During Shoulder Bridge on the Pilates Mat many people struggle with the shoulder/arm position. How do you get your hands under your hips? Could your arms be too short or too long? Or is there a possibility to get the flexibility and strength to get your hands under your hips and your shoulders open and strong? There is! This position for the arms really is a gateway to creating strength and possibility for the High Scissors and High Bicycle. In this tutorial, we will cover how to get your body strengthened and stretched to get your hands under your hips and take your practice to the next level.

To place the hands under the hips requires a balance of strength and stretch. The following exercises will help you balance your body's abilities out so that you can get your hands under your hips without feeling it in your wrists or worse not getting them under there at all.

Double Leg Kick: The key with this exercise is to not pinch the shoulder blades together. But to use the upper back to open up the chest. Also, the opening of the front of the hips and thighs will help you create more space.

Shoulder Bridge Marching: Strengthening the back of the legs is key to being able to stand in the muscles and open the front of the hips.

Single Leg Kick: Great for teaching a strong upper back you can stand on and again strengthening the back of the legs and opening the front of the hips.

Make sure you are also standing in your legs and not resting your hips on your wrists. Also, working on looking at the ceiling and not down at your legs will also allow your chest to remain open and allow your weight to stand on your shoulders. The more you can work on balancing your strength and stretch the easier it will be to do the advanced version of Shoulder Bridge and eventually add in High Scissors and Bicycle.