For excitement of my Ballet recital today, I would love to share with you the workouts of a ballerina. I have watched my body transform in the last 8 months doing these 2-3 times a week.
These workouts are from Ballerina Mary Helen Bowers, who trained Natalie Portman in "Black Swan"
1. Ballet Beautiful Bridge
This exercise targets ballet muscles on the inside and back of the legs and butt to build strong dancer’s legs with lean muscle definition.
1. Lie on your back, knees up, feet on the floor.
2. Pull stomach in flat and close knees together.
3. Lift hips and squeeze tightly through your butt. Then lower hips, not quite touching the mat.
4. Repeat 30 times.
2. Ballet Beautiful Attitude Lifts
Try this exercise to tone muscles in your butt, hamstrings and lower abs. Place a cushion or towel under your knees if exercising on a hard surface.
1. Begin on your hands and knees, and extend one leg high behind you, keeping leg straight.
2. Bend the knee, pulling your stomach in flat.
3. Lift the leg higher, then lower it to hip height.
4. Repeat 30 times with that leg, then switch legs.
3. Ballet Beautiful Push-backs
This weightless exercise tones your arms, shoulders, center and back.
1. Sit up straight. Bend elbows and place hands slightly behind hips.
2. Pull in through the stomach and open the chest.
3. Stretch arms straight behind you, palms up. Then bend them again.
4. Repeat 30 times. Then lift arms slightly higher and do 30 more reps.
4. Ballet Beautiful Dips
1. Sit on the floor, placing your hands just behind hips and feet in front of you with knees bent.
2. Keep your chest open and stomach pulled in flat.
3. Pull in and lift hips and butt off the floor, stretching your elbows. (Advanced move: Go up on your toes, and extend one knee high.)
4. Bend elbows slightly and then straighten them to lower and raise butt and hips (doing a version of a dip).
5. Repeat 30 times.
4. Ballet Beautiful Lifts in Arabesque
An arabesque, one of the most classic ballet steps, works your back, butt and leg muscles.
1. Stand tall. Keep chest open and stomach pulled in.
2. Extend one leg straight behind you, holding on to a chair or wall for support if needed.
3. Lift the extended leg high, pulling in through your stomach, while the knee is stretching straight behind you. Lower it back to the floor and lift again.
4. Repeat 30 times with that leg, then switch legs.
Lesson: Doing these workouts will improve your posture, core, and flatten your tummy!
Share the Love and Spread the Word(:
hay. sapp
"Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself. There is no commandment greater than these.” Mark 12:30-31
Info from www.lifescript.com, Feburary 10, 2011
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