Set-Up:
Sit on the carriage, facing the back of the room, holding the short straps in your hands.
Sit tall on your sit bones, close to the shoulder rests, with your feet resting on the headrest.
Start with the arms extended forward.
Movement:
Inhale: Roll Down and slowly articulate the spine, lowering the torso toward the carriage until the shoulders lightly touch the surface.
Arm Extension: Extend the arms overhead while maintaining spinal alignment.
Exhale: Roll Up to balance on your sit bones, pausing at the top. Keep the arms straight throughout the movement.
Main focus:
Core strength and spinal control, with an emphasis on abdominal endurance, controlled spinal articulation, and maintaining stability through the movement.
Primary Muscles Worked:
Abdominals: primary muscles controlling the roll down and roll up.
Obliques: support spinal control and stability throughout.
Hip flexors: assist with maintaining the seated position and returning to the top.
Deltoids (shoulders): control the arms as they extend overhead.
Latissimus dorsi (lats): support shoulder control and stability during the arm movement.
Jumpboard required
1. Ball: Place the ball between the thighs. Gently hold and squeeze it throughout the movement to increase the adductor challenge and enhance core awareness.
2.Weighted straps: Option to use weighted straps on the wrists or ankles for added challenge.
1. Legs to Tabletop: Raise one or both legs to tabletop position while performing the roll down and roll up. This is to increase core challenge.
2. Double Leg Extension: Extend both legs long as you roll up into a teaser position for increased abdominal and hip flexor work. (This is an advanced layer).
Option to add variations such as heel beats or open extended legs/close extended legs and roll down to continue the Carriage V Balance.
3.Semi circles: As you roll up, sweep the arms out to the sides in two controlled semi-circles, using the arm movement to assist you in coming back up to balance. Keep the spine controlled and articulate through the movement rather than pulling with the arms.
1. V Balance:
Hold:
Hold the V position with steady control (option to keep legs in tabletop).
Option to add:
Heel beats: in V Balance hold, toes in V and lightly beat the heels together in a very small range.
Leg lowers and lifts: from V Balance hold, slowly lower the legs a small amount and then lift them back to the starting height. Keep the movement controlled through the core without changing the shape of the spine.
1B.
Regression:
Springs: increase spring resistance to stabilise the carriage and make core control easier—note this may increase load on the arms.
Progression:
Single-leg tabletop while rolling down and up to challenge stability and core control.
Advance to double-leg tabletop (or 90° legs while rolling down, extended V legs while rolling up) for increased core demand.
Modification:
Option to try a small C-curve option to reduce spinal articulation if a full roll-down is not possible.