Monday, July 20, 2020

Stretches: Lying a la Seconde Stretch

This stretch is one of the easiest stretches to do. All you need is a wall and enough space to spread your legs sideways.  In this exercise, one experiences a static stretch of the innner thighs. It is ideal to do this as part of your cool down routine or when you are winding down at the end of the day. 


Simply find a wall space clear of any obstructions. Lie down in front of the wall with your tail bone touching the wall and your legs up. Open the legs sideways and allow gravity to progressively increase your stretch. Ensure that all of your back from the tailbone to the shoulders is imprinted on the floor. 



Fig. 1 Lying a la Seconde Stretch



Note: The wideness of the unobstructed wall space will depend on how long your legs are and how far to side can you open your legs. 


Releve Lents

A good exercise to start students in Adagio is Releve Lents.  This exercise is first studied facing the barre in the Pre-Ballet levels and t...