Author: By Tom Webster
Sitting on a Fitness Ball Can Improve Your Posture
By Tom Webster If you spend much time at a gym, you are probably familiar with the large inflatable fitness balls that the trainers use to develop your flexibility and strength. They come in several different colors and sizes, and are a key part of many peoples' training regimens. The balls are used as platforms for various exercises, and the point is that they provide an unstable platform- predictably unstable, but unstable nonetheless. This instability forces your body to work harder to keep you balanced, and thus you will use and develop the smaller stabilizing muscles that you usually neglect during everyday tasks. Office workers can also benefit from the fitness ball. One of the exercises that trainers prescribe for their clients is to simply sit on the ball and stay upright. So, even in a sedentary office job, there is an opportunity for you to get a light workout without even leaving your desk! But how does sitting down equal a "workout"? It works because of a system in your body called the proprioceptive sense. The proprioceptive sense is a feedback mechanism in your body that involves awareness of the relative position of your body parts, balance information from your inner ear, and stretch receptors in your joints and muscles. This mechanism typically works unconsciously, like the breathing mechanism, to keep you right side up at all times. It uses your body's core muscles constantly, which burns a few calories, keeps the muscles toned, and keeps your mental acuity sharp. When you sit in a comfortable chair, however, you can totally relax and will have little use for your proprioceptive sense. Even though the chair was one of history's greatest inventions, it can allow your sense of balance and muscle tone to atrophy. If you're sitting on a ball, though, you will remain more alert, will develop the muscles that contribute to good posture, and even burn a few calories over the course of a work day. Fitness balls make inexpensive chairs, too, and are available in a variety of interesting colors. Check out any website offering fitness balls or ball chairs for more information on what's available, and for tips on http://sitontheball.com fitness ball exercises. About the Author Tom Webster is a researcher and copywriter who writes for [http://www.flathdtv.net]FlatHDTV.net, a guide to the HDTV revolution, and [http://www.sitontheball.com]SitOnTheBall.com, a resource for office workers looking to relieve back pain and poor posture while sitting at their desk. Article Source: http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=Tom_Webster http://EzineArticles.com/?Sitting-on-a-Fitness-Ball-Can-Improve-Your-Posture&id=958133
Searched results for: exercise
 sitontheball
Proprioperception Training Guide is a link to a page on the this site
Tags:
|
Print this page
