Every reformer session in the house begins with footwork. It has begun that way for a hundred years and we see no reason to change it. Five positions of the feet on the bar, the carriage pushed out and drawn back, ten repetitions each. It looks like a warm-up. It is a diagnosis.
Toes on the bar tells us about the arches and whether the knees track. Arches tells us about the hips. Heels tells us about the hamstrings and whether the pelvis is honest. Tendon stretch tells us everything about the calves and the ankles, which is to say about how you walk. And the final position, which we will not describe here because it should be taught, tells us whether the previous four were true.
A good teacher can read a member's week from the footwork. Sat too long, flew yesterday, ran on concrete, slept badly: it is all there in the first two minutes. That is why we never let it be rushed and why we teach it with the lightest springs we can. The point is not to push. The point is to notice.