This month we’re using a Swiss ball (or sliders), medium heavy weights, and a band. Grab your gear and do with me today!
March Five exercises:
- Hip Circles
- Swimming
- Hamstring Curl
- Chest Press
- Hamstring Stretch
Use this 7 minute strength and mobility routine to improve hip mobility, core stability, leg strength, chest strength, and stretch your hamstrings.
This series follows my trademarked R.O.S.S. protocol – Release, Organize, Strengthen, and Stretch for efficient movement and injury prevention.
We start with a slow, Somatics style Hip circle, the “Release” part of our R.O.S.S. protocol. Notice how smooth or sticky this feels. Your goal is to make this easy and listen to your body. No forcing, no pushing, just allowing.
Swimming is our “Organization” move. Think of getting longer as you do this move, reaching out through the top of your head, your tail, and your arms and legs. Please pay close attention to your neck, and low back. If anything starts to feel uncomfortable, or painful, stop, go slower or smaller and see if you can find YOUR pain free range for today.
Ball Hamstring Curl is your first “Strength” move. I’m showing this move on a Swiss ball. You could also rest your heels on sliders, paper plates, or towels on the floor. While we target hamstrings, this is truly a whole body exercise. Keep one long straight line from your shoulder, hip, and knee as you bend your knees and drag your feet towards you.
Chest Press strengthens your chest and shoulders. Listen carefully to my cues about your arm and shoulder position. You should feel wide and stable across your shoulders and upper back. Control your weights on the way down rather than just letting them drop.
Lastly we have Hamstring stretch. Stretching is the last “S” in our R.O.S.S. series. Almost everyone I work with suffers from tight hamstrings. Earlier we worked to strengthen these muscles, now we get to stretch them. Please stop at the point where you feel slight resistance, not pain.
So how do YOU use this program?
- Take yourself thorough this program with me right now following along with me on the video (7 minutes).
- Do this series as a warm up before your next walk, or fitness class.
- Do this video 2-3 days a week as a stand alone strength workout. Spend about a minute doing hip circles and swimming, then pause the video and do 2-3 sets of 8-10 reps of your hamstring curl and chest press. Then start the video back up and spend one minute stretching your hamstrings.
Want to do these moves live with our group of friendly, silly people (and dogs)? Join our Saturday 10 am Barre class on Zoom!
YOU are in charge of you. Please listen to your body and only do the things that make you feel really good. Please see your medical professional prior to starting a new exercise program.