Swiss balls, once used in physical therapy to improve balance and body awareness for patients, have gradually become a popular tool for many people to exercise with at the gym and at home. You can perform basic movement patterns that work your entire body using the Swiss ball alone, such as pushing, squatting and pulling movements.
Benefits
Swiss ball workouts require little space and can be performed to improve strength, balance, endurance and joint stability all at once. You can carry the ball almost anywhere to train and it requires little maintenance. You can also combine other exercise tools to train with the Swiss ball, such as dumbbells, resistance bands and medicine balls, with which you can create hundreds of exercises.
Ball Scaption
Scaption exercises involve pulling your shoulder blades together with your arms in various positions. This helps you strengthen your back and shoulders as well as your stabilization muscles in your pelvis and spine. With your abs and hips on top of the Swiss ball and your feet slightly apart and your toes curled under, tighten your buttocks to maintain your spine and hip alignment and bring your arms below your chest with your palms facing each other. Exhale and raise your arms up so that your body forms the letter Y. Pull your shoulder blades together and hold this position for two seconds before lowering them to the starting position. Perform two to three sets of eight to 12 reps.
Ball Pushups
Doing pushups on a ball also works on stabilization strength in your shoulders, spine and pelvis. You can do pushups with your hands on the ball or with the tops of your feet on the ball. In either position, keep your head in alignment with your spine and pelvis to avoid unnecessary strain and injury. Perform two to three sets of 10 to 12 reps
Ball Squats
Squats work all the muscles in your lower body and encourage stabilization strength in your torso. The Swiss ball helps support your body's alignment as you move. To do the basic ball squat, put the Swiss ball against a wall and your lower back against the ball. Stand with your feet about shoulder-width apart and raise your arms over your head to activate the stabilizers in your torso that keep your body in alignment. Inhale and squat down as low as you can while keeping your knees and feet pointing forward. Exhale and stand straight up without losing your alignment. Perform two to three sets of eight to 12 reps. You can also hold a dumbbell or kettlebell in each hand to increase the resistance.
References
- "NASM Essentials of Personal Fitness Training"; Michael Clark; 2007
- "Essence of Program Design"; Juan Carlos Santana; 2004
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