Ab Series:

Double Leg Lower Lift & Criss Cross (aka Twist)

G'day, my fabulous friends & wow, some new formatting up there with the Heading!

Today, we've got another deep dive into the wonderful world of Pilates with a focus on the Abdominal Series from the Matwork. Specifically, we'll be breaking down exercises 4 & 5: the Double Leg Lower Lift and the Criss Cross, also known as the Twist.

(for the deep dive on numbers 1-3 click HERE to read all about Single Leg Stretch, Double Leg Stretch, and Scissors)

Now, go grab your mat and let's discuss the What, Why, and the How of Double Leg Lower Lift and the Criss Cross. I’ll also let you know why you might find these last two exercises really, really, really challenging. I’ll offer some tips so you can perform your ‘best ever’ version of The Abdominals Series of 5, and remind you why we want to strengthen those core muscles in the first place. 

#4 Double Leg Lower Lift

What & How: Double Leg Lower Lift is the fourth exercise in the Abdominal Series and comes directly after the Scissors. You’ll keep the strong, straight legs you found in the Scissors & hold them together up in the air with the thigh bones directly over the hip sockets. At the same time you’ll have stacked your palms behind the centre of your skull with your elbows lightly pulling forward.

Maintaining your upper abdominal curl, you know the olde Hundred curl, you’ll inhale and lower your legs towards the floor. As you exhale and deeply pull in your lower abs (in, up, and back) your legs will come back up towards the ceiling. Repeat these two motions with control for 5-8 reps.

Loads of people will cue you to keep the low back pressed into the mat which means you’ll be in a slight scoop, but, you can also perform this exercise in neutral anatomical pelvis: hip bones and pubic bone on the same horizontal plane maintaining your lumbar curve. (this could look slightly different on each body depending on various factors). To do this safely you really have to engage your deep low abs and try to use what I call the underbum - your hamstring glute connection.

Why? Why: I ask myself this all the time ;)

Double Leg Lower Lift targets your lower abdominal muscles, also known as the "I-forgot-these-existed" muscles - think of engaging from just above your pubic bone in, up, and back, to the bottom of your back ribs. Remember your deep belly muscles support your low back and help connect your legs into your torso helping improve lower body stability.

The abdominals are also co-contractors of the pelvic floor which we want to keep strong and supple just like the rest of our body. (I did hear anecdotally that strong lower abs can increase sexual pleasure but could find no scientific evidence to back it up but hey, what do you have to lose?) 

Read my post on Pelvic Floor Dysfunction and Pfilates

Double Leg Lower Lift Tips:

• Breathe!!!
• Keep the movement small enough so that you can keep the abs deeply drawn in.
• Try this variation: Slide your hands, palms down, under your pelvis - this will put you in a scoop making it easier to feel and use your lower abs - head and chest can be up or down.
• Think of your eyeballs chasing your knees (I know it’s weird but it works for me, what can I say?)

#5 Criss Cross

What & How: Criss Cross also know as the Twist is the last exercise in the Abdominal Series and I think the hardest! After your final Double Leg Lower Lift you’ll simply pull one knee deeply into your chest with your hip flexors and deep belly muscles (think iliopsoas) as you twist towards that knee with the opposite elbow, while extending the other leg straight out. 

IMPORTANT! At no point should you think that the goal of the exercise is to touch your elbow to your knee! The ability to do this while maintaining correct form depends on a lot of factors, some but not all are:

• How deeply you can pull the leg in?
• How high you’re able to stay in your Hundred curl - tips of shoulder blades should be on the mat.
• How stable you can keep your pelvis.  

More often than not people who achieve the elbow/knee connection are just yanking on their head and neck while their lower body is rocking from side to side. I’m not saying it shouldn’t be a goal but it’s not THE GOAL so it’s useful to backtrack and ask what you’re actually trying to accomplish in the exercise. Watch the video to hear my ideas on the what/how of the Criss Cross.

More of the How: Once you’ve twisted to one direction on an inhale, you reverse to the other side (on the exhale) so… the legs are doing the same actions they did in the very first ab exercise, Single Leg Stretch as you add the upper body Twist. Easy, peasy? Um no - this is actually one of the places in my matwork practice where I consistently want to curse! Damn you Joseph Pilates and your flipping challenging method of movement ;)

Why do the Criss Cross? Yes, it’s that abdominal endurance thingy again - muscular endurance is one of the components of muscular fitness that Pilates can help with, (the other components are flexibility, strength, & power).

Also Criss Cross/Twist targets your oblique muscles, those lovely "I want a sculpted waistline" muscles. By strengthening your obliques, you'll have the power to twist and bend with finesse, whether you're reaching for a bag of chips in the back seat of the car (kidding - it’d be a bunch of kale, right?) or thread yourself in, around, and through the crowd at the next music festival you attend.

Criss Cross Tips: 

• Move slowly, you’re going to want to rush through it but moving slowly allows your body to dig into all the details.
•  Imagery that helps me keep the lower body still: There’s an elephant standing on my low belly.
• Imagery that helps me keep the upper body in the appropriate range: I have a vampire stake at the bottom of my breastbone - this is my (& your) twisting pivot point.
• Did I mention you should breathe? In for the twist to one side and out for the other.

3 Reasons Why the Ab Series exercises #4 & #5 Are So Dang Hard

These last two exercises in the “Series of 5”, “The Ab Series”, “The Belly Busters”, or whatever you’ve been taught to call them, happen to be, IMHO, the two most difficult to perform so you’re not crazy or lazy if you struggle when they show up in the class flow.

Let’s look at why 

1. The hands are behind your head instead of holding on to your legs during the course of the choreography. This means the load on the abdominal wall and the shoulder girdle has increased. Not only is the weight of the arms further away from your centre of balance but you don’t have a chance to pull those arms back closer to your core or powerhouse during a rep like you do, for example, in Double Leg Stretch. You have to do all the work to maintain your Hundred curl from the strength of the deep neck flexors and your upper abs. If all you really want to do is either drop your shoulder blades back down to the mat or yank on your skull to keep your self up, I feel your pain cause I’ve been there myself.
2. You’re already tired from the first three exercises. Waaa! Since one of the goals of the Ab Series is building muscular endurance, it makes sense our strength is challenged as we get towards the end of the five linked exercises. And it can feel like an excruciatingly looooong sequence if we don’t take any rest in between the exercises. 
3. We become sloppy just trying to make it though and all the repetitions in the world don’t bring us the desired benefits. (we might even hurt ourselves) Once we’ve lost our technique and just bang out some reps to get the Ab Series over and done with we’ve given away at least three of the Pilates Principles: Precision, Centring, & Control. We throw away some of the benefits of the exercises and become less efficient if we don’t hold onto the quality of our movements! (there’s your tough love, always remember quality over quantity!)

4 Ways to Make Double Leg Lower Life & the Criss Cross (a little bit) Easier

1. Remember you have the chance to use your arm strength to reinvigorate your Hundred Curl in the first three exercises of the Ab Series: Single Leg Stretch, Double Leg Stretch, & Scissors. Use this to PRACTICE where you want the upper body to be during exercises 4 & 5. 
2. Take a short one or two breath break between some of the exercises. Let your head and neck have a bit of a rest and remember that Rome wasn’t built in a day.
3. Decrease the Range of Motion (ROM). This means that maybe your legs don’t go as low on Double Leg Lower Lift so that you can keep your deep abdominals engaged and not overuse your lower back. Definitely on the Criss Cross think of a smaller, tighter twist so you’re less inclined to think only elbow to knee.
4. Breathe baby, Breathe!!! Ah yes, the power and support of the breath is soooooooo important.

Now, let's talk benefits!

By incorporating these exercises into your Pilates routine, you'll experience:

1. Improved core strength: Both the Double Leg Lower Lift and the Criss Cross challenge your abdominal muscles, helping you achieve a stronger core. Say hello to better posture and reduced risk of back pain!
2. Increased stability: These exercises target the deeps muscles of your torso, which are essential for maintaining balance and stability in your everyday movements.
3. Enhanced spinal mobility: Specifically the Criss Cross or Twist encourages rotational movement in your spine helping improve flexibility and reduce stiffness.
4. Improved Coordination & Proprioception: Getting the movement of the upper body to coordinate with the movement of the lower body helps you move as a more complete organism. It’s also beneficial for your brain to have to coordinate all the bits and bobs!

So, my lovely movers and shakers, make sure to watch the video and give these Pilates Mat exercises a go. If you mindfully perform these two exercises as well as the first three from the Abdominal Series, you’ll be sure to gracefully soar to new Pilates heights. Remember, always listen to your body and modify the movements as needed.

Happy Pilates-ing!

Be Well,

xBec

The information contained above is provided for information purposes only. The contents of this blog are not intended to amount to advice and Rebecca Forde disclaims all liability and responsibility arising from any reliance placed on any of the contents of this post