Fitness
A pro shares her favorite moves.
Theres a lot more to Pilates than doing endless100son a mat.
Work through some Pilates ring exercises that use the fitness accessory to amp up the resistance.
Often in mat Pilates, we only rely onbodyweight as the resistance.
But the Pilates ring addsmoreresistance and an additional challenge.
Squeezing the ring helps youactivate different muscle groups, often going a bit deeper than standard bodyweight moves.
Here, de Winter shares 7 exercises you could do using a Pilates ring thatll help get you started.
Lie on your back with your feet hip-width apart.
Place the Pilates ring between your thighs, just above the knees.
Gently squeeze the ring so that your knees are a hip-width distance apart.
Then, squeeze the ring more by drawing your inner thighs closer together.
Lift your hips up into a shoulder bridge.
- Repeat 20 times, 2 sets.
Squats With Glute Activation
Do this exercise to activate the glutes, hamstrings, and quads.
- Stand with the feet hip-width apart, hands on hips, and the circle steady in place.
Sit your hips back by bending the knees and lower into a squat.
verify you keep your knees pressing out into the Pilates ring.
Press through your heels to rise back up.
Repeat 15 times, 2 sets.
Lie on your side with your head supported by your arm or a pillow.
Bend your bottom knee and let it relax.
Extend the top leg to straight.
Carefully lift and lower your top leg, keeping the Pilates ring balanced.
Keep your top leg straight and draw small circles with your leg.
- Repeat 20 lifts and 10 circles in each direction, then repeat on the other side.
Tricep Curl Ups
Do these curls toreach the tricep musclesas well as your abs.
- Lie on your back with your knees bent.
Your knees should be above your hips.
Hug your elbows in.
Slowly lower back down.
Lie on your back and place the Pilates ring between your ankles.
Lift your legs into tabletop with knees bent, holding the Pilates ring in place with your ankles.
Interlace your fingers behind your head and curl the upper body off the mat.
Holding that curled position, extend your legs straight out to form a long diagonal position.
Return your legs back to tabletop.
Try not to drop the Pilates ring!
Repeat 10 times, 2 sets.
Supported Push-Ups
This exercisetargets the chest and shouldersto build upper body strength.
Bend your elbows close to the body as you lower your chest toward the mat.
Press through into your hands to lift yourself back up.
The Pilates ring should support you in your push-up.
Hamstring Stretch
Try this deepstretch for the hamstringsat the end of your workout.
Lie on your back with your legs extended out straight.
Extend that leg up to the sky, straightening the knee as much as possible.
Hold this stretch for two minutes, then switch to the other side.
This article was originally published onMarch 30, 2022
