SIT ON THE FLOOR, W IT YOUR ARMS BEHIND YOU FOR SUPPORT AND WITH YOUR KNEES BENT Be sure your shoulders are rolled back and down, your rib cage is strongly anchored, your inner corset is engaged(see Lesson 5), and your neck is well aligned with the spine.
- GRADUALLY LESSEN THE WEIGHT ON YOUR HANDS UNTIL YOU CAN BRING THEM TO YOUR SIDES AND YOUR INNER CORSET FULLY SUPPORTS YOUR BACK Be sure to maintain the alignment in the neck and shoulders.
Another very effective - and fun - way to strengthen your abdominal muscles is to practice the Samba. Refer to page 191 in Lesson 8 to learn the basic dance steps. Then consider taking a class or renting an instructional video. You will learn to move your hips a great deal, motored by action in the legs, while your upper torso remains still or moves with a separate action. Isolating the actions of the upper and lower body challenges the abdominal muscles in complex and constantly changing ways. If you engage your inner corset to lengthen your torso as you twist and undulate, your abdominal muscles will get an even more intense workout.
STRENGTHENING THE DEEP MUSCLES O F THE BACK
When you engage your inner corset, you contract the deep muscles of the back bilaterally(both sides at once). The exercises in this section are particularly effective at isolating these muscles, one side at a time, to strengthen them.
OPPOSITE ARM/LEG STRETCH
BEGIN ON ALL FOURS, WITH YOUR HANDS BENEATH YOUR SHOULDERS AND YOUR KNEES BENEATH YOUR HIPS Engage your abdominal muscles so that your back does not sway. Allow your pelvis to tip forward comfortably. Be sure that your shoulders remain rolled back.
STRAIGHTEN YOUR RIGHT ARM OUT IN FRONT OF YOU AS YOU LIFT AND STRAIGHTEN YOUR LEFT LEG BEHIND YOU. HOLD FOR A FEW SECONDS Maintain your torso position throughout this movement.
REPEAT WITH THE OPPOSITE ARM AND LEG
KEEPING THE HIPS SQUARE, HINGE FORWARD AT THE HIPS AS YOU LIFT YOUR LEFT LEG STRAIGHT BEHIND YOU Do not sway your back. Use your glutenous mediums muscles, not your back, to raise the leg. Use the abdominal to prevent any distortion in the torso.
WHEN YOU ARE BALANCED IN THIS POSITION, RAISE YOUR ARMS OVER YOUR HEAD SO THEY FORM A STRAIGHT LINE WITH YOUR TORSO AND RAISED LEG Your body forms an extended T shape, balanced on the left leg. Bend the left leg to help maintain balance. If necessary, perform this exercise beside a wall or chair that you can use for balance.
HOLD THIS POSITION FOR A FEW SECONDS
REPEAT WITH THE RIGHT LEG ON THE OTHER SIDE