The infamous Hundred

Joseph Pilates had asthma so breathing deeply and exhaling fully became a serious part of his discipline.

The Hundred is thought of as a traditional Pilates mat and reformer abdominal movement, which it is, but it is also a rigorous breathing exercise.

Set your reformer on Light to Medium resistance. Arms in straps.

Your body positioning is important. Your head remains a natural extension of your spine, such that the chin does not tip forward or back as you scoop your abdominals inwards; roll your torso up to the tips of your shoulder blades, lengthening your neck as you extend your arms forward and your legs to 45 degrees or until your lumbar spine is imprinted on the platform. Push the hands away as you pump them up and down, inhaling for 5 counts then exhaling for 5 counts. The platform does not move as you repeat this 10 times. If you lift your legs to 90 degrees it lessens the abdominal load and even more when you bring your legs into the chair position. You can perform the exercise with parallel, externally and internally rotated legs. Noticed the difference.

At first you may only be able to perform 10 counts once but as your abdominals strengthen you will eventually be able to repeat the 5 breaths in - 5 breaths out pattern 10 times.

As in yogic breath work, you can experiment with different patterns, eg. 3 breaths in and 7 breaths out. You can beat the legs crossing your feet, always encouraging more lift of the torso, lowering of the legs and extension of the arms.

Be sure to inhale deeply and exhale fully to expel stale air.

If you have cervical neck issues please leave the head down.

written by Marjolein Brugman

Marjolein Brugman is the founder of lighterliving and Aeropilates. “lighterliving is a movement and lifestyle choice we can all make. Let’s make it simple – make one decision a day to be better and watch the small steps lead to big changes. Eat smart, stay active, and you’ll live to feel a lighter life."