How to Do the Rollup Pilates Exercise

Video Transcript

" Now we're going to be teaching you the full "Roll Up". The purpose of this exercise is spinal articulation; length of the legs out of the pelvis and strength of the abdominals. Bring your fingertips towards the ceiling. Find the centerline, pull into that centerline. Send energy out through your legs and then pull it back in as if you were bringing water through a straw. Plug the shoulders onto your back, take a deep breath. On your exhale curl your chin to your chest, your nose to your navel and round up through the 'windows' of your arms. You're just going to round right up and over your legs and reach for your toes. Head comes down, towards your knees, pull your belly back. Now the object of this is to keep your arms even with your ears; very active. Arms reaching, feet reaching and belly reaching in opposition to that. Send your head long towards you toes. Take a deep breath here, reach longer. And as you exhale, curl your tailbone under and roll back; one vertebra at a time. Bring the arms here, plug the shoulders on your back, let them come over your head as you inhale and then to the ceiling. keep those ribs in. Bringing your hands to the ceiling, curl up, chin to the chest. Nose to your navel, send energy out. Pulling the belly back, arms reaching, feet reaching, head reaching, belly pulling back strongly. Curl your tailbone under as you exhale and round down; pulling in. Hold it here. Plug those shoulders back down. Arms reach, then finish with your hands down next to your side. And that is how we do the "Roll Up"."