Master The Hundred In Pilates

Have you done The Hundred in Pilates yet? If not, then you haven’t done a real Pilates workout. That’s because the hundred (and its equally memorable friend, The Teaser) show up all over the place in Pilates. You’ll find it on the mat, the reformer, and the various other apparatuses. Since you’re going to keep seeing the hundred, let’s learn how to do it well.

What Is The Hundred?

Ask anyone, and they’ll tell you that the hundred in Pilates is a challenge! I’ll often get a groan in class when I say it or the teaser is coming up next. The hundred is the very first exercise that’s done in the mat work and it also comes right after the footwork on the reformer and the chair. It’s considered a warm-up exercise, and it definitely gets your body heated. Here’s how it’s done:

1. Lay on your back, reaching long from your head to your toes.
2. Reach your arms down by your sides.
3. Curl up through your upper body and float your legs up so that your feet are about 2” from the floor (higher if required).
4. Lift your arms up just above your hip height, then begin to pump your arms up and down 8” to 10”.
5. Breathe out for 5 counts and in for 5 counts.
6. Repeat up to 10 times. (Ten breaths, ten times, equals a hundred!) You may need to start with fewer reps when you’re new to Pilates.

This exercise can be challenging enough on the mat, but by doing it on the apparatuses you can add other layers to push you. On the reformer, you have the resistance of the springs and the moving carriage. The cadillac/tower also has springs to resist. Then, you could try it on top of the chair to work on your balance. No matter how you do the hundred, it will get your body moving and your core warmed up for the following exercises. 

What About The Teaser?

The teaser is another exercise that people don’t forget. It’s also often an exercise that clients pick as a goal that they want to achieve. In this exercise, you go from laying flat to sitting in a balanced V-shape, then back down again. There are variations and modifications, and you can do this one on other apparatuses, too. 

As you start to come up off the mat in this exercise, you actually have to move through the hundred position, and then again as you come back to the floor. This is why practicing good form and technique in the hundred will be the first step in achieving the teaser.   

Embrace The Hundred

I like the hundred because of how quickly it warms me up for my workout, and also for the challenge. It is deceptively simple looking but requires control and concentration, which then gets my mind ready for my Pilates practice. As an integral part of any Pilates workout, embracing the hundred and learning to do it well will help you achieve success in the other exercises.