Ab Exercise Ball : A Round All-arounder

An stability ball is not only great for abdominal training. These big balls are useful for a lot of other purposes too. Some women use them as birth ball and many people simply like to sit on such a colourful and round piece of abs equipment. They are good and they are fun.

Accordingly to versatile uses, the abdominal exercise ball also is called body ball, balance ball, ab stability ball, gym ball or birth ball. No matter how they are called, they make a wide variety of exercise ball exercise possible. Used in physical therapy for decades, in the meantime abdominal exercise balls are in gyms, schools and many homes. They are good for ab workout, great to train the upper and lower body and much more.

It is easy to get such a ball for the own home or as useful funny gift. Imagine the fun if every person in a family gets a colourful ab stability ball from the Easter Bunny. Tons of them are on the internet for sale in famous brands such as SPRIxercise ball, Valeo body ball, Altus ball, TRAINERball by G2 or TKO fitness ball. That means top quality for a small amount of money. Some balls come with training DVDs. Very special: A full core exercise program is printed on the TRAINERball surface.

Many young women found out, sitting on an abdominal exercise ball during pregnancy relieved discomfort. So these balls became "birth balls" especially in natural childbirth. The ball gives a firm, soft place to sit on and rock forward and back. But caution, is not a steady chair.

Sitting on an ab stability ball is great. Of course we can not hang relaxed. It is a kind of active sitting. Abs and back muscles are engaged and work with every motion. And why not bouncing a little on the ball e.g. during computer work? That is fun and causes good mood. Some people even report they have reduced the love handles simply by active sitting on an stability ball at work.

Especially for abdominal training it is important to choose the right exercise ball size. For body height to 4'8" an 18" ball is recommended (4'8" to 5'3"/22"; 5'3" to 6'0"/26"; 6'0" to 6'7"/30"). There are some exceptions. For example if one uses the abdominal exercise ball to sit on in front of a desk, a 22 inch ball (55 cm) or a 26 inch ball (65 cm) is the best. Little corrections can be made by more or less inflating.

One word to the inflation process: Sometimes people report that their new abdominal exercise ball hasn't been delivered in the right size. Probably these people didn't inflate the ball in the right way. A good tip is inflating the ball to half the size and finish next day or even better in 3 day steps. It seems that the material needs time to expand. Almost every ball can be pumped to the correct size. One inch more or less doesn't matter. The best is to pump and try until the ball is good for you.

An ab stability ball at home is a chance for regular exercise ball exercise. That helps improving balance and flexibility. Beginners with health problems or in a certain age should double check with their doctors. With the ball we can build up muscle mass and strengthen our body. That is good for health, fitness and weight control. Last but not least: Seeing a big round ball in the room is good for the mood. Not only children like to play with such a ball. An exercise ball is fun in every age.