The Original 10
Build your foundation first with Pilates for Beginners → — then come back to the Ten when it feels easy.
The mat routine I actually suggest for every day — simple, complete, and drawn from the classic Pilates mat series. Tap any move for the how-to, the breathing, and a modification; work through them in order.
The short answer
The mat routine I recommend returning to every day. Inspired by the opening exercises of Joseph Pilates’ original Contrology sequence, these movements build strength, mobility, breath, and control one exercise at a time.
Tap any exercise for step-by-step instruction, breathing cues, modifications, and progression. Work through them in order, allowing each movement to prepare your body for the next.
1. The Hundred
100 beats (build to 100)
The classic warm-up — breath and deep core.
2. The Roll-Up
8–10 reps
Roll up one vertebra at a time.
3. The Roll-Over
8–10 reps
Overhead and roll down with control — Rolling Like a Ball builds toward it.
4. Single Leg Circles
8–10 sets
Circle the leg, still the hips.
5. Single Leg Stretch
8–10 sets
Lower abs meet the breath.
6. Double Leg Stretch
8–10 reps
Reach long, then hug it all in.
7. Spine Stretch Forward
8–10 reps
Lengthen and decompress the spine.
8. Side Kicks
8–10 sets
The side-lying leg series — hips, seat and outer thighs.
9. The Saw
6 sets
Twist, reach, and stretch.
10. The Seal
8–10 reps
A playful, balanced finish.
New to the whole idea of the core? Start with what “engage your core” means and the GLOW Body Principles.
When the mind needs somewhere to land
Everything in this wing points, in the end, to the same place — the breath, and the nervous system beneath it. It is why I built SOVA: a quiet companion for the moments in between.
- Today — a daily practice that aligns you before the day pulls you a dozen directions.
- Companion — a place to process any feeling, even the happy ones.
- Pages — a soft place to set your thoughts down and out of your head.
- The House — rooms of calm to step into, whenever you need one.
A Note from Gina
One of the things I love most about Pilates is that it was never meant to be a collection of random exercises. Joseph Pilates created a method, with each movement building on the one before it. The goal wasn’t to do everything at once, but to develop a practice you could return to again and again.
People often ask me, “If I only have a few minutes each day, what should I do?” This is my answer.
These aren’t necessarily my favorite exercises, and they’re certainly not the only ones I teach. There are many beautiful movements that open the hips, create length, build strength, and challenge the body in different ways. But if you make this sequence part of your daily routine, you’ll be practicing the foundations that everything else grows from.
If an exercise isn’t available to your body yet, that’s okay. Start where you are, use the modifications, and trust the process. Pilates has always been about progression, not perfection.
— GinaThe Clara in It
Behind the method was Clara — Joseph Pilates’ partner and, to many who trained there, its true teacher. Where Joseph pushed, Clara adapted, meeting each body where it was. When I kept these ten in their original order but softened them for modern bodies, I was following her, not just him.
The Original 10 is offered in that spirit: the foundations, made to fit a real life.
The Ten — Weekly Handout
A check-off sheet for the full sequence, with reps and a four-week build-up. Meant to be practised daily — a short 10–15 minute routine you can return to again and again. Print it and tick your way through the week.
The Original 10 — Your Weekly Practice
Warm up first with a few Breathing Preps and a slow Roll-Down. Then move through the Ten, in order. Tick each as you complete it.
- 1. The Hundred — 100 beats — 10 full breaths
- 2. The Roll-Up — 5–8 slow reps
- 3. The Roll-Over — 3–5 — leave this until the rest feel strong
- 4. Single Leg Circles — 5 each direction, both legs
- 5. Single Leg Stretch — 8–10 each side
- 6. Double Leg Stretch — 6–10 reps
- 7. Spine Stretch Forward — 3–5 reps
- 8. Side Kicks — 8–10 each side
- 9. The Saw — 3–5 each side
- 10. The Seal — 6–8 rolls
• Weeks 1–2: exercises 1, 2, 4, 5, 6 — learn the flow.
• Weeks 3–4: add 7, 8, 9.
• Weeks 5+: the full ten, in order. Add the Roll-Over (3) only when everything else feels controlled.
Finish in Rest Position with one long breath. Quality over quantity — fewer, cleaner reps beats rushing every time.
The Way by Gina Santangelo
ginasantangelo.com · © 2026 GLOW Body, LLC · For personal use