Back extensions appear regularly in a Pilates class - this is essentially where you lie on your front and lift your upper back so you bring your head and chest up (working within your own range of motion).
Back extensions are super important as they help to strengthen the muscles in the back of the body and can help increase our ability to co-ordinate movement through the lower back.
If you sit in a hunched over position all day, you might find these moves tough at first as we are asking the body to move in the opposite direction to where we spend most of our time. Genetics can also affect your ability to do this move - if you have little mobility in your back, you might not be able to lift up very high. And that's okay!
Keep up with your practice even if you find back extensions difficult. The benefits of back extensions are:
Strength building
Increased endurance
Improved posture
Pain prevention
Flexibility
The spine moves in all different directions (not just hunching forward!) and we need to keep the spine healthy and keep it moving. The beauty of back extensions (together with a lot of other Pilates moves) is that modifications / adaptations can be provided as required to make the move easier or more challenging.
Move Better. Feel Better.
See you on the mats.
Kelly
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