Strength coach Max Aita explains how Swiss ball exercises can help even the most hard-core athletes reach their fitness goals.
Alright, guys. We’ve all seen the countless fitness advertisements with 110 lb. women singing the praises of Swiss balls. But Swiss balls aren’t just for Jane Fonda wannabes anymore. Real athletes--from college football players to Olympic weightlifters to professional strongmen--can benefit from the versatility and maneuverability of Swiss balls. Regardless of your personal fitness goals, you can find several Swiss ball exercises to help you maximize your potential. Listed below are four of them.
Core
Because Swiss balls are spherical, they introduce a 3-dimensional component to your ab routine that few other pieces of equipment can match. When you use the Swiss ball as a platform, the instability forces your core to compensate and produces a challenge that flat platforms like a bench or the floor can’t provide.
Exercise: Ab Roll-Outs
Starting Position: Kneel in front of the ball. With your arms bent in a 90-degree angle, rest your elbows on the ball.
Execution: Keeping your entire core tight, roll the ball forward until your entire body forms a straight line from your chest to your ankles. Roll the ball back to the starting position.
Easier: If you can’t roll out all the way at first, don’t worry. Roll out as far as you can, and each time you try the exercise, try to roll out a little farther than you did in the previous workout.
Harder: Put one arm behind your back.
Exercise: Ab Twists
Starting Position: Get into the push-up position, with your hands on the floor and your toes on the Swiss ball.
Execution: Keeping your arms straight and hands firmly on the floor, rotate at the hips so that your toes point to the wall to your right (the side of your left foot will be on the ball) and then to the left (the side of your right foot will be on the ball). Return to starting position.
Easier: If you find it too difficult to keep your toes on the ball, rest your knees on the ball instead.
Harder: Put your hands on a medicine ball or balance board instead of on the floor.
Upper Body
Most Swiss ball exercises involve the upper body, but if you really want to isolate your arms, shoulders, chest and upper back, I recommend any of the countless variations of decline push-ups.
Exercise: Decline Push-Ups
Starting Position: Get into your regular push-up position with your hands firmly on the floor, but put your toes on the Swiss ball. With your arms straight, your body should be parallel to the floor.
Execution: Do a normal push-up, lowering yourself until your face is within a couple inches of the floor and then returning to the starting position.
Easier: Decline push-ups are much easier with a smaller Swiss ball. As you decrease the size of the ball, you decrease the amount of weight shifted to your arms.
Harder: Use a larger ball to shift more weight to your arms, or put each hand on a medicine ball, or do these one-handed. You can also pick up one foot off the Swiss ball, while doing a one-handed, one-footed push-up. There are a million ways to spice this one up. Be creative.
Lower Body
If you want big legs, squats still reign supreme, but Swiss balls are great for their ability to isolate the posterior chain, particularly the hamstrings.
Exercise: Bridge + Roll-Out
Starting Position: Lie on your back, bend your knees at a 90-degree angle, and rest your heels on the Swiss ball. Rest your arms by your sides, or for more support, reach them out so they are perpendicular with your body. Keep your palms on the floor.
Execution: Keeping your core tight, raise your butt off the floor until your chest, midsection and knees form a straight line. Straighten your legs, rolling the ball away from your body until your entire body forms a 45-degree angle with the floor. Return to the starting position.
Easier: If you can’t roll the ball all of the way out, roll it out as far as you can, and try to go farther each time. Pretty soon, you’ll be rolling with the best of ‘em.
Harder: Try to use only one leg at a time and hold your core off the ground between reps.
How to Incorporate Swiss Ball Exercises into Your Existing Workout
The dynamic nature of Swiss ball work lends itself quite well to most warm-up and cool-down routines, but feel free to throw them in wherever they fit most comfortably for you. You can even consider super-setting Swiss ball exercises to create an entire workout of only Swiss ball stuff.
Max Aita – An accomplished and active Olympic-style weightlifter from Montana, Max is a strength coach at the California Strength Academy. After studying under Ivan Abadzhiev, the famous Bulgarian strength coach, Max secured the job at the California Strength Academy and currently runs the athletic training program there. He works with athletes from prep level on up to the pros. Max can be reached at MaxAita@californiastrength.com.