Ball Exercises

- Round balls are training props that have been successfully used to improve strength, speed, and power for a great deal of time.

- Two of the most common types of training balls are medicine (weighted) balls and exercise (physio, Swiss) balls.

Medicine Balls

• Medicine Balls are used primarily for strength and speed training.

• They are one of the oldest pieces of workout equipment, their use reportedly dating back to Greek times

• The goal with most medicine ball exercises is to move the ball in as rapid a manner as is possible for the athlete

• They are very versatile and can thus be employed in a massive range of exercises for almost all parts of the body

• Literally, the limit of exercises available is only constrained by the trainer's imagination

• With medicine balls, we always want to ensure the training principles of progression and overload

• With beginners, we want to make certain that they use a ball that is not too heavy for them

• Too great of weight can produce poor technique with compensation of other body parts negating the benefits of the intended exercise

• Also, balls that are too heavy for novice trainers may promote injury

• Working with weighted balls is an overload situation as we do not use this type of equipment in competition

Exercise Balls

• Like medicine balls, large rubber exercise balls are amazingly versatile and can be used for designing a limitless number of exercises

• Unlike medicine balls, they do not have nearly as extensive a history

• Their use is credited to Swiss doctor Susan Klein-Vogelbach who began using them for therapy in the 1970s and 1980s

• Also, unlike medicine balls, exercise balls are not used for developing strength, speed, and power, but rather for core strength and balance

• This improves the stability of athletes and posture of patients

• Core strength gives athletes a strong base from which muscles may more effectively and strongly move appendages, and for the entire body to move more powerfully as superior and inferior body pieces integrate more effectively

• Often, training programs include exercise balls with other pieces of equipment like dumb-bells, cable systems, stationary resistance machines and exercise bands