15 Jan The Many Possibilities of The Swiss Ball!
The Swiss ball is one of those pieces of fitness equipment that so many people have…in a corner…in an office, or in a spare bedroom. A lot of times we have bought one thinking, “I can work out at home if I get this! I know you can do all kinds of stuff with it!” and then we never do. It got pumped up, sat on while you read the instructions at one point, attempted the workouts provided, got bored, put it away, and here we are. But! I can help you change that!
Step One: Make sure it is fully inflated!
A swiss ball is a tool that can be used in the home or in the gym and there are countless exercises you can do on and with it. One reason being, you can do many things that you can do on a bench, using a ball. Think of your favorite exercise. Can that somehow be one on a stability ball? I bet it can!
The unstable factor of being on a squishy, round object creates additional tension on the muscles when performing exercises with it. This then demands that your body engage the little stabilizer muscles that don’t get activated as much or in some cases at all when performing stable exercises. Training these muscles increases balance and stability strength, making it so we are stronger in a day to day activities as well as when exercising.
Step Two: Refer back to last week’s fitness blog and download the fitness log where you will write your stability ball program!
Go about all of the steps of program design, and then fill those days with exercises using the swiss ball that pertain to that day. For example, on a swiss ball chest and triceps day I might perform an on the ball sets of chest press, seated dumbbell tricep overhead extension, dumbbell chest fly, tricep dips with feet on the ball, etc.
Start by doing what you can. If you feel like it is difficult to do, that is ok! Just work on your form, engaging your core, and taking your time. You should move through these exercises slower than in a stable exercise. Breathing is going to be a key factor, so find your rhythm and try to utilize your breaths. Have fun using the ball, even if you fall or can only do a few. Its all about progressing!
Take a look at the video to see some of my favorite workouts on a swiss ball!