What if I can't sit up straight with legs extended?
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What if I Can't Sit Up Straight With Legs Extended?
Many Pilates exercises begin sitting upright with straight legs and a straight spine (e.g., Saw, Spine Twist, Open Leg Rocker).
If either the back of your legs (hamstrings), hips, or low back is tight, you may have a hard time getting into this position.
Since the focus of Pilates is always the Powerhouse, try for a straight spine first rather than straight legs. By practicing pilates consistently, tightness in these areas should improve, making it easier to extend the legs when sitting.
How do I train myself to sit up straight?
To more easily sit up straight, you can bend the knees or elevate your hips by sitting on a firm pillow, yoga block or stack of books. Another option is to bring your back against a wall to gain support and body awareness for sitting up straight. Body awareness will also help as this increases your ability to ‘correct’ your posture or form.Remember, it is always better to modify an exercise than to push through the exercise with bad form.
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Zombina |
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Katie C |
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Gia Calhoun |
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Katie ~ We have many classes that focus on stretching that may help you. Here is a list of all of our stretch classes. You can filter them even further depending on what equipment you have access to. I hope this helps!
6 years ago
Thanks Gia! I'll check those out! I think I need to get better at using the filters on search :)
6 years ago
Really useful for me - though I've been practising pilates for a couple of years now, I still can't seem to sit up straight if I'm stretching my legs. I don't know what's wrong with me, but it's always nice to remember that the most important part is the sitting up straight... the streched legs will have to wait!
6 years ago
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