Prop Time: Go to your bathroom for these props!
These props are definitely in your home, and I’ll show you its other purpose for a workout. Grab a hand towel or a bath towel, and a towel bar.
These props give your body and mind feedback to see where you are connected or disconnected. I mean, let’s be real – our body parts may not fully know how to engage and stay engaged during an exercise. So, let’s take some help until our body learns how to do this without props. On the flip side of this, if you tell me you’ve got this, then these props can also add a challenge (read: get you stronger!) to your Pilates mat practice.
There are good foot exercises to do with a Towel. A different approach to footwork!
A towel bar is a great tool for your upper back connection and strength. You can also hold a towel between the hands to replicate a Bar, or for some shoulder stretches. You’ll really feel the work! Try it with the swan prep.
Now, here’s the thing about props. They can be tools to teach, or crutches to be dependent on. Of course, we only want these as tools. So, try a couple of reps with props, and then a couple more reps without, and see if you can do the exercises with the right connections that you learned from the prop.
A final word on props in general. The props allow you to explore, discover, investigate what is missing in your practice, what you need more of or less of in your practice, and to help you find that connection when you don’t have a prop.
No towel or a bar; no problem! I’ve come up with a home substitute. Home substitute: Piece of clothing for a towel, and a dowel or a broomstick for a bar.
Don’t wait for IRL workouts. Come out of lockdown/quarantine stronger than ever! Besides, online is so much fun! And it’s so nice we still get to see each other. Remember what you can from our classes together, and you can practice on your own during the rest of the week.
Join me in a Wed mat + prop class. Check the schedule for the next one with a towel and a bar. Come with yours!