Callan Pinckney invented her namesake exercise method, Callanetics, as a means of recovery from chronic back pain, according the company website. In "Callanetics Countdown," she blends dance, conditioning and orthopedic techniques to create a step-by-step system for new users to progress from easy-to-do exercises to more challenging moves. Try a beginner Callanetics sequence after checking with your doctor to ensure that the exercises are appropriate for you.
Waist Away
This warm-up exercise trims your waistline, according to Pinckney. Sit on an armless chair with your spine tall and your feet flat on the floor. Reach your right arm up by your ear with your palm facing in. Exhale as you slowly arch to the left, wrapping your arm around your head. Keep both sitting bones on your chair. Inhale as you return to upright, reaching a centimeter higher with your arm and spine. Switch arms and repeat this movement to your other side. Perform 10 stretches to each side.
Plie and Balance
Stand with your hands resting on the back of a sturdy chair. With your feet hip-width apart, turn your toes out about 30 degrees. Exhale as you slowly lower your hips as far as possible, without raising your heels. Keep your spine upright and your feet flat. Inhale as you slowly extend your legs to come to an upright position. Perform five plies your first day, and then add two more repetitions each day until you can do 30.
Pelvic Circles
Pinckney learned this hip-shaping movement while studying belly dancing. Kneel on comfortable carpet with your spine upright and your hands on your hips. Sit your hips about one-fourth of the way to your heels. Keep your spine upright. Draw a circle with your hips by tucking your pelvis. Send your pubic area forward, and then circle your hips to the right, behind you, to the left and forward. Move slowly, performing three clockwise circles and then three counterclockwise circles.
Bent Knee Reach
This exercise works your abdominal muscles, notes Pinckney. Lie on your back on soft carpet. Tuck your knees in toward chest, and place your hands behind your head with your elbows wide. Pull your ribs together, as if you were tightening a corset. Exhale as you slowly draw your breastbone toward your knees. Use your abdominals to lift your chest. Do not pull on your neck with your arms. Come up as high as you can without straining your neck, and then slowly lower down. Perform 25 repetitions your first day, and then increase your repetitions by five each day until you can do 100.
References
- Callanetics: About Us
- "Callanetics Countdown"; Callan Pinckney; 1990
