Exercise Ball Squats
Description
Exercise ball squats are both convenient and effective. The minimal equipment requirement allows for the exercise to be performed pretty much anywhere - all you need is an exercise ball and some hand weights. The motion mimics a traditional squat - which is perhaps the most effective exercise that can be done for the lower body. Unfortunately, a lot of people struggle with traditional squats due to either poor body awareness or lower back problems. Exercise ball squats are perfect for such people. Exercise ball squats also make a great stepping stone for beginners going through the progressions to performing traditional barbell squats.
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Execution
- Place appropriately weighted dumbbells on the ground next to you and position an exercise ball between your lower back region and a wall.
- Bend at the legs, pick up the dumbbells and stand erect with weights in hands, back against the ball, feet shoulder width apart and toes pointed slightly outwards.
- Inhale and while leaning into the ball, slowly lower your body until your legs reach a 90 degree angle. If you find that your knee surpasses your toes during the decent, simply step further out and repeat until a position is found that ensures that your knees track over your ankles.
- Exhale and while driving through the heels, extend legs and return back to starting position.
- Repeat until the desired number of repetitions are completed.
Variations
Simply performing the movement without additional resistance may provide an adequate level of difficulty for many beginners.
To increase the amount of muscles recruited for the purpose of stabilization, and to increase the resistance and difficulty of the movement, simply perform the exercise using only one leg at a time. This is a very advanced progression and is not recommended for beginner-novice trainees.
Another advanced progression is to perform the movement while standing on an unstable surface. BOSU balance trainers are excellent for this.