Prop Time: You need 2 of this prop!
It takes two to make a thing go right
It takes two to make it outta sight
Hit it!
I just dated myself with that song lyric!
I dusted off my 1-lb weights, and incorporated it into my Pilates mat practice. You can too!
Weights strengthen and tone muscles in your upper body and core. This can be a game changer because it can be similar to your hands in handles on the reformer or at the tower/wall. For example, it makes teaser on the mat similar to teaser on the reformer. Or you can replicate the arm series at the tower wall while standing on your mat – boxing, open/close, butterfly, and circles.
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.
As you may or may not know, Joseph Pilates created the Pilates mat exercises first. The apparatus came after. The first one he built was the reformer. Did you know the apparatus was built as an aid for the mat exercises? If you can’t do a mat exercise, or if it is especially difficult, then hop on a reformer where you get more feedback, and then hop back to the mat, and try it again to feel a difference.
So, of course, the weights as handles aids in a “reformer on the mat” experience. Try the rowing exercises with weights. I’ll be honest here – a reformer workout on the mat is HARD! You’ll be so thankful the next time you’re on a reformer for all its moving parts, support, and feedback.
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. Ready to buy a set?
No weights; no problem! I’ve come up with a home substitute. Home substitute: 2 water bottles (or bottles of your choice). Soup cans will work too!
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 2 classes that use this prop – either the next mat class with 1-lb weights or the next class called “Reformer on Mat”. Come with your weights or your home substitute.