Hello everyone! Welcome to the first stretch class! Because we are all at different levels, I will first post the universal stretch class that I currently teach at my studio- it's for all ages and levels.

Beginning Warm Up
Music: "The Promise" by Tracy Chapman

stand at the barre, or simply behind a chair- folding chairs work best because of their height.

feet apart, second position turned out.
Plie and count 1,2,3,4
Hold 5,6,7,8

Releve [while still in plie] and hold 1-4
deepen your plie and hold 5-8

Come back to normal plie - still in releve - and repeat that process 4x.

If you are holding the proper time and doing the proper technique, your legs should start to shake. haha!

Next exercise:
still at the barre/chair, feet together parallel first position.

plie on 1, then take right foot, beat the floor while moving your foot back into a lunge stretch 2,3,4,5,6,7,8

do back battements on 1,3,5,7. On 8, leave your leg up in arabesque. lift hip and leg on 1,3,5,7. yes, your hips will turn out, as if you are doing an improper arabesque.

Repeat the leg lifts again, but with a faster count of 8. After 8, lift leg to parallel arabesque, or a modern "T" and release the barre, bringing arms to your sides [from the side you would actually look like the letter T.] hold for a slow count of 8.

Drop down to a deep lunge stretch. hands on the floor in front of you on either side of your bent left leg. Your left foot should be flat on the floor, NOT in releve.

Move to the inside of your left leg and put both elbows on the floor on the same side of your left leg [the inside, or the right hand side of your leg, however you choose to look at it] and hold a count of 8.

Come back up to your hands, and straighten BOTH legs, while keeping your hands on the floor on either side of your left foot. Head to your knee. Hold a count of 4, then rotate to center. Hold another 4. Rotate to the right leg being in front, and hold 4. Rotate back to the center, hold 4, and rotate back to the left, holding 4 more.

Then bend into an actual lunge, place your hands on your left thigh. Elbows should be LIFTED. Do 4 more battements with your right leg [it should be harder to do with your weight distributed as it is!] on the 4th one, HOLD in a T again. This time, hold 8. After 4 counts, go into releve [more advanced people] and then lift up and go back to parallel first position at the barre/chair.

Repeat with the left side.

Then do both the right and left sides one more time.

Push-Ups
No music.

Stand at the barre. [Or if you're using a chair, put the front of the chair against a wall to prevent the chair from sliding.] Turn your hands IN, which means your elbows should be lifted, and keep your body FLAT. [Move your feet back so that you're at a bit of an angle.] 15 push ups. Repeat with your hands turned OUT.

Center Stretch
Music: "Who Am I To Say" by Hope
[hold the first 8 slow counts]

Start in wide second with your legs. [legs apart as far as you can.]
Arms in second. Pointed toes, straight legs, knees facing the ceiling at all times.

Lean to the left, then stretch to the right, sliding your right arm underneath so your hand ends up almost touching your left leg [on the floor] Hold 8.

Repeat to the right.

Stretch forward [in the middle.] Slide your hands in front of you so your arms stretch out straight in front of you. Keep your knees UP!!

Repeat the stretch with flexed feet.

Once that's done, relax your feet and legs [it's okay if they roll forward this time] and stretch forward again. Hold 3 counts of 8.

Rotate to a right jazz split [back knee bent, front leg straight.] Stretch forward, hold 8.

Go up over your back leg and lift your foot, grab it with your left hand and stretch. you should feel it in your hips and the front of your left thigh, also the back of your right leg.

Come back down and stretch into right split.
Stretch over the front leg. Hold 4.
Stretch back [arch your back] and hold 4.

Rotate to a left jazz split and repeat.

Bring legs together in front of you and stretch over, keeping legs straight, and toes pointed.

Stand up and stretch over with your legs together and knees straight. Hold 4, then bend your knees [looks like you're squatting but with your knees still together.] Stretch up again. move to face the right wall, and stretch again. Bend again. This time when you straighten, go into a needle point- lifting your left leg off the floor. Hold a count of 8, then advanced students go into releve and remove your hands from the floor. Hold as long as you can.

Repeat on the left side.

Across the Floor
Music: "Heaven On Earth" by Britney Spears [crazy lady!]

feet apart in second position, turned out. Arms in second position. Plie.
chug across the floor remaining in that position the entire time.

going back: 4 Chugs, stop and do split jump counts 5-8, landing right back in the position you chug in. repeat across the entire floor.

Across again: 4 chugs, then left right leg into front attitude, touch your foot with your left hand [do not go into releve either.] all of that should happen on count 5. On 6, prep for ballet pirouette. SINGLE pirouette. Land back in chugging position. Repeat across the entire floor.

going back: Repeat with the left foot/pirouette.

Across: 4 chugs, half turn [just jumping to face the back, still in chugging position] on 5,6, then half turn to face front again on 7,8. all the way across.

going back: repeat, with full turn jumps for counts 5-8 [make them high jumps!]

Across: Right grande-jetes. Prep: 2 runs only. NO runs in between leaps!

back: Left grande-jetes.

Across: side-jetes. [center split leaps]

back: Calypsos.

Back to Center

These are called "hundreds"
get back into chugging position, and small jumps-100 of them. NO breaks in between jumps. [If I catch my students taking breaks, I make them start over! haha]





I shortened it a bit, but that's basically the gist of it.
Some of this will remain in the stretch classes EVERY week, particularly the first two sets of exercises.

Enjoy!


-KP

Great class! I'm going to be sore. Were there any official sign ups for this class? If there was, I guess I was just trying it lol. If not well I guess I'm in it.

^It's really an open class, no official sign ups.

If anyone else actually looked at it and took it, please let me know. If people aren't going to do it, I'm not going to waste the time posting it.

I don't like those hundreds. lol

haha, I didn't like doing hundreds either. Especially since when I was taking classes, if one person slacked or cheated, the whole group had to start over. When I teach, whoever slacked off is the only one who has to start over.