Gym balls (are they just for girls?)

martinh78

I ask because I bought one yesterday for £5 with the intention of using as a seat (I get back ache sat at the computer).

anyway, tried a couple of exercises with it but am not convinced. The only two that seem to do anything are:

1) rolling the ball in towards you with your calves (so sort of a squat) which hammers the lower abs!
2) Press ups with my feet on it.

The crunches/sit ups don't seem to do a thing and I tried a "superman" move which again, doesn't do anything.

Should I give it to my sister?

ivyjbres

If you're not feeling it with the situps, either you've already got good abs going, or the ball is under-inflated. The Superman move.. do you mean lifting your upper body using your lower back muscles? That just takes a few (20) reps before you feel anything anyway.... Try hip bridges, those will get your glutes and thighs burning. Just remember, you're only using your body weight as resistance, so if you're already fit, the standard exercises are going to be to easy. You can look up more advanced exercised online.

Kalrez

I never really like the balls as exercise tools. I do, however, love them as computer chairs! Amazon actually has office chairs on wheels that use the balls as seats. Snazzy. I just use the plain ball I picked up at Walmart. Really love it.

ivyjbres

Or, what my son does (he's 4...) He presses his back to the wall, puts his feel on the ball and rolls the ball forward and back.

And yes, a ripped four year old does look a little ridiculous...

SeasideOasis

In reference to the crunches...Its best coupled with an addition exercise. For example, doing a weighted crunch or doing arm raises (weighted) while you rise. Also, you can do a version of a wood chop (youtube videos are out there of this) on it as well. The ball is really an additional tool for better posture and to stop unnecessary pain.

beccarockslife

Try prone jack knifes (check out you tube for demonstrations)

MarieNevada

try a prone jack knife. hands on the floor, calves on the ball, then draw your legs in towards your body (your butt will go up in the air) pulling the ball towards you until only the front of your feet are on the ball, then push your legs back until you're in starting position.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y5uRKMtxKwo

there's lots of videos on youtube on how to use the physioball. and with the abs, make sure you're not bouncing off the ball and that you have rolled forward enough. i see some guys on the gym doing abs and really all they're doing is bouncing.

tameko2

No, they are great for a lot of things. A lot of normal exercises you mgiht do on a bench can be done on a ball instead (chest press. this is a good one for abs. http://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/detail/view/name/exercise-ball-pull-in You can also hold it between your knees and do reverse crunches

And I do a lot of arm exercises while on a ball -- you can use it like a bench where your legs and stomach are supporting your body flat, shoulders rest on the ball, and then you do any exercise you might do on a bench with dumbbells. So you're not only doing a chest press but you're also having to use your stomach back and legs to support yourself while you do it instead.

There's also a thing where you roll from elbow to elbow with dumbbells but I can't figure out what its called. you kind of dig your elbow into the ball and push the dumbell in your other hand, then roll down the ball arm, across your shoudlers, nad up onto the other elbow. I saw a picture of the P90X guy doing it on the P90X-2 page - its NOT EASY. I have to do it in a kind of half assed way to make it happen.

just plain crunches on the ball is silly though, there are much better ab exercises you can do with or without a ball.

martinh78

Cheers all, hoped it might spark a few ideas )

The reverse crunches work for sure, my lower abs get really worked with that (tha is what i was calling the squats type move).

As a seat it is no good as it is too low for my home desk. I might cobble something together to stand it on though.

I can see it being useful with dumbells. Damn, more expense! )

Will try a few of your suggestions and do some searching on youtube.

Cheers, Martin

martinh78

If you're not feeling it with the situps, either you've already got good abs going, or the ball is under-inflated. The Superman move.. do you mean lifting your upper body using your lower back muscles?

I shall see if I can inflate the ball a bit more, my abs aren't that strong at the moment.

The superman move is laying on your chest/stomach on the ball then extedning your left arm and right leg straight out. Repeat for right arm and left leg. Looks daft and doesn't feel like it is doing anything lol.

martinh78

Just to say I increased the pressure in the ball some more...quite a lot more as it happens. It's not squashing much now lol. Sit-ups are a bit harder )

martinh78

Ok, gym balls are not for girls! Who said that! Turns out it was under-inflated. D'oh!

What a way to work your abs, far more comfortable than my floor and by hell do they burn!

Also push-ups with my feet on it, really works your core as well.

Thanks for the other ideas, I am doing 10mins before my shower when I finish a workout as a little extra to work my core. Think 10mins a day will add up.

Cheers, martin

jjs22

Mine came with a tape that you wrap around it to know when it is at the right inflation. (Or you can just use a tape measure.) I just pumped mine "all the way up" without the tape, and then found out there were still like 5-6 inches to go ! I never would have pumped it up that much without a tape, for fear of the thing exploding.

I was a little sceptical about the ball as well. Sounds like another gimmick. Except that I read physical therapists have used them for quite some time now, and they seem like they would be a pretty good judge.

The great thing about the ball is how jiggly and unstable you are on it. All those tiny, un-named muscles hidden in your insides have to work together to keep you from falling off. So many of the exercises are specifically designed so there is a certain amount of balance you have to maintain while you are also focusing on one muscle group in a somewhat conventional way.

One of the simplest exercises (it looked totally pointless to me at first.) is to just sit on the center of the ball and hold your arms out to the side. Once your posture is good, you put one foot on a 4-6" stand (I use a dumbbell) and just lift the other foot a couple of inches off the floor and hold it. The first time I tried it, I was amazed how much I jiggled and tended to roll off to one side. But with a little bit of practice I've clearly gotten better.

I was very out of shape when I began (25 years since I've been in a gym). And TBH, I'm starting off really slow and gentle. But I was amazed that after my second or third workout I could clearly feel all these muscles in my "core" that I never ever noticed way back when I was young. I did NOT notice them because they were sore, I noticed them because they were tightened up and strong. Its like my hips wanted my spine to stay upright and now had the means to make it happen !

So I don't think an exercise ball is for "manly men" (who just want big muscles or an impressive bench press stat), but for athletes or people looking for great all-around *practical* fitness I think they are very useful.

tameko2

Ok, gym balls are not for girls! Who said that! Turns out it was under-inflated. D'oh!

What a way to work your abs, far more comfortable than my floor and by hell do they burn!

Also push-ups with my feet on it, really works your core as well.

Thanks for the other ideas, I am doing 10mins before my shower when I finish a workout as a little extra to work my core. Think 10mins a day will add up.

Cheers, martin

Awesome, I'm glad you gave it another try. I had personal training yesterday and did a couple different ab things and by the end of the second one I could barely finish it. Like JJS22 says - all those little extra muscles you use for stabilization and stuff get a bit of a workout and that's a good thing. I also do most of my free-weight arm exercises balanced on one leg, or while doing lunges, etc etc. Adding things that put a little strain on your core while you do something like arms kills two birds with one stone.

martinh78

Thanks again for the advice )

rml_16

I see men use them all the time. But if you're not happy with it, don't use it.

It seems like you haven't really given it much of a chance, though. One of my favorite ball exercises is to lay on my back and pass it back and forth from my ankles to my hands, returning feet and hands to the floor between each pass while continuing to grip the ball.

jjs22

Just yesterday I received a book I ordered from Amazon. It's about working out with dumbbells. I forget the name/author, but it's not worth recommending, IMO.

Anyway, the guy was pretty down on fitness balls, dismissing them as a fad and also dangerous. He's also down on dumbbell exercises where you lift one foot off the floor to make it unstable. According to him, every muscle you need to train can be addressed with the appropriate weight routine. (He admits, however, that dumbbells are not always the right choice.)

Even though I'm a newbie, I still call BS. As for the "danger" of being unstable, I think that's something that is so obvious from the beginning that any reasonable person would say "Hey, this feels kind of unstable. I think I'll be careful about not falling over."

But mainly, I think he's ignoring something more important. When you are doing one of those unstable exercises that require all those "little hidden" muscles to work together to keep you from falling over, its not just that you need those muscles to be stronger, but you also need them to be coordinated. They need to learn to pull/release at exactly the right time and in the right amount to keep your posture and balance just right. For someone who does something other than pick up weights in a prescribed and rehearsed fashion (like play sports, for example), its very advantageous if these muscles "just know" how to do that.

Anyway, I'm a guy, I like my fitness ball, and that's that.