Pilates Foam Roller Exercises
You’ll need a 36-inch long foam roller. It can be firm or soft - depending on your comfort. I particularly like using a half roller (same length but one surface is flat and the other round).
You'll find mostly strength and mobility exercises in this post. If you're looking for self-massage or myofascial release exercises, check out this post.
Supine
- FR across mat, feet on foam roller: Bridging
- Lying lengthwise on the roller, feet on the floor or on two yoga blocks:
- Mini Bridging
- Toe Taps
- Snow Angels
- Leg Raises
- Supine Scapular Series (arm vertical with light hand weights)
- Arm circles (with or without hand weights)
- Overhead with hand weights
- Single Leg Stretch, legs only, palms on the floor
- Double Leg Stretch, legs only, palms on the floor
- FR across the mat (90 degrees to the mat) under sacrum:
- Leg Series:
- Frogs
- Lower + Lift
- Circles
- Scissors
- Bicycle
- Helicopter
- Hip flexor stretch
- FR across the mat by your feet, rest your ankles on the roller:
- One Leg Circles
- The Roll-Up
- Incline (float hips off the mat) > lift one leg
Seated
- FR across the mat by your feet, rest your ankles on the roller:
- Calf massage (cross one leg over the other)
- Back Control + Leg Pull
- Sitting on FR
- Spine Twist
- Spine Stretch
- Roll Down (like on Reformer, push roller with tailbone)
- Figure 4 glute massage
- Sitting on floor holding FR with your hands
- Spine Twist
- Spine Stretch
- Half Roll Back
- Oblique Half Roll Back
- FR across the mat behind your back, hands on roller:
- Back Control + Leg Pull
- Upward Facing Table (modified Back Control)
- Back massage
- FR across the mat behind your back, elbows on the roller:
- Hip Twist
- Frogs (like Footwork on the Reformer)
Side-Lying
- FR next to you: Mermaid
- FR perpendicular to the mat, outside of your leg on FR, supported on one elbow
- Outer hip massage (glute medius and minimus, TFL)
- IT band massage
- Outer calf massage (side plank)
Prone
- FR perpendicular to the mat, forearms on FR:
- Swimming (legs only)
- Baby Swan
Quadruped + Kneeling
- FR perpendicular to the mat, hands on FR
- Plank
- Push-Ups
- Puppy stretch (sit on your heels)
- FR perpendicular to the mat, shins on FR
- Plank
- Push-Ups
- Opposite arm and leg balance
- Kneeling abdominals (like on the Reformer)
- Step one foot forward into lunge, back knee on FR
- Extend front knee for a kneeling hamstring stretch w/ back knee on FR
- FR perpendicular to the mat, thighs on FR, supported on elbows
- Thigh massage
- Kneeling, holding FR in your hands
- The Z Thigh Stretch (> lift roller high)
Standing
- Standing Balance on the foam roller (FR 90 degrees to wall, with hands at wall at first) > balance on one leg > squat
- Stand with your back to the wall, squeeze roller between the wall and your back: squats and/or wide squats (plies in a ballet second position)
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