Bosu Ball

            A few years ago there was an inventor using a standard exercise ball that lost his balance which caused him an injury but also caused him to develop another ball that still allows core training but is safer than the original, thus strengthening the saying, “necessity is the mother of all inventions,” and giving the everyday lifter another option in this training madness.   
            If you have ever trained on an exercise ball you know they can be unstable most of the time.  But the ball was never intended to be used for a lot of the exercises you see today, especially standing on it.  That is where the Bosu Ball comes in.  Almost every exercise you can do on a ball, you can do with a Bosu, but for those that are focusing on balance exercises the Bosu is great.

            One of the biggest advantages of the Bosu ball is the emphasis on the core muscle and the improvement of balance.  For seniors, the improved balanced can dramatically reduce slips and falls.  For women, the core and hip areas will tighten and strengthen, and for the athlete the improve balance can be turned into increased agility and dexterity for faster reaction on the field.  
            For anyone beginning with ball exercises it is best to start just with your own body weight until you feel more comfortable to move into weighted balls then to dumbbells or barbells.  The key to ball workouts is safety first.  Start slow, no weight, a lot of repetitions.  I would start most people with 15-25 reps then move up sets and reps with weight after a few weeks of evaluating balance and structure. 
            Another advantage of the Bosu ball is being able to incorporate the full body workout at the same time.  When doing squats, try doing an overhead press with dumbbells or weighted balls, or when performing a lunge using dumbbells or weighted balls do a curl at the same time.  There are many variations that can be done at the same time that will really increase the intensity of core training and reduce workout time so anyone can get in a quick 30 minutes anytime they want. 

…For more information and tips, check my website, www.chadamartin.com. Thanks to Universe Gym for supplying equipment for this show.