This is one of my favorite abdominal exercises, and if you want to get the most "bang for your buck" out of the time that you spend working your abs, you should try this exercise out and see how effective it is!
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Ball Exchange
It is very similar to the V Sit-up, which is the exact same movement, only without the ball. The exercise ball adds 2 things to the movement that increase its effectiveness:
1) Neuromuscular Coordination. You simply can't do this exercise properly without coordinating a lot of different muscles all at the same time. See this post for more on the benefits of neuromuscular coordination.
2) Peak Contraction. It is very easy to start getting sloppy when doing these types of movements, especially when you start to get tired. However, by having to physically move the ball from your hands to your feet, and then back again on every repetition, you have no choice but to stay in that peak contracted position for one full second.
Between the use of both ends of the abdominal muscle wall, the increased neuromuscular coordination, and the added advantage of holding that peak contraction, this exercise is voted one of the best when it comes to making true progress in the abdominal area!
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Thanks for this exercise! I was just looking for something new for one of my personal training clients!
Angie,
You are most welcome! I love this exercise because it is so effective, yet it doesn’t make you want to curse abdominal exercises as much as some of the other movements do!
This exercise looks really effective! Definitely going to try this one.
It’s one of my favorites! It’s not boring and monotonous like some ab exercises, but it is radically effective. Have fun with it!