[upbeat music]
- What's up, I'm Dr. Liz Letchford.
- And I'm coach Paul Wright.
- And today is the first of a six part series
dedicated to helping you find your optimal core.
Today's all about foundation.
So we're gonna be doing movements like Dead Bugs,
and Side Planks, and Superhero Holds,
and a quick little workshop to help you find
your ideal core activation.
You're here because you wanna improve the way you move.
So let's bring that mindset even into this warmup.
Big inhale, arms reach up,
and hinge at your hips, bend forward, dust off your shoes,
'cause we're about to get into something funky.
Slowly reach up, big inhale and exhale, come on down.
Ooh, feels good to move.
Now, hands on your hips.
This is how you find your optimal core.
I'm gonna teach you a little trick.
So as you're standing here,
we've gotta feel the core in 360 degrees.
How do you do that?
First, imagine you've gotta go to the bathroom really bad.
You imagining it?
- Absolutely. - Gotta go.
Now you can't go right now, so hold it, right?
Are you holding it?
- Hold it, firm
We're all holding you holding it. You're holding it?
Now, now that you're holding it, imagine you've got,
you've got a zip up, a really tight pair of pants.
So we're getting,
we're getting the bottom part of your core.
That's going to keep your hips stable.
So feel really strong and stable in those hips.
Next stand tall and big, exhale, ah,
those three things, that's going to help you find your
optimal core. How's it feel? It feels stable?
- I feel good, I think I found it.
- Feels strong.
Now let's take that stable core. So hold the pee,
zip up the pants, exhale.
And let's do that big reach again.
Now coming from a place of a strong center,
exhale hinge at your hips.
Keep that core strong, dust off those shoes. Big inhale.
Last one.
Ooh. It feels different.
Letting that strength come from your center rather than
reaching up with your hands.
Bend at the elbows and reach up tall.
Keeping that same strong core.
Now a big mistake that I see is as soon as you reach up,
that core will become disconnected, right?
So we'll see a lot of this happening,
but not in this foundations class.
Keep that rib cage strong. As you reached up tall,
that way your shoulders have something strong to attach to.
Now meet me on all fours.
So we've focused on how this core creates a strong
foundation for the shoulders.
Let's talk about how the core creates a strong foundation
for the hips. So now in this all fours position,
find that strong core. Hold your pee, tight pants, exhale.
Feel strong.
Now the challenge is going to come from kicking one leg back
and not allowing that spine to move.
So freeze here with your leg kicked back.
How you doing Paul?
- I'm looking good, feeling good.
- You feel that butt cheeks squeezing?
- Absolutely, it's on fire.
Oh yeah. Bring it back in and switch sides.
So start with your strong foundation. We're taking it slow.
We're doing things differently today.
Taking things slow, unwinding.
Think of this as your laboratory. Bring that knee down.
Let's alternate kickback, and knee comes back.
Last one, kick that leg back.
I want you to feel that that hip can be strong because
you're attaching it to a strong core.
Now let's step back into a plank. Feet step back.
Hands are directly underneath those shoulders.
If you need to modify,
Paul's going to show you how you can do a plank with your
knee down, both knees down.
Oh yeah.
Now as you're here, push the ground away.
You're owning this place.
Get into that mentality of turning whatever room you're in
right now into a laboratory.
Push your toes into the ground.
Lift your kneecaps, squeeze your legs together.
Imagine you have a belt on.
And that belt buckle is tucking to your chin and then push
your hands through the floor.
We're here.
We're getting warmer, using this plank to light up every
muscle in the body and come on down.
Woo. You feeling warm?
That's on purpose.
So take that mindset to this next round of three different
rounds.
We're going to focus on feeling that strong core,
and I'm gonna remind you every step of the way.
First movement is a Dead Bug.
Meet me on your back.
It's time to try something new.
So you're not approaching this the same way that you would
any other core workout.
Tune in, bring legs to tabletop, hands push into your knees.
Now see if you can keep your hands and knees connected
and push them into each other without moving.
Woo, feel how strong your core feels?
Keep that same strong core as you start to
extend one leg out and back, one leg out and back.
Now, if you want to advance this move, go ahead,
and Paul's going to show you opposite arm,
opposite leg lift.
The goal is to notice the shape that your low back is taking
with the mat.
Try and keep that shape the same as you continuously extend
long. Pause here at the top. Ooh. A little break.
If you need a modify. What you can do is just,
I'm going to show you the modification,
bending that knee down. So just tapping your toes down.
That's going to shorten this lever arm and allow for a lot
of activation at the core.
Gorgeous, relax.
Ooh. I already feel that core lighting up like crazy.
Don't you?
- Yeah, absolutely
- It's so good. Next movement is a side plank.
So we're taking that same principle and now turning it on
its side.
Paul's going to show you the modification on your knees.
Otherwise, meet me up in a side plank.
Elbow is underneath the shoulder.
But remember that shoulder is attaching to your strong core.
So push your elbow into the ground.
Can you find that same foundation here?
Zipping up those abs big exhale, makes a difference.
Last five seconds, and come on down.
Switch sides.
I want you focus on allowing the strong side to teach
the other side how to move.
Hold here.
Check in with your core.
Last five seconds.
Here we go. And relax. Come on down.
So we focused on stability.
We focused on side plank.
Next movement is going to be a little bit of a crunch.
So we're going to figure out how to find that same strong
core in an opposite arm, opposite leg lift.
So as we lift up,
connect one hand to the opposite foot and come back down,
then we're going to switch sides, opposite arm,
opposite leg, slowly lower.
I want you to take this slow. Again,
doing this differently than you've ever done it before,
trying something new.
Now, if you're starting to get a little clicking
in your hips, what you can do, is I'm going to show you
the modification. Keep the knee bent.
What I'm trying to feel for, is that before I even lift my
leg, I'm setting that strong foundation.
Try it now.
Remember, this is your laboratory.
Last five seconds,
and relax.
Now flip over, roll over onto your belly.
The core is not just the front of your body.
The core is also the backside of your body.
So we're going to do a Superhero Hold.
Now I know every time you do a Superhero Hold,
you just fly up and your core is left blah falling out.
So this time set your core. Okay?
Gotta Pee, holding it, tight pants, exhale.
Okay, so now I've got a strong core.
Keep that strong core as you lift and go, oh,
how's that feel, Paul?
- It burns.
- Can you feel the activation in your core?
- The core and the entire back side of my body.
- Now, remember, as we're sitting here,
the hips need something strong to attach to.
So now that you're activating your center,
those buns are burning, the shoulders need something strong
to attach to, slide your shoulders down.
We're here for five more seconds.
Three, two, and rest.
Ooh.
So that was round one. That's where we learned everything.
You learned what we're going to do. We've got
two more rounds. And on the second round,
I want you to focus on the peripherals.
So you've got your core locked in.
I want you to focus on what now your shoulders and hips are
doing. Ready? Let's get back down to Dead Bug.
Now this round is all about focusing on the periphery.
You've got your core locked in.
So now focus on finding a way for your hips to
be strong.
My little trick is, as you extend that leg,
squeeze that butt cheek and it creates some support.
Your body loves to feel strong and supported.
That's when it can give you a little bit more range of
motion. If you're dealing with poor flexibility,
sometimes it's not actually,
you don't actually need to stretch more.
You got to create strength so that your joints know that
they're free and strong in these big ranges of motion.
Last five seconds, two, and relax.
Let's move into that side plank.
Whoo.
These are all just little tools to help you improve.
Ready for that side plank?
- Yeah
- Coming on up, and let's go. Pushing your elbow
into the ground, push your feet into the ground.
Squeeze those but cheeks, I call it raisin butt, right?
You know what I mean? Where it's just like not so cute.
Your butt cheeks are just squeezed together. Like crazy.
Find it.
Ooh.
Holding here for 5, 3, 2, and switch sides.
Now you might have asymmetries.
You might have one side that's stronger than the other.
My strong side is usually my right side.
What about you, Paul?
- Oh, it's on my left side.
I jump off my left leg.
- Jumps off the, ah, our Paul is our athlete here.
Come on and go ahead and lift.
So whatever those asymmetries might be,
whatever reason you might have for having those asymmetries,
let's love all over them. Right now.
Let the strong side, teach the other side how to move.
Raise the butt, press that elbow into the ground.
Come back to finding your strong center and then think about
what your shoulders are doing.
Think about what your hips are doing.
Hold here for 5, 3, 2, and one.
So now let's take that strong foundation and move it into a
crunch. Let's see how the core can be strong.
Even as your moving.
Opposite arm, opposite leg lifts in 3, 2, 1.
Alternating sides.
Nice and slow.
Good.
What we're focusing on here is not speed.
It's not flinging yourself through the motion.
Remember, look around.
This is your laboratory.
How can you experiment creating stability in the core,
strengthening in the hips, feel crispy in this movement.
Last five seconds, 3, 2, 1.
Ah.
Now let's take that core. Flip it over.
It's time for Superhero Holds.
All right. We lift in 3, 2, 1 go.
Instead of lifting your hands to the sky,
imagine that you're instead driving the motion through your
back.
Feel your arms now connected to your strong core.
Same with your legs.
Feel them connected through the hips.
Check in with your center.
Lift that pelvic floor.
That's what it's like when you, you hold your pee.
It's a pelvic floor. It's the bottom floor of your core.
Your core has four walls. You've got a bottom, a ceiling
is your diaphragm, And then the front and the back.
Right now, we're working the back for 5, 3, 2, 1, relax.
Woo.
So we took that time to focus on the periphery, right?
Feeling that strong center,
and then allowing the shoulders and the hips to attach to
that strong center.
On this last round, as we get ready for this last round
of Dead Bugs, I want you to focus on trying something new,
giving yourself the opportunity to learn new tools.
This is going to help you in your every single workout going
forward.
This is your life now, we're changing the game.
Let's get ready for that Dead Bug.
Hands in the air, knees in the air, lock it in.
In 3, 2, 1, kick, and kick. Ahhh
What happens when things get frustrating,
what happens when things get tough, and tiring?
Do you give up, do you shy away from trying something new?
Use this time here to do it differently.
Try with confidence last 5, 3, 2, and one.
Side plank time, right away lifting up in 3, 2, bam.
Holding it strong here.
Last time that I tried something new and failed at it,
it was a dance class.
And at the end of the day that we learned this
choreography, and I'm really good at free styling,
but when I have to have some structure, woo,
that's the challenge for me.
So at the end of the dance class,
the teacher did that thing where there's like the big fancy
camera and it looks like you're in a music video,
go ahead and lower down. Let's try the other side.
And I'm feeling good. I'm feeling sassy.
I'm feeling myself.
And then I forget the choreography on camera,
front and center.
So now I have this little keepsake video where I look really
epic and I'm failing, but I failed with confidence.
I owned every misstep.
So wherever you are in your journey,
I want you to try with confidence because the worst that can
happen is that you fail.
That's the worst that can happen.
And even failing with confidence. It's not so bad.
You get back up, you try it again.
Go ahead and relax.
Let's move into opposite arm, opposite leg lift.
You ever failed at anything Paul?
- Oh plenty school, but mostly sports.
That's why I felt a lot of adversity and experienced a lot
of failure.
- I love that. Go ahead and lift.
Were you ever afraid of failure?
- Not at all. I mean,
failure is a good time to figure out who you are,
what you're capable of, what you're willing to do.
- That's better than me.
I used to be so afraid to fail. I would avoid it.
I would avoid everything that was challenging to me.
Let's pick up the pace for these last 10 seconds, left.
Yes, but I had to learn how to be comfortable being
uncomfortable.
Last 5, 4, 3, 2, and one last move of the day.
Flip it on over. Oh yeah.
Are you ready? Let's go.
Big lift hold.
Where are your shoulders? Slide them down,
away from your ears.
Let me see that raisin butt, squeeze those cheeks
even harder. Connect to your core.
Holding here strong,
knowing that the back is getting stronger.
The back is the back wall of your core.
Today's all about foundations,
and we touched on every single aspect,
360 degrees of your strong core.
Last five seconds. Hold three, two, and relaxed.
Nice work today.
Let's take a moment, ah, from a tall kneeling position,
hands on your hips, extend your hips forward.
Feel the stretch in your belly. Ahhh.
Taking a moment to reflect on all the new learnings that you
had today.
Good. One hand comes down to your side,
lifting the other hand up into the sky,
feeling the stretch in your side body.
You can even send your hips over towards the side that your
hand is lifted.
Today, you learned how to set your strong foundation.
Go ahead and switch sides. Same thing.
Hand comes down to the side, send your hips this way,
lift that arm up, looking good, Paul.
- Likewise.
So how can you take what you learned today and apply it to
every workout?
I promise you that if you set your foundation, come on up,
you know, and you feel confident in that strength,
your leg workouts will get stronger.
Your shoulder workouts will get stronger.
Your core workouts, of course, will get stronger.
And you're going to start to see results much quicker and
much safer.
Isn't that right, Paul?
- That's d*** right.
- Finish out my friend.
Thank you for joining me here today.
I'm Dr. Liz Letchford
- I'm coach Paul Wright
- We'll see you back here next time.
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