Why Your Hundred Feels Wrong (and How to Fix It)

Everyone knows The Hundred — but not everyone’s doing it the way Joe intended.

Here are a few small tweaks that make this classic exercise more connected, more powerful, and more true to the method.

1. Your curl-up starts at your centre, not your head.

Find your longest, roundest shape — length before lift. Think of curling from your ribs, not yanking from your neck. Your head simply follows the spine. If you feel tension in your neck, it’s a sign your focus is on lifting your head rather than flexing your spine.

2. Ditch tabletop.

Tabletop often disconnects you from your powerhouse and overloads the hip flexors. Try keeping your legs straight along the mat. If it’s going well, lift them only as far as you can stay connected — ideally hovering somewhere between eye level and 45 degrees.

3. Round spine ≠ round shoulders.

Keep your collarbones wide and your shoulders reaching away from your ears. Stay open across the chest.

4. Don’t come up too high.

Your waist stays on the mat. Too high and you lose the length and stability that make The Hundred effective.

5. Pumps are vigorous and energetic.

Keep your arms straight, pumping from your back, not your chest. Think of your arms attaching just below your armpits into your bottom ribs — that’s where the movement comes from.

6. Need support? Elevate your legs.

Place a bolster or small ball under your calves to give your legs light support. You’ll still get the full benefit through your centre — and it prepares your body for the lifted-leg position while maintaining proper spinal flexion.

7. Find the two-way stretch.

Reach your legs long and your arms in the opposite direction — energy radiating out from your centre in both directions. That’s when The Hundred really starts to work for you.

We Never Skip The Hundred

At EQ Pilates, The Hundred is non-negotiable — you’ll find it in every class we teach, whether you’re on the mat, the Reformer, the Cadillac, or in our classical studio sessions inspired by Joe’s original New York gym.

It’s not just a warm-up — it’s the foundation of your control, breath, and connection.

And when you do it well, it changes everything.

Come and feel it for yourself — explore our full timetable of Mat, Reformer, and Studio sessions in Sutton Coldfield