Outdated gym ball workouts offer an underappreciated Pilates substitute—explore 5 exercises to test out
Exercise balls, often known as Swiss balls or gym balls, are versatile fitness essentials that can transform your home into a workout studio. These inflatable spheres offer a myriad of possibilities for strength, mobility, and core work, making them an ideal choice for a quick and effective full-body workout.
Recent studies have shown that incorporating exercise balls into your daily routine can yield significant benefits. For instance, a study published in the European Journal of Applied Physiology found that sitting on a therapy ball for an entire workday can burn approximately 300 more calories compared to a traditional office chair.
One of the key advantages of exercise ball workouts is their versatility. They cater to hundreds of exercises, targeting core, upper body, lower body, and enhancing balance and stability. Here are some key exercises that can be performed using a stability or Swiss ball:
- Wall Squat with Gym Ball: Place the ball between your lower back and a wall. Lower into a squat until thighs are nearly parallel, then push up through the heels. This targets quadriceps, glutes, and core.
- Pike Hold on Swiss Ball: Start in a plank with shins on the ball and hands under shoulders. Use your core to lift hips toward the ceiling and hold before lowering. This strengthens the core and upper body with a balance challenge.
- Stability Ball Plank: Forearms on the ball, feet extended behind. Hold your body in a straight line, engaging deep core muscles to improve core strength and balance.
- Leg Tuck Ins: In plank with feet on ball, roll ball toward chest by bending knees to engage abs, hip flexors, and obliques.
- Stability Ball Rollouts: Kneel with hands on ball, roll forward extending body while keeping hips stable and core tight, then return. This builds core, lower back, and shoulder strength.
- Swiss Ball Dumbbell Tricep Extension: Lying supine over the ball, use dumbbells to do controlled tricep extensions, engaging core, triceps, shoulders, and glutes.
- Swiss Ball Tricep Dip: Place hands beside buttocks on the ball, feet out, then dip down to work triceps, shoulders, glutes, and hamstrings.
These exercises, when combined, work the major muscle groups, improve balance and flexibility, and build core strength for a comprehensive home workout using a gym or Swiss ball.
For those seeking more dynamic full-body moves, exercises involving a slam ball (similar but heavier) can be engaging. However, traditional gym/stability balls are ideal for strength, balance, and core stability work, particularly suitable for home use.
Gym ball exercises are an underrated Pilates alternative and offer a full-body workout with just one piece of equipment. They are also affordable and easy to store. For taller individuals over 6'2", a larger gym ball of up to 75cm may be a better option. For most people, a 65cm ball is a good place to start.
Don't forget the gym ball crunch, a core exercise where you kneel with your forearms on the ball, roll the ball forward, and pull it back using your abdominals. Also, the gym ball lunge, which targets the quadriceps and glutes, boosts lower-body stability, and is suitable for balance and core exercises.
Lastly, the pike hold on a Swiss ball is a great core exercise to do at home. It serves as an upper-body strengthener, offering a challenging yet effective addition to your exercise ball routine.
- A gym ball, like a Swiss ball, can be used at home to transform it into a wellness and health-and-wellness studio, providing a versatile fitness-and-exercise essential for full-body workouts.
- Recent scientific studies indicate that incorporating a therapy ball into your daily routine can lead to extra calorie burn, making it a beneficial choice for health and wellness.
- Exercise ball workouts cater to various exercises, such as wall squats, pike holds, stability ball planks, leg tuck ins, stability ball rollouts, Swiss ball dumbbell tricep extensions, Swiss ball tricep dips, gym ball crunches, and gym ball lunges, all of which target multiple muscle groups and enhance balance and flexibility.
- For those seeking an affordable and easy-to-store Pilates alternative, a gym or Swiss ball is an underrated full-body workout option, suitable even for taller individuals, especially with larger balls of up to 75cm for those over 6'2".
