Let’s talk about the Mermaid…

While it’s name alone may catch your attention, The Mermaid is a powerhouse of an exercise for full body mobility that simultaneously makes you look glamorous while doing it. The Mermaid just may be the fix your body needs after a long day at the computer, so let’s talk about why.

Breaking it down:

While you may recall from your own practice, The Mermaid can be performed numerous ways on various pieces of equipment. Traditionally, The Mermaid is performed on the mat or reformer but can be applied to the chair & spine corrector as well.

Let’s talk about the reformer Mermaid…

The starting position for a Mermaid on the reformer involves one hip in internal rotation against the shoulder blocks, while simultaneously having the opposite leg in external rotation. This pose is commonly referred to as a Z sit or 90/90 hip position. If you’re thinking it sounds hard, it is for a lot of us! But don’t worry, we’re going to discuss ways to help achieve this mobility in more detail.

Once in a Z sit position, the Mermaid takes your spine through a journey of mobility from sidebend, to rotation, to potentially extension with a sneaky Swan added in. The Mermaid allows for full ribcage expansion as one “C Curves” their body up & over towards the footbar. Trust the experts - this feels AMAZING. But let’s not forget while one side of you is getting a great stretch, the opposite shoulder is doing some serious stability work to keep you moving & grooving. Hip mobility, spine mobility, sidebody flexibility, shoulder stability, & total body alignment… are you sold yet? For the average individual, most of us are not engaging in these planes of movement throughout our day to day making the Mermaid a total game changer for treating your spine to some TLC after a long day at the office. Now the question remains, how do we get our body to fully perform a Mermaid to reap it’s benefits? Well, let’s break it down even further with some helpful beginner tips & tricks.

Let’s talk hip mobility -

Below we’ve provided some links for our favorite exercises in order to improve both hip internal & external rotation. If you have a pilates ball and/or yoga block, grab them & let’s hit the mat together.

Hip Internal/External Rotation with Pilates ball: https://momence.com/p/1132985

Hip Release on Yoga Block: https://momence.com/p/1132989

But fear not, if you’re having any hip pinching or just not feeling super confident in your Z sit, a cross leg or double stacked internally rotated hip position will do just the trick to get you moving your spine along.

Here at The Pilates Rx, we believe everyone should feel & move their best, which is why we’re always here to support our clients & friends in anyway we can. If you’re looking to get into the studio & try out the Mermaid on the equipment for yourself, then don’t hesitate to book a free discovery call with us today!