Stability and weighted balls are great props to incorporate into your yoga practice. A stability ball can help you strengthen your core and engage in difficult poses. Weighted balls can develop the upper body while you perform poses that focus on different muscle groups. You can use a stability ball for any yoga pose, but weighted balls are limited to those poses that do not occupy your hands.
Yoga Pushup With a Stability Ball
The yoga push-up is composed of two different poses: plank and four-limbed staff. Place your abdomen on top of the stability ball and your hands on the floor in front of you and the ball. Walk forward with your hands until the ball is positioned against the tops of your thighs. Perform plank by grounding down through your hands and straightening the arms without locking the elbows. Engage your core and then perform four-limbed staff by bending the arms and keeping the elbows tucked in. Your elbows should graze the sides of your ribs as you lower down. Repeat this cycle 10 times.
Downward-Facing Dog Stretch
Downward-facing dog can be a difficult pose for some people because of the pressure on the wrists and the intense stretch of the hamstrings. You can use a stability ball to access this pose comfortably. Your intention is to perform downward-facing dog with the ball in the same way you would if your hands were on the floor. Place your hands on the stability ball and walk your feet back about 2 to 3 feet. Bend at the waist and allow your arms and spine to lengthen as your head hangs and you press into the ball with your hands. Press your hips up toward the ceiling as you gently straighten your legs without locking the knees. Draw your shoulder blades together and down toward your tailbone. Melt your heart toward the floor and direct your gaze to your knees.
Warrior Arms With Weighted Ball
A popular sequence is to transition from warrior I into warrior II and repeat in connection with the flow of your inhale and exhale. From simple standing, step your left foot back and turn it out at a diagonal as you bend into the right knee and straighten the back leg. The hips face forward evenly. Take the weighted ball in both hands and extend the arms up overhead. Transition into warrior II legs by opening the torso and the hips to the left and then lower the arms in front of you, parallel to the floor. Repeat this sequence by inhaling into warrior I stance with the ball above your head and then exhale into warrior II stance, lowering the arms. Repeat on opposite side.
Heavy Duty Chair
Chair pose focuses on the legs and core. Take a weighted ball into your hands and stand with your feet together. Lift your arms overhead, grasping the ball firmly as you bend the knees as if you were sitting in a chair. Keep your chest lifted and core engaged as you ground down through the feet and breathe into the squat. Choose a point of focus for your eyes either on the floor or somewhere ahead of you to help your balance and concentration. Allow your breath to flow freely in and out through the nose as you hold the ball in the air. You can flow in and out of chair pose by inhaling into the pose and lifting the weighted ball, then exhaling back into standing as you lower the ball down in front of you. Try repeating this cycle 10 times.
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