Mobilizing Reformer

Hello. I'm Sally, and welcome to my mobilizing reformer class. So this is all about getting the bones moving, releasing tissue you, getting circulation, hydration into the tissues. So just getting everything moving. It does have a little bit more focused on kind of the rib upper body area to start, but we're gonna go through the whole body, getting everything mobilizing. And right at the very end, we'll just do a little resetting, but hopefully you'll get to feel really fluid, really flowing.

I have Andrew demonstrating for me today. We are set up with the long box on the carriage and a half spring. So one blue spring, if you're on the balanced body reformers like we are, and if we can just have a foam roll in nearby. We're going to use that about a third of the way into the session. So do your setup and then meet us at the back end of the reformer or the front end of the reformer at the foot bar. So Andrew's showing you where.

So we'll start standing with the legs, I kinda like them grazing the foot bar, yeah, which you don't have to lean into it or pull away from it. I want it just as guide for where your legs stay and then hand straight to the front edge of the box. So just make sure you've got kind of a little bit of grip on the box there. And whatever your body does there, round it as much as you can, but whatever it does is kind of your starting position if you're against that footbar. Now we're just going to push the box away on an inhale. You're gonna go out, out, out, no extension yet. Just let the head follow the spine, which will be kind of in line with the front of the box. Once you're there, push the shoulders further away.

Go go go go. So I wanna see that tissue release. Then from the pelvis wrap the pelvis under, curl the back like you're curling up from a roll down. Hold. 2 more. So take the box all the way away pressing the carriage out. Once you're there, I wanna see the shoulders go further.

Press that box So you release that shoulder joint, pelvis wraps to bring you back up. One more. Like this and then we add So press away, reach away through the shoulders. Give me that tissue stretch, wrap the pelvis to open the spine as you come back. Same thing again, and we'll add. So go all the way out.

Press the shoulders away now. Keep the box away as you come up in extension, so lift their head shoulders and then drop it back down, wrap the pelvis. We have 2 more of those. So the idea is that as you're out there, as you're extending, you're going to keep pressing away. It may not look like that, but that's the intention you have and you get your extension and then wrap. And we should be getting nice traction through the low back ribs off the lumbar spine. Last one in this variation, Let it go, and very nice lift curl, then we're going again, and we're going to stay out there.

So curl through, press the box away. Now take the right hand and place it over the carriage frame, holding on. And I want you to press through the top arm, pull through the bottom arm, and breathe into the ribs on the open side. And one more breath. So we're doing 2 full breaths here in how spread those ribs, exhale hand comes back to the box, and wrap the pelvis to bring you back up. Other side.

Reach it away first, press the box out, hold the carriage, pull and press as you breathe into the rubes on the open side. Yes. I hope you could see that. I could see that on Andrew. And 2 breaths there. Hand comes back to the box curling it back up, and we have one more of our first variation just down the center press the shoulders away box out.

Pelvis initiates that movement back up. Good standing rolling up. Now starting with the arms out to a tee, I want the right palm up, left palm down, and we're just going to rotate them. So Andrew's gonna keep going. And if you keep going, I'll talk you through what I want. I want you to think about the upper arm bones or the humerus rot hating spiraling so that the ribs and the clavicle start to move from that spiraling movement.

Keep going. So Spartan can go as far or as little as your arms go, but let the shoulders upper ribs go with you. Now look to the palm that's up So you're gonna take the head into mobilization and get more movement through those bones and ribs. Keep going. Last four, three, two, one. And now pause, now we're going to take the whole thing lift the shoulders and then reach and spiral. Lift, reach and spiral.

Inhale, exhale, and then get a little faster and reach. Lift reach and keep going. Good. Read. Shan. Excellent. You can even through Andrew, how it starts to move all the upper body, the upper ribs.

We've got 4 more, 4, 3, to one, just come back to last little set of just the arms rotating fast, last four, three, two, one, drop the arms. Now I want the hips to and ribs to stay where they are, and we're just gonna swing arms thinking of the shoulder girdle just rotating. I just want that. So this is where I was saying there's a little rib focus first. I wanna get those ribs loose start to get some space in them, let them move so that we can offload the rest of the body as well. And the last four 3, 2, 1, and excellent. Good. We are now going to lie on the box, but first thing is to bring the foot bar up and the foot and the gear out.

So I'm gonna take this out 2 extra notches, and then bring the foot bar up to its regular legged footwork position and put a red spring on. So we have a red and a blue spring, footbar up, gear out, that's gonna give us some room from the box, and then we can lie on. Head, base of the skull just at the back edge of this long box, please, and then in steps of the feet onto the foot bar. Good. So this is going to be a little different for body sizes as you can tell. So gear out gives most people a good range of movement, but if you are, a lot smaller, you can bring your gear back in.

So arms now are reaching alongside the body. They're going to be integrated into the movement. So just feel like they're active and holding. We're going into a pelvic curl. So x, how curl the pelvis up, hold. Now arms are going to reach back and return all on the inhale, exhale coming back down.

So aiming to keep the box or the carriage at the stopper, but it's no big deal if it moves a little. I want the arm work, the articulation through the spine, and I don't wanna lose hamstrings just yet. I don't want them to cramp up. So ex hell up, Now the arms moving here let the ribs clavicles go with and back and down. We've got 3 more. So think about letting that happen.

Let those shoulders, ribs, clavicles rollback, return, shoulders, and eyes, and open. Good. Last two. Exhale coming through, think knees over toes as much as you can. But again, if you feel like hamstrings are doing a lot of work, because it's a fairly light spring, give them a little inner thigh focus. Good. Reach it back. Return and curl back down.

Now we have a couple more variations on the pelvic curl. I'd like you to roll up to full height to begin with and then roll down halfway, hold that position, lengthen out the pelvis and let the glutes or the butt kinda soften, take the grip off. Now we're going to do a little rotation of the right hip to the box. So it's going to touch the box, come center. To the left, touch the box, center, and keep going for 2 more each side, left hip down. And you can see the pelvis rotating around the head a femur or rotating around that thigh bone, that's what I want. I want you to really just move the pelvis on the legs.

Last set, Good. Back to the center, uncurl back down. We have one more. Ex, how curl all the way up to your high bridge? Roll it back down halfway, lengthen out, soften off, let the pelvis just be held between abs and hamstrings, Now we're doing a little lateral shift of the pelvis. It's about 1 inch. So knees aim to stay kind of where they are within reason, and less rotation, more glide. And it's tough, but then I want you to feel like you get, like, press it across.

Press it across. Last set. Good. Press center and uncurl back down. Very nice. Good.

So now we're shifting back so that you're upper back, shoulder blades on the end of the box, upper back, just floats off the back end of the box. People stay on the footbar. Hands will go behind the head. Alright. And starting just to take the upper back off the box. Yes. So have a little shuffle to find shoulder blades just kind of at the end, not too far over. I wanna get into these upper ribs.

So you can let the head be a heavy weight going down and then extend. Draw the ribs towards the pelvis to come back up, and we are doing 6. So you 6 to really identify, come back up, Andrew, for me. I want you to identify going from the sternum and translating down that way towards the floor, before you extend back. So rather than going straight for extension, go for a translation of the ribs straight down vertically.

Let the weight of the head then take it even further. Good. I think we have 3 more, 2 more. Let's do 3 more. And really just gives us a chance to get these upper ribs moving. Yes. The weight of the head taking that work all the way over and getting as much range as possible for each person. Good. And taking hold of your thighs, use the arms, hook the feet if you need to to help yourself roll up to a sitting position.

So along the torso like Andrews, I don't mind the hooking of the feet over the foot bar. If you're smaller or it's comfortable, you can put the feet on top of the foot bar. We're doing a few rollback arms forward. And just curl the abs roll to that sweet little trendly spot in the low back, then curl, and stat 2 more. I'm just looking for pelvis under and aiming the low back to the box. I just want the rounding.

I do want a really flexed pelvis as you come back here. One more. Alright. And stay in your round back position. We're going to continue back nice and slowly from the base of the ribs all the way to place the body onto the box, draw your knees in, hug them to your chest for single leg stretch. Good. Use the arms to take that nice deep hip flexion.

And then just a regular single leg stretch, draw in, and reach out. 2. We've got 10. Exhale. Exhale. So I'll have an exhale on each one. That's 6.

Last two. Good and hug the knees back in. Take a little moment, and then come off the side of the reformer, and we're going onto our hands and knees. Put. So into a cat stretch position, hands head at the front of the reform and knees onto the box. And just take about 3 or 4 cat stretches, lengthening and give me as you can even give you a bit of a drop in the thoracic. Yep.

Give me that little bit of drop retraction, and then from the pelvis wrap under and drop the head. So when you come into extension, just allow that to let go through there. Hold for a second. As you curl, I want you to think of going from the pelvis and drawing the low back away from the ribs to create the cat. That's where I want your focus on the curl.

In how let the body go, let it extend, let the pelvis beautifully done, Andrew, roll, and draw the we might do one more really nice. Good. Now on this one, curl it, and then come back to neutral. Happy puppy. So start by going to the right, the right hip Now stay on that side for a moment. I want you to try and see this back of the pelvis.

So I like to identify the PSIS or that little joint at the back. And come to the other side, same thing. So instead of just looking for the hip, look for the upper back of the pelvis, and look. Look. And then we're going to get faster and look. And 2, 3, 4. Good. Let everything else move.

You just try to see that. So that's working neck upper body range of movement. Last four, three, to one back to the center. Now we have the fun part with rolling ribs. So I want you to go into your cat stretch round back, into your happy puppy to one side, into your cat stretch extension, into your happy puppy, the other side.

Now just keep going. Right? So scoop, and you've got all ranges of movement through the ribs, lateral flexion, extension, just have a bit of fun with it one more, and then we're reversing direction. Beautiful. If that's not gonna mobilize us, I'm not sure what else will. But we'll have a play with other things. 2, good. 3 more. Good. Last one and come back to the center, reset your long position, and then stepping off the side of the body, we're going to lay ourselves down for a swan.

So I like to step off and then lay back on with the knees off the back of the box, hands onto the foot bar. Good. Alright. So a 4 point movement to this And we're going to start with pressing back 1. Now think about the foot bar pressing your arm bones back to let you come up between it into extension, but if that footbar does the pressing, you'll get more action here. Press back away, then back in. So one is to push out.

2 is to let the footbar do the work to bring the sternum through up to the ceiling. 3 is to press you back out. You can let the shoulders go, go, go, 4 is to come home. 3 more sets. So extend Let but do the work for you on the way back down, try and drop into the box through the spine there, and return 2 more.

We're just holding legs gently at the back. They don't have to be really positioned or engaged just yet. Good one more. And Return that back in. That was our Swan basic back extension.

So moving the upper ribs into extension, we are ready to do leg and footwork. If you come off the reformer for me, let's thank you. I have a happy helper. Long box off, we are going to come onto the reformer for Megan Foot work. And if you don't have somebody to do this for you, bring the foam roller with you. So we're going to add leg springs.

I'll have 3 red, one blue. I will be your happy helper, If you'll lie on to the reformer for me, please. So onto your back on the reformer, just Leggon footwork springs on, as I say, we've got 3 red, one blue, or 3 and a half springs, you will be going to the position first. So toes on the bar v position. Now just bring your hands onto your chest, Andrew. If you have somebody to help you, then the this person can lift their hips.

And slide the roller under the pelvis. If you're doing it yourself, you can do just the same thing. You just have to hold on to the reformer and as you're climbing on. Now I do want it well under the pelvis. That's it.

Yeah. So you may say find those sacroiliac joints and kind of get them supported by the roller. The position of the feet, hands can rest on the roller. Now my main focus as you take off on every repetition is to draw the abs or sink the abs in towards the carriage. So, yes, so you maintain that control and that connection through the core of the body. And then the opening will be along the front of the hip joint. So it's exhale to go, inhale return.

Now make this really work for you. Don't rush it. Because if you get this connection and you can see when Andrew gets that, it really opens the hip joints. I'd rather have hips open, abs in, finding that connection at the back, then fully stretched legs. So if you only get 2, there, that's fine. If you get fully stretched, also fine.

I'll have 4 more here. So v positions starts us with the heels off, open knees gives you an opportunity to start moving into the good stretch over the hips. One more after this one. Good. And back in will change to toes parallel.

So same movement. Let me just get Andrew lined up there. Same movement, but now it's gonna be hopefully a little more stretch because you're in parallel. So abs in x, how press away, Let that opening across the hips happen. Ex, how press away?

Nice. And he's Andrew's getting a nice sink. I hope you're feeling this too. So if you feel that kind of drop from the sternum down, sinking in towards the carriage, that allows the pelvis to be taking the stretch that it needs or the opening of the joints. I think we're up to 4. And I'll have another 6.

Ex, how deeply as you go out, in how return. And for some of you, it may be hard to be keeping this parallel position. That's fine. Like, just work through progressions to get a little more to parallel as you go, but try, I'd rather you let it happen over time than force it because it's a really nice opening of the hips, but it can be quite strong. Last one, Good. Alright. And then stretch out one more time and hold it. Now comes the real work. So get as lengthened as you can in the legs, for your raises. So heels are going to go under.

So inhale to go under, exhale pulling up. So work the best you can at maintaining this connection down into the bed of the upper body, opening the hips, whatever range you can get here because this is prepping us to be heels on the bar next. So it's all happy days Let's do 4 more car phrases. Last 2. Good.

And coming in. Alright. So this is the toughest one. Heels up onto the bar parallel, and we'll bring them in parallel hit with the part. That's it. And away we go, eggs, how press, and return. Good.

Alright. So gradually over those four sets, there should be more length across the front of the hip joints. So we get to a decent heal connection, still connected, and hopefully the day after this session you feel nice, low abdominal humming where they've been working nice and deeply. Last four. Good. And stretch. Back last one. Alright. And now we'll have in steps wide, but maintaining an open position, but relatively parallel.

So it'll be a kind of a new position. Last 10 and exhale stretch and pull in. Now you can keep that archers sensibility with the feet, heels under 4 foot wrapping over. Yes. So you're working the feet right up into the legwork, and you should be feeling a lovely length and connection all the way along the front of the body. That's 5. Like a nod, 6. We've got 4 to go.

Last two. And pause. So hold the carriage at the stopper. Bring your feet back to the center of the bar. Just wherever it's comfortable for you to lift your hips, you can slide the roller out yourself, or somebody can take it for you. Hips come down.

We're gonna go toes back onto the barn now for prances, but we'll just put the roller if you're doing your own work, just lay it beside the reformer. We will use it again in a moment. So now toes on the bar, stretch all the way out I'll have a set of 20 prances, and I'll have inhale for 2, exhale for 2. In out just so that that doesn't distract you. Out and Andrews County for me, I hope.

20. Alright. Bring that back in. Beautifully done. And now we will take the roller again, so wherever you've put it next to the bed, but sitting up, we're going to put this against the shoulder rests. So in against the shoulder rest, now you're lying back onto the roller with your shoulder blades just on the top of that roller, legs extended and resting on the foot bar. So this might be the nicest set of hundreds you ever get to do. So the just shuffle to where you feel supported by the roller and that you've got this nice scooped long position, arms reaching to the top of thighs, we're doing hundreds here.

So what I want is that we don't forcibly tuck the pelvis, but you're going to activate the leg. So I wanna think about these inner ankle bones together the whole time. So they're working hard. You're not taking the legs off the foot bar, but you're activating them as though they're just hovering there. You're going to start beating, so inhale 2, 3, 4, 5, exhale 2. 3, 4, 5.

Andrew will do the good work of counting for me. And then I want you breathing into this gap. So every inhale fills up the back, every exhale deepens and activates. So the whole body is really working beautifully, $1,000,000,000 bill in between the ankle bones. Don't drop it.

That's that's your what is it? A $1,000,000,000 lot of ticker ticket. Lottery ticket. That's in there. So, again, what I'm after is soft upper trapezius heads just able to rest gently on the spine all the works in abdominals, opening up the back, legs are still active that it's really Still quite a rewarding 100. Good. Alright. And then we're coming up and taking the roller out. So stepping off. Good. And putting the roller aside now, we're going to put feet into straps.

Alright. So just before Andrew does that, I'm gonna take the springs down to leg strapwork springs, which I tend to like too red, and having a little bit of extra load here does help with the next couple of variations. So we've got 2 red, but, 1a half if your smaller and the load is too high. So starting with little frogs, press away, and we're doing what I call a rolling little frog, which allows the pelvis just to roll as you come in, same hip flexion, and then the springs straps just give you a little extra pelvic flexion. Not that you're creating that. I'm not asking for a lift, forced lift. I want Just that little extra roll into flexion at the end, press 3 more. So we're doing that with the little frogs circles and the opening, just allowing that pelvic role.

And I think we have one more. Good. And then bring the legs up to the ceiling. Now yes. So take that little roll, and then you're circle will not be that big, but just a medium sized circle allowing the pelvis jas to kind of roll in and out of this. Of course, if it doesn't feel good in your back, you can just let the pelvis sit heavy or rest on the carriage and do your regular little frog circles openings, but that role will just take the traction of the low back Give us a little more space in there. 6 each way with these, and reversing it. So circle and allow a little roll to.

Good. We got 4 more. I'm gonna get out of the road at these long legs for openings, show girl legs, 2 more. Good finish. The last one's up to the ceiling. Now I'll take legs out wide and just have a moment just to find your range or your stretch there. Just take a breath, breathe in.

And breathe out does let the legs sink and open. Now close on the next exhale. Heels come together above the footbar. And as you open, we're gonna go all the way and then get that little roll of the pelvis. So it's just the five's roll and take it back together.

We have 6 here. Heels come together, inhale open. Good. Ex held together. In Hale Palves is down to the last little role, and we have 2 more.

Good. And last one, and we'll finish all the way out wide. So come all the way into the roll, bend the heels in together for short spine prep. So we go straight into the little frog out, straight legs hinging and starts to draw the pelvis up, bend the legs through, and going again for more reach. Hinge at the hips, think of the thigh bones going down towards the foot bar, and then the hamstrings draw the heels over.

So without being too locked down about it, Andrew's doing a great job. I like the thighs to stay where they are and the hamstrings draw the movement back through. Last two, And that gives you the sense of the femurs or the thigh bones pressing down as you come back through. One more. And hold.

Good. We're taking our feet out of the straps. I'll take that one foot back to the footbar at a time. Bring the carriage in. Stay there. We are going to slide down the carriage. Hook your legs over and pull yourself down for half semi circle. So I want you to set up for semi circle as though you're doing the whole exercise, and then I'll take you through a variation.

So exactly as Andrew has done, I want legs hooked over and then press the bed all the way out, and let's just make sure t shirts aren't going to get stuck in springs, and then drop your hips into the well. So your legs are going to stay here, hooked over the bar. So this is the half of the semi circle we're working on. And what I want here is within reason that drawing of heels towards your butt just to connect you over that bar. So ex how curling up, we're just using this half of the body for the semi circle. So hence my half semi circle.

So keep the heels drawing in as much as you can as you curl up send the shoulders out. Now try to keep the carriage out as you go down, and you'll see a little parallel to where we started with the long box work. Getting that shoulder tissue really released, latched, worked down in between it. 2 more. Ex held to curl up, reach away. Try to keep the carriage out as you come through all the ribs.

I can see Andrew getting taller as he goes. And one last one, press away. Keep going in that direction as you're lowering through the ribs and paws. Now just lift the hips slightly and let the carriage slide in underneath your torso, and we will come Up off the carriage, we're going into a sitting position, but I'll bring the gear in. So bring that back to where your normal gear position is.

So that's the gear back in one spring, and we'll start side sitting with the legs crossed. And then to set up here, the hand on the foot bar will be right forward. The other hand will be to the back corner of the carriage behind you. So then as we go into the lift into the side reach, you're going to look to the back hand. We can look out into the ocean here and then take it over If possible, keep the island going towards this hand, bring it back down into your rotated position, and then you can set back to the center or you can stay rotated if that feels a little better.

We're gonna go up and over 3 more times. Reach. And centers. So as Andrew's staying in his rotation, that's perfectly good. If you just have that little setback, same same. And 4, get that nice reach, and come back, and we'll do the other side. So jump off, walk around, or swing around, whatever facility you have.

There's always the chance to walk around the reformer. Start with the inside hand forward, the outside hand back so you can reach to that back corner, and then reach it backwards, look to that hand, come forward, keeping that sideline. Good. And so it's all about that breadth of reach. I like to keep the head looking the hand because it gives you the rotation and the movement of the shoulder survival, sub exhibitors, all those little words that mean we're just getting more mobilization through the neck head shoulders.

Is that 4? And come back to center. We're going to roll straight onto our knees for a high bar COBRA. So pop 1 more spring on. We'll end up we have 2 red springs or 1 a half spring for smaller people.

So nice rounded back sitting towards your heels. One little suggestion I'd make is perhaps if you bring the head rest up so that we've got a little bit of range, particularly for taller people, now you're going to lower the chest, send the legs out, And then in how draw forward like a down stretch, then x, how scoop and sit back to that starting position. And it can get rolling through, but make sure you get each point. You're up, scooped. You sit 2 more. Lower and press, lift, just be sure that you're getting that connection from the front side of the body hold the extension because that's a lot of shoulder, spine load, which we want, but make sure you're really under control with ads here.

Scoop it back, then we're going to reverse it. So as you come forward, Give me the abs, send it all the way back. Now I want you to send the tailbone up in extension, then wrap it around. Yeah? Forward, now heels back on the shoulder rest, tailbone high, wrap the hips around, and we can even take a little bit more time with that pelvic wrap because it's a good moment to stay there. Now really think about hinging the hips hinging the hips sacrum up and then wrap.

Two more of those, please. It's kinda one of my favorite little moments where you get everything through that extension of the low back sacrum articulation, and that gives you the traction around through the lumbar spine as well and draws down on those lower ribs, sending it up, wrapping it around, feels good, pause. Press the carriage out into a long flat back with knees under hips. So I want you to start by getting that set position connecting the hamstrings to keep the lumbar spine long, and now it's a tricep extension in hell over the bar exhale find abs up under the back before you press out in each one. So exhale abs press. We've got 8 more. This is just bringing everything back into our center, quadruped style, think about that as you just support as you move.

Keep that connection. Keep the heels back. So everything is active. And last one presses out, then if you just wrap the pelvis sit back onto your heels, coming up right, that concludes our reformer session.