- Difficulty: Intermediate
- Equipment Needed: Reformer (I love using the Contrology Reformer.)
- Reps: 3 sets
- Warning: Not ideal for some low back or shoulder issues.
- Questions: Contact us here
Backstroke into Teaser on the Reformer
Teaser on the Pilates Reformer can be scary and a little tricky when you are first learning it. This is why I love this Backstroke into Teaser combo. It’s great if you can’t roll up into a Teaser with your legs extended and lower than your torso. Or, if you’re working on flowing and want to combine two exercises into one. You will have a slightly different setup for this combo but it’s still a great way to get more comfortable doing Teaser on the Reformer. Which is I feel is one of the easier places to do Teaser compared to the Mat.
Press your whole hand into the handles and roll through our spine.
Only place one heavy spring on instead of two for the Backstroke. Sit close to the edge but not at the edge like you would for Teaser. Handles in your hands and with bent arms over your forehead. Knees into your chest like in Backstroke. Heels together, toes and knees apart and curled up. Essentially, it looks like Backstroke except that it’s one on spring. Make sure you are curled up from your center and not from your neck.
Start by going into your Backstroke. Arms and legs up, circle them around and hold. From there, flip your palms and roll up into a Teaser. Then on round one, you can do the arms lowering and lifting 3x. Roll back into your Backstroke hold and bend into your Backstroke start position. Repeat but add in the arm circles on round 2 and/or the leg circles on round 3. You can repeat the arms up and down if you are new to the exercise. After 3 sets of 3, close your spring and hop off. If you’re using this to prepare yourself for a full Teaser on the Reformer, try to do one more Teaser with your legs long and see how it goes.
Be sure to check out more of my online Pilates Reformer exercises. I want to help you continue your Pilates Reformer training!