Standing Stretches

I got it. (laughing) Thank you baby (laughing). Oh my god, everybody thank you so much for joining us today. I know you've had a lot of working out which is why I decided to end with some standing stretches. We had some amazing breathing with Brook in the beginning that really, really centered us.

We had so much fun with Bret and the little duck and his, his workout for children and then, you know, Blossom with her tea towel. There are so many exercises she did that were reminiscent of my time with, with Kathy. You know Dana's kicking Return To Life Variation Mat, Larry's Reformer Mat, Chris kicking our butt with the cardio exercises and then Moses bringing it to the bathroom. So, I get to end it now with some stretches so let's all stand up. Remember if you come to an exercise that does not suit you leave it out.

If you have an injury or an issue that precludes you from executing it, stay with the one before, do another exercise and then pop back in when you are ready. Let's begin standing heels together toes apart. Drop the tail bone down, soft in the rib cage, inhale, bring your arms all the way up. Reach making the waistline long open your arms out to the side and press as if you're pressing two huge magic circles along the floor. Pull the stomach in and up lengthen.

Anchor your heels, reach your tailbone down, reach your fingertips, expand through the lungs. Reach to the side to the room, try to touch the sides of the room, press down and grow tall. As the arms descend the spine ascends. Inhale, wrist all the way up again. Fill those lungs, fill the lungs from the side of the body.

(inhaling) Exhale through the nose wringing the air out, out, out, out, and out. Let's turn this direction have the front foot in line with the hip. Toes, knees, heel, cul-in-ear. This back heel is inline with the other hip weight on the outer edge of the foot as if you were in your first Front Splits on the Reformer. Stretch your front leg so that you can square the box, you want that box squared, don't want this to happen.

As you do this lift the outer edge of the thigh of the back leg so that you're not putting pressure on the knee and in opposition as if in Snake and Twist, bring your pelvis of that back leg forward. Anchor the tailbone down toward the heel, lift the stomach up, lift the kneecap and bend your front leg. Lift your arms just like you did before to make the waistline long, scoop the stomach, bring your hands forward, have your head down by your knee. Stretch your front leg, flex the foot, bring the toes down deep in the stretch, go further so that you're not past a 90 degree angle. Stretch, flex, foot down, bend, feel the outer edge of the foot, pull the bent leg hip back, push the hip forward with straight leg.

Pull your stomach in, flex, bend, and come down. Now reach forward with the arms. Have the arms catch the ears. Bring your body upright, deepen that position, lift, stretch that front leg bring the straight leg hip, the back leg hip forward weight on the outer edge of the back foot at a 45. Lift the stomach, drop the tailbone, and bend your knee.

Stretch that front leg, flex the foot, bring the foot down and deepen, deepen, go a little deeper each repetition. Stretch the leg, flex the foot, bring the toes down, deeper, deeper, deeper, deeper. Stretch, flex, bring the toe down, deeper, deeper, deeper, deeper. Lift your hands up, scoop your stomach. Turn the heel up and bring your knee down.

Stretch your front leg, flex, bring the foot down. Now bring your pelvis forward, way forward. Stretch that hip and lift your chest bringing it through as if your upper body is doing a Swan. Now scoop like you're doing a stomach massage. Bring your head to your knee, flex your back foot, pull your stomach in, flex your front foot to deepen it.

Bring the foot down. Now the pelvis comes forward the head stays down by the knee. You open the front of the hip, press on your hands to bring your chest forward. Elongate the spine first and then reach your nose along the wall on the far side of the room. Scoop the stomach, reach back, flex that foot, sit a little deeper now on the heel dragging that leg as if you were doing the Kneeling Stretches on the Cadillac.

Bring that foot a little forward, bend the knee, go a little deeper. Reach forward, bring the chest forward more. Reach your hands, catch your ears with your arms, bring your chest up. Bend your elbows in your lifting position. Stretch your arms up, one.

Bend your elbows in lifting. Stretch your arms up, two. Bend your elbows in lifting. Stretch your arms up, three. Scoop your stomach, come forward, stretch that leg reach the heel down.

Bring yourself into the center. Soften your elbows towards the floor. Bring your chest forward don't let your hips go past your heel, soften down, elbows down, head goes down. Curl into yourself, look past your tailbone. Pull your stomach in.

Elongate your spine. Pull the stomach in, open the chest, curl it in. Walk your hands to the other direction. Turn the other foot out have your knees right over your ankle. Other foot, back leg is on the 45, lift the kneecap, stretch your leg up bring your hands to your hips squaring off your box.

Bring the hip forward, the other hip back, the knee out, weight on the outer edge of your foot. Pull the stomach in, bend your knee, lift your arm, scoop the stomach and bring your hands down by your toes. Pull the stomach back, flex the bottom foot, lift those toes. Place the foot down and go deeper into your lunge. Feel the outer edge of the other foot.

Scoop the stomach back, flex the foot, pull it in, bend your knee and stretch, push through that foot. Anchor the outer foot of the back foot, anchor that outer edge so that you get a good stretch. Pull the stomach in. Fight to have your box square. Bring the foot down, pull in.

Now reach the hands forward to elongate that waist come all the way up. Take your hands behind stretch your leg, square your box off, open your elbows, lift your stomach and bend that front knee with that long waist. Stretch the leg, flex the foot, pull the stomach in and go deeper, deeper, and deeper. Feel the outer edge of the back foot. Stretch that leg, flex it.

Pull the stomach in and deeper, deeper, deeper. Lift your arms up, scoop your stomach, turn the back heel in bring that knee down. Stretch back, flex the front foot. Keep the head by the knee, the tailbone comes under and moves you forward and you melt to elongate the spine, open the hip, open the chest, don't go into the neck. Pull the stomach in, keep your box square.

Drag that front leg hip back to keep the box square. Pull the stomach in, bend the knee, reach your pelvis forward and stretch, stretch, stretch, open the chest. One more time. Scoop the stomach back, flex, sit back on that heel to stretch the hip more, slide the foot forward, bring your pelvis forward, reach with the hands. Once again the arms catch the ears.

Bend your elbows open, keep the neck long. Press up, keep the hip open, pull the bent front leg hip back. Bend your elbows keep them inline with your shoulders. Pull the stomach in, stretch up. Bend your elbows keep it inline with your shoulders, stretch all the way up.

Scoop your stomach, stretch your back leg, turn to face the other direction both legs straight, head down. Flex the front foot and down. Flex the front foot and down. Flex the front foot and down, reach your hands forward and up as if you're doing your Splits, big Splits on the Reformer. Flex the foot, keep the hips square and down.

Lengthen the body, flex the foot keep the hip square and down, one more time. Flex, keep the hip square. Reach your arms forward, open your chest. Flex the front foot, bring it down. Flex the front foot, bring it down.

Flex the front foot, bring it down. Turn face center. Open up your chest for a Saw, reach to the one side Saw off the pinky toe. Come up in the twist open your chest up turn the other way. Saw off the pinky toe, open your chest.

And again, inhale. Exhale, stretch down reach and open, turn, exhale. One more time each side don't let those hips move. Stretch past the pinky toe, open your chest, deepen the twist bringing your chin towards that shoulder. Reach down, twist, come up, reach, open and turn to face the other direction.

Pull your stomach in and up, drop that heel down. Reach your arms all the way up, head comes down like you're in the Front Splits on the Reformer. Flex the front foot, bring it down, one. Flex it, bring it down, two. Flex it, bring it down, three.

Reach yourself out and up. Flex, keep the hips square. One, flex. Two, flex. Three, reach up and forward, open the chest.

Lift your chest to the ceiling, flex, and one. Flex, and two. Flex, and three. Turn yourself to the side. Lift your arms up stretch all the way laterally over to one side, don't collapse on the other side, stretch it, exhale.

Reach out and come up. Lift your fingertips toward the ceiling, make the waist long stretch to the other side. Reach that outer arm, reach it out and come up. Grab onto the opposite wrist, lift it up, pull that arm, stretch it. Reach all the way over, pull the stomach in and up.

Grab the other side, lift it up, stretch it, pull all the way over, stretch, stretch, stretch, come up. Make a fist, push into your hand, stretch over so that you don't collapse the under side. Reach out and up. Make a fist, push into your hand, stretch over, all the way over, stretch it, open your chest and lengthen all the way out and up. Lift the arms up, reach over the side this time rotate the upper body, exhale.

Inhale, come up, reach out, deepen and up. Lift up all the way over, stretch, reach all the way out, pull your stomach in just rotate that upper body, exhale. Pull the stomach in, stretch out and lift up. Reach all the way up, stretch. Lengthen out, stretch out and come up.

Lift up stretch all the way over, stretch, twist, exhale and come all the way up. Now, let's get your towel. You've done this seated in a bathroom, you've done this seated on a mat, we're going to take it to the next level and we're going to do it standing. These were the towel exercises, or the good morning exercises that Ramana's taught us that the business men used to have to do. So you're gonna take your towel pretty wide, legs a little more than hips-width apart.

Inhale, reach your arms up, open your chest as much as you can. If you can go all the way down go all the way down. Reach down, lift up, pull the stomach in and lengthen. Inhale, reach up and forward, shoulder blades together and back. Reach down lift all the way up, pull the stomach in and down.

One more time, lift up, open the chest, lift up and lengthen. Reach your arms up, over to the side, two, three, up two, three, over two, three, out two. Reach two, three, up two, three, over two, three, out two. Reach two, three, up two, three, over two, three, center. Twist and deepen, and deepen, come home.

Twist and deepen, and deepen, come center. Again and twist, and deepen, and deepen, come center and twist and deepen, and deepen, and center. Twist on the diagonal, come back and center. Twist on the diagonal, come back and center. Twist, reach diagonal back, up, and center.

Twist, reach diagonal, up and center. Take your towel, this takes balance. You can use a wall if you have to try not to we've done so much work today you should be ready. Hold your leg in, stretch it out, bend it in pull it up, back lifted. This is why when you do your Tree you have to have that back upright.

Everything we do in Pilates is to get us to be able to get up, stand up, and move. Take the leg out, dry underneath your leg, bring it forward, catch it, and stretch it, stretch it and stretch it. Bend the knee in, other side. Take the foot, hook it in, square that box, open your chest, press it out and in. Lift up, out, and in.

Lift up, out, stay there, dry that leg, don't let that leg move you have to hold it. Hook it, lift it, stretch it, stretch it, stretch it, and stretch it. Lift up to Around The World, stretch over to the right, scoop the stomach over to the left and lift, reach up, over to the left, scoop the stomach, over to the right and reach. To the right around scoop lift and up. To the left around scoop lift and up.

To the right around scoop lift and up. To the left around scoop lift and up. Let's go down to the mat. And first thing that I want you to do is you're going to sit with one leg bent forward at a 90 degree angle and one leg bent back at a 90 degree angle. What, I'll do it on the floor it doesn't make a difference.

So while you're here I do not want this leg here and I do not want it closed. If you wanna do it in a split you can do it in a split, otherwise just keep it at this angle, open the knee to protect it. So the first thing you're gonna do is bring your hip down and release it, and bring the hip down, two, and release it. Bring the hip down, three, and release it. Lift your arms up and stretch all the way over.

Lift up and open your chest, go back. Lift up stretch all the over. Lift up reach all the way back. Come all the way up. Stretch one leg up, stretch the other one up.

Stretch one leg up, Stretch the other one up. Plant your hand, plant your foot, lift your pelvis. Scoop your stomach twist the other way. This builds your Snakes & Twist. Reach all the way up, lift, stomach in and twist.

Last one, reach, lift your pelvis up, stomach in and twist. Reach one leg up, back leg up, front leg up, back leg up, front leg up, now keep that back leg up, bring it to the side, bring it front, stretch it up, up, up. Clara's stretches are delicious. Onto the other side. Remember to keep this knee open bring the hip down and up, bring the hip down and up, bring the hip down and up.

Stretch all the way forward. Lift up, try to keep your box square and open your chest back. Come all the way up, reach over, reach forward, deepen that stretch. Imagine you're on that Ladder Barrel. Lift up, keep your heel down to protect your knee behind you and lift up.

Lengthen, stretch over. Lift up, open your chest, stretch back. From here plant your hand reach the pelvis up scoop the stomach, sit it, twist in opposition. Hand down, reach it up, stretch, stretch, lengthen and twist. Last one, reach up, twist, twist, lengthen and stretch.

Come forward square your box, lift the front leg up, bend it. Remember every time you stretch something you don't just leave it stretched you have to be able to lift it at the furthest point of its extension so that your stretch is equal to your strength. From here take this leg, bend it, take your other leg behind you. Plant your hands, walk, slide your other foot back, stretch into a split. Hold it, stretch it forward, bring your chest up, open your chest square, your box.

Stretch it forward. Bring your chest up, open, stretch it forward. Bring your chest up, open, turn your legs to the side. Reach up, I'm gonna turn front to face you and you're going to reach all the way over, flex your foot like you're on the Ladder Barrel. Pull that leg, stretch it up.

Other side, but open the shoulder, grab your foot, lengthen and up. Reach over this time take the hand under to get a little deeper in your stretch. And up, slide the hand under like it reaches under you in Snack & Twist and up and just like the ending of the Star, you did with our knees bent, you're going to plant your back hand and reach into your Star, exhale, exhale, exhale. Reach around again, three times into your star, exhale, exhale, exhale. One more time, reach into your Star, exhale, exhale, exhale, come down.

Now, take this opposite leg bring it forward, pull the stomach in, bring the back foot back as if the Carriage on the Reformer was moving, square your box. Stretch forward, pull your stomach in and lift your chest up. Stretch forward, reach your toes and nose out and come up and really open that pelvis. Stretch forward, elongate as if you're picking that apple on the tree all the way up, rotate to the side once more. I will face this direction.

Your hand's going to go behind, stretch, from here twist to open. Bring your nose down twist the other way, turn your head. Reach to the side, both hips on the mat, open, reach out and turn, ear. One more time, reach out, open for there, lift all the way up go to the other side. Stretch over, open, reach out, turn, keep turning the head.

Stretch through both legs. Stretch out and open, reach both hips to the ground. Keep both hips to the ground as you scoop and turn. One more time, reach open, open, open, stretch out, turn your head. Plant your back hands, Star on the other side.

Reach, bring the pelvis up. Scoop the stomach and bring it down. Reach, bring the pelvis up, scoop the stomach and bring it down. Pelvis up, scoop, scoop, scoop, and bring it down. Draw your legs together and you're going to plant your feet and your hands, lie all the way down for your High Bridge.

You've had enough warm up today you should be ready. If you can't do a High Bridge just press your upper back or your hips off the mat. Pull your stomach in, lengthen, press up, up, up, like Chris said, change, work hard, not easy, all the way down. If it was easy everyone would do it. We want everyone to do it but it's not gonna be easy.

And press up, lift up, lift up, it wouldn't be a fight, and roll down. One more time single leg guy, let's do it, we can all do it. Press up, right leg goes up, left leg goes up, walk your feet in, open your chest, tailbone goes under, roll yourself up and arms out to the side, feet turned out. Lift all the way up, arms lift, like a Snake & Twist turn to face the wall. Lift the waist here, twist to face the back wall, lower your heel, reach into a side bend, melt your side bend into a twist.

reach for the ankle, bring your nose to the toe, to your knee bringing everything we've just done together. Reach from there in your twist into your side bend. Reach with your arms raise up, arms go up, your waist goes up and letting your feet down. Lift all the way up, twist, continue to twist. Lower the front heel, stretch in a side bend, twist all the way down.

Scoop, open to the twist, lengthen to the side bend, elongate up, lengthen the waist, come to the center and all the way down. Lift the arms up, exhale swing through, inhale lift up. Exhale swing through, inhale lift up. Exhale swing through, draw your legs together hands pressed down by your side. Pull your stomach in and up.

Press your heels together as you lift. Hands by your side like a Double Leg Pull, lower down, hands pressed, stomach scoops. Keep your heels together, lift don't shift and lower your heels down. Pull the stomach in and up to help on tops, lift don't shift and come down as if you were on your Ped-O-Pull. Reach your arms, open your leg, reach towards that foot, open to the side just like on the floor reach behind you.

Open to the side. We have to find balance in our work and we have to find balance in our life. Reach, open, forward, open. Reach and down, other side. Leg goes up, reach, pelvis stays quiet, open, twist and stretch to the back, try to get that back foot and side.

Get the foot in the front, open, lift behind you as if you're on that Ped-O-Pull, or the Ladder Barrel, or your Star, on the Reformer, and in, and open and reach, press, press, and guys thank you very much. I'm going to turn it right over to our next speaker.