Get
More Balance in Your Life
with Stability Balls and BOSUs |
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Balance has become a buzzword for the 21st
century and no wonder: with the frantic pace
and multiple pressures of modern life, many
of us find ourselves toppling a little in one
direction or another at any given time. As a
mind-body exercise, pilates helps achieve balance
in myriad ways, not the least
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being the improvement of physical balance -- the ability
to maintain control over your center of gravity. Improving
your sense of balance involves a strengthening of deep
muscles that will improve posture, help guard against
injury and alleviate back pain while enhancing functional
fitness and physical performance.
The balance benefits of pilates exercises are augmented
by incorporating light equipment such as stability balls
or BOSUs (acronym for “Both Sides Up”, an
apparatus that is round on one side, flat on the other).
They add variety and challenge to your routines and
can also make it easier to adapt exercises for certain
body types.
When utilizing these props, your base of support is
unstable and subject to movement. Your body has to find
its center of gravity and engage deep “stabilizing”
muscles to maintain position. This adds another layer
of muscular work to exercises that might otherwise use
primarily your “mobilizing” muscles to conduct
the movement. Consider the Half Roll Back. When you
take your body off the floor and put it on a ball or
BOSU, you are immediately required to recruit deep core
muscles to stay on the unstable surface, almost without
thinking. However, you will also notice that you are
made more aware of your body in space when doing this
stabilizing work…you must focus and make that
mind-body connection, offering you further “balance”
benefits from the exercise!
Almost any pilates move can be modified with BOSUs
or balls. Consult videos or attend a class to ensure
you are using them correctly. And remember, a strong
and well- balanced body provides a great foundation
for dealing with day-to-day stress, and ultimately,
for living a more balanced life.
Written by: MAT BOULÉ- Click
here to Review his profile.
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