Exercise ball

Exercise balls or Swiss balls are one of the most innovative ways to exercise. The real benefit of these balls, which were introduced by a group of Swiss medical therapists, is a substitute for support during exercise.

Working out with an exercise ball will strengthen and tone all of the major muscles of the body. The soft texture of the exercise ball makes it an ideal choice for Yoga positions, using dumbbells for muscle toning, or working on heavy duty weight training equipment.

Exercise Ball and Book Store - US
Exercise Ball and Book Store - UK

The advantage of exercise balls is that they are durable and maintain shape well under pressure. The
documentation with the balls will provide test load figures for how much weight the exercise balls will hold. It will also give a guide to inflating and storing exercise balls. The main factor here is the fact that the exercise ball provides soft yet firm support that doesn't harm your body.

You can find exercise balls in a range of different colors and finishes. You can even get an exercise ball that matches the texture of your room. They are simple to store and you can even roll them under your bed, if it's quite high, or a table if you prefer. When you aren't using them, you can let kids play with them. These exercise balls provide a lot of fun for kids, as they are very soft and won't cause them any harm.

Exercise ball Exercises

Exercise ball bridge. This works stabilising muscles and a wide range of back, abdomin and leg muscles. Ensure your arms are in a vertical plane, and your body is straight.
From the standard exercise ball bridge demonstrated above, the arms and ball can be brought together. This process is not easy, and again makes use of stabilising muscles to keep your body on top of the ball. Moving into this position and out is used as a rep with the standard exercise ball bridge.
An advanced exercise ball bridge. Elbows support the upper body on the floor, and hands are clasped together for stability.

Exercise Balls From Medical Equipment

The exercise ball was originally developed for use in medical therapy. In this, the exercise ball is used to support the body during exercise. These balls will provide support to the body when you do an exercise in a specific position and still need to maintain balance. This is perhaps their strongest point, as they demand you use a wider variety of muscles to exercise and maintain balance, than most other exercise routines. Most exercise balls are made of burst proof latex or other material that is very safe to use.

There are many postures with yoga and muscle toning exercise that can only be done with the help of support. For these postures, exercise balls are very useful. The exercise balls will introduce an element of stability to the exercise that you wouldn't normally get with the floor exercise.

Your body responds automatically to the instability to keep balanced on the exercise ball. This helps in strengthening the muscles that aren't actively participating in exercise.

An exercise ball is also very useful for physiotherapy treatment. Exercise balls will help to correct and reduce backache and spinal disorders. The small range of movement and adjustment of balance of the spine that is induced by exercising with the exercise ball will help reduce back pain.

The Swiss ball exercise is especially useful for people with back pain to provide them with a simple way to restore movements after an episode of back pain. It also results in improved muscle strength, greater flexibility, and a wide range of motion of the spine during treatment.