If you have a floor (or a bed), you’ve got to try the exercise I’ll show you in today’s video.
At least once a day, I stop whatever I’m doing to practice this move, especially when I feel any kind of achiness creeping in—like the ache from sitting at the computer or standing for a long time prepping food in the kitchen.
It’s a super quick and effective way to reset your body for suppleness and ease and keep you from getting locked up in the positions you spend the most time in.
On the surface, it may look so simple it’s hard to believe how beneficial this movement is.
In reality, it’s a complex exercise comprising a bunch of smaller movements that are packed with benefits for your whole body—especially your upper back, shoulders, and spine.
I thread this move throughout ALL the mat classes I teach, in person and online, as often as possible because it moves your body in much-needed ways and feels terrific too!
After you check it out and give it a try, I’d love to know how it feels for you. You can tell me in the comments below.
All stretched out,
Sydney
P.S. If you want more simple and effective ways to move your body, so you can keep doing the things in your life you love with more freedom and ease, make sure to check out the Pilates Tonic Online (PTO) membership.
PTO is packed with strategies to help you feel stronger, more flexible, and free—no matter how old you are.
And some upgrades are in the works to make PTO an even more powerful, effective, and easy tool to use.
The PTO membership currently costs $79 a month.
(The price is going up soon, but the fantastic thing about signing up now is that you get to keep whatever the price is when you sign up, and, as long as you remain a member, that price will never change for you, even when the price increases!)
Every month, PTO members receive the following:
- Two live Zoom classes + the class recording (so you never have to worry about missing a class)
- Two new movement videos
- The Membership Journey: a roadmap for alignment success so you get more out of every other exercise you do
- Unlimited access to the PTO video library
- Weekly emails
2 Responses
Hi Sydney, thanks for all your great information and videos. I love this site
I can’t keep my arms straight all the way back to the floor. Before my arms reach my ears , my elbows start to bend. And if i try to keep my elbows straight and push/force my arms back, its very tight around my shoulder. I’ve been trying to figure this out for a long time. Help!! 🙂
Hi Beth, thanks for sharing! Practicing this exercise with an incline under your head, neck, and shoulders will allow you to get to the tight spots in your shoulders you miss when laying flat on the ground. Over time and practicing this exercise regularly, will help you create more mobility in your shoulders. (There’s value in practicing this one both with and without the incline.)
And definitely check out the new Shoulder Class video that came out this week in PTO! It’s full of exercises that will help enhance shoulder mobility. 🙂