Balance discs, alternatively known as cushion discs or wobble discs, are small, round, flattened pillows filled with air. Made of rubber and often studded with rubber nubs, balance discs provide an unstable surface for both sitting and standing. Exercises with balance discs offer benefits not only for injury rehabilitation but also for general fitness. However, consult with your health-care practitioner prior to beginning a new exercise routine.
Purpose
A strong core -- the muscles that encircle your torso -- helps you maintain balance, which in turn allows your body to perform better in athletics and everyday activities and helps stave off injures. By challenging your body to maintain muscular control as you exercise, a balance disc improves your balance both by strengthening your core muscles and by increasing your sense of where your body is in space. Good balance is of particular concern for older adults living in community residences, 35 to 45 percent of whom suffer at least one fall per year, according to the American Council on Exercise.
Core Exercises
While all exercises on a balance cushion engage your core to some degree, certain exercises focus specifically on the muscles of your abs and low back. Planks, for instance, target your core muscles and may be modified by resting your feet on the disc. For an added challenge, rest one foot on the disc and hold your other foot up off the floor. Another core exercise adaptable to a balance disc is the superman, in which you rest your stomach on the disc and lift your arms and legs as high as you can. For variety and an even greater challenge, move your arms and legs in a swimming motion as you balance.
Upper-body Exercises
Pushups on a cushion disc may be modified in several ways to work your upper body. Rest one or both feet on the disc, or one or both hands on the disc, as you perform sets of pushups. Challenge yourself with dumbbell presses by resting your upper back on a balance disc as you exercise. Inchworms on a balance disc are especially intense. With one or both feet on the disc, fold forward until your hands are on the floor and then walk your hands out until your body is parallel to the ground. Hold the position and then slowly walk your hands back.
Lower-body Exercises
Body-weight squats on a balance cushion target your glutes, quads, hamstrings and calves. When you are able to perform sets with good balance, increase the intensity by practicing one-legged squats on the disc or by holding a medicine ball as you squat. Other lower-body balance disc exercises include lunges with one foot on the disc and calf raises while balancing on the disc.
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