is your legs and even your feet turn out like a little fin, like a little mermaid tail fin. Perfect. And you've like have this beautiful fabrical all down your legs and they're just really long and I want you to pull your belly in and make your legs even longer, longer, longer, longer, longer, and now reach your arms up to the ceiling just to ceiling. Good. Can You keep your shoulders where they are on the mat, but make your arms like touch the ceiling like really long. Good. But drop your shoulders a little lower or higher. There you go. And just pull in. Good. That's great.

Now look at your belly. Lift your head and look at your belly and you're going to curl up. Member that party favor and reach for your feet. Beautiful and keep. And you're a party. Favor that you're going to blow out. Now. Roll out using your center. Woo. That's good.

And rolling up. Ooh, that's good. And Rolling back. I'm going to blow out that party. Favor. That's it. And coming up. Yes. And rolling out. Good. Let's do two more. Very nice. Use your belly. Hm.

Let's do one more member. I use that. Oh sorry. Silly word. Buttocks. Let's see if you can squeeze your buttocks on the way up to good and on the way down too. Yep. Squeeze. Ooh, good. Then the mermaid tail just became beautiful with that. All right. Go back onto your mat a little bit. Get and lie down. And so we're going to bend your knees and put your feet flat. Good.

And Hug your right knee into your chest. Awesome. And straighten that leg up. You did this last time. It's called, um, it's called single leg. We're going to stretch it. There Ya go. But now I'm gonna want you to pull your belly in. Keep your center, keep this hip right here. You can put your arms down now and I'll do this for each of you.

See if you can try to touch my hand. Well that's good. Can you feel that leg? Get really long and then relax and then do it two more times on your own. So you're going to keep your belly and I'll try to touch my hand. See if you can feel it's really good. McKenzie, the leg muscles got really long. Could you feel that and then relax? Like, it's now heavy and like, but the other one, go ahead and stretch. And I was like, really long leg.

Can you feel that good? Oh, and one more with you. Reach and give it a good center. That's it. Now keep that sharp pencil and we're going to work together. We're going to cross around. Good. Try not to. Don't make me pull your whole body. Keep your right hip down. And that's it.

So You keep your center. Whoo, that's good. And when you do that, you're much more agile on the court, reverse on the field. So you can kind of go one way, but you'll come back the other way. Two more. Last one. And bend the knee. Or if you think someone's gonna hit the ball this way, but then they go that way you can easily move. But if you don't have your center, you just Kinda keep going and then they pass you. And that's not fun.

Put the right foot down. Hug your left knee in. What's a ballerina like without a center? Little off, right? Straighten your left leg. All right. Put your hands behind it and stretch it. Good. And then see if you can put your arms down and you're going to keep that hip down. And now you're both you at the same time.

Reach good job and on your own. Do that. And how about you? We're just reaching no circles. Just reach and relax. And now we'll circle. So we'll cross around him. Good Cross to him. And you're doing so much better. I'm not pushing you around at all to more keep your belly and for your center.

One more and go the other way around. For what? Around two? Around three. Good job. Four and five. And Hug it in. Good. Put your foot down and we're going to do the next exercise really easy. So you have your box and you're going to pull your belly button in and all you have to do is hug your right knee.

You don't have to even lift your head up or anything. Just hug it in and then put it down and pull your belly in and do the left. Awesome. Good. And pull your belly in and bring in the right. Put Your, Huh? [inaudible] good. Is this easy? And put your foot down and bring in the left. Good.

And maybe one one day it would, but we're just doing beginner today. We're just taking basic. So can you guys see me from there? Oh, she asked if this leads to the bicycle. So one day, in fact, I'm going to demonstrate what we call the series of five and they're the exercises that make your powerhouse the strongest. So I talked to you about your box and using your center. So nothing moves at all. When you bring in one knee, it's pretty easy, right?

It's pretty easy to keep your shoulders square and your hips square. But so Joseph filets, he would say, oh, can you can do that? Well how about can you make it a little harder? Can you do it? And you guys don't need to join me. You can just watch. If I was just looking at your box, I wouldn't see anything's changing.

And when someone could do this as he as well as he could, he'd be like, hmm, okay, can you do that with two legs? And you did this last time. And it's the same thing. You just keep your center and it's like you could do whatever. And then he's like, hmm, what about one leg at a time? Could you do it? Then your box still doesn't move. Hmm. You could do that.

All right, well then what about both legs? Can you do both legs and not move your box and keep your center? And then he's like, all right, then it still is asking about the bicycle. All right, can you do the bicycle and not move? So that is what that's gonna lead up to. So we get to do the easy one.

We're just bringing the right knee in. It looks like I have my left. Sorry. Let's start Mackenzie with your right. There you go. And then put it down and bring the other leg in. Perfect. So you're thinking if someone was just looking at this, they wouldn't even know I'm doing anything. Let's hug in the right and stay there and let's add lifting your head and your left leg can either strain to the ceiling or just a little lower.

Lift your head up for me, Kate. Perfect. A little higher. Youtube. Mackenzie. That's it. And switch and switch. Ooh, that was good. And switch. So I moved your hips down the center. So and switch. Try to get your leg straight between my hands, Huh? And between my hands? Yes. And between my hands.

So you're right down the center. Good. One more. And one more. This one. And Hug both knees in. That's really good. Rest your head down. That's good. So then we did dead bug. Do you guys remember the dead bug? So lift your head up. Hm. And make your belly disappear and have your feet touch my hands in your hands.

Touched my hand here. Good. Good. Pull your belly in and hug them back in and do that again. Can You keep your head eyes on your belly? Yep. And pull in super easy. Are you doing anything over here? Keep going. Pull your belly in. Okay. Rest your head down.

So now we're going to try to challenge and get stronger. I don't want to kill you, but you want to get stronger. So as you start off whatever your arms and your legs are at the same level. Well, maybe get a little stronger so your legs and go a little lower and your arms can go a little back. And then when you get a little stronger, the legs can go even a little lower and your arms can go a little back. And then one day your toes will be at eye level and your fingertips will be at eye level and then you pull yourself together.

But none of it happens if you look like a boat that just overturned in the ocean and you're sinking. So you got to keep, got to keep your belly like really scooped in and cradled. Then. Does that make sense? Okay. Head up, pull in, just start straight up to the ceiling. Good. And pull back in and then straight up and pull your belly in. Good and bend. And then maybe a little lower with your legs and a little back more with your hands and pull in and a little bit [inaudible] head Mora.

That's it. Now go wherever you think for the last two. Where do you want to challenge yourself? Keep your belly in and take your legs wherever you want and your hands. Nice. And then one more. Make sure your bellies in in it. We hug it in and rest your head. Good job.

Nice. Sit Up. We're going to do an exercise that you did a spine stretch forward. So we have our belly right and your arms here. Open your legs almost as wide as the mat, whereas wise Mat. Good McKenzie, you're going to bend your knees. You can sit up tall. That's it. There you go. Arms Up, take a big breath and then exhale.

And then I want you to pretend someone has grabbed your waist and they're pulling you back up until you sit up tall. Yes. And go forward. The only thing is we're not going to lean back. So you're going to just stack your spine, one on top of the other instead of McKenzie. Instead of coming back, you want to stay right on top of your bottom. That's it. An exhale forward. Good. And starting. Rolling up your lower back. First. Your middle back. That's good. Ooh, that's nice. Two more. Exhale. Breathe for me Caitlyn.

Good. And then roll up [inaudible] and one more time. Head first and head down. Down, down. Good. And then rolling up like that. Banana Peel and then relax. Good. All right. So we're going to try to do something little tough.

And that's called sidekicks. Okay. So I'll show you first. So the easiest way to stay centered is on your back. And then the next hardest is on your side. And then the hardest which is going to be here will be to try to still keep your belly and even when you're on your stomach, cause gravity likes to pull your belly out. So let's try to um, lie on our right side.

We're all gonna face that way. Perfect. Good. Okay. And find the back of your mat, the back edge and just come as far back as you can that way. Yeah. And Steph, you got it to Stella all the way to the back edge of the mat. Okay. Thank you. And your elbow too. You got it. McKinsey. And then this is your front edge of your mat. Bring your feet there.

Good. All right. And your top hand is like a kickstand on a bicycle. It's flat and it's best if it goes in front of your belly cause it reminds it to not push out. Okay? So we're going to try to swing our right leg while not rolling all around, but the best thing to do is we're going to lift it up a little bit and I want you to pull your belly in and I want you to imagine McKinsey, all of you, that your leg is so long that it can touch the wall all the way across there. So it's like re Ching and relax and do that again.

Pull your belly in and reach. That's really good. Good job, Kaitlyn and rest and pull your belly in and now you're reaching for that, right? Good rest. Now we're going to try to swing it around like that. So we're gonna pull the belly in and I want you to imagine there's a tetherball right here and you're just going to kick that ball and then you're going to take the leg as far back behind you without rolling onto your belly. How far can you go without rolling? Ooh, that's good. And now use your belly, reach for the walls and kick the tetherball and then go back. No rolling and forward and back.

And it's like an old fashioned clock. It's going to go tick talk. How are you keeping your center tick and talk and tick and talk. Good and tick and talk and three and back. Don't forget to reach out for the walls. One More Dick and talk.

Nice job legs together. Okay, now you get to roll onto your belly and you are going to rule. Keep Rolling until you're on your other side. And now you're on the back edge of that mat and then stay a little further back. So then your feet can be forward. Cause as you get really strong, your feet start coming back and then you have to do it like that and it's a lot harder. So I'm giving you a little bit extra room right now and your elbow is flat.

I don't know if I, yes, now you can bend your elbow but the arm is flat is what I meant to say. You tight right here or can you straighten this out? Oh, all right. Pulling your belly in, lift your leg up a little bit and you're going to try to reach all the way to this wall and you're going to try to reach first, reach, reach, reach and relax. And then pull your belly in and reach, reach, reach. Really good leg muscles and rest. One more lift and Reed, you guys are getting so good that I'm going to add, just try to turn your knee up a little bit to the ceiling. It's so good. Now hold it there and we're not going to move our center, right?

And we're going to just kick forward. Now we're going to take it back and forward and back is so good and forward and back. You guys are, you guys are staying steady in your center and back and see if you can keep reaching that leg out of your center. And three. So this is an example, two more. Even though you're murking work in your leg, you're still working your senator last one, forward and back and legs together. Awesome. Lie on your back. Good.

And when you're done with your legwork, we always kind of shake them out. So you get the shake out your quads and shake everything out and now you're going to do whatever you want to sit up. Good. And you're going to put your hand. Oh, we're going to go fishing again. You guys did it so good last time. So straight legs. Nice. And we're going to catch our fish and we're going to pull it towards us with our scooped in belly.

And then our arms are going to go through our legs under our ankles. Where's that scooped out? Belly for me? Yes. Balance with your feet up. And can you clap your flippers again? Oh No. I'll have to watch a Stella over here. We're going to do six and then you're going to stand up. Sound good?

Okay, one go back and forward. Good Clap, clap, clap and roll back and come up. Oh, you're doing better. I'm proud. Let's use your center roll back and coming up. Looking good. Three more in with the air. Try to roll. No flat tires over here. Like a real round, like the physio balls you were just using two more and then stand up for me. Don't get stuck.

Okay, one more. And let's see if everyone can stand up using your stomach. Almost thinking about jumping back. Come up. Everyone's good. I'm gonna make you do a little bit of a pushup because you guys are so strong. So walk all the way back. Good. Stay here.

So one of the things that you, because you're doing pies that you want to get stronger at is you want to not hang in your stomach when you're doing the, when you're doing a push up. So we're going to reach arms up and we're going to [inaudible] roll off an imaginary wall and you can bend your knees if you need to, but put your hands on the floor and walk out into a plank or push up position. Alright, so I'm good. I have my bottom up in the air on purpose because now we're going to squeeze it down cause your buttocks have to work right. Love it. And your belly has to pull up. Open your chest a little more for me.

Ooh, that's good. Stay there. I'm going to move and all I want you to do is stay there cause I'm want you to lift up your center more. Two, three, hold. But still open this. This is really good for you Katelyn. Oh that's good. Stay there. You squeezing your bottom. Ooh, that's good. Good. Nice.

Go ahead and bend your knees down onto the mat and round your back and just sit on your heels. Enjoy the stretch. Was that too hard or too easy? We can work on it more later. Does that sound good? Okay. All right. Now we're gonna stand up and we're going to, let's get rid of our mats for a second. Okay, so let's just pull them off to the side. Perfect. Take them off and then get kind of right back in your position. But I'm going to stand right here and you're going to face this way so you can watch me. Does that work? Okay.

So use your center. You're going to reach your legs, you're going to reach, reach your arms, reach, reach, reach member. How we had like a horse on each limb and we were stretching. Good. And you're gonna reach so much that we're going to reach over to our right. You can separate your legs wider, sorry. And reach over and grab your writing goal. Nice.

And then let's reach, grab both ankles and try to put your head through the hood and then to your left. Good. And then come up. Good. Now one thing I noticed was as you guys went to a side, we lost our center and the hips went one way. So now when we go the other way, we're going to try to not do that. We're gonna keep our bottom where it is and just reach it over to the left. Ooh, better. It's not going to be perfect, but just try and then go through and now go to the right without sticking your hips all the way over to the left. Good. And then come up. That was a lot better. We're doing that because now we're going to try to use our buttocks and our stomach to lift up onto your ball of your foot. Can we do it?

Woo. And we're going to slowly turn and face the ocean and see if we can see some dolphins. Lower your heels if your feet are up and both toes will point that way. Good job. Bend your front leg, that's your right leg and reach for your back ankle. It's a nice stretch in there yet. Go and then reach almost behind the leg that you're grabbing and you're going to try to reach up for the ceiling with a lot of energy cause you're going to need it to pull your belly in and try to go onto your toes. As we go back around, I'm going to stop facing forward. See if you can get your balance, use your stomach and then now we're going to keep going and go the other way.

Awesome. Trying to stay on your toes. If you can then lower the heels. Maybe it's better for the Ballerina and then your front leg and reach for your back. Good. Is that a big stretch, Caitlin? Is that good? Okay. And then try to reach behind that leg and we're going to come up and try to use your belly and your bottom to lift up as you turn all the way back around. Woo. Good. Very good. Good and relax.

Now it's always really good to end with jumping. So I want you three to line up right under that bar. You guys can easily touch that, right? Yeah, you too. You too. So you're going to just kind of get loose like this. Yeah. Bend your knees, get down to the ground and I want you to think about your belly and I want you whenever you want to jump up and touch that bar. Ready? One. Let's do it on three, two and three. Alright, two more. Come on. You can do this time.

So to use your belly and use your belly. Ooh, that look good. One more time. Ready one. Just swing and get loose. Get relaxed last time and jump. Ah, that was great. Good job girls. She left me hanging. She left me. Good job. Nice job. Don't leave me hanging again. Alright, good work ladies. So I'll see you next time for control as excited.