Uh oh, it’s Day 24!

Slider Body Saws and Slow Mermaids. 3 sets of 30sec work/15sec rest

Slider Body Saws:

Get into your elbow plank with feet on sliders, close together. Keep your lower back flat, upper back engaged – feel elbows tucking into your sides. Tighten legs, hips and abs as you move your body as one unit. Inhale on the back-saw motion; exhale on the forward-saw motion. You should move through about 90 degrees of motion in the upper arms and shoulders.

Maintain the head-to-toe line throughout the exercise, do not let your hips sag, especially on the extension. Basically keep checking your legs are strong and glutes are firing. Squeezing your butt will engage your hips and help prevent overarching.

Slow Mermaids:

Stay in the side plank position. You can do this in kneeling position (see previous posts with Mermaids) or take the split stance (top leg goes on top and slightly forward). Feet are on their sides, not on their soles. Extend the free arm upwards, so your chest is open, then for the count of 3 reach with your arm under your torso as far as you can, feel your shoulder blades opening as your back rounds, then for the count of 3 return into the start position – open your chest and reach up.

Remember, we are flat against the wall, whole body is tight, no rushing, no skipping the hard work, focus and control your body. Keeping your legs, bum and whole body tight is harder on your obliques but easier overall, at some point in set 3 if relaxed my legs (thought we are nearly there, abs are on fire, can’t hold straight anymore but would like to keep full side plank till the end) and immediately felt a lot of weight going onto my shoulder! No, no, that’s not the way for any planks.

Remember, even if your are working off the knees in your top position you are flat against the wall fully engaged, including legs and bum and reach underneath your torso as far as your can.

I know I keep going on about engaging the whole body and it’s quite difficult to implement unless you know what feeling you are looking for! Come see me in the gym or pop into one of the classes and we’ll go through together 🙂