Calm, Connected, Strong

Hi, everyone. Welcome to day 5. Calm, connected, and strong. So we are gonna do some great stretches, but don't worry. I'm gonna do some really hard work too. So we'll pepper that in. Let's get ready to work out. We're gonna go to 1 red spring. For this first series, that I call the wave series.

So what you're gonna do is hold your hand on the footbar. The carriage is gonna be drawn all the way into the stalker, and you're gonna find the best rounded shape in your spine that you can without rounding through the shoulders. From here, send the carriage back. You're gonna go down into basically a down stretch and raise your hips up, chest up, chin up, Flows the carriage nod the chin into the chest, find that curve shape again sitting back close to the heels. Send the carriage out.

You go through a little down stretch chest up, chin, up, chin down back into it. Send the carriage back. Bring yourself up. Shinda chest round back. We're gonna go back one more time.

And then we're gonna come up, but we're gonna reverse it. So stay with the extension in your spine, send your carriage back, draw your chin in, pull the carriage all the way into the stopper. With the carriage on the stopper, you come forward Open through the chest and the carriage back. Draw the chin in. Pull it all the way to the stop.

Send the hips forward, lengthen up, send it back, chin in curve through that back. Once again, send the hips forward, carriage back, shin and bring it in. Take your left hand, put it on the center of the bar. Let's add a little rotation to this. So I'm gonna take my right arm up, send it back, and circle in, take it up, send it back, and circle reverse two times, arm goes down.

Out up. And then one more time, send it back. Out, up. Switch arms. Arm goes up.

Oh, Been through the chest, bring that arm in. Circle up. Bring it in reverse 2 times. Carriage goes back and around. Down one more time.

Send it back. Up and bring it down. Take an extra second here just to find that nice curve shape in your spine. You can load your springs up. We're gonna go to about 3 or 4 springs just for footwork.

You can make this nice and easy if you feel like you've worked really hard this week in the challenge. Or feel free to load those springs up for extra work. Inhale up, exhale it, and just find that breath. 4. Bring it 5. And you can really try to tie together all of the work we've done this week, pressing the hands into the mat to find the arm work.

Squeezing the heels together to find that inner thigh work, activate through the seat for hiding that glute work. 8. Ring it in. 9. And bring the legs to bird feet and begin.

Inhale. Find in the connection. That we had when we did the knee pressures with the ball. Can you find those abs as you work through your exhales each time to come in? 6, 7, Read it in, and a full breath out.

9, 10, walk to the heels. Inhale guides you up. Exhale it in. 2. Find the connection of the heels pushing into the bar and send that connection up to your strong seat muscles.

6, use the breath to find your center. 7. 10. Bring it in. We're back to Pilates V on the toes. Slide to the top heels go.

Under and up to and press into the hands, find the depth of that exhale. Up 5. 6. 2 more, 9, 10, and let's take our time to enjoy a calf stretch here. Let one heel press down.

You can always drag a little on top of the bar with the other foot or pull under the bar with the other foot. To deepen that calf stretch. We'll switch legs a little pull either on top or even a little tuck of that foot and pull back with your toes to intensify your calf stretch. Go ahead and raise both heels up, bend your knees to come in, and we're gonna sit up and change the spring. I'm gonna bring it down to one blue, taking all the reds off, And we're gonna sit in a little z sit position here. Now don't overly stress about getting the hip down.

But if you can anchor that right hip down, hold the strap with the left hand, and we're just gonna do a little draw the sword here. So squaring off through the shoulders with an inhale reach up and with an exhale, bring it back. Now don't rush this. As you bring the arm back, can you think I'm pulling on the strap even though I'm bending my elbow? Inhale 3.

Exhale. Bring it across. Inhale. 4. Exhale brings it across 1 more today, inhale 5, and bring it across. Now we're gonna add a little overhead stretch draw the sword one time, take that arm up, send it over, bend the elbow, bend the body, Come back to start. Inhale to. Go up and over.

Try not to let that left shoulder hike up too high. No stress, though. Let it move. Here we go. 3rd one. Draw the sword. Out. Go up.

Over. Then you're just gonna take your strap. Hook it on the pole. Here's that mermaid. I promised big bend to the side.

And with an inhale, bring yourself up. Reach for either the pole or the shoulder rest, then the body over. Bring yourself up. And exhale. Oh, for this time, when you go over to the bar, place the hand on the far left side of the bar, take the right arm up and over, square down to the floor.

Inhale. Do like a little swan like lift and let the exhale take you down. Inhale. Inhale brings you up? Bring your arm around, and we'll turn around and do the other side.

Holding the strap with the right hand square off through the shoulders, and you don't need to overly stress it out it, but sit into that left tip slightly. Draw all the sword up bring it across. 2. 3. Full inhale.

Let all the breath out. And 5. Exhale. Now inhale extend. Up and over with the strap.

Allow the right shoulder to settle down as you bend the body to the left. Bring that arm back down. Draw the sword. 2, it goes up and over, bend Bend, bend. Bring it. Down draw the sword 3 up and over. Bend hook the strap, mermaid, exhale over Inhale come. I really like to bring my arm, my bicep all the way up to my ear here as I do my mermaid. And as I come up to the other side, that arm comes all the way up to my ear, and I bend.

On this third one. We reach for the back of the bar. We dive up and over and release down. With thin inhale, we swan up Inhale too. Exhale down and come up on that third one and release.

Out. We're gonna turn around now. Let's go to one red for rowing's 34. I'm just gonna lower the foot bar to get it out of the way. And holding the straps in the hands, bring the straps underneath the shoulders flex through the ankles, grow tall with an inhale, send the arms out. With an exhale, lower the arms, can you grow taller? With an inhale raise the arms up?

Circle them around and back to start. Inhale to exhale lower. Inhale up. Round. 3. And around now put the hands on the mat.

The chest curve down. Send the arms out. Roll the spine. Send the arms forward. Outgrow taller, a round grow taller, hands down, inhale.

Roll it up, send the arms forward, upward, around, and inhale. Chin to chest exhale down, reach it out, roll it up, and and bring it down. Hook the straps on the poles. And we're gonna do a variation on reverse, what I call reverse knee stretches. Let's stay on the same spring.

You're gonna come onto your knees, and we're just gonna bring the hands onto the side of the frame. Slightly raised off the heels. We stabilize the shoulders down the back and breathe in. As you breathe out, you're gonna pull the carriage underneath you and with an inhale send it away. So we're trying to isolate our center, x hail. We stabilize through the arms and the shoulders, but the abdominals are pulling that carriage in. Inhale moves it away. Exhale pulls it under.

Now we're gonna do a variation on real knee stretches here in just a second. So we're using this connection to our core and the shape of our spine Here is information and inspiration for what's coming next. Inhale, move it away. Hexhale brings it under. One more time, try to isolate your center, exhale knees under, inhale knees back.

Now keep the shape of the spine rounded. But put both hands over on the right side of the frame. Now breathe in, and you're gonna pull a little harder with the left side knee to pull the carriage under so the left side body fires up, inhale carriage moves away. 2. Inhale moves it away.

Left side body working. Move it away. 2 more here. 4. Really keep that rounded shape in the spine. 5. Move it away. Walk the hands over.

Breatheen to prepare and think about the right knee on this side. So right knee is really yearning forward. Inhale. Move it back. Exhale. Pull it under 2.

Inhale back. That right side isolates. Squeeze the right shoulder. Towards the right hip. Just two more exhale. This is for.

Inhale. Moves it back. Exhale. This is 5 and move it back. Now center yourself and just take a moment to release. Bringing the heels nice and close to the seat, and I'm actually pushing gently against the frame to facilitate a really nice stretch through my back. We're gonna really be inspired by this position.

Come on up. We're gonna go through an up stretch knee stretch combination. So bringing the position we were just in to this exercise, we're on 2 yellows, I'm sorry, 2 red springs, 2 red springs, and we're gonna climb up. Heels against the shoulder blocks. Find a start position that's inspired by what you just did. So can you use your abdominals to try to pull your carriage against the stopper? Find that rounded shape in the spine.

Now let's do one just normal up stretch. So carriage goes back 1. Exhale hips down. Inhale over the bar, exhale, rolls it up. Now we're gonna add 3 knee stretches in the middle of it. Carriage back 1.

Exhale hips down. 3 knee stretches. 1, 2, 3, send it back and hold. Come forward curve to come up. Do that again. Inhale. What? Exhale down. Knees, bend. 1, 2, 3, and then come forward, roll through the spine to come up.

We do it again. Carriage goes back. Hits come down. Pump thinnies, 3. 2.

Oh, one. Bring it in. Now roll it up. Now we're gonna come down and do just 10 knee stretches Find the core that you found on the reverse knee stretches, knees lower, and we go, 1, keep them a little smaller, 2, from the belly 3. 4.

2 more. 9 Stand up and step down to the floor. See, I promised you it wasn't gonna be all stretching. There was gonna be some really strong work in here as well. So let's move on for a little more strong work. We're gonna grab the box and do a variation on down dog and arabesque. So the box will go on the reformer longways, And let's lower the foot bar just to get it out of the way, and we'll also go to 1 red spring for this.

And you can always adjust your springs as works for you. Start standing with the feet parallel. Raise your arms up to the ceiling above you. Breathe. As you breathe out, lower your hands down to the corners of the box. And just take a second there. Again, to make sure that while your spine is nice and rounded, you're not hunched and rounded over in your shoulders.

You're gonna think of diving your head down towards the floor here. So the box starts to roll out, but you're going downward. That's gonna be an inhale. And then we're gonna exhale and reach out like down dog and yoga, finding a nice length in the back of the body. Then draw the chin in, and we let the box push our shoulders back and down.

Do that again. So think don't think of your body going out. Think of your body going down. The box goes out. And then you link them through. Draw the chin in. Roll up. Let the box push those shoulders back where they belong.

Do that one more time. Inhale guides, you do. Exhale, lengthen out. Inhale brings you up. Exhale to the stop.

Take your right foot. Put it at your center line and reach your left toes back. Just point the toes towards the floor for this really nice variation on arabesque. Prepare with an inhale. As you breathe out, you're gonna raise your leg into the air. Send the box out and lengthen the leg up. Inhale, roll the box in, tap the toe to the floor.

Exhale. Take it out too. Inhale. Brings it down. Now really challenge your range. Could you use your side butt to lift your leg a little higher?

Inhale. Bring it in. 2 more. Hoorze it up. Don't hold back. Inhale brings it in. On this last one.

Let's take it out. We'll add a little icing on the cake. Pause right there. Can you tap that leg higher? 5. 4, 3, 2, and 1. Bring the leg down.

Get ready for the other side. So the left foot goes to center line. The right foot's just pointed and reaching onto the floor. Get strong through your body, inhale, prepare. As you exhale, you move the box out and you raise the leg up, up, up, inhale, lower it down.

Lifted up, up, up, there's always a little more. Even if the range doesn't go farther, the muscles will work hard. So keep yearning for that reach. In hell, bring it down. Up, up, up, bring it down on this 5th one.

We go out. We hold, pulse it, 5, 4, higher, 3, 2, and 1. Bring it in and step feet wide. One more down dog here. Dive it down, breathe it in. Breathe it out and lengthen.

Draw the chin in. Inhale. Rolls you all the way up to standing. Alright. We're gonna take the box away and get ready for frog and short spine. So bring the box to the floor, and we're gonna just go to we'll do 2 reds. Lay on your back, bring your feet into your straps, Make sure your headrest is flat, and then take a moment Find neutral with your pelvis.

Let your knees flex. Let your hips flex. And then inhale. Legs out. Exhale. They bend.

Inhale. 2. Exhale. They bend. Breathe it in. On this fifth one, we'll go into short spine, inhale out. Exhale, roll to your shoulders.

Inhale, bend the knees. Keep the hips high. Exhale roll through the back. Draw the heels to the seat. Inhale out.

Exhale over. Bend the knees, breathe it in. Breathe it out and pull the heels to the seat. Inhale. 3.

Reaching those arms long in opposition, then the knees Roll through. 2 more today. Inhale. Inhail Bend. Exhale, roll through the spine, last and best inhale legs extend, exhale, up and over bend the knees and roll down through the back.

We are gonna go through some well earned stretches next. I want you to take your left foot out of your strap, leaving your right foot in the right strap. Extend your right leg up straight. And first, go into just a hamstring stretch. So with that leg straight, foot positioned in alignment with the shoulder, no wider, will stretch here. Now we're gonna guide that leg over to the right for a little inner thigh stretch Now I like to put my right hand on my ankle or my calf or something and give it just the littlest extra pressure down so you can take that option if it feels good.

Alright. Now we're gonna bring the leg up. Before we cross the leg over, let's externally rotate this right leg so you've got a nice pilates knee rotation. And then send the foot across the body. Try to sustain the length in the right waistline and the external rotation of that right thigh, though. Next exercise feels great, but takes a little second to get it.

The way I like to do it is I hold my strap. I bring my foot that's on the foot bar into my chest and cross that foot over. And then I take that into a figure 4 stretch here. Place your left elbow on your left knee Give that knee just a little pressure as you stretch here. I like to sway a little, but you can't sway too big or because we can't fall off the equipment.

But make it a really tiny sway to the side. Just a little bit of extra sensation of stretch when I add that sway. And then I just use my arms to guide my strap a little lower and eventually put my foot on the foot bar. So we'll hook that strap on the pole, and we'll do the other leg. So starting with hamstrings first, I really like to try to keep a neutral position of my spine and pelvis on this. I find that if I tuck my pelvis, While it does make me feel a little more successful and my leg goes a little further, I might not be really enhancing my, flexibility in the long run.

So really consider only going to the range that you can keeping the pelvis and the spine neutral. Open the leg to the left option to bring the hand onto the leg for a little extra pressure. And then bring that leg up. Before you cross it, rotate into Pilates the rotation, then send that foot across. Keeping the left waistline elongated as that leg goes to the other side.

Try to keep the knee straight. Mine started to bend a little bit. Sneaky little knee, and then you're gonna take that foot and raise it up. So here's where I hold the strap. I just give myself that little bit of support from my arms as I cross the foot over and then eventually go into that figure 4 stretching out these muscles that we worked so hard this week You can add a little sway, not too big, just a little movement.

I really think helps give me a deeper stretch. And then you're just gonna give yourself a little support with your arms on thread foot across the thigh and slide your foot out of the strap and bend your knees to come in. Now to close out this challenge nicely, we're basically gonna finish the way we started on day 1. I'm gonna drop my spring down. I'm gonna go to just one blue, and we're gonna stand up and step inside the well. You'll bring your hands to your shoulder rests standing with the feet in a parallel stance.

Let's get a nice rounded shape in the back without overly rounding through the shoulders. Draw the kneecaps up. Take a big breath in. Breathe out. Pull that carriage underneath you finding the to your core. Inhale moves the carriage away.

Now do that just twice more. Pull it with an exhale. Inhale. Notice how different you feel today than you did on day 1. Send the carriage away now a little surprise for you step your feet back. Let's do 5 push ups.

Bend the elbows. Push 1. Bend the elbows. 2. Bend. 3. Bend 4.

Bend straight and 5. Now step forward turning the toes parallel to 2 o'clock on a clock. Send the shoulders down the back, breathe it, and draw the kneecaps up and pull from the side body. Move the carriage. Oh, wait. Exhale. Pull 2. Move it away. Just 3.

Pull. Move it away. Step back. Find that plank again. 5 more push ups. Then one. 5.

Step the feet forward, turn the toes the other direction, squeezing the left shoulder down towards the hip. We pull 1. Inhale moves it away. Activate from that side body. Move it away.

3. Move it away and step back, find that plank. 5 more push ups. We go. 1. Let's finish strong. 2. And three 4, and 5. From here, walk the feet flat.

Send the hips up into a down dog stretch, stretch out through the shoulders, and the backs of those legs, and then step forward so your feet are underneath you. Doing a nice controlled roll up here, find Pilates, bee's stance with the feet, draw the kneecaps up and start to roll through that spine. Raze your arms up to the ceiling above you, circle your arms around. Take another moment here. Notice how strong and focused and connected you feel after these 5 days.

Raise your arms up in here. Exhale. Be so proud of the hard work that you've done, and thank you so much for joining me for this 5 day challenge. I hope you feel as great as I do after all of these hard workouts. See you next time.