I happen to be MAD about both The Roll Up and The Roll Over.

What a pair!

The first thing I have to say is

1. Don't be in a hurry.

Yes, it's the third exercise, but you may do Pilates for a while (even a long while) before you do it.

And that's okay.

Just like other challenging exercises where you must lift yourself off the Mat, The Roll Over improves over time and requires a strong foundation in many of the other exercises.

Please notice that I use the word ‘lift.'

2. Lift vs. Fold

Lift: to raise to a higher level

very different from

Heave: haul (a heavy thing) with great effort

No snark here, your lower body is a large proportion of your total body weight.

Fling: move or push suddenly or violently

Throw: push or force violently and suddenly into a particular physical position.

Easy on the violence, babe…

What about our other contender?

Fold: bend over on itself so that one part covers another

That's not it either, right?

Let's take a look at the difference…

LIFT!

versus…

Folded…what. is. going. on?

This is when the whole Contrology thing really comes in handy. You must strive for control. Now.

 3. A Starting Point

You may have seen students and teachers perform this exercise, their feet reaching all the way to the floor behind them. While yes, if you can reach the floor, you should, I did this exercise for more than a year before my feet got anywhere near the mat behind me.

It's the quality of the journey on the way back there that counts.

You will cultivate the important skills necessary to complete the exercise safely and effectively. Moreover,

Just because your feet don't reach the floor doesn't mean you're not doing the exercise.

Where will you find your very first lifting skills in your Pilates Mat workout?

Roll Like a Ball! Look at that lift!

Spoiler Alert: Now in the Roll Over you just have to get the lift without momentum…

Remember, if you are just beginning to work on this exercise, today's goal may not be to touch your feet to the floor over your head.

Today's goal is control. Check back tomorrow, but I'm pretty sure the goal will remain unchanged.

Just so we're clear.

At the risk of giving this exercise tool a fancy name, I like to call this ‘Tiny Roll-Over'. It's packed with just the essentials and plenty of lift. You may find it to be helpful as you work on the Corkscrew as well.

1. Keep your legs at 90 degrees and lock them together at the heels, inner thighs and buttocks.
2. Aim for the ceiling and lift just the tailbone and maybe a couple lower vertebrae off the mat.
3. Hover. Show off your fabulous willpower over your body. Open the Legs. Did you wiggle?
4. SLOWLY, lengthen down back onto the mat. Zip the legs together again.
5. Repeat 3x each direction.

See how you do. You may find this version to be equally as challenging as the full Roll Over, so I urge all you feet-reaching-the-floor-folk to try it as well.

Share your successes in a comment below.