In 2005 I fell backwards on my neck. I continued to dance after that initial injury making the pain worse and worse until I had 4 herniated discs and shooting nerve pain through my finger tips.

When I finally began to rehab and heal through Pilates I built up to this exercise: a roll down into extension.

My teacher sat behind me and held my head so my neck didn’t have to work. I was legitimately scared of going backwards. With her support I got through the exercise without any pain and conquered that fear…and we helped decompress my spine.

Showing the body that movement is safe is a large part of what this work is. Building strength and mobility simultaneously, creates stability and eases pain. Today, an exercise like this is a piece of cake for me.