Thank you.
Hi, I'm Jennifer Crease.
Welcome to the All-in-One Workout, where you're going to experience a new dimension in total
physical conditioning.
All-in-One combines precision toning movements and techniques from dance, yoga, and aerobic
fitness with the work of Joseph Pilates into one complete workout.
You'll learn how to use your body as an integrated whole.
No high impact, no heavy weights, no chest press machines.
You'll use your body through opposition, learning to rely on your center, defying gravity, defying
age.
You'll become aware of your body's capabilities, strength and endurance, suppleness and flexibility.
Each exercise we do will be a technical challenge, yet simple to learn and easy to master.
The program is divided into three main segments.
In the warm-up, led by dancer and teacher Lakey Evans, you'll start by conditioning
and firming each major muscle group.
In the cross-training segment, fitness specialist Alexander McKechnie alternates aerobic dance
and jazz movements with precision sculpting techniques that will firm your muscles without
creating bulk.
Then we'll cool down with method precision toning exercises that will target your abdominal
area and lengthen your muscles.
I'll be working with you in that segment.
Here's your opportunity to experience the best of the method.
Dance, aerobics and techniques inspired by the work of Joseph Pilates, a sampler for
the new millennium in fitness.
Let's begin.
Hi, I'm Lakey Evans and welcome to our warm-up session.
This program is designed to strengthen and center the body through dance movement, abdominal
work and method precision toning.
We're going to start in a parallel second position.
Your legs are right underneath your pelvic bones, hip width apart, your toes are pointing
forward.
You want to make sure that your abdominals are lifted, shoulders are down and your head
and neck are long.
We're going to rise with the arms.
Four counts.
Five, six, seven, eight.
One, breathing in, three, four.
Now press down, six, seven, eight, again, inhale and exhale, press.
Breathing in, reach to the ceiling, now press, last time.
Reaching up and down, we're going to roll the shoulders back.
Four counts, one, two, big circles, again, one, two, three.
Now reverse, going forward, two, three, four, five, six, moving on to head isolations, looking
side, center, side, center, side, center.
You're going to take the ear towards the shoulder and up, and up, we're going to do small head
circles.
Side, front, side, and up, again, side, front, side, reverse, side, front, side, up, last
time.
The arms are coming up again, breathing up, two, three, four, just press down and relax.
We breathe up again, and this time keep your arms up there, reaching five, six, we're going
to do a double pulse, reaching one, two, alternating, five, six, now we're going to press down four
counts, this time adding a plie, your arms are going to reach up and come through.
Let's repeat, we pulse, one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, press down, four
counts, bending the knees, coming up, now we're going to do single alternations with
the arms, reach, reach, reach, press down, two counts, up two counts, again, we go reach,
reach, good, pressing down, twice more, and really reach for the ceiling, elongate the
sides of the body, and press, and up, last time, reach, reach, pressing down, and up,
and let the arms just open, we're going to take a slightly wider stance, taking this
arm up, we're going to curve over to the side, and then take it front, your knees are slightly
bent, here we go, five, six, seven, eight, curving one, two, three, four, everything
comes forward, your back is round, now you're going to reach out to the other side, four
counts, good, coming up, five, six, seven, now we'll reverse, four counts, curving forward,
dropping your pelvis down towards the ground, so long stretch in your back, coming up, let's
repeat this again in four counts, here we go, one, two, three, four, drop your head,
curving, reaching out, four counts, really elongating this, and come up, last time, one,
two, three, four, forward, reaching side, and come up, let's try it in two counts, a
little faster, we go, one, two, exhale and round, reaching out, and come up, lengthen,
over, and round, reaching out, and up, again, we do over, two, round, reach, and up, last
time, over, round, you're going to keep your arms in second, and take two pulses to the
front, you're going to curve your back, now press and open, curve, press and open, really
round your rib cage in, last time, curve and open, good, just for a moment I'm going to
go on to the next exercise, we're going to be taking a flat back over, and I really want
you to think about coming over on the tops of your toes, and we're really trying to keep
this right here flat, as opposed to having it round, yes, so we really want to make this
shape perpendicular to the floor, four counts we're going to go over, here we go, six, seven,
eight, over, one, two, three, four, now you're going to bend your knees and just release
down to the floor, touching the floor, slowly straighten your legs, and roll up from the
base of your spine, uncurling, four, over, one, two, three, four, now release, everything
drops towards the floor, slowly straighten the legs, good, now uncurl, five, six, seven,
eight, again, over, and two, and three, and four, and we drop and come in and relax, straighten
the legs, rolling up, your head is the last thing to come up right in time to go over,
and release, straighten the legs, and roll up, five, six, seven, and eight, good, we're
going to come together to a parallel first position and warm up the feet, we're going
to be pushing up to the metatarsal, twice with this leg, twice with this leg, here we
go, five, six, seven, pressing up, up and down, up and down, other leg, good, and again
you want to keep the weight forward off your feet, good, now we're going to brush the foot
forward twice, here we go, pointing it out, in, out, in, other foot, good, back to the
metatarsal, warming the feet, press and up, press and press and down, press, again we
go press, press, good, this time we're going to take the leg side, keeping the knee coming
forward, out and in, out and close, out and in, let's do this whole series from the beginning,
press and down, press and down, other leg, again we go press, down, press and down, now
brushing forward, trying to really work on the articulation of the front of your ankles,
yes, to the metatarsal, press, last time, and press, your abdominals are still in, we're
holding on, and you're very stable on your legs, out to the side, here we go, sliding
out and close, out and close, out and close, out and close, good, now we want to take your
weight just slowly, just a little bit back on your heels, and turn out into a very natural
first position, this is very grounded, your thighs are spiraling down into the floor,
and you have an opposition from your weight going down and your torso coming up, we really
here don't want to sink into our lower back, we want to keep our abdominals in, we're going
to take our arms out and we're going to brush forward with the leg, keeping this turnout,
here we go, we brush out, now flex the foot back, point and close to the side, flex, point,
now go to the back, back, flex, point, close, always coming back to that first position,
let's try the other leg, point and flex that foot back, really bringing your toes back
up towards the ceiling, good, to the back, point, flex, point and close, point, flex,
point, close, this time I want you to tendu out, we're going to reach over, then we're
going to curve, we're coming to a turned out second position, we reach other side, and
we come up, yes here we go, 7, 8, reach, 4 counts, 2, 3, 4, we plie, 2, 3, 4, out, just
like we did in the other exercise, and come up, closing first, good, other way, we go
1, 2, 3, 4, curving, now you really want to let, you want to keep this in line, you don't
want to let it sway out towards the back, and up, let's try it in 2 counts, here we
go, breathing 1, 2, making big circles, reaching out, and coming up, good, over 1, 2, curve,
and reach, and rest, good, we're going to tendu out, and place our foot down, we're
in a turned out second position, and we're going to do grand plies, follow along, down
1, 2, 3, up and down, as if we had a pole behind us, yes, so we don't want to come,
let our torso go forward, come down to where it's very comfortable for you, again, 1, 2,
3, 4, up, 6, last time, down, breathing, always breathing, and up, good, now we're going to
come down to the plie, you're going to pivot and have your knee drop down towards the floor,
and put both your arms above your knee, and we're going to stretch, lengthening that heel
back towards the ground, good, now gently just walk your hands down, and put them on
either side of your leg, and you can slowly let your leg slide to the back, if your knee
is bent, you may want to start like this, and slowly elongate, yes, now bring the leg
in, slide in, and flex this front foot, and you can either have your hands here above
your knee, or if you feel like you have enough stretch, and put your hands on the floor,
and we'll stay here for a moment, 5, 6, now let's take the arms up, and breathe over,
exhale, back to that position, good, and we're flexing the foot back, stretching this out,
and let's come up back to our second position forward, plie, we'll do the other side, turn
that in, dropping that straight down, this knee is going over the toe, and we rest, elongating
the heel towards the floor, walking the hands down, you can place them on either side of
your leg, and slowly just until you feel a small stretch in the front of your pelvis
here, as time goes on, you'll more limber, and slowly bring the leg in, and really flex
that foot back, and just stay and breathe, feel your muscles are working and engaged,
reaching up, and coming over, exhale, and we stay, okay, coming up to our second position
again, we're going to invert the knee and release over, here we go, 4 counts, releasing,
1, 2, both knees are bent, now you're going to curve up, and let's do this again, release,
2, 3, 4, and we're going to go right to the other side, here we go, turning this knee
in, release, 2, 3, 4, up, good, again, release, now let's take it half time to the other side,
2 counts, release, 1, 2, good, up, 2, really letting the back curve and undulate, other
side, 1, 2, up, 1, 2, once more, we do 1, 2, good, up, and release, and exhale, inhale,
exhale, let's take it 4 times to the front, release, in 2 counts, and up, release, and
roll up, release, and roll up, last time, okay, I hope you're getting warm, we're going
to do some small torso and hip isolations, just taking the torso right, left, you can
bend your knees a little, yes, we have the drums, and your hips start to move in opposition,
good, now let the arms float up, and they just gently, elbows, ever so slightly are
moving, good, let's take this walking forward, we do 1, 2, 3, now back, 1, small steps, good,
again forward, 1, 2, 3, 4, and back, now we're going to step side, arms are down, we step
side, together, side, tap, other side, good, let's add the arms, we go side, together,
side, and side, together, this time we're going to develop even more, we're going to
lean to the side, pull out that way, good, side, let's go back to coming forward with
the hips, 1, 2, 3, 4, back, now let's go to the side, adding on, here we go, 1, 2, 3,
4, reach, again to the side, and reach, side, and reach, again forward, 1, 2, really let
those hips go, and to the side, swing those arms, reach out to the side, good, if you'd
like you can bring your leg up from the floor, side, and pull, and side, last time, coming
forward, here we go, 1, 2, really go low into the ground, yes, to the side, we go 1, 2,
reach, and 1, 2, reach, last time, side, and reach, side, and reach, and just finish, good,
okay we're done with the warm up, if you'd like to take a minute and grab your weights
we'll be going on to our next segment which is cross training with Alex.
Hello I'm Alexandra McKechnie and welcome to our cross training segment, this workout
will alternate dance movements and techniques with method precision sculpting, the dance
based segments introduce you to movements that concentrate on using the torso to fold
and expand the body while simultaneously toning and awakening all your muscles, the method
precision sculpting segments use light weights about 3 to 5 pounds and the force of gravity
to effectively and safely define and strengthen your muscles without bulking you up, you may
find some of our exercises a bit challenging at first but with some practice and a focus
on the quality and the feel of the movement I know you'll get where you want to be, let's
begin, starting out with a nice easy march, very straight forward, dominoes in, head and
chest are open and tall, we're going to start with one leg nice and easy, tapping it in
and out, march and place 3 counts, let's do it on the other side, in and out, good, let's
pick up the tempo now, same thing, in out, good, we're going to change the feet just
a little bit, just tuck it back, ball change, that's it, you got it, let's add the arms
now, in and out, just keep a nice strong frame in front of the body, you got it, that's it,
let's do it, but keep moving forward now, let's take it up just a little bit, get used
to moving, that's it, and we're going to start to move back, in out, sink the weight into
the floor, feel the knees bend, that's it, you got it, let's march it out nice and strong,
big cleansing breath, we're going to lift the first knee 4 times, lifting 3, 2, now
lift it up and stretch, other side, 3, good, let's start to add the arms, lift up, let's
do it again, up, good, that's it, big stretch, up, and 3, 2, good, we're going to march out
right here, big cleansing breath, let's put those 2 pieces together, little nice and easy,
in out, step back, good, let's lift the leg, for 3, good, that's it, good, nice big breath,
here we go, and it's in, out, that's it, you got it, good, pick the knee up for 3, 2, good,
big breath, inhale, do it again, that's it, starting out with the knee now, 3, that's
it, up, good, and in, that's it, let's lift the leg last time, 3, 2, lift the knee here,
let's march it out, big cleansing breath, one more time, last piece of the combination,
we're lunging to the side, side and 2 here, in contract, that's it, reach, reach, pull
the elbows into the stomach, 1 on here and for 2, good, that's it, do it again, reach,
reaching a little further back, using the abdominal muscles, this is the last time,
let's march it in together, right here, big cleansing breath, exhale, one more time, big
cleansing breath, good, from the very very beginning, let's do it, inside, good, let's
lift that first knee, for 3 and 2 and 1, be good, let's go, in and out, good, let's lift
the other knee now, 3, 2, good, big breath, let's lunge it, take it single, beautiful,
for 2, that's it, alright, let's march it out one more time, big cleansing breath, let's
start from the beginning, here we go, in out, and good, let's lift that knee, for 3, nice
and strong, arms up, yes, in, good, lift it up, 2, good, and lift it, go, lunge it for
single, and 2, contract, elbows into the stomach, let's do those lunges one more time, really
feel that leg, push the weight into the floor, drawing the arms up to the ceiling, let's
march it out right here, big cleansing breath, and exhale down, one more time, we're gonna
get ready for our weight segment now, good, we need about 3 to 5 pound weight, make sure
that you get a drink of water if you need to, let's go, picking up those weights, good,
bending the knees, come on back to your position, once again your heels are together, you're
gonna rock your weight back, turn the toes comfortably to the side, squeeze the torso
in, squeeze your gluteal muscles and your shoulders come back, turning the palms over,
take a nice big scoop, reach to the ceiling and bring it back down again, feel how nice
and smooth that feels, exhale up, we're gonna hold it up here, elbows just above the shoulders,
contract the biceps and extend, nice and controlled, exhale and inhale comfortably, we exhale
as we contract, good, still keeping the shoulders open and relaxed, good, that's it, the abdominals
are in, your glutes are strong, your head pulls to the ceiling, let's do about 3 more,
notice we're using gravity here, the weights might feel a little heavier than you might
normally be used to, let's do one more, in, good, let's do one more for good luck, that's
it, alright, let's bring the elbows right back to the waist, you're gonna rotate the
hands back to the torso, palms face each other, pull the shoulders back and once again reach
forward, nice and strong like you're rowing back, good, hold it right here, still with
that strong tripod stance, press the hands to the back of the room, drop the shoulders,
we're gonna pull the hands to the shoulders, pressing it back, pull the hands to the shoulders
and press back, good, nice and tight, squeeze it in, head draws to the ceiling, good, keep
the shoulders away from the ears, relax the neck, good, pull it in and stretch and squeeze,
that's it, and stretch, shoulders relaxed, whole body is active although we're focusing
on the backs of the arms, this is still a total body workout, let's do 3 more, and press
and squeeze, feel all the muscles in the arms working together, long and lean, let's do
last one, good, and press back, very nice, hands to the side of the body, return the
feet to parallel and take a comfortable sideways stance, you wanna bend the knees, take the
body weight forward, make sure that your feet feel comfortably secure into the floor, with
a nice strong back, dominoes still pulled into the back, relax the hands towards the
floor, roll the shoulders down and back, from here we pull the elbows to the ceiling and
let them control down to the floor, pull back, make sure the breathing is comfortable, exhale,
nice and controlled, good, excellent, pull back, and breathe, nice even tempo, try not
to strain the neck, you don't wanna be thrusting the chin up, keep the chin tucked down towards
the body, maintaining the integrity of your spine, let's do 4 more, squeeze tight, you
don't wanna create tension, muscle control, good, let's do 2 more, squeeze, good, last
one now, squeeze back, and beautiful, let's return the hands to your thighs, rolling up
to the spine, nice and easy, relax the shoulders, we're gonna place our hand weights down, move
on to our next segment, we're gonna start out with a nice easy march in place, the same
way we did before, let's take a big cleansing breath and start with lifting the knees, we're
gonna lift up, take it to the side, up and place it down, up to the side, good, let's
do that one more time, you're using the hip flexors, abdominals are in, sink into the
floor, very good, let's try it, sink and lift, let's pick up the tempo now, we're gonna lift
up and side, up and place, sink into the floor, let's start to let the arms go with it and
we're gonna start to move forward, just lift and press, lift and press, nice easy steps,
good, and let's start to travel back, same thing, just feel the music, sink into the
floor, use your shoulders, let's do that same thing one more time, lift and press, get some
attitude into it, good, keeping the torso strong, let's start to travel back, up and
press, good, up and press, again, nice job, alright, let's hold it, march it out here,
take a big breath, good, we're gonna turn to an angle, nice strong walk out, we're gonna
place the feet apart and back in, walk backwards, same thing to the center, apart, center, tap,
walk, good, feet apart, center, walking it back, feet apart again, back to another angle,
walk it forward, use the arms, lift and wrap, we're gonna walk back again, center up and
down, take it forward, now walk it back and round the back, one more time, reach, let's
take another walk, sweep that foot, good, reach it up, a little bigger now, roll it,
good, and up, one more time, this time, leg it real big, good, and bring it back, good,
up and march in place right here, big breath, take it from the very beginning all together,
here we go, up and press, and walk up, good job, shoulders open, good, let's travel back
now, up and press, sink into the floor, use those inner thighs, good, let's take a little
walk, here we go, march out, take it up, stretch, now wrap and roll back, that's it, stretch,
let's take it over to the other side, walk it down, reach, and good, roll, good, let's
take it from the very beginning, one more time, reach, press, good, get it up, going
a little bit more, press, yes, let's take it back now, press, good, up and reach, feel
the backs of the arms working now, let's take another walk, here we go, big breath, good,
and reach it up, up, now wrap and pull it back, working in opposition, good, little
swing through on that leg, walking and stretch, and rolling forward, let's go from the beginning
one more time, here we go, up and press, good, up and press, up and press, last time, taking
it back, up and press, use those triceps, very nice, take a walk, here we go, walk strong,
reach out, wrap the body and curl back, center, little kick and go, swing it down, reach,
and wrap it back, good, and march it out right here, big cleansing breath, and exhale, very
nice, you got the feel of it that time, excellent, one more big breath, inhale, and exhale,
alright, last time, we're gonna start to move on to our next segment once again using the
weights, pick up those same weights you just had again, 3 to 5 pounds, make sure you bend
your knees supporting your back as you pick the weights up, very nice, okay, feet together
once again rocking the weight back into the heels, just open the toes, tip your tailbone
towards the floor, stabilize your stomach, pin that belly button right up against the
back, with the weights in each hand, roll the shoulders back, take a big breath in,
and as you exhale, press the weights out to the center, about shoulder height, taking
it down right back to the thighs, that's all we're gonna do, reaching straight to the center,
good, and good, take it down, we're gonna pick up the tempo, the speed, just a little
bit, up, and press down, up, good, we're working the anterior deltoids, that's the shoulder
muscle, that's really in front of the chest, up, good, and press, nice and strong, squeeze
the glutes, working in opposition once again, you're pressing the energy out through the
fists, press it into the floor and out to the wall, press again, good, make sure your
breathing is even, control the weight, good, let's do one more, press, and beautiful, okay,
this time we're gonna do what we call a curly Q, same feet position, you're just gonna circle,
circle, circle, hold up, and circle, circle, circle, press it back, good, circle, little
circle, like a little curly Q, open the arms, circle, good, good, and pull, pressing, circle,
circle, circle, up, inhale, exhale, good, and press back, and circle, circle, look up
and stabilize the neck, don't let the chin throw back too far, pressing back, still pressing
the heels into the floor, we're gonna start to increase the intensity of this movement
if you'd like, you're feeling a little crazy today, just lift up on those heels, good,
squeeze the glutes, squeeze the inner thigh and lower down, but stay in control, if this
is too much for you that's okay, you can always try it next time, roll down, good, how about
two more, press, two, lift, and exhale down, last time, good, little circle, lift and breathe,
and down, very nice, okay, hands by your sides, just drop the shoulders down and back, make
sure your neck is long, we're gonna do a side bend, let's bend one arm up to the shoulder,
reaching straight up, and reach to the side, make sure that you're pulling your stomach
into your back, and come on down back to the center, reach the arm down to the shoulder
and down back, let's do the other side, up, press it up, reach to the side, and come on
back, good, straight down, this is almost like a hammer curl, using nice slow movements,
feel all the muscles in your body, you're still pressing your heels into the floor and
bring it up using the obliques and down to the shoulder, press it back, good, other arm
is up, stretch up, and reach, lift the face, not too far, don't strain the neck, good,
and reach, press it up, take it to the side, center, and good, last one, take it up, press,
go press the heels into the floor, torso is long, down, let's do one more just to be balanced,
here we go, lift, and press straight up, control the weight, good, nice long stretch, down,
and beautiful, okay, that was great, let's turn our feet in parallel, opening is a little
wider so you feel very secure and very balanced, once again we're gonna bend at the hips, feel
free to bend the knees just a little bit, you're reaching one arm forward, palm to the
floor, other arm back, palm to the ceiling, you're just gonna switch, and switch, and
switch, this is called the swimmer, you're balanced on your feet, your head is neutral,
feel all the muscles in the backs of the arms, this is quite a challenging exercise, make
sure the abdominals are in, you're using all the muscles in your body, I don't think there's
one that's allowed to rest here, make sure your breathing is even, good, if you stretch
those arms in opposition, you'll get the most out of this exercise, good, really stretch
the energy in opposition, take a big rubber band, and pull it apart, let's do four more
of these, make sure the head is neutral, focus is on the floor, good, last one everybody,
stretch, stretch, stretch, and bring it back to the center, hands to your thighs, rolling
up easy, realign the shoulders, that was a great workout, let's place our weights down
and get ready for our next dance segment, this next segment gets a lot more active,
we begin with a position we call the warrior, we'll pull back to one side, nice and strong,
working in powerful opposition, from here we pull back, nice and strong, and return
to the center, hold strong, pulling forward and back, good, let's do that same thing again,
nice and strong, good, don't be afraid to lunge into the body, good, let's do the same
thing, let's just pick up the tempo, we pull back, center, let's do that again, that was
great, pull into it, that's it, from here we scoop from the bottom, pull to the top,
hold up, side, good, let's do that one more time, scoop it up, side, from here we'll do
this ball change from the first combination four times, let's lift the legs to the side,
lift three, two, close tight, march in place, big cleansing breath, let's start from the
beginning, warrior, here we go, pull back, that's it, one more time, same thing, pull
strong, work those arms, good, center, scoop, reach, side, good, ball change right here
for four, good, that's it, let's lift those legs to the side, lift it up, that's so good,
let's march in place, one big breath, let's move on from here, we walk to the side and
touch and turn, touch and turn, one more time, let's scoop it back, for four, three, that's
it, march in place, big cleansing breath, same thing, one more time, walk, walk, and
lift the leg as you turn, we're gonna start to use some arms, gradually increase the intensity,
go back for four, same thing, let's go right into it now, pick up the intensity with an
arm and a leg, sweep the arms to the ceiling, that's it, let's scoop it back now for four,
we'll do that one more time, here we go, this time lift a knee and an arm, that's it, just
lift and hold, that's right, lift and hold, let's scoop back for four, three, we're gonna
march it out right here, big cleansing breath, good, we're gonna do one more, we'll take
the entire thing from the very beginning, starting with the warrior, we'll pull back,
and that's it, stretch, one more time, we'll be leaning back, scoop from the bottom, big
up, side, pull, here we go, step ball change for four, let the arms go with it, let's lift
the legs for three, two, good, closing in, walk, up, up, all done, lift, up on the ball
of the foot, that's it, use the arms, let's scoop it back for four, good, right into the
warrior, here we go, no breaks this time, picking up that intensity one more time, lean
into the back leg, scoop from the bottom, up, side, that's it, step ball change, let
the arms go, that's it, now lift the legs for three, let the arms go, close and walk,
lift the arms, up, let it go, up, you got it, that's it, and scoop it out, four, that's
it, let's do it one more time, pull back, that's it, good, nice strong arms, one more
time, pull, yes, scoop from the bottom, here we go, lift it up, stretch, that's it, step
ball change for four, let the arms go, let's lift the legs now, press, yes, and here we
go, take a walk, lift up on the ball, lift it up, and up, good, let's scoop it back for
four, yes, and march it out, very nice, and exhale, one more, big breath, up, outstanding,
let's get those weights, one more weight training segment, make sure your head stays up as you
pick those weights up, keep breathing deeply, nice job, okay, shoulders back, abdominals
in, once again let's resume that strong torso position, let's take one foot in front of
the other, pull the torso underneath you, you're gonna come down, lifting the arms in
front of you, rotate the arms, pull the weights into the body, and come on up, let's do it
again, scoop forward, rotate the wrists, little tight bicep curl, press it down, very nice,
scoop the body, rotate the wrists, curl it up, and down, let's do it again, press, do
the floor, that's it, rotate, pull, and down, very nice, scoop, do the floor, rotate, feel
all the muscles in the arms working together, that's it, here we go, scoop, and rotate,
very specific movements, and down, keeping the elbows close to the body, maintain control,
maintain your center of balance, let's do one more on the same leg, scoop, and rotate,
pull in, and lower the legs, let's switch feet, good, here we go, same thing, rotate
the palms, let's lift it up, rotate the wrists, pull into the body, and take it up, that's
it, scoop it forward, make sure that your weight feels balanced in between your feet,
good, press the heel into the floor, press, and turn, and scoop, and back, good, and press,
and rotate, and in, that's great, let's do two more, press, and down, and in, lower down,
nice and controlled, I know it's getting heavy, but you're doing great, pull it in, that's
great, let's bring the feet together, very nice, once again, your weight is back on your
heels, you're gonna just open the feet in that same tripod stance, pull the torso underneath
you, abdominals in, shoulders down, big breath, exhale, rotate the palms up, you're gonna
take the arms in a similar position, right in front of the body, these are called right
angle curls, and just open up parallel to the floor, try not to let the elbows lock
out, you always wanna keep nice flowing energy through the arms, make sure the stomach is
tight, you're squeezing your gluteal muscles, squeezing your inner thighs, heels press into
the floor, that's good, keep the back nice and tall, neck is as relaxed as possible,
still keeping the elbows just about shoulder height, very good, let's do two more, make
sure your breathing is even, last one, that's it, beautiful, okay, take the weight down
by the waist, parallel feet, and separate, we're gonna do what we call a superset, placing
both weights in the same hand, one hand goes to your thigh, and you're gonna do a very
small rotation, tipping forward at the waist, making sure once again that you're not rounding
your back, but you're pulling your abdominals into your back to create a nice straight line
from shoulder to hip, reaching down to the floor, neck is long, you pull back from the
elbow and press back down to the floor, nice and strong and controlled in each direction,
good, make sure that your breathing is nice and even and deep, feel the lungs, good, make
sure that your body weight is evenly distributed between your two feet, your hand is at the
top of your thigh, just support the back, pull strong, and good, last one, and up, good,
let's take it over to the other side, coming center, and let's go, nice flat back, pressing
down to the floor, and good, pull back, strong energy in each direction, this is not just
one way, do it both ways, get the most out of your movement, get the most out of your
time invested with us, pull back, make sure those abdominals are in, your neck is long,
your head is relaxed, you're not straining your chin, press to the floor, pull back with
the shoulder, good, and press, and pull back, this is the last one, and push, good job,
let's roll up and let's take it one more time to the first side, really give yourselves
a good workout today, so we press down, and pull up, and press down, still feeling the
stomach, pressing into the back, nice and relaxed in the shoulder, take this all in
the back, press, and pull, keep the energy flowing smoothly, and press, working in opposition
in each direction, push and pull, with the same energy, using gravity to our advantage
for once, press, and pull, let's do one more, push, and pull, beautiful, let's switch sides,
this is the last time, stay with us, here we go, push down to the floor, pull straight
up, good, push, that's it, and push, abs are in, body check, weight is evenly distributed,
back feels supported and strong, your torso is long, from the top of your head to your
tailbone, you're stretching, and push strong, and pull, very good, now get a nice full range
of motion, work through the movement, let's do two more, press, and pull, last time, push,
and excellent, okay, let's come back to the center, one weight in each hand, once again
we're going to reestablish our position, we're going to turn our toes out into second position,
nice soft knees, once again pull the torso underneath you, abdominals in, shoulders are
down and back, we're going to work what we call the middle head of the deltoid, we're
going to lift the arms to the side, and squeeze into the center, take it back to the side,
and press it down, now we're going to work this with a small plie, and it's up, and plie,
and beautiful, now if you find it a little too challenging to coordinate both the arms
and the legs at the same time, just try the arms for today, and next time you can try
with the legs, squeeze, make sure that you feel relaxed in the neck, and press, don't
create any unnecessary tension in the shoulders, that's it, press, and flatten down, nice strong
movements, keep the energy going through the elbows, and press the heels into the floor,
squeeze the inner thighs, and press, once again you notice that you should be feeling
this pretty much in every muscle in the body, all the way down to your feet, they're working
to keep you balanced, this is the last one, and you are done, roll the shoulders back,
take a big breath in, feel real good about yourself, let's get ready for our final dance
segment, this next segment really concentrates on the expansion and contraction of the torso,
let's go, take it to the side, and scoop it up, use the inner thigh, expand and contract,
good, let's do that one more time, really use the arms, and sculpt it in, good, feet
together, we're gonna take a plie to the side, swing it low, through, reach and stretch,
and take it down, good, go as deep as you comfortably can, down, through, good, and
stretch, and beautiful, swing through, let's pick up the tempo, taking it down, through,
down, let's pick up the intensity, just start to lift the leg, squeeze the glutes, really
reach for the walls, that's it, last two like this, squeeze, we're gonna move on to a syncopated
movement, up, reach, now pull back, stretch, and around, that's it, pull back, reach, and
down, reach for the wall, pull back, that's it, up, this is the last time, let's bring
the feet in together, let's take a big breath, and exhale, working on some placement of the
hips, we're gonna lift the knee, drop into the floor, take the foot in a little circle,
and close, let's do it together, press it in, take it down, circle, good, let's pick
up the tempo, here we go, let's try the other leg, it's up, press, circle, and again, up,
press into the floor, circle, and in, up, press, let's go back to our first leg, now
if you're feeling a little more adventurous, you can keep that leg off the floor, make
sure that your body stays strong, and your hips stay front, that's it, this will be the
last time, up, good, we're gonna work into the floor a little bit more, let's lunge
front, press to the side, and press back, and back to the side, let's work the other
leg, adding some arms, we're gonna pick up the intensity, we're gonna scoop, and wrap
the arms to the ceiling, let's go again, we scoop, wrap the arms around the body, scoop
front, wrap it up to the ceiling, let's try the other leg, scoop forwards, wrap around
the body, drop it back and scoop, wrap up top, let's do that one more time, really scoop,
press to the floor, wrap the body, press it back, wrap up top, last time, switch feet,
scoop it front, wrap, dramatic, wrap, press, good, that's beautiful, let's hold it right
here, we'll step to the side, back, we're gonna walk forward, four times, four, three,
little mambo to the front, well mambo, one, we're gonna wrap to the side, wrap it strong,
let's take that whole thing from the beginning, with the shoulder, side, good, let's walk
it back, four, three, two, mambo to the back, good, it's just a step to the side, we wrap,
let's do that whole thing one more time, we step with the shoulder, and come back to center,
walk towards me, that's it, let's see a little mambo, and take it hip, beautiful, the other
side, wrap to the side, wrap, that's it, from the top, one more time, shoulder, press, that's
it, walking back, four, three, use the inner thigh, mambo to the back, back, that's it,
wrap inside, that's it, and good, nice and easy, just step to the side, let me just see
the shoulders, really press it forward, that's it, and shoulder, let's stay here, big rest,
and exhale, one more time, big circle, up, and exhale, congratulations, you've just completed
the final dance segment, let's get ready to do our final weight training segment.
We're gonna take a seat on the floor for this particular segment, please be careful in how
you get down, remember that you've just been working out, and you wanna maintain the nice
position of your body, your legs are stretched out nice and strong in front of you, your
feet are flexed, the energy going out through the heels, once again your abdominals are
tucked into your spine, shoulders back, and your chest is open, we're gonna take the weights
in each hand, palms facing the floor, let's tuck those elbows in, bring the elbows up
to the shoulders, from here, stretch those arms up, press it down to the sides of the
knees, lift it all the way up a little bit further, and take it around to the side, we're
gonna do the entire thing from the beginning, elbows right to the hips, stretch it up, down
to the floor, still pressing through the heels, abdominals tight, that's good, let's bring
it in, and reach, arms pressed to the floor, and press, still keeping the energy flowing
through the arms in every direction, good, bring the arms in, press it up, arms pressed
down, keeping the back nice and tall, heels driving out in front of you, that's good,
let's do it again, bring it in, stretch the energy to the ceiling, press, nice tall back,
reach a little further, up, good, make sure that you feel balanced on your sitz bones,
good, bring it in, press it up to the floor, bring it all the way up a little bit further,
try not to arch, that's great, okay, let's hold it right here, we're gonna bring our
feet into our body, still keeping the body nice and tall, you're gonna rock forward
just a little bit, you don't wanna throw your weight forward, you just wanna feel comfortably
balanced, you're gonna bring your arms overhead, bending in the elbows, graze the weights just
behind the head, and extending up, feel free to just relax the shoulders, still keeping
the abdominals in tight, and your focus is really on the floor, once again you're gonna
need to listen to what my directions, instead of watching, drop the shoulders, concentrate
on you, this is your time, abdominals are still in, feeling relaxed in the neck, long
extension in the back, there's a tremendous distance between your tailbone and your head,
nice and strong and slow, make sure you breathe evenly, keeping that belly button into the
back, that's it, breathe, good, that's nice, keep it smooth, good, and down, this will
be the last one, we're stretching up and down, very nice, let's bring the weights back down
by their sides onto the floor, once again we're gonna extend those legs, and really
press those heels into the floor and drive it out, if you really get that energy going,
you can lift your heels just a little bit off the floor, we're sitting up tall, bring
the fists into the sternum, and this time we're gonna flip the wrists so that the backs
of the hands are facing your body, pulling this abdomen in, drop the shoulders, from
here start to lean back just a little bit, take the arms out into a nice strong iron
cross, from here we bring the weight forward, hands come by your feet, wrists rotate, face
your feet, and roll it up through the spine, let's do that again, weights in, backs of
the hands to the body, stomach in, roll back to a comfortable position, feel the arms expand,
good, bring it forward, drop the head weight, arms come by the feet, let's bring it in,
hands in, taking it back, extend the arms, bring it forward, drop the head weight, abdominals
in, beautiful, let's pull it back, palms in and flip them over, roll it back, and extend
those arms, bring it forward, drop the head, hands by the feet, rolling back, hands in,
still keeping the energy going out through the legs, nice strong powerful legs, let the
wingspan come in, round by the feet, roll it through, hands in and flip, roll back,
and take the arms out, and in, good, roll it through, let's pull it back, and center,
flip the hands, rolling back, working at your own level, remember there's always tomorrow,
you don't have to save the world today, just feel the movement, still nice strong active
legs, pull back, open the arms, roll forward, that's beautiful, let's do one more, roll
it in, let's see, nice and strong, flip the hands, roll back, take it wide, roll forward,
pull it in and just hold this one, hold the stretch, placing the weights on the floor,
take your hands to your thighs, drop the head, let the head weight pull you down to a final
deep stretch, rolling up gently through the torso, the head is the last thing up, vertebrae
by vertebrae, resume that nice strong posture, drive the heels out, once again, congratulations,
you have just completed our interval weight training segment, great job.
Hello and welcome to Centering.
The exercises that you're about to learn are the product of a perfect balance between yoga
and method precision toning.
As you move through the upcoming series, you'll strengthen the body as you lengthen it, increasing
suppleness and flexibility with the fewest concentrated movements.
Every exercise we're going to do emanates from the center and will help you to create
the strongest abdominals and a healthy back.
Let's start by talking about abdominal control and breathing.
First find a comfortable sitting position, bringing one heel into the center of the body
followed by the other and lean forward so that you can really find that tall base.
Reach your arms so that they're draping lightly over your knees, take a nice deep breath in
through the nose and exhale through the mouth.
And again, breathe in through the nose and exhale through the mouth, let's do that one
more time, inhale, exhale through the mouth.
Now while you're doing this, you really want to bring the focus towards your abdominals
so when you exhale, you want to bring the navel to the spine.
It's very much like a balloon when it expands, you lift, as the balloon exhales or contracts,
you exhale and contract with that same movement.
So watch, you inhale and exhale, drawing the navel to the spine, again, inhale, lift and
exhale, really focus on the stomach and bring the navel to the spine, bringing the focus
inward.
Let's do two more of those, inhale, lift, feeling the head spiraling up to the ceiling
like a barbershop pole and exhale, one more time, inhale and exhale, good.
Now as we move through the following series, you're going to want to keep that same sense
in mind of lifting the navel to the spine so that you can maintain the integrity of
your spine, laying it flat against the mat.
I think we're ready to begin, let's turn sideways, holding on behind your legs, you're
going to scoop your stomach down, you're going to roll down one vertebrae at a time until
you're completely flat on the mat.
We're going to start off by doing an exercise called dipping the foot in the pool, so bring
both knees into the chest and remember that navel to spine alignment as you proceed, pull
the stomach in and you're going to lower the right foot towards the floor, very slowly
and carefully, barely making it and then pull the knee back into the chest, so you're never
going to arch the back off the mat, that's an incorrect position, you really want to
honor the natural alignment of your spine throughout this series.
Let's try it again, lower the right foot towards the floor and just before your foot touches
the mat you're going to exhale and pull that knee back into the chest.
Let's do the same thing on the left, here we go, lower the left foot down, inhaling,
and as you exhale, scoop that side of the stomach in.
Let's do it again, inhale, lower the left foot down and exhale, bring that knee into
the chest.
Alright, now that was relatively simple and now we're going to add a greater challenge,
we're going to do the same exercise lowering both feet to the floor.
Now keep in mind you may not make it down to the mat with your feet while keeping the
back consistently flat, but do your best.
Pull the stomach in and lower your feet, really bringing the focus towards your body, you're
thinking about your stomach and your back.
Now just when you reach this point where you feel your abdominals really working and your
back flat, you're then going to bring the knees back into the chest.
So that angle where the feet were is where you're going to work for the next series.
Let's do that one more time, breathe in, lower the feet towards the mat, now really anchor
your stomach into the back and then exhale, pull the knees in.
Beautiful.
Alright, I think we're ready.
Lower the feet towards the mat, squeeze your knees together, bring your ankles together
so that they're perfectly aligned because we're working on symmetry and balance in this
series and then reach your arms overhead.
We're going to start with an exercise called the roll up.
Take a deep breath in, exhale, bring the fingertips to the ceiling, chin to the chest and peel
your body off the mat, reaching the arms up.
Inhale here and exhale, roll down one vertebrae at a time.
If you had trouble with that one, I'm going to give you a modified version for the next
one.
Watch.
Inhale and exhale.
Come up as high as you can and then hold on behind your legs and assist yourself in lifting
up.
Breathe in and exhale.
You're also allowed to hold on on the way down as well.
If you get stronger, you'll be able to take your hands away.
Altogether, here we go.
And then exhale, carefully lifting the body, squeeze the inner thighs together and reach.
Inhale and exhale.
Feel like someone's pulling your fingertips away from you, so we're using the principles
of opposition as well.
Nice stretch.
Inhale and exhale.
Squeeze the inner thighs together and reach, but don't lift your shoulders, press them
down.
Inhale, exhale, rolling down and arms go overhead.
Inhale, exhale, peel the body off the mat, reach up nice and tall.
Exhale, roll down slowly.
One final time.
Here we go.
Deep, full breath in, exhale as you come up with control.
Squeeze those knees together, exhale, rolling down and arms go overhead.
All right.
So sweep the arms around, pull the right knee into the chest, holding on behind the knee
and bring your head up so that you're trying to touch your knee to your nose.
Extend the left foot out and here we go.
Pull, pull and switch.
The breathing is an alternated type of breathing.
It's a little tricky at first, but you'll pick it up, I have no doubt.
So we go.
Inhale and inhale and exhale and exhale.
Increasing lung capacity in and in and exhale, exhale.
One more set.
Really focus on lengthening your legs away from your body last time.
Great.
Bring your knees in and lower your head down.
Turn your head side to side to release the muscles in the neck and we're gonna move on.
Lift the upper body one more time and now extend the arms to the ears and stretch the
legs out, maintaining that flat back.
Eyes on the stomach, circle the arms, hug the knees to the chest.
Here we go.
Reach, reach and circle, pull and extend, hold, circle, pull.
Make sure that your back is flat.
If it's not, that may mean that your legs should come a little bit higher.
Two more.
Hold it, reach those arms and X, last time and X.
Release the head down and turn the head side to side just to relax the neck.
Extend the right leg up and the left leg shoots straight out down the center of your body.
Hold on wherever it's most comfortable for you and Alex will be demonstrating a modified
version holding on behind the thigh.
We go pulse and switch.
Long, beautiful legs and reach.
Again, inhale, same breathing as before, inhale and X, X again and inhale, in and X and lengthening
those muscles.
One more set, in and exhale and X.
Wonderful.
Bring both knees into the chest, relax the head weight, turn it side to side.
When you first start to do these exercises, your neck may get tired, but as you build
abdominal strength, that too shall pass.
All right, bring your hands behind your neck and head and curl your upper body up.
Extend your right leg up to the ceiling and lift your upper body even higher.
Maintain the flat back once again.
Here we go.
Stretch the leg out, up, hold it.
So in essence, you're putting on the brakes with your stomach.
Make sure you stop that leg just at center and reach, reach up, hold it again and reach
and hold.
Stretch that foot one more time, hold, let's bend this knee and stretch up with the left
leg.
Here we go.
Reach it out, up, hold, don't let that upper body sink, keep it strong, up, hold it and
direct the focus towards your legs, lengthening them and reach, up, pull one more time and
out, up, hold, bend your knee in, stretch the body out.
Let's do a nice big stretch, flex the feet, arms go overhead.
Instead of arching here, let's work on concentrating with the abdominals.
Pull them down, still honoring the integrity of your spine, the natural curve.
Breathe in and exhale.
One more time, breathe in, exhale and now let's go back to that same position, hands
behind the neck and head, bring both knees into the chest and we're going to do the crisscross.
Bring your right elbow to your left knee and shoot that right leg out on an angle.
We switch and hold, switch, hold, switch, hold it and hold, nice.
Let me reach your eyes way behind you, we're working the internal and the external obliques
in addition and reach, and reach, two more times and hold it and hold, all right.
Hug your knees into your chest, feet flat, now we're going to do one of those roll ups
as a transition, breathe in, exhale, peeling the body off the mat and extending the legs
in front.
All right, let's stretch the arms in front of us, make sure that you're sitting nice
and tall and if you're in front of a mirror you can actually take a look and make sure
that you're not sitting behind the legs or in front, right smack in the middle.
We breathe in, flexing the feet and lengthening the legs and then scoop the stomach down,
chin on the chest and feel like you're reaching over a big beach ball, inhaling up through
the spine, the head continues to spiral up to the ceiling, exhale, the stomach goes first,
chin on the chest, reach forward, inhale up, so gradually you're going to be stretching
your hamstrings, inhale, exhale, reach and reach, again, inhaling up and exhale, if you
can each time take it a little bit further, again and inhaling up and exhale, let's stay
down this time, hold on to your feet or your shins and drop your head weight for three
breaths, stay down, nice deep breaths, make sure you'll notice that their heads are completely
relaxing into the mat, the legs are active, the feet are flexed, let's hold it for three
breaths, slowly uncurl through the spine, sitting up taller than ever, becoming even
more aware of the abdominals, bring your legs together, bring your arms together, scoot
forward on your mat and roll down with control, at this point you should be becoming expert
at this exercise, alright, bend your elbows in, bring the knees into that classic position
that you're already familiar with and we're going to do something called coordination,
take a look, press the arms and the legs out, hold, open the legs and then squeeze the legs
together with resistance, bend your knees to your forehead and bend your elbows, so
self-imposed isometric resistance, here we go, press out and open and squeeze, bend in
and again press it out and open, your eyes should be on your stomach, nowhere else and
in again and press and open and squeeze, bend your elbows in again and press it down and
open and stretch it, one more time, here we go and reach, open together and rest, okay,
stretch it out, really stretch the fingertips, you should be feeling warmer now and let's
do a roll up again with bent knees, fingertips come up to the ceiling, if you need to don't
hesitate to hold on to the legs to get up, let's face front and try the saw, your legs
are extended slightly wider than shoulder width, make sure you're lifting up in perfect
posture, feet flexed, legs engaged and arms nice and long, this exercise focuses primarily
on the breathing and the abdominals, take a look, inhale, twisting the body, exhale
contract, chin on the chest and saw off the baby toe, make sure not to lift off that opposite
hip but stay rooted and square, watch again, inhale up, twist the body, exhale contract
and reach past the baby toe, inhale up and hold, we're ready, pull the stomach in, flex
the feet and off we go, breathe in and twist, lift the chin, exhale, reach, reach, come
center and lift, twist, exhale, extend and reach, again, use the stomach to lift the
spine and twist, exhale and reach, again, inhale, hold your breath, exhale, reach, hold,
let's say we do two more, inhale, twist, exhale, reach, stretch the arm behind you, inhale
up and twist, exhale, reach and reach and reach, beautiful job, sit up nice and tall,
I want you to hold this position for a minute, squeeze the buttocks, extend the arms, feel
this wonderful wingspan, lift the chin and the chest, bring the arms and the legs together,
shake them out and we're going to proceed with two more exercises, back to that same
position, roll down with control, try it without your arms this time and hands go down by your
sides, right leg up and squeeze it to the height of the left bent knee and the arms
go overhead, this is called the teaser, inhale, exhale, coming up if you're a beginner you'll
be here, if you get stronger you're intermediate, advanced you're all the way up and Lisa will
be demonstrating beginner throughout, roll down and reach, here we go, inhale, exhale,
coming up and hold it, rolling down, one vertebrae at a time, resist, resist, you're defying
gravity, inhale, exhale, feel the stomach pulling into the back, reach it up and exhale
as you roll down, let's do it one more time, here we go, inhale, exhale, coming up and
reach, reach, hold it up there, here's a trick, bend the knee and switch to the other side,
roll down and we're ready to go to the left side, here we go, breathe in and exhale and
left, roll it down, keep reaching in opposition, arms go overhead, two more, inhale, exhale,
coming up, remember that metaphor of the balloon, if you pop a balloon it deflates, use that
principle as you work through these exercises to help you to breathe and engage the abdominals,
inhale, exhale, softening balloon, roll down, let's do one more for good luck on this side,
here we go, inhale, exhale, reach it up, hold it, bend the knee and roll down, hug the knees
to the chest, just rock side to side so that you're massaging your low back and we're going
to finish with a double leg teaser, both legs are up, the arms are overhead, now lower the
legs down to that point of control that we used with the dipping the foot in the pool
exercise earlier, we're just doing the same thing with straight legs basically, arms overhead,
lower the feet down, inhale and exhale, coming up, so if you're a beginner, watch Lisa, as
you get stronger you climb up and reach to a fully extended position, hold your legs
there and then roll away from the legs and arms go overhead, here we go, inhale and exhale,
scoop it up, hold it, roll down one vertebrae at a time, keep reaching, inhale, exhale,
scoop it up and lift with control, hold it, roll it down one more time, here we go, inhale,
exhale, coming up, hold, roll it down slowly, keep reaching those legs in opposition and
hug the knees to the chest, how'd you do, stretch the legs out long, flex the feet,
inhale, exhale, one more time, breathe in, exhale, hug the knees into the chest and I'd
like to do that one again, stretch the legs up, let's build some muscular stamina, lower
the legs, arms overhead, here we go, inhale, exhale, coming up, keep reaching, you get
stuck, keep moving, roll slowly down and over, again, inhale, exhale, coming up, keep reaching,
slowly roll down and last time, inhale and exhale, scoop the body and reach, slowly roll
down, pull those knees in and rest, very good, stretch the legs out, nice deep breath in,
hug the right knee into the chest, hold it in there, stretch that right leg up to the
ceiling, holding on behind the ankle, just a very gentle hamstring stretch, pulling it
towards the body, on the exhalation, pull the leg a little bit closer towards the body,
bend it in and send it down, let's do that on the left, left knee in, relax the leg in
the hip socket, extend that leg up to the ceiling, holding on wherever it's most comfortable
for you, pulling it back, breathing in, exhale, listen to the voice of your own body, don't
pull the leg past your limit, hug the knee in, send it out, bend both knees, let's do
one more roll up, climbing up and on your hands and knees, let's do the child's pose
that we can soften the lower back and relax after all that hard work, reach your arms
in front of you, head down, active fingertips, breathing, exhale, bring the arms behind you
and let the palms just face up to the ceiling and relax the head weight into the mat, let's
stay there for three breath cycles, softening the low back and relaxing into the weight,
two more breaths, exhale, last one and in and exhale, coming back onto your heels, use
your stomach to uncurl through the spine one vertebrae at a time and let's turn back around
so that we're sitting down, alright now I'd like to introduce this very special piece
of equipment to you which is called the method toning bar and with it we're going to tone
the abdominals even deeper and create a greater challenge for you, with this bar as well we're
going to elongate the body and stretch into all those muscles that you find tighter and
pleasant, we're going to open them up, let's face this way yet again, bend the knees, now
you know these exercises we're just adding the method toning bar to increase the challenge,
reach the arms in front, use the stomach and now roll down one vertebrae at a time, now
this bar that we're using weighs three pounds but you at home can use a broomstick or a
mop stick, it's up to you, it's very simple, it'll keep the arms a little wider than shoulder
length and provide you with that resistance you need to work those upper abdominal muscles,
here we go, inhale, exhale, arms to the ceiling, chin to the chest, peel the body off and reach,
you see we're working slightly different muscles here, breathe in, exhale and I feel like someone's
pulling the bar away from you as you roll down through your spine, spinal imprinting,
it's a wonderful massage for the back, again inhale, exhale, coming up and reach it, inhale,
exhale, pulse, you're resisting and supporting the bar with your upper body, arms overhead,
we're just gonna do this two more times, inhale and exhale, coming up, inhale, exhale, scoop,
last time, inhale and exhale, coming up and reach, roll it slowly down, now we're gonna
add a new exercise, extend both legs, we've practiced it several times already, flex the
feet, pull the navel to the spine, arms come up, chin to the chest, now peel the body off,
it's a little harder at first and reach the bar here or in front of you as you get more
flexible and bend the elbows to pull the head down, rolling back, direct the energy towards
the feet and flex the feet, make the legs active and the arms go overhead, let's do
that again, inhale and exhale, bring the bar in front of you, now scoop the stomach in
with control and reach the bar forward, Lisa will be demonstrating the beginner version
as the rest of us go beyond, roll slowly back, one vertebrae at a time and arms keep reaching,
twice more everybody, inhale, exhale, reach beyond, chin to the chest, rolling back and
arms go overhead, one more time, inhale and exhale and reach it, roll it back and bring
the right knee into the chest, now this is a little creative, bring the bar in front
of the arch of your right foot and release your head weight back, now in this stretch
you're actually stretching out your left leg as well, the hip flexor and psoas, pull
the knee in, now you can stay here if you like, this is a stretch in and of itself but
if you'd like to go further you can extend the leg up or even straighten it, we're going
to hold here for a few and then we're going to go even further than this, take a deep
breath in and exhale, so you're actually pulling the bar towards you as you push the leg up
towards the ceiling, you're using reciprocal innervation, diametric opposition, you're
stretching your own muscles the way someone else would if they were helping you, breathe
in, exhale, now if you want to go a step beyond that bend the knee in and take the bar just
behind the back of the calf where it's comfortable for you and you're going to pull that leg
towards you with a straight leg, flex both feet for a deeper stretch, take a deep breath
in and exhale, lift the chin to the chest and try to bring the forehead to the shin,
now this may look a little extreme for some of you but it's very safe and it's something
that you can achieve at home, so keep breathing and listen to your body, stretch gently, roll
the bar down, bend the knee and we're going to switch to the other side, so stretch the
right leg out, bring the left knee in, the arch of the left foot is pressing onto the
bar, your head is released down, we're going to stay here for a minute and just stretch
in this position, feels wonderful, pull your stomach in and breathe, feel the stomach sinking
down to the floor and now stretch that leg a little bit higher pulling the knee towards
the shoulder, extend the leg up to the ceiling, breathing deeply, exhale, pulling the bar
towards you as you push the heel towards the ceiling, opposition, so each exercise you're
doing in this series is helping you to defy gravity and reverse the aging process, bend
that knee and we're going to go a step beyond on the left, we have to balance it out with
the right, extend that leg up to the ceiling, pull the leg towards you, flex both feet and
exhale coming up, one more deep breath in and exhale, let the bar roll down the calf,
bend the knee, slide it out from underneath you and extend the legs, let's do a roll up
to sit up, we're going to do the spine stretch forward, coming up, sitting up nice and tall
to the position we did before, arms in front of you, make sure that you're sitting comfortably
on your mat, engage your legs, breathe in tall, exhale, contract and reach, now Lisa
again will be demonstrating the beginner version with the bar in front of the feet, the rest
of us are going to go a bit further, inhaling up through the spine, perfect alignment, not
behind, not in front, remember, exhale, contract and reach, inhaling up through the spine one
vertebrae at a time, exhale, contract and reach, last time inhaling up, this time we're
going to stay down and stretch, exhale, bring the bar in front of your arches and now bend
your knees, I'm sorry bend your elbows, drop your head weight down and continue to breathe,
what we don't want to do is bend the knees, keep the legs stretched as you bend your elbows
for resistance, drop your head weight, full generous breaths, exhale, extend the arms,
then curl through the spine, sitting up nice and tall, bring your legs together and we're
going to do some teasers with the method toning bar, roll down through the spine, bend the
knees, let's do the one with the one leg extended, the arms are overhead, here we go, breathe,
inhale, exhale, coming up with the bar, really reach it up, slowly roll down, stomach in
and arms go overhead, again, inhale, exhale, peel the body off the mat, reach up as tall
as you can and slowly roll it down, I think we have one more to do on this side, inhale,
exhale, stay up there, bend the knee, stretch the left leg up and we roll down on the other
side, inhale, growing even longer and taller, exhale, coming up, slowly roll it down and
arms overhead, again, inhale and exhale, coming up nice and tall, reach it, slowly roll down
one vertebrae at a time, this is your last one, make it good, inhale, exhale, peel the
body off and reach it, bend that knee, roll down one vertebrae at a time, alright, now
this is the piece de la resistance, the most difficult, most challenging, most wonderful
one, teaser with two legs, stretch the legs up, lower them down to that point of control,
inhale and exhale, coming up to here if you're a beginner, to here if you're intermediate
and here if you're advanced, slowly roll down, arms overhead, inhale, exhale, work with control,
be perseverant, really reach up, determined, roll down slowly, one more time, inhale, exhale,
coming up, reach up, reach up, keep going, keep going, hold it, slowly roll down and
arms go overhead, beautiful, alright, bring the bar in front of your feet, this is a wonderful
exercise to soften the low back and let your legs open slightly, pull the bar in towards
your chest, as the legs go in towards your chest, breathe in and exhale, so this is very
much like child's pose, the exercise where we were curled over in a little ball but we're
doing it on our backs instead, breathe in, exhale and now extend the legs up to the ceiling
and walk them closer to one another, try to press your tailbone into the floor as you
extend your heels towards the ceiling, breathe in deeply and exhale, this should feel wonderful
on your low back, especially if you suffer from many low back conditions, bring your
feet together and also if you're not that flexible in your hamstrings you can soften
your knees and as you become more flexible stretch them out, let's hold here for a few
breaths everybody, breathing in and exhale, inhale and exhale and one more time, breathe
in, exhale, now let's remove the stick but keep the legs where they are, just lower the
bar down, keep reaching the legs to the ceiling, arms down by your side, stomach in, energy
through the heels and now soften the knees into the chest, reach the arms overhead, breathe
in, exhale, peel the body off the mat and let's finish with some stretches, open the
legs as wide as you feel comfortable, flex your feet, you can remain in this position
the way Lisa is and also Lakey or you can go beyond, either way I'd like you to listen
to your body once again, flex your feet, lengthen your legs and we're going to work by using
active palms, inhale and exhale, feel the body opening up, feel the rhythm of your breathing,
the rhythm of your movement, keep advancing the fingertips forward, uncurl through the
spine sitting up one vertebrae at a time and let's finish with an active potted palm, the
way we started, going back to our roots, sitting up nice and tall, feel like a tall tree reaching
up to the ceiling or the sky and now reach your arms to the sides of the body, breathe
in, let the focus go up and then exhale, press the arms down to the sides of the body and
as you do this your head will be spiraling up even taller creating length and strength
in the center, again, breathe in and exhale, reach, one more deep breath in, exhale, congratulations
you've just finished centering, and press, and press, and press, four more times we go,
one, a two, a three, a four, roll ups, one, two, three, and a one, two, three, let's reverse
it, up, and then up, that's enough isolation, we go one, center, and up, we'll take it down
to the side, double time, this is too fast, and up, up, up, up, up, up, up, up, up, up,
up, up, up.