How to Do Pilates Frog on the Arc Barrel

Inside: Pilates Frog exercise is one of my favorites. It's fun and whimsical. Plus, you get to trim your thighs. Here's how to practice this on the Arc barrel.

I love practicing the Pilates Frog exercise. You get to turn your legs out and bring them back to parallel while pointing and flexing your feet and moving your legs away from you then back to center.

For some people, it might feel like too much choreography initially. However, after you get the flow down, you'll enjoy the Pilates Frog exercise and its thigh-trimming benefits.

Here's how to correctly practice this Arc barrel exercise.

Pilates Frog on the Arc Barrel

1. Place the Arc barrel so that the curve seems like a bump in the road on your mat.
2. Sit on top of the barrel.
3. Scoot forward a little bit, like you’re sliding halfway down the barrel.
4. Carefully, lower yourself back one vertebra at a time. As you roll your spine onto the barrel, you will notice that you slide down a little bit. This is normal. You should end with your hips at the apex of the barrel, your spine mostly connected to the barrel or the floor, and your shoulder blades and head resting on the mat. It should feel relatively comfortable.
5. Broaden your collarbones, and press the palms of your hands into the sides of the barrel.
6. Use Pilates breathing to inhale through your nose and exhale through pursed lips.
7. Inhale to lift one leg up to Table top.
8. Exhale to lift the other leg. Feel your low back reaching toward the barrel. Reach your legs out on a diagonal. Laterally rotate your legs so your knees face away from each other and point your feet.
9. Inhale and bring your legs up to center.
10. Exhale and bend your knees open to the side so that your feet and legs form a diamond. As you open your knees, let them angle toward your shoulders. This will prevent over-rotation at the hip. The very tips of your toes should be lightly touching, and your feet should be in line with the midline of your body. Make sure the space inside your legs looks like a diamond and not a square tilted on its point.
11. Keep your thighs still in space as you inhale and extend your knees. You should feel like you're in a straddle position. Flex your feet.
12. Exhale and circle your legs together. Make sure that they are reaching away from you on an angle. Point your feet.
13. Repeat steps 9-12. Complete 4 reps this way.
14. Then, switch directions.

Going the Other Way in Pilates Frog on the Arc Barrel

1. Make sure you start with your legs on an angle, together, and laterally rotated. Flex your feet.
2. Inhale and circle your legs away from each other and out to the side. It should feel like you're in a straddle position. Point your feet.
3. Keep your thighs still in space as you exhale and bend your knees. Let the tips of your toes gently touch as you make a diamond shape.
4. Inhale and straighten your legs toward the ceiling.
5. Exhale and lower your legs on an angle.
6. Complete 4 reps this way.
7. To finish, fold your knees toward your chest and slide back to come off the barrel or stay put to do more leg exercises on the barrel.

Finding the Best Arc Barrel

If you’re in the market for an Arc barrel, I recently compared the top five Arc barrels on the market. Here’s who made my top five list and which barrel I’d buy.

Pilates Frog on the Arc Barrel Video

When you're practicing Pilate Frog, make sure that you don't over-rotate from your hips. Instead, let your knees angle toward your shoulders.

If you ever feel any sort of grinding in your hips as your legs move, stop what you're doing immediately. Something is not right, and it's not a good idea for you to practice this exercise today.

What do you think of Pilates Frog? Let us know in the comments below.

Also, I just want to let you know that if you’re interested in learning the basics of Pilates and yoga, I offer a FREE 30-day challenge. Click here to sign up today!

Here is a video of how to do Pilates Frog on the Arc barrel for all the visual learners out there.