THE SOLUTION TO A SIMPLE, MEANINGFUL, WELL-DESIGNED LIFE /
THE F Ê T E / LIF E PROJECT NO.
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T H E B E N E F I T S O F M O V I N G S L O W LY T H E S A M E WAY E V E RY D AY Welcome to the Fête/Life Project – a collection of helpful, useful and practical articles that can be applied to life at any time, but especially now. Sourced from the many magazines we have released, our message has never been more relevant or needed by our community today… let’s embrace the simple life and treasure what is truly important – human connection, community, self care and pure acts of kindness. SUPPORT WHEN YOU NEED IT MOST /
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TO CARRY THE GEAR / BASE
Big Base in Black $59.90, basesupply.co
health / F I T N E S S
STORY / KIRSTEN KING PHOTOGRAPHS / CAROLINE MCCREDIE
T H E B E N E F I T S O F M OV I N G S LOW LY T H E S A M E WAY E V E R Y D AY People often ask me, what can I do at home between lessons? How many days a week should I be working out? The short answer to these questions is the more the better – something that has taken me some time to feel comfortable with because I was always worried about clients form and would they undo the good work we had done at the studio earlier in the week. But in answer to the first question I have had to create a small basic sequence of moves that can be done daily. These exercises focus on pelvic stability and transverse (internal) abdominal muscles. These exercises can be done at home – with or without the ball. The benefit of the ball is that it encourages the body to move in a way it is unable to without the ball.
CHEST LIFT WITH BALL /
The body begins to flex a little more
START WITH THE BALL JUST ABOVE THE MIDDLE OF YOUR BACK SO YOU FEEL A
forward than before, the torso begins to
DEEP STRETCH AS YOU L AY YOUR BODY BACK AND OVER. SUPPORT YOUR HEAD
rotate a little more to each side, the lower abdominals are able to recruit without the hip flexor and the overall benefit is that the body realises it’s potential sooner and the results are faster. You are basically teaching your body what it can do, the mind realises the body’s ability and then it continues to push it as you continue
AND BACK BY PL ACING YOUR HANDS AT THE BASE OF YOUR SKULL, ALLOWING YOUR HEAD TO FEEL HEAV Y IN YOUR HANDS. INHALE AS YOUR LINE OF SIGHT IS THE CEILING EXHALE AS LIFT YOUR HEAD AND TAKE YOUR LINE OF SIGHT TO STRAIGHT IN FRONT OF YOU. INHALE TO RETURN BACK DOWN. AS YOU CONTINUE THIS MOVEMENT ENSURE YOU CONCENTRATE ON F L AT T E N I N G Y O U R A B S A N D D R A W I N G Y O U R B E L LY B U T T O N A W AY F R O M Y O U R T O P. LEG POSITIONS CAN BE… 1. TWO BENT KNEES. 2. ONE KNEE BENT ON FLOOR AND ONE IN TABLE TOP
on your pilates journey.
3 . O N E L O N G L E G , O N E I N TA B L E T O P.
Remember to always work within your
MAKE 20 REPS YOUR TARGET AND WHATEVER NUMBER YOU GET TO REPEAT THAT
body's capabilities. If something doesn’t feel right, give it a miss. Always stretch the body before and after moving.
NUMBER TWO MORE TIMES. MAKE SURE YOU FEEL NOTHING IN YOUR BACK. MAKE SURE IT'S A SMALL CONTROLLED MOVEMENT. M A K E S U R E Y O U R P E LV I S S TAY S S T I L L .
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health / F I T N E S S
CHEST LIFT WITH LEG EXTENSION AND ROTATION / FOLLOW THE SAME INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE CHEST LIFT WITH ROTATION EXCEPT KEEP THE LEG ON THE GROUND LONG AND JUST OFF THE GROUND. CHEST LIFT WITH ROTATION /
GLUTE OF THE LONG LEG.
S T R E TC H A S YO U L AY YO U R B O DY B A C K A N D O V E R. S U P P O R T YO U R H E A D A N D B A C K
10 REPS EACH SIDE AND REPEAT TWICE.
BY PL ACING YOUR HANDS AT THE BASE OF YOUR SKULL, ALLOWING YOUR HEAD TO FEEL HEAV Y IN YOUR HANDS. INHALE AS YOUR LINE OF SIGHT IS THE CEILING EXHALE AS LIFT YOUR HEAD AND BEGIN TO TAKE YOUR OPPOSITE ELBOW TO KNEE, FINISHING WITH YOUR LINE OF SIGHT BEING THE KNEE. INHALE TO RETURN BACK DOWN. AS YOU CONTINUE THIS MOVEMENT ENSURE YOU CONCENTRATE ON FL AT TENING YOUR ABS AND DRAWING Y O U R B E L LY B U T T O N A W AY F R O M Y O U R T O P. 10 REPS EACH SIDE AND REPEAT TWICE. MAKE SURE YOU ARE MOVING WITH CONTROL. MAKE SURE THERE IS NO TENSION IN YOUR NECK AND BACK. MAKE SURE YOUR CHEST REMAINS OPEN AND YOU ARE REACHING TOWARDS THE KNEE NOT ROLLING ONTO YOUR SHOULDER.
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MAKE SURE YOU ARE SQUEEZING THE
START WITH THE BALL JUST ABOVE THE MIDDLE OF YOUR BACK SO YOU FEEL A DEEP
FETEPRESS.COM.AU / ISSUE NO.27
health / F I T N E S S
CURVE HOLD WITH ROTATION / PL ACE THE BALL ON YOUR KNEES. TAKE YOUR HANDS AND PL ACE THEM AT THE BASE OF YOUR NECK. BRING YOUR ELBOWS FORWARD AND TOGETHER AND YOU PRESS THE BALL INTO THE KNEES. INHALE TO PREPARE AND AS YOU EXHALE KEEP YOUR LEFT ELBOW AND KNEE CONNECTED AS YOU OPEN UP THROUGH YOUR RIGHT SHOULDER AND EXTEND YOUR LEFT LEG. INHALE TO BRING YOURSELF BACK INTO THE C CURVE. EXHALE KEEP YOUR RIGHT ELBOW AND KNEE CONNECTED AS YOU OPEN UP THROUGH YOUR LEFT SHOULDER AND EXTEND YOUR RIGHT LEG. INHALE TO BRING YOURSELF BACK INTO THE C CURVE. REPEAT UP TO 10 TIMES ON EACH SIDE. REPEAT TWO TIMES. MAKE SURE YOU ARE WORKING DEEP INTO YOUR ABDOMINALS. MAKE SURE THERE IS NO BULGING IN THE ABDOMINALS. KEEP PRESSURE ON THE BALL AT ALL TIMES.
CURVE HOLD / PL ACE THE BALL ON YOUR KNEES. TAKE YOUR HANDS AND PL ACE THEM AT THE BASE OF YOUR NECK. BRING YOUR ELBOWS FORWARD AND TOGETHER AND YOU PRESS THE BALL INTO THE KNEES. HOLD THIS POSITION FOR UP TO 20 SECONDS. REST AND THEN RETURN TO THE C CURVE HOLD 5 MORE TIMES.
KIRSTEN KING, DIRECTOR OF FLUIDFORM PIL ATES STUDIO, IS A PASSIONATE ADVOCATE OF THE FUNCTIONAL AND AESTHETIC PHYSICAL CHANGES THAT PIL ATES CAN BRING ABOUT IN THE HUMAN B O DY. KIRSTEN HOLDS A DIPLOMA IN PIL ATES FROM THE AUSTRAL ASIAN PIL ATES METHOD ASSOCIATION AND S T O T T P I L AT E S A N D I S A F U L LY ACCREDITED MEMBER OF THE PIL ATES AUSTRALIAN ALLIANCE. FLUIDFORMPIL ATES.COM.AU
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