The Ball Exercises

Exercise balls strengthen a variety of muscles in the body while adding an element of core work to all your exercises. The ball itself is the only tool you need to strengthen your core, back, chest, legs and shoulders. Another idea is to substitute the ball for a bench or floor during your regular workout routine, such as sitting on the ball while performing bicep curls.

Back Exercises

You can target the muscles of the upper, middle and lower back using an exercise ball, also called a Swiss ball, stability ball or ab ball. Strong back muscles lead to better posture and less back pain. An example of an exercise that strengthens the back is the ball reverse extensions. To perform the ball reverse extensions, kneel on a ball and walk your hands forward with your arms and legs straight until the ball rests underneath your abdomen. This exercise targets the lower back and glutes. Start with the toes touching the floor and then raise your legs together toward the ceiling.

Chest Exercises

Strengthen the pectoral muscles of your chest using the ball and your body weight. The ball reverse pushup is an example of a chest-strengthening exercise that also works the arms and shoulders. To perform a reverse pushup, assume pushup position with your hands on top of the ball instead of the floor. The arms are straight and your body makes a straight line with your toes touching the ground. Lower your chest toward the ball as you flex your elbows and then push your arms straight again. You may drop your knees to the floor if you cannot perform the reverse pushup with your legs straight. You can also lie on the ball like a bench to do other dumbbell chest exercises.

Leg Exercises

Target your lower body with variations of popular exercises like the squat and lunge, or strengthen your legs and glutes with a unique ball exercise. An example is the inner-thigh squeeze. Lie face up on the floor and put the ball between your knees. Lift the ball above your hips and then squeeze your thighs together.

Ball Shoulder Exercises

Most exercises for the shoulder using a ball include dumbbells. Sitting on a ball and performing shoulder exercises such as shoulder presses and bent-arm lateral raises are one option. The ball scapular protraction exercise uses only the ball to strengthen the shoulders. To perform this exercise, get into ball reverse pushup position facing the floor with your hands on top of the ball. Align your hands with your shoulders and extend your arms straight. Start with your shoulder blades pinched and then press up away from the ball by only moving your shoulder blades away from each other. This is shoulder protraction.

Ball Core Exercises

The ball works the core muscles with every exercise you do because of the instability of the round shape. However, targeted core exercises are also possible. Regular ball crunches with the knees bent strengthen the abs, but extending the arms and legs straight increases the challenge of the exercise. Lie face up with the ball under your back, your legs straight and your arms straight above your head. Then, lift your arms and chest toward the ceiling.