Following on from our previous article where we introduced the Swiss ball to you, we have two new Swiss ball exercises for you to add to your repertoire.

Fig. 1

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  Fig. 2
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  Fig. 3
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  Fig. 4

Swiss Ball Crunch

• Start lying on your back over the ball with your feet below your knees (figure 1)
• Without altering your position, draw your belly button in to set your deep abdominal muscles.
• With your hands across your chest, slowly curl your body up while keeping your hips still. Think about bringing your chin to your chest as you bend through your midsection (figure 2).
• Repeat this exercise for 3 sets of 15 - take 2 seconds to lift your body, squeeze your abdominals tight at the top for 2 seconds, and take a further 2 seconds to lower your torso (rest 60 seconds between sets).
• As you improve, you will be able to go further over the ball making your resistance against gravity greater. You may even get to the point where you need to have a friend/partner hold your feet to stop you from falling back over the ball.
• The benefit of using the Swiss ball over the floor for your crunches is that you use your full functional range of motion of the spine - therefore strengthening your trunk moreso. If you have had lumbar vertebra problems or inflammation, this exercise may not be suitable - consult a qualified strength & conditioning coach for further advice.

Swiss Ball Back Raises

• Start this exercise on your belly over the ball with your weight balanced through the ball and lightly through your hands (figure 3).
• Slowly lift your legs up while keeping your weight through the ball and your hands (figure 4). Keep your legs squeezed together tightly. You should feel the muscles of your hamstrings, gluteals, and lumbar spine contract and get "tight".
• Your goal is to complete 3 sets of 6-8 - take 2 seconds to lift your legs, hold at the top for 4 seconds, then take another seconds to lower your legs (rest 60 seconds between sets).
• This exercise is an excellent choice for strengthening the muscles of you lower back, glutes and hamstrings as you can dictate the range of motion that you lift your legs through. To start with, only lift halfway up and then increase this distance as your strength improves.

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