Stability Ball Back Workouts Portland OR

Lower Back
Working the lower back on the exercise ball offers you a better alternative to the traditional methods of exercising the back because it provides support for the pelvis and lumbar spine at the same time. By supporting the hips, the ball allows the lower body to go through a greater range of movements, enhancing the strengthening benefits to the back muscles and spine. Because of the prone (or face down) position used throughout this series of exercises, the following exercises support and strengthen the upper back as well as the lower back muscles.

Prone on the ball
Lying prone on the ball is great position for strengthening all the muscles along the spine. Lying prone on the ball also gives you good posture and balance. To do this exercise, follow these steps: 1. Kneeling behind the ball, roll your body forward and to the other side so the ball supports your lower abdominal muscles. The ball will be under your hips, and your hands will rest on the floor in front of you.

2. Slowly raise your chest, creating a straight line from your shoulders to your feet (see Figure 8-5).

3. Hold up your chest by using your back muscles for a few seconds; then relax your chest back onto the ball.

Stay in this position for a few minutes, extending and relaxing. This movement gives you a feel for how you’ll need to use the lower back muscles to stabilize yourself throughout this series of exercises. A couple of do’s and don’ts for this exercise:

Do keep your feet close together to maintain your balance on the ball.

Don’t balance on your toes. Make sure that you’re on the balls of your feet for support.

Prone leg raises
Prone leg raises test your strength and balance by using an alternating lifting motion for the lower body and a balancing movement for the upper body. To do this exercise, follow these steps: 1. Lie prone on the ball with your fingertips lightly touching the ground in front of you for support.

2. Keeping your body horizontal to the floor, raise one leg behind you to hip level (as Figure 8-6 shows).

The knee will be straight on the leg that’s raised. 3. Hold the position for a few seconds before lowering the leg down to starting position and raising the opposite leg. Complete two sets of ten kicks on each leg, resting in between sets.

A few do’s and don’ts for this exercise:

Do keep your leg straight when you extend it behind you, forming a straight line from your toes to your shoulders.

Do keep your eyes looking straight down at the floor to avoid hyperextending your neck.

Don’t forget to kick from the butt using your gluteal muscles. Alternating arm and leg raises This exercise can be quite challenging because as you raise your arms and legs, you need to stabilize yourself on the ball at the same time in order to keep your balance.

Before you begin, try finding your balance by lifting both hands off the floor. By doing this, having better balance throughout this exercise will be easier. To do this exercise, follow these steps: 1. Lie prone on the ball, resting your fingertips lightly on the floor in front of you.

2. Raise your right arm off the floor in front of you as you lift your left leg as far as hip level (see Figure 8-7a).

3. Lower your right arm back to the floor as you simultaneously lower your left leg.

4. Raise your left arm off the floor in front of you as you lift your right leg as far as hip level (see Figure 8-7b).

5. Lower your left arm back to the floor as you simultaneously lower your right leg.

Continue alternating arm and leg raises. Complete two sets of ten repetitions, resting between sets.

A few do’s and don’ts for this exercise:

Do keep your knees straight when you lift your leg behind you.

Do use your butt to lift your leg, being sure to work from the gluteal muscles.

Don’t strain your neck. Keep your eyes looking straight down to the floor.

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Portland, OR