Cat/Cow

And My Ladder Theory of Progressions & Regressions

Usually my exercise deep dives are mat exercises (I have a long term goal to do a post on each of Joseph Pilates’ original 34 and as of this writing I have about 10 to go). But, since March is the Pilates world’s month to honour these original exercises through March MATness and it’s now early April, I’m going to focus on something a little bit different with this Exercise Dive.

I’ll take one exercise, in this instance Cat/Cow, and explore a new concept I’m playing with:

Exercises as Ladder Rungs..

Whaddya’ think? Sound intriguing?

I can slice and dice this idea into many pieces but for simplicity’s sake let’s say your workout is a room full of ladders. I mean why not, you should know by now that I love a good image.

Each ladder represents one exercise and over the session you’ll climb on different ladders. On each ladder, kindov’ like Bill ‘Bojangles’ Robinson tap dancing up and down a staircase, we have the option of going higher or lower.

Are you with me still?

Let’s say the middle of the ladder is the exercise as most people experience it, in our example Cat/Cow would be performed on the mat on all fours. A progression of the exercise could/would take you one or more rungs up to the top and a regression would bring you closer to the floor.

On the higher rungs you might get a little vertiginous and challenge your nervous system’s safety switch.

The security of the lower rungs, closer to your metaphorical floor, might be where you move to depending on how that first Cat/Cow looked to your instructor (or how it felt to you). Or you might not even start in the middle of the ladder but on one of the the lower rungs, especially if you’re a more fragile body (and I don’t mean that in a derogatory way - you might just have an injury, be deconditioned, or just not feel so flash hot during your session).

You following?

The Magic Of The Pilates Method

(I should say, the Magic of The Pilates Method with a skilled teacher…)

Just to clarify (or drive the point deeply into the ground ;-))

If our chosen standard Pilates exercise is halfway up the ladder, the beauty of the Pilates Method is that we can start there and then move up or down depending…

A remedial version of the exercise brings you back closer to the ground; you’re now performing a version of the exercise that is either more accomplishable or simplified enough to allow a deeper somatic dive. In fact it might not resemble the original exercise too much. To be clear, regressions are not just given to make things easier or more doable, they can also be used to provide an in depth exploration into a particular facet of your practice.

Of course you can climb up the ladder, even to the tippy, tippy, top, and expand the exercise, progressing it into something more physically and mentally challenging. It might even be unrecognisable from the middle rung version.

Pilates is for Every Body!

This is how we use the Pilates Method to support Every Body and how instead of a one sized fits all approach, a skilled teacher can meet you where you are and depending on your current state of health and fitness, guide you either up or down an exercise ladder. This means that your Pilates practice shouldn’t look like Sally Sue’s Pilates practice, it should be tailored to you (yes, even in a group class this is possible - see skilled teacher above)

Now let’s overlay Cat/Cow within this paradigm (so that the video I made you makes more sense)

Cat/Cow

As previously mentioned the basic Cat/Cow exercise, i.e. the one that people are generally taught as a Pilates warmup (or in a yoga class, or at the physio’s office) is done from a four point stance, aka kneeling on hands and knees. You’ll round your back up to the ceiling (Cat, or Angry Cat as some call it) and then arch your back into your Cow (I still have never figured out why it’s called a Cow - leave me a comment if you do, lol).

Let’s say that this basic Cat/Cow is the middle rung of this particular exercise’s ladder (remember it might be a lower rung for some).

Up The Ladder: Progressions

What can you do to climb up a few rungs on the Cat/Cow ladder?

• Add balance and coordination challenges by pulling the opposing elbow and knee towards each other on the Cat and extending them away from the body on the Cow

• If you’re someone who has great body awareness and strength, you might move up another rung (or two) if you float your knees off the floor while you are rounding and arching your back - so now not only are you amping up the balance and coordination, you also have to call on more strength and core control.
• Moving on up another rung maybe the exercise is performed on a different piece of equipment as I demonstrate at the end of the attached video with Cat/Cow on the Tower with the Push Thru Bar? Ooh, how about Knee Stretches, Knees Off on the reformer? That’s a juicy one!

• Rungs even higher could expand the concepts found in the original exercise to something that barely resembles its original form. In this case you could take the flexion and extension of the spine, core awareness and shoulder girdle integration that you’re working on in the ‘regular’ Cat/Cow, sprinkle in a little flexibility and proprioception and try Control Arabesque on the reformer - can you see the Cat/Cow inside?? 

Down The Ladder: Regressions

In the video I show a couple of what I would consider Cat/Cow regressions.

• First take it way, way back to your pelvic rock, moving the pelvis from scoop to arch. I love this because it trains your body to move from the round back of Cat to the supported extension of Cow by deeply engaging your core musculature. In my book your core includes the: deepest layer of your abs (your TVA and I’m going to say your psoas), low back muscles (your multifidus), your upper inner thighs (adductors), upper hamstrings & lower glutes, your pelvic floor, and finally your diaphragm. FYI the scoop looks like nothing from the outside - when I watched myself back in the video it looked as if I wasn’t doing a dang thing so make sure you feel like you’re moving from the inside out)
• I show a Wall version (which adds some optional cervical traction). Do you need a wall? Not at all, I usually teach it as a standing Cat/Cow with hands on knees for support.

Take home message? Watch the video, lol.

In Conclusion

My Ladder Paradigm can be a way to organise your Pilates practice or, if you’re an instructor organise your client’s sessions.

• Your workout is a room full of ladders (or you could also stay on just one ladder the whole session and just explore the various rungs)
• Each exercise is a rung on a ladder (and I didn’t mention that the rungs can interchange between ladders but perhaps we’ll leave that for now)
• Progressions = going up a rung or two
• Regressions = going down a rung or two
• Regressions are useful even if you’re a more advanced practitioner - dive deep 
• Pilates is for Every Body - choose your rung, it doesn’t matter where it is on the ladder - low rungs offer sooo much
• Skilled instructors will know how to move you from rung to rung
• Cat Cow is a fab exercise and the movements it contains can lead to so much more (really just like every other Pilates exercise) 

That’s it for me this week but if you want to be kept abreast of all things Dragonfly Pilates & Movement including information about upcoming retreats and workshops, get yourself on my mailing list down below.

Thanks for reading,

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

cover and social photo by Lance Grandahl all others by moi’