Exercise Balls at Work

You may have seen exercise balls popping up everywhere from the local gym to your workplace.  These colorful orbs can be a lot of fun to use and may have weight loss benefits as well.  According to one study sitting on an exercise ball or standing while at work can burn 4 more calories per hour or an extra 30 calories in a typical work day.  This may not seem like much, but over the course of a year that adds up to 7200 calories.  That's a potential loss of 2 pounds by sitting on an exercise ball alone!  Now add a few exercises to the mix and your calorie burn will be even greater.

Doing exercises on a ball at work is much easier than it may seem.  As soon as you sit on the ball you may notice you naturally start to move in a variety of different ways.  Doing this will challenge your core/stabilizing muscles in new ways promoting better balance and increased strength.

Stretching is also a great way to use your ball at work.  There are a variety of stretches you can do on the ball.  Here are a couple of my favorites:

Chest stretch- Lay down on the ball so that your upper-back, shoulders, neck and head are on the ball.  Place your feet on the floor with your knees bent at a 90 degree angle and raise your hips so that you have a straight line from hips to knees.  Let your arms fall out to the side so that you make a "T." Relax and hold at least 20 seconds.

Lat Stretch- Kneel on floor with ball in front of you.  Place hands on ball with palms touching each other. Gradually roll forward so arms become straight, your hips fall toward your heels and your head falls toward the floor between your arms.  Relax and hold for at least 20 seconds.

Try these out and see how much fun exercise balls can be!  We can develop a custom exercise plan at the Back Resort & Rejuvenation Health Center - www.BackResort.com - 540 389-BACK (2225)

Allison Voigt, Personal Trainer, Massage Therapist and director of the Fit Stronger program at the Back Resort & Rejuvenation Health Center