Body positioning and direction of resistance determine the muscle stimulus that occurs as well as the difficulty of the exercise. Exercises can be progressed or regressed simply by changing the base, or direction of resistance.
The BASE is any part of our body that is in contact with the ground, allowing us to base our movement (or anti-movement) off of. The quality and number of the contact points with the floor, as well as the number of joints involved in requiring stabilization, will determine the difficulty of an exercise.
- FEET:
Spread the toes and grip the floor. The big toe stays down and active at all times. This engagement will activate all the stabilizers in your feet and create an arch. If you struggle to create an arch, click here for a SHORT FOOT Exercise.
- HANDS:
Make an L with your thumb and forefinger, spread the rest of them wide placing the L in line with your body on the floor. Press fingertips into the floor creating an arch in the palm of your hand.