Not all exercises are suitable for everyone.
This or any other exercise program may result in injury.
Any user of this exercise method assumes the risk of injury.
To reduce the risk of injury, consult your doctor before beginning this or any other
program, especially if you have one of the following conditions.
High blood pressure, neck, shoulder, or back pain, disc problems, pregnancy.
The instructions and advice presented are in no way intended as a substitute for medical
and physical counseling.
The creators, producers, participants, and distributors of this program disclaim any
liability or loss in connection with the exercises and advice herein.
Fundamentals 1 and 2 will assist trainers in making the correct, thoughtful choices
for a sophisticated and demanding clientele with the growing awareness of the body-mind
connection.
By addressing the fundamentals of breathing, pelvic stability, scapulhumeral rhythm, and
spinal motion, we begin the process of deepening our understanding of the body's complexity.
Trainers will learn how to see specific dysfunctions and asymmetries which require the ability
to modify in very exercises, movements, cues, and progressions.
Also included are the reasons why certain exercises or positions are contraindicated
for specific populations.
The focus here is on normal breathing.
No specific direction is given.
Watch for the rise and fall of the abdominals.
Then there is a change.
Notice the inhale expanding into the anterior ribs and the exhale facilitating the abdominals
to fall towards the spine.
Now notice the inhale into the posterior lateral ribs and exhale facilitating the abdominals.
The coordination of the breathing is inhaling, expanding into the posterior lateral ribcage
and exhaling contraction of the abdominal muscles.
Imagine a face of a clock drawn on a sheet of paper.
Place that paper on your abdominal pelvis area.
You are wearing the clock.
The twelve o'clock will be at the xiphoid process, which is the base part of the sternum,
the six o'clock on the pubis, three o'clock on the left hip bone, and nine o'clock on
the right hip bone.
Watch the movement of twelve to six o'clock.
In this example, the person is using the navel as twelve o'clock.
The ribcage should be coming down on the exhalation, the twelve o'clock position, activating
the obliques.
In order to recruit the obliques in this exercise, we use the xiphoid process as the twelve o'clock
position.
Watch the movement of the three to nine o'clock.
Look for a nice coordination and symmetry of movement.
See the three and nine move in the same excursion.
Inhalation facilitates rotation as the pelvis rotates to three or nine o'clock inhale and
exhale on the return to center to activate the abdominals.
Moving around the clock in both directions.
As needed, one can concentrate in various areas of the clock to promote an increase
of range of motion and awareness in the client.
Now watch the motion of the end range between twelve and six o'clock position.
Using the neutral position.
See the levelness of the pubis and ASIS, the neutral position of the pelvis.
Watch the breathing in the prone position.
On the inhalation, see the posterior ribs expand and the erector spinae muscles contract
in the lumbar spine, taking it into extension.
On the exhalation, see the flattening lumbar, abdominals activating, no gluteals working.
The goal of this exercise is to use the abdominals to posteriorly tilt the pelvis, the twelve
o'clock position.
Around the clock, prone.
Still in prone position is ASIS and pubis in the same plane on the table.
However, if there is an excess amount of soft tissue, one may find the person will be in
a posterior tilt.
Twelve o'clock in a seated position.
When the legs are extended, it is difficult to achieve a six o'clock position as seen
here, possibly due to hamstring tightness.
It may be necessary to perform this exercise with knees bent or seated on a small box or
stack of pads.
Watch for the end range of the twelve o'clock position.
Performing the three to nine o'clock seated includes abduction and adduction of the hip,
achieving motion of the femur in the acetabulum.
Watch the three to nine o'clock motion with oppositional thoracic motion.
This is a nice rotation to the whole spine, moving all its segments in a normal, functional
way we move.
Watch the lumbopelvic rhythm.
There is an asynchronous firing of the abdominals.
The pelvic clocks in this case required the ability to maintain a level pelvis from the
three to nine o'clock position at the start.
Watch the twelve to six o'clock motions.
As seen in the sitting position, the pelvis is starting a little behind, not able to achieve
the six o'clock position.
One can see a dysfunction in the lumbosacral area.
The question that arises is, what's the restriction not allowing the lumbosacral spine to move?
The right quadratus lumborum is constantly firing.
This is hip hiking instead of a three to nine o'clock motion, another option in mobilizing
and facilitating the contract release of the obliques and the quadratus lumborum.
Around the clock sideline.
Watch for the symmetry and coordination of the quadratus lumborum firing.
Once the right quadratus lumborum is overactive, the entire sequence of the clock.
We are looking at the folding of the thigh on the pelvis.
Watch the movement of the femur without making a change in the position of the inominant.
One does not need to posteriorly rotate the pelvis in this motion until you go well beyond
90 degrees of hip flexion.
Notice how the pelvis rotates too early.
Notice when the pelvis remains in neutral and the femur moves independently of the pelvis.
There should be a smooth movement in the hip joint without changing the position of the
pelvis or lumbar spine.
This is a folding in a single leg movement of the femur on the pelvis.
Leg slides challenge the abdominals further because the psoes is stretching as the leg
slides along the floor while the pelvis remains stable.
The stretch of the psoes forces the abdominals to work harder.
Notice when the pelvis anteriorly tilts with the leg as it extends.
See how our ASIS moves anteriorly.
Now the abdominals stabilize the pelvis inhibiting the anterior movement of the ASIS.
In standing our hips are extended.
One should be able to maintain a level pelvis without letting it rotate forward that much.
The goal of this exercise is to learn how to disassociate the lower extremity from the
trunk so that one can use the lower extremity to its fullest capacity on a stable trunk.
In this motion we are checking the ability of the adductors to lengthen away from the
trunk.
Because of the motion in this plane we are looking more at the obliques to stabilize
the pelvis as the legs move away from the midline.
We are looking at both ends above and below the pubis, the abdominals insert above and
the adductors insert below the pubic bones.
When both legs are moving apart then we are looking at the influence of the adductors
on the pelvis since they insert on the inferior surface of the pubic bones and if they have
a greater pull then they will bilaterally anteriorly tip the inominate if the abdominals
are not working.
The goal of this exercise is for bilateral length of the inner thighs and a way to check
that the adductors and abdominals are working symmetrically.
Watch the head on neck motion.
We are looking for length of the neck extensors and the use of the deep neck flexors initiating
the curl of the head off the mat minimal to no use of the scalenes and sternocleid mastoid
muscles of the neck.
The arms are held wider than recommended for the purpose of the camera angle.
Watch.
Watch as the progression increases in its range of flexion from head on neck to cervical
to thoracic.
The abdominals are stabilizing while mobilizing the head on neck then facilitating the lift
of the head off the mat.
Watch the jaw retraction as the head curls upward.
Some people retract their jaws and still have head on neck extension thinking they are flexing
through the cervical.
This is an important fundamental because many of Joseph Pilates exercises begin like this.
You will see fatigue set in.
It is recommended only three to four repetitions of the cervical nods be performed in one session
or class.
This motion is progressed into a modified roll up and abdominal exercise.
Watch for the intrascapula muscles, the muscles that keep the scapula in line and the deep
neck flexors to fire.
See how the upper trapezius and sternocleid mastoid muscles are firing.
As the roll up progresses watch the recruitment of the abdominal muscles.
Here the ribs need to be dropped more.
It indicates that the oblique muscles are not fully used.
Notice the navel to spine position of the abdominal wall and the constant neutral pelvis
with the lumbar spine inflection.
In here is working the movement of the scapula off the thoracic, abduction or protraction
or retraction of the scapula.
Then integrating more rotation, the higher up one moves the arm, the more rotation of
the thorax will occur.
Reaching with the arm and abduction of the scapula stretches the intrascapula muscles
before shortening them.
This is different from sitting spine twist where the scapula stays stabilized on the
thoracic and the motion is pure spinal rotation.
Oppositional hip to shoulder girdle combining the thoracic rotation with the three to nine
o'clock pelvis motion simulating the mechanics of gait.
The goal of this exercise is to retrain shoulder girdle and pelvic girdle oppositional movement
in different positions so that when standing it is not a foreign movement pattern.
Reaching of the scapula engaging the lats.
Rib cage arms is incorporating the movement of the scapula off the thoracic and stabilization
of the trunk connecting the thoracic to the pelvis.
Watch that the latissimus dorsi does not kick in too much.
As the arms reach overhead watch for the range of motion of the lats.
It will increase the lordotic curve.
Contrast this motion with the use of the obliques stabilizing the rib cage to the pelvis
not allowing the excessive arching of the lumbar spine caused by the shortness of the
lats.
Also limit the range of motion overhead to the stretch point of the lats not allowing
the lumbar spine and rib cage to extend off the mat.
Scapul humeral rhythm is the movement pattern of the arm with the shoulder girdle.
The humerus moves scapula follows then the clavicle rotates.
Watch for bilateral abducted rotated movements of the scapula.
Does the arm move before the scapula?
The scapula does not start to rotate until the arm reaches 60 degrees.
Look at the placement of the scapula winged away from the rib cage.
The serratus anterior is weak not allowing the scapula to fit flat against the rib cage.
Predominal exercise incorporating all the fundamentals.
Initiating from the cervical nod, segmentally flexing the spine, maintaining a neutral pelvis
until the lumbar spine draws the pelvis into a posterior tilt.
Watch for that moment of the change in the pelvis.
The movement should be smooth and even throughout the spine.
Roll up recruits the entire range of abdominal muscles in both concentric and eccentric
contraction.
Single leg stretch incorporates all the fundamentals of neutral pelvis, abdominal use, breathing,
lower extremity moving independent of the pelvis, the cervical curl, and scapula stabilization.
Opening of the mouth goes along with inhalation and facilitates the extensors and the exhale
the reverse.
Do not talk while trying to do flexion exercises.
It is recommended to inhale through the nose, exhale through the mouth without retracting
the jaw.
There are many variations of double leg stretch.
The breathing can be used to increase the use of the abdominals and challenge the abdominals.
In this example, the inhale is occurring at the greatest point of stress for the abdominals
when the legs and arms are fully extended.
This requires strength of the abdominals to maintain the contraction while inhaling
at the most challenging place.
You may choose to exhale at that point where the abdominals have the greatest stress.
The exhalation gives the abdominals the support they need.
Flight is an extension exercise with a small range of motion, moving the trunk into extension,
not hyperextension.
It is recommended to use flight for the older female population because these small ranges
of motion give the bones just enough stress to lay down new bone.
Notice the principles of prone neutral pelvis, scapula stabilization, and the cervical position
throughout the movement.
Swan Part 2 is extension of the hip.
It is an open chain exercise, moving the lower extremities off the trunk, which requires
more work for the abdominals to stabilize the pelvis.
Keep the pelvis in a neutral position and try to achieve a few degrees of hip extension.
If the pelvis moves into an anterior tilt with a greater degree of hip extension, the
force of the long lever, the legs, moves into the lumbar spine.
The firing pattern of muscles seen is hamstring, glute max, and opposite side erectors.
In double leg swan, the lower gluteals are contracting to externally rotate the femur
when you increase the height of the leg to the back.
Double swan incorporates the upper and lower trunk moving together.
You may choose to protect the lumbar spine by stabilizing at the pelvis and try to achieve
hip extension and thoracic extension by keeping the weight on your arms.
Or achieve a greater range of extension at the hip joint without concern about lumbar
lordosis.
It is a greater force coming from two ends into the lumbar spine.
Here the glutes are tightening and relaxing to show that the glutes are not active for
this position.
If you want to protect the lumbar spine, you may activate the glutes.
For some populations, lying on their stomach puts them into the limit of their extension
and inhibits their ability to extend.
They may need a prop under the pelvis, starting inflection of the spine.
Start inflection of the lumbar spine, the 12 o'clock position, prone so the person can
feel a sense of movement towards extension.
The pelvis can stay level and the upper extremities can move into flexion while the spine is extending.
Lying the upper extremities is a greater stress on the lumbar area because of the latissimus
dorsi going into the thoracodorsal fascia.
Full leg kick combines all the extension fundamentals in one exercise.
The feet should be dorsiflexed with knee flexion and plantar flexed with the knee extension.
This exercise is an example of quickly stretching before contracting.
In spine stretch, look where the pelvis is starting.
Is it a neutral or posterior tilt?
This will affect the range and place the motion in a different segment of the spine.
The first example is starting in a more posterior pelvis.
Watch for the shift to neutral and how it changes the range of motion of the spine.
In this position, there should be the ability of the body to anteriorly and posteriorly tilt.
In spine twist, look for the sitting plumb line and pure spinal rotation.
Watch that the scapula maintain their placement on the thoracic and not adduct giving the
illusion of rotation of the spine.
If the feet were actively flexed, the hamstrings would be lengthening and adding to the anchoring
of the legs and pelvis to the mat.
Watch for the ability of the spine to rotate in both directions.
Is there a restriction to one side?
Do you see ease of motion on one side and more effort on the other side?
In this example, it is easier to rotate to the right side.
Watch how the scapula maintain their relation to the spine as the spine rotates.
Saw is an example of good spinal mechanics.
Rotation side bend to one side and the return in the correct path.
Inside kick, the neck is traditionally held in this position.
It is an unhealthy position for the head, jaw and cervical spine.
The following two positions are recommended for any sideline positions.
On the elbow, one needs to support the upper trunk with the stability of the scapula.
Flying down a small towel roll supports the head placing the cervical spine in its neutral
position.
Here side kick is being performed on the Cadillac with the arm in the up position for filming
purposes.
It is a mat exercise performed without a spring with the upper hand on the mat in front of
the body for support.
The sideline fundamentals are very important here.
The femur is swinging forward into hip flexion and backward into hip extension.
The challenge is maintaining the pelvis stability throughout the movement and keeping the femur
in good alignment.
Watch the movement of the right, top and dominant as the leg moves.
The obliques are not stabilizing the pelvis.
Look at the forward motion of the inominant as the leg swings backward and backward as
the leg swings forward.
Watch how the femur is internally rotating as it swings forward and hip moving along
with the leg.
Look at the hip hiking and overworking of the right quadratus lumborum and its effect
on the lumbar spine.
Twist 2 is a closed chain shoulder girdle movement where the trunk is moving on the
shoulder girdle rather than the shoulder girdle moving on the trunk.
It requires the serratus anterior muscle to move the trunk off the shoulder girdle.
The beginning position is in a C curve position, placing a stretch on the quadratus lumborum
on one side and the lumbar spine is side bending.
To stabilize the pelvis, it requires abdominal strength but also range of motion in the lumbar
spine to side bend.
Compare the difference in the two sides of this exercise.
When the support is on the right arm, it is more difficult to maintain the pelvis because
the lumbar spine cannot side bend to the left, therefore the pelvis is taking up the motion
by rotating.
In addition, the serratus anterior is weaker on the right side because of a high right
shoulder.
Front support is a weight bearing closed chain exercise with a co-contraction of the front
and back of the body.
Look for the alignment from the head on neck, shoulder girdle, pelvis and legs.
In this example, the abdominals need to be working more to avoid the extension of the
lumbar spine as the leg extends to the back.
This example is a bridge with a unilateral leg support and gesture.
When performing bridges, one may choose to articulate through the spine on the way up
or down, emphasizing the flexion component, or press through in a neutral spine, emphasizing
the equal work of the extensors and flexors.
Here the bridge is in a neutral path.
The challenge to stand on one leg requires the obliques to stabilize, keeping the three
and nine o'clock points level.
The gluteals and hamstrings are working on the support side to stabilize, and on the
gesture leg side, moving it into extension.
Roll over and jackknife, initiate the movement of the pelvis by a posterior tilt, the twelve
o'clock position, and flexing the lumbar spine.
The abdominals maintain a contraction throughout the range of motion.
The roll over focuses on flexion of the spine and hip.
The legs open and close, facilitating a hamstring stretch.
The jackknife moves into extension more than the roll over.
The pelvis stays where it is after the initiation.
As the spine rolls up, the legs are extended up.
By choosing to keep the legs in position while rolling requires the abdominals to work more
in an eccentric contraction rather than increasing the flexion of the hip on the return.
Watch that the rolling stops when the weight is distributed on the shoulder, not on the
neck as seen here.
That's all for this video, thanks for watching and I'll see you in the next one.
