Saw
I love this aspect of teaching the Pilates method: when the exercises build on one another.
I love making these connections for my clients and showing them how to use those connections throughout their workout and beyond.
So when I teach them Saw, I remind them how they perform Spine Stretch Forward and help them connect the skill of forward flexion of the spine with the rotation that follows.
I find that many exercises become easier when people recognize that they are not learning something completely new. They are building on a lesson they have already practiced before.
Saw isn't about just "touching your toe. "
It's about restoring the movements that make everyday life easier.
I have found that people often avoid this exercise because it is so hard to do. It asks for trunk mobility, hamstring length, hip mobility, abdominal support, and the ability to rotate and bend the spine with control.
If one of those pieces is missing, the exercise can feel uncomfortable or intimidating.
That is precisely why I think it is valuable.
It gives us an opportunity to improve the very skills that help us bend, reach, rotate, and move through daily life with greater ease.
One of my favorite teaching moments is watching my client go from "I can't do this" to "Oh... that's what it's supposed to feel like."
😊
When you practice Saw, the spine rotates and bends forward while the pelvis stays stable. Keeping the pelvis organized while the trunk moves is a skill that needs to be learned.
This is where I believe learning the skill separately makes a difference.
In What Pilates Is: The Essential Skills, I teach skills like pelvic stability before they become part of a more complicated exercise. Once the pelvis can stay organized while the trunk moves, an exercise like Saw becomes easier to understand and practice for lasting results.
Keeping the Pelvis Organized While the Trunk Moves Is a Skill That Needs to Be Learned.
Are you just trying to "touch your toe"...
or are you actually using Saw to practice rotating and flexing your spine?
That change in focus can change the entire exercise.
Sit tall.
Engage your abdominals and lengthen your spine.
Rotate your torso first, then begin flexing your spine as you move toward the opposite foot.
You may touch your toe, or you may not—your available range of motion will determine that.
The toe gives you a direction to move toward. The rotation and flexion of your spine are what you are practicing to get there.
I often tell my clients that performing a Pilates exercise is like speaking a sentence:
You don't start a new sentence before you've finished the first one.
In the same way, finish one repetition before beginning the next. 😉
Over the years, I've found that breaking a Pilates exercise into smaller parts often makes it easier to understand what the purpose is, safer to practice, and ultimately easier to perform well.
Once those parts begin to make sense one by one, and the body understands how to organize the movement, the exercise comes together into one smooth, flowing movement.
When we are watching someone perform Pilates exercises with what seems like great ease, we know that they are putting all the parts together and working very hard from the inside out.
Saw is often challenging because it reveals several limitations at once.
• Tight hamstrings.
• Stiff hips.
• Limited trunk rotation.
• A lower back that feels vulnerable.
But that's exactly what makes it such a valuable exercise.
The solution isn't to force more range of motion.
It's to organize the movement differently.
Sit tall first.
Engage your abdominals.
Lengthen your spine before rotating your trunk.
Then flex your spine forward while maintaining abdominal support.
As you roll back up, move one vertebra at a time while continuing to reach your arms away from each other to help keep the shoulders organized.
When the trunk leads the movement, Saw becomes less about reaching farther and more about coordination, control, and much improved quality of movement.
When practicing Saw, the goal is to rotate and bend the spine while keeping the pelvis stable, the abdominals engaged, and the shoulders organized. That takes more than knowing the choreography.
It's been my experience that understanding the skills behind the exercise changes how it is practiced.
In What Pilates Is: The Essential Skills, I break down foundational skills like pelvis and shoulder-girdle stability so they can be practiced on their own. Then, when they come together in an exercise like Saw, we have a clearer understanding of what should move, and what should stay stable.