I’m now doing occasional pop-up PILATES X MELISSA tutorials focusing on a specific part of the body or exercise or skill (e.g. balance, coordination, breathing.) The 30-minute tutorials provide a chance to work more closely on this one area than we’re able to do in a general, holistic Pilates class.

The pop-up PILATES X MELISSA tutorials are FREE, suitable for most people and live-streamed via Zoom. The first one is on Thursday 4 June at 1830 and the topic is feet.

Inspired by the work ballet dancers do to ensure their feet are strong and supple, I’ll take you through a series of strengthening, stretching and myofascial release exercises you can then do for yourself at home to help you achieve your best feet.

Who will benefit

• Anyone who spends a lot of time on their feet.
• Anyone who does load-bearing, impactful activities like running or tennis or football.
• Anyone who regularly wears heels.
• Anyone who has circulatory problems affecting their feet.
• Anyone who finds their feet cramp a lot.
• Anyone who spends most of the summer months wearing flip-flops or fashion sandals.

If you have any healing fractures or new sprains or strains affecting the foot or ankle then none of the exercises in the pop-up tutorial are suitable for you to do just yet. Best to watch and take notes as these exercises will help you enormously once your injury has healed enough to resume gentle exercise.

The myofascial release exercises will not suit people with the following issues – malignancy, aneurysm, acute rheumatoid arthritis, advanced diabetes, severe osteoporosis, open wounds or bruising to the foot.

How will you benefit

The exercises over time will help the proper functioning of the foot and ankle, particularly when balancing, walking and running by:

• improving their strength, especially at the joints;
• increasing the range of movement;
• reducing tension by encouraging the release of deep knots or trouble spots;
• improving blood flow;
• reducing aches and pains;
• improving the transmission of information from your feet to your brain.

There is also evidence that performing myofascial release exercises on the plantar surface of the feet improves the flexibility of the hamstrings and lumbar spine.

What you will need for the pop-up Pilates tutorial

To get the most from the session you will need:

• a 6-7cm ball of some kind, preferably a spikey massage ball or you could use a golf ball or a juggling ball;
• a tennis ball or similar;
• a hair elastic or a small but strong elastic band;
• a TheraBand or a hand towel;
• a large handkerchief or a tea towel.

To attend this free pop-up Pilates tutorial for the feet, please register with Zoom here. Once you have done this you will automatically receive a confirmation email from Zoom (please check your spam folder if it doesn’t arrive straight away in your inbox), which contains a link. On the day of the tutorial, 5-10 minutes before the start time, you simply click on this link to join the session.

Before the tutorial, if you’re using a tablet or mobile to take part you will need to download the Zoom App from the App store, which is free. If you’re using a laptop and want quicker access into the session, download Zoom Client for Meetings from their website. You don’t need any kind of Zoom account to attend my online classes and pop-up tutorials on Zoom.

Please help me to help others by sharing details of these free pop-up PILATES X MELISSA tutorials and inviting any friends, family members and work colleagues you think might be interested.

To close, a fine tune from Benjamin Clementine and a fantastic video. It’s like looking inside someone’s head while they’re dreaming…