Hands up if you’d like to train using a big bouncy ball? Hell yeah. Seriously though, the Swiss ball is super-effective – whether you’re doing wall squats, ab crunches, hamstring curls or simply sitting on it.
What is a Swiss ball?
It’s a large inflatable ball that comes in different sizes (between 35 and 85 centimetres in diameter). It’s sometimes called a gym ball, a stability ball or a balance ball.
Why do your personal trainers use it at KBPT?
The Swiss ball is a really versatile piece of personal training equipment that adds a little something to our clients’ sessions. We use it because:
- It’s great for upper body, lower body and core training
- It improves your balance – just sitting on a Swiss ball engages your key stabilisers and your abdominal and back muscles
- The Swiss ball can be used at home, outside or in the KBPT studio
- It’s brilliant for active sitting as it’s unstable and your body has to constantly correct itself (it’s all about the core)
- It helps you to improve muscle tone, strength and endurance in all the major muscle groups
- It’s useful for injury rehabilitation and can also be used during pregnancy
- The Swiss ball lets you increase calorie burn during and after your workout
- It gets you more flexible and offers some lovely alternatives to traditional static stretching