Sculpt Your Legs and Hips with Pilates
SMALL BARREL LEG SERIES
Lengthening, strengthening and sculpting ? and relieving!
I can?t over state how much I love this series and how good it is for so many people. It is done inverted which offers a myriad of health benefits in itself but also induces stabilization and strengthening of the low abdominal muscles and low back, relieves the usual stresses on the hip joints and surrounding pelvic musculature, and strengthens and lengthens the legs so beautifully.
And all this is done in such an efficient way. You will love how it actively open up your hips, lengthens hip flexors and hamstrings, creates circulation and full range of movement in the hip joint. It feels so great to de-stress the hip joints and allow the thigh bones (femurs) to move fully in the joint while muscles work in full range.
So … how to make the most of this series. You will need a small Pilates barrel, OR – the good news is that you can replicate the benefits of this series with home apparatus like a Foam Roller ?
or a foam Pilates Arc. (See links at bottom of the article for suppliers). Anyway, back to the series ?
Set yourself up lying on your back with your hips elevated on the barrel or roller. Reach your legs straight up to the ceiling, with hands holding the sides. I very important to keep your torso lengthened, with your sit bones reaching long over the top of the barrel, abdominals and ribs drawing in together.
- Scissors ? Inhale as you open your legs forward and back into a Scissor movement. Exhale to return to centre. Alternate 5-6 times each, really stretching your legs the whole time.
- Openings ? Inhale to open your legs to the sides. Exhale to come back to centre. Do 10-12
- Helicopters ? Inhale to open in a Scissor, exhale as you rotate your legs around through the side position all the way to the opposite opening, then close up to the start position. Reverse, doing 3-4 repetitions each direction.
- Bicycles ? Reach one leg away and commence a ?cycling? movement of both legs, pedaling up hill with some resistance. Do 10-12 repetitions.
- Hip Stretch ? this is pure joy. Hang one leg over the barrel/roller away from you, with the other leg bent in to your chest. This stretch allows the hip flexors to release and opens up the front of the hip joint. Breathe into it, enjoy, and then come out of it gently. Do both sides.
I hope you enjoy the feeling of this series as much as most people do. Also know that it is doing wonders for your posture and your well-being, as well as creating long lean muscles of the abdomen, hips and legs.
The idea with this series is to add ankle weights to the routine to enhance the sculpting effect. Start with half a kilo weight and then progress over time to a 2 kg ankle weight on each leg. Tha when you will really be sculpting and will feel and see the true benefits. Make sure you firstly have the sequence learned and are comfortable doing the movements before adding the extra weight.
One last tip ? use deep, long breaths on each movement to increase the benefits of being actively inverted.
This exercise has a lovely effect on your respiratory and endocrine (hormonal) systems. Ahhh? breathe and enjoy.
And sculpt away!
Note:
To buy Foam Rollers or Arcs for home use please visit:
Australia:
HF Industries @ www.hfi.com.au HFI Industries
Global:
Balanced Body Pilates?
About the author
Sally Anderson is often referred to as ‘Australia’s expert in Pilates’. A renowned author, Pilates educator and guest speaker on the subject of Pilates on the global circuit, Sally is the founder and director of Pilates International, which incorporates both the Pilates International Studios and the government accredited teacher training centre, PilatesITC.
Visit Sally on her website or join Pilates international on Facebook.
