Strong and stable
FUN: Combining balance and stability exercises is great
Stability-ball exercises are a great way to improve balance, which is key not only for sports but everyday life
I f there’s one thing I know after all of my years of training, it’s that some exercises are more fun than others. For some reason, balance exercises and stability ball exercises usually rank up there among people’s favourites. Combining the two can really be a ball!
Most people could benefit from having better balance. Whether you’re hiking, biking, working, playing, or just hoping to avoid falling down, balance is an important asset.
I’ve seen many clients improve their balance by regularly performing activities that challenge them, and the best thing is that most balance exercises aren’t that strenuous.
There are a number of different structures and feedback systems involved in the human balance system. Our eyes, ears and tiny receptors in our skin, muscles and joints provide feedback to help us determine if we’re off-balance or not.
Good strength, core stability, postural control and reflexes will help you maintain good balance and orientation of your body in demanding situations.
Most people focus on performing standing balance exercises. This makes sense since much of our time is spent moving about on our feet.
However, there is good reason to improve the reaction time and stabilization control of other parts of the body, especially around the hip joints, pelvis and lower back.
The following are a few great balance exercises that can be performed on a stability ball.
Focus on breathing and good alignment at all times, and be sure to perform these activities in a safe, open area where you won’t run into anything that could hurt you.
At first, it can be a good idea to try these moves along a wall that you can lean on for extra stability and a sense of security.
Always stop if you feel pain, and make sure that you consult your physician before undertaking a new fitness program or making changes to your current routine.
Ball Seated
Many people spend a lot of their day sitting in an office chair, or in their car.
When you do this, your body slowly becomes less and less capable of supporting itself. The muscles of your abdomen and lower back gradually become de-conditioned and less athletic.
One way to counteract this kind of unhealthy response is to challenge your body by sitting on top of a stability ball and lifting your feet off the floor. If you’re not feeling very stable, begin by lifting only one foot and working to hold good neutral spinal and pelvic alignment.
Breathe comfortably and avoid letting the ball roll or move at all. Then do the same with the other leg.
Once you’ve mastered the single leg lift, try lifting both feet off the floor. This is far more challenging and will require good core recruitment to maintain a tall sitting posture without letting your lower back slump. Instantly, you’ll feel the movement between your pelvis and rib cage as you adjust to the instability of the moving ball. Time yourself and see how long you can sit without touching your toes to the floor.
Ball Quadruped
To try balancing on the ball in the quadruped position, start by standing with a ball on the floor in front of your knees. Place your palms on the ball and pull it gently toward you, against your shins.
Slowly lower the weight of your knees onto the ball, keeping solid, stable pressure through your hands as well. As you continue to load your body weight onto the ball, you should establish good spinal and pelvic alignment.
Slowly lift your toes from the floor, balancing with only your hands and knees on the ball.
Continue breathing comfortably, maintaining good core engagement to control the movement of the ball. If this becomes easy, try extending one leg or arm off the ball. Advanced exercisers with excellent balance could try one arm and the opposite leg.
Ball Kneeling
When my clients master the ball quadruped exercise, I’ll often progress them to the ball kneeling position. Although this might look easier, there is less room for error, and farther to fall if you lose your balance.
I emphasize that this exercise should only be done when you’re fully capable, and in a safe, open area.
Hold onto a stable structure or wall for the first few tries until you feel that you’ve really have control of the position. Maintaining good core engagement and stability of your hip joints will help you to find a solid, balanced position and really feel like you’re in charge of the ball.
Exercisers looking for a higher level of difficulty can play catch with a training partner who is standing, or who may also be balancing on a ball. If you don’t have a partner, try bouncing a medicine ball off a solid wall and catching it while balancing.