Strengthen your midsection and lower body with a Pilates dumbbell routine, as demonstrated by a professional instructor.
Maia Henry's 30-Minute Strength x Pilates Workout: A Powerful Combination
Maia Henry's 30-minute workout is a potent blend of strength training and Pilates, designed to help build lean muscle, reduce fat, and improve overall body composition. This workout, which emphasizes using weights for strength exercises with high weights and low reps, is followed by Pilates movements that promote muscle endurance and stability [1][3].
The Exercise Breakdown
The workout consists of three parts, each focusing on a different aspect of fitness. The lower-body strength circuit uses a set of light dumbbells and includes exercises such as the Romanian deadlift, Sway squat, and Squat to calf raise. The leg-focused Pilates practice and the abs-oriented Pilates-style segment, while not detailed here, are also integral parts of the workout [2].
The upper-body toning segment of the workout, as demonstrated in Maia Henry's routine, includes exercises aimed at enhancing stability, shoulder positioning, and elbow alignment. Notable examples include the "Knee to elbow crunch hold" and the "Weighted clamshell".
The "Knee to elbow crunch hold" is performed for two sets, each lasting 30 seconds. To perform this exercise, one lies on their back, places their hands on their temples, lifts their shoulders off the ground, performs a crunch, brings their right knee towards their left elbow by twisting the torso, holds this position briefly, lowers themselves back to the start position, and repeats on the other side [4].
The "Weighted clamshell" is another upper-body toning exercise. To perform this exercise, one lies on their side with a dumbbell on the outside of their higher thigh, keeps their feet together and hips square, and lifts their top knee as high as possible while keeping the foot in contact with the lower knee [5].
The Benefits
This integrated workout offers numerous benefits. It promotes lean muscle development, fat loss, and improved body composition. Additionally, it enhances muscular strength and endurance, improves joint stability and posture, particularly in the shoulders and elbows, and provides mental and physical conditioning through the Pilates-strength synergy [1][2].
The "V-up to around the world" is another exercise from Maia Henry's routine. To perform this exercise, one lies on their back, holds a dumbbell to their chest, lifts their legs and torso simultaneously to form a v shape, passes the dumbbell around their thighs, and controls their legs and torso back to the ground to complete the repetition [4].
The "Rainbow leg lift" is another exercise that is part of the leg-focused Pilates practice. To perform this exercise, one starts on all fours with their hips level and toes touching the floor, extends their right leg straight behind them, lifts their right toes off the ground, and moves them out to their right side in an arc, then arcs the leg in the opposite direction and taps the ground to the outside of their left leg. This exercise is performed for two sets, each lasting 15 reps on each side, with a 30-second rest [4].
The "Heels together squat pulse" is another exercise that focuses on the lower body. During this exercise, the individual stands with heels together and toes pointed slightly outwards, and pulses up and down in the bottom portion of the squat for two sets and 15 reps [4].
The Squat to calf raise and the Sway squat are also part of the lower-body strength circuit. The Squat to calf raise involves standing with feet shoulder-width apart, squatting down, rocking forward onto toes to do a calf raise, and lowering heels to repeat the movement. The Sway squat involves standing with feet wider than shoulder-width apart, bending knees to squat, and shifting weight between knees while maintaining a squat position [4].
The "Alternating deadbug" is another exercise that is part of the abs-oriented Pilates-style segment. To perform this exercise, one lies on their back with their arms extended overhead and their thighs vertical with knees bent at 90°, keeps their lower back pressed against the floor, extends their right arm overhead and their left leg in front of them, returns to the starting position, and repeats on the opposite side, alternating sides with each repetition. This exercise is performed for two sets and 30 seconds, with a 30-second rest [4].
Overall, Maia Henry’s workout capitalizes on the complementary nature of Pilates’ core and flexibility elements combined with strength training’s muscle-building intensity to offer efficient, balanced fitness results in a concise 30-minute session.
- To further boost strength training and flexibility gains from Maia Henry's workout, consider incorporating yoga workouts that emphasize improving health-and-wellness, fitness-and-exercise, and overall wellness.
- Embracing a holistic approach to fitness by combining science-backed workout routines, such as Maia Henry's 30-minute Strength x Pilates Workout, with yoga workouts can help foster a strong body, increased stability, and improved joint function.
- Becoming familiar with various yoga poses, such as the Warrior III or Downward-Facing Dog, can help improve posture, strength training, and the body's capacity for workouts as part of a comprehensive health and wellness regimen.
