Posts Tagged ‘Ab Strength’

5 Quick Pilates Training Tips To Improve Ab Strength and Increase Back Flexibility for the Roll Up Exercise in Pilates Matwork

It seems that many Pilates students struggle with doing a great Roll Up during their Mat workouts. Whether you’re a brand new beginner, or have been doing Pilates for years, coordinating the timing, breath, ab muscles working, and back releasing all at the right time for an easy, smooth Roll Up can be a challenge, but it’s not an impossible task.  Everybody can have a strong & flexible center that easily articulates for a great Roll Up!

If you’re participating in Matwork classes and doing Private or Group Training on the Pilates equipment, there are many  Pilates equipment exercises that can help you find the right muscles and improve your technique to make your Roll Up easier.  But what if you’re only doing Matwork?

Improve Ab Strength for Pilates Mat Exercises and Sit-Ups with the KG Curl

The KG Curl exercises is a wonderful warm-up exercise for any Pilates or fitness workout.  It can really help you learn how to get more bend out of your body to achieve a good curled up position.  The result… more work in your abdominal muscles, and less strain in your neck!

Use the exercise tips on this video to help you improve your ab curl position for Pilates Matwork exercises like the Hundred, Roll Up, Neck Pull, and Teaser.  And at the gym, this easy-to-do KG Curl exercise can help improve your technique for sit-ups on an incline bench,  crunches on a ball, and with all your ab training exercises during aerobics class.

Have Fun Improving your Ab Strength with the KG Curl!

Pilates Core Conditioning – Dr. Suess Exercise Teaching Cue for Ab Workouts

I’m always looking for great new Pilates Teaching cues.  Here’s the one that came to me this week – thanks to a client who had a big number three on the front of her shirt. Good images for cueing can come from anywhere! 

Do you remember reading Dr. Suess as a kid?  One of my favorite stories was the Starbelly Sneetches.  And how wonderful that that star is in the perfect spot to think about pulling the abdominals in for support and Core Control.

Here’s my tribute to the great Dr. Suess from a Pilates perspective!

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