Learn To Stand On A Gym Ball
New ways to exercise are always being invented, there is a particularly new and exciting way of exercising that has become very popular – gym balls. some reasons for the popularity of this type of exercise are that it is very portable, it is very low impact (therefore it is particularly quiet), it doesn’t require much space and the equipment doesn’t cost very much.
One of the most popular exercise balls folks are using at the moment is the Swiss ball. It is an inflatable ball which is usually around 65 or 75 cm diameter. Quite a lot of folks just replace their work chair with a Swiss ball. when you are sitting on a Swiss ball, it feels quite natural to make small rocking movements rather than just sitting still which works the core and also provides a small amount of exercise even while just sitting there.
But when it is used in the course of normal exercise the Swiss ball is an amazingly versatile piece of exercise equipment. Many of the exercises using the Swiss ball work the core primarily but all of the exercises work the secondary muscles at the same time and it’s also possible to emulate the same kind of exercises that you can do on home gym equipment.
One day while I was working at the gym, a gym instructor showed me how to do press ups by putting my feet on top of the ball. While doing this, the feet attempt continually to roll off the top of the ball, therefore as well as the usual benefits that can be gained from doing press ups, you are also continually working the core which is trying to stop the feet from rolling off the sides of the ball.
Most Swiss ball exercises use the same principle – a part of the body is elevated on top of the Swiss ball and gravity tries to encourage this part of the body to dismount from the top of the ball. this may not sound very technical and you might assume that there are only a handful of exercises that can be done in this way. But you simply have to do a search on youtube for the term Swiss ball exercises and very quickly you will probably find that there are absolutely loads of different exercises that you can do on your Swiss ball.
In fact, once you try attempting these exercises and trying new ones you will probably begin inventing your own novel ones before too long. Going back to the press up with your feet on top of the Swiss ball, once you have attempted this you will notice that it not only works on the core, but it also gives a new angle to the upper body labor that you do. As you will discover during press ups the whole of your upper body will eventually start to shake and quiver because of the extra forces transferred from the feet all of the way down the body to the arms. This is one of the key reasons why it is so effective to use the Swiss ball for your exercises.
As mentioned, there are loads of floor exercises that can be carried out using the Swiss ball. But if we scoot ahead to the more advanced levels one of the most difficult but most advantageous ways to use the Swiss ball is to do exercises while standing on top of it. This is not recommended for beginners as it can be particularly hazardous. Once you are ready to attempt these advanced exercises, you should initially learn how to kneel on the Swiss ball. Then once this has been achieved, you can advance to standing up on it.
Again, by looking on youtube you will discover some great demonstrations of exercises that you can do while standing on a Swiss ball. When searching, you will find that they have a variety of names such as Swiss balls, balance balls and exercise balls. The most important thing to consider while attempting to master the skill is that when you involuntarily dismount the landing can be particularly painful, therefore safety mats should be used to start out at all times. Obviously, the normal occurrence is for the legs to slip off the side of the ball which is the equivalent of your feet going from under you – such as when slipping on ice. Please bear this in mind because the main reason for exercising is to improve your health, not to damage it.
When you have conquered standing up on a Swiss ball, you will be a Swiss ball master and will have developed amazingly strong legs and core and an amazing ability to balance.