How to Practice Footwork with Pilates

Video Transcript

"Hi! I'm Danielle. I'm going to teach Laura footwork on the reformer. This is the foot bar. Right now she's in neutral pelvis, which means that we have a little small grape in the lower lumbar area for shock absorption. We're going to relax the shoulders. Pushing out, all the way out with the feet. Our feet are in the position. Toes are apart, heels together, coming back in. Exhale on the way out tightening the abdominals on the way up, staying in neutral, keeping the shoulders open, and pushing out for 5 more. 5, 4. Using those quadriceps, we're using the hamstrings and the glutes to come back in. 3 and 2, and one more. Exhale on the way out tightening the abdominals, ribcage netted. Come back in and we're going to pulse out to add a little bit of cardio, so we're going to do pulses for 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. Then I'm going to have her go all the way out and we're going to pulse in. We're going to find that point in the glutes that we can really tighten and resist in as we come in keeping the abdominals engaged with each exhale as we blow out through the mouth. Good. All the way out, coming back in, and we're just going to do another footwork position, which will be parallel feet. The toes are lightly racked. We're going to inhale here, get the ribcage netted, our abdominals engaged. Exhale, we're going to push all the way out. We're tracking through the knee caps. Inhale, come back in. We're going to do it for 5, good, come back in, 4, 3, good. Different muscles straight down the quads this time, 2, all the way out tightening the stomach on each exhale. 1, good. Come half way in, pulsing out, 3, 2, 1. Good. We're going to come back on this one just so we can go do a different one. Now we are going to go to heels on the foot bar. Our feet are going to be straight up. A little bit more hamstrings here. Inhale, exhale. She's going to push out and she's going to come back in keeping the feet still and space. 3, good, 2, and 1. Slowly coming back in and relaxing back down."