Planks on an Exercise Ball

[Susan]

One of my coolio swiss ball exercises atm is (and I hope I can describe this properly)
Kneel on swiss ball-don't sit on your heels etc
Lift arms over your head
Breathe and bend over as far as possible using your quads etc for stability
Lift self back up

To add more excitement, hold a broom stick horizontally whilst doing the above.

I read twice and now I'm still asking myself if I maybe didn't understand you right

You KNEEL on a swiss ball, and, if that wasn't enough, you then raise your arms and bend over holding a broomstick in your hands?!

I wish I could balance sitting/lying on a swiss ball for some seconds without doing anything... (I could picture myself doing the above, but the broomstick would need to be a Nimbus 2000... )

[Catrin]

...
I wish I could balance sitting/lying on a swiss ball for some seconds without doing anything... (I could picture myself doing the above, but the broomstick would need to be a Nimbus 2000... )

You and me both Monday I tried planks on a ball but didn't try to move the ball as of yet - it was my first attempt on a ball and it seemed to go fine. It did not really seem much more difficult than doing regular planks on the floor - so either I wasn't doing it properly or I need to make it more challenging. I meet with my trainer this afternoon and will ask him about this.

[surgtech1956]

How big of an exercise ball do you need?

[Veronica]

How big of an exercise ball do you need?

The size my feet are on.

You can use a Bosu for a lot of things too.




You can use a Bosu either flat side down or round side down.

Veronica

[OakLeaf]

Different brands come in different sizes, but they usually have height charts on the package. You want to be able to sit on it with your knees bent at 90 degrees or wider.

[emily_in_nc]

Thanks for the photos, Veronica - I was having a very hard time visualizing this whole "planks on an exercise ball" concept. I was thinking the arms/hands went on the ball! No wonder I was so confused.

And by the way, I *heart* your arms!

[crazycanuck]

Dumb question, can somene please describe a hyper extension...

All I know is, I don't sit on my heels while on the ball...

[Veronica]

Thanks! I'm actually doing push ups in that photo. You can put the ball at either end for planks.

The instability of the ball really forces you to work so much harder. Or fall off and start giggling.

Veronica

[Artista]

Emily, I am doing the planks with my feet on the ground & my forearms on the ball.

Catrin, I have to move the ball with my forearms to make the exercise harder than a traditional plank on the floor. I've done this exercise several times now. I move the ball constantly during some sessions. During other sessions, I hold a position for several seconds before rolling the ball just a few inches with my forearms to a different position.

Crazycanuck, I am amazed that you can do anything else while balancing on your ball...especially on your knees. My balance exercise consists entirely of trying not to fall off.

Wow, Veronica! I want to do what you do when I grow up. I *heart* your arms, too.

[Veronica]

I read twice and now I'm still asking myself if I maybe didn't understand you right

You KNEEL on a swiss ball, and, if that wasn't enough, you then raise your arms and bend over holding a broomstick in your hands?!

I wish I could balance sitting/lying on a swiss ball for some seconds without doing anything... (I could picture myself doing the above, but the broomstick would need to be a Nimbus 2000... )

I think she's talking about doing hyper extensions on the ball. I did almost all of my upper body work today while standing or squatting isometrically on a Bosu.

Everything except the kettle bell work. Kettle bell swings with 35 pounds - ouch!

Veronica

[Susan]

I think she's talking about doing hyper extensions on the ball. I did almost all of my upper body work today while standing or squatting isometrically on a Bosu.

Everything except the kettle bell work. Kettle bell swings with 35 pounds - ouch!

Veronica

Oh, you could be right The kneeling ON the ball thing gets me confused. Maybe it's because they were showing our women Ski-Teams training on TV last week. One of the women was standing with one foot on a body ball (not a bosu, a real ball), balancing, while catching a ball her trainer hurled at her. It was quite stunning. I wouldn't have thought that was possible before seeing it.

Atm I do the "Making the cut" workout regularly, there are quite a lot of Body ball exercises too and I had to add some in because I am training at home without gym equipment. Yesterday I had "pike Pushups on BB" and "Bench Dips with feet on BB" - not fun I wish my arms would look just a little bit like yours someday in the future

[crazycanuck]

I was lost but now i'm found

Here's what i'm referring to-please refer to the lifting of arms in the 58sec to the 1min mark http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yqzV0O139Yk

Start from that position.

I'll try and find more stuff..

[OakLeaf]

I can just barely kneel - not that I've been practicing all that much lately.

But I'm still not sure of the progression you're describing, CC - do you bend your knees and keep your hips straight (similar to reclining Hero); or is it a backbend (similar to Camel)?



If you're not sitting on the ball with feet on the ground, then you don't have to worry about sizing the ball to protect your knees, and you can instead use size and inflation to adjust the difficulty. Larger ball is easier (because the contact patch with the floor is larger and the contact patch(es) with you are less angled); slightly underinflated ball is easier, for obvious reasons.

I've seen a guy stand on a ball and do squats. And it wouldn't surprise me a bit if the next thing V. posts is a video of her doing squats on the ball with a 50# bar.

[Catrin]

I tried this again last night and had my trainer check out my form - this was just normal planks on the ball and that was quite easy. It seemed TOO easy when I did it on my own which was why I asked him to check me out on it. Then I started moving the ball around with my forearms and THAT was a different story So I have found a new core exercise - thank you!

[Susan]

I was lost but now i'm found

Here's what i'm referring to-please refer to the lifting of arms in the 58sec to the 1min mark http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yqzV0O139Yk

Start from that position.

I'll try and find more stuff..

Wow, I can't do that (but I did understand you right in the first place ). One of my limbs always has to touch the ground or I fall off. Guess I have to add such balance exercises in... I'm not so sure where to start I'm a really bad balancer.