The uselessness of stability balls...

[Barefoot TJ]

Good point, Shacky?  If that

Good point, Shacky? If that is the case, then doesn't that blow away all the claims of fitness that come from the "stability" shoes that are being marketed today? Ha, oh so funny!

 

[bfr_dave]

I don't understand, based on

I don't understand, based on one study? your decision to never use a stability ball again. No, it probably has hardly any or no benefit to a runner (but, absolutely, think that's open for debate). But, as you, and I, point out, in other, more balance-intensive acitivities (surfing, to name just one...), i cannot believe it would not have some, if not substantial, benefit(s).

Again, if all you're interested in, and all you do is run, then I can see why you don't see the benefits of using a stability ball but, if, like me, you are into a variety of physical activities, and running is not the primary one(surfing is my number one passion in life), I guess that would explain your total disregard for anything that does not enhance or appear to enhance your primary physical pursuit/passion.

 

[bfr_dave]

"...better to do exercises

"...better to do exercises sans stability ball...."ok, guess we can agree to disagree. Or can we? :wink: I find that hard to believe. But, that's ok, that's what makes the world an interesting place, much like the perspective most peeps have towards bare foot runners (bizarre behavior) :tongue:

 

[Longboard]

I've always been leary of

I've always been leary of gimicks, and am a skeptic by nature.

But after I heard surfers who tend to be minimalists in most ways raving about the Indo Board (balance board)

I (no, you guys know me better than that, I did'nt buy one) built one .

The skills do seem to transfer to surfing/skateboarding/miscelanious board sports.

BTW, after today's 2'nd for the season treadmill session, I realize that even treadmill and road running have very little to do with each other.

Mountain biking and road biking are two different animals as well.

Heck, at my age, changing the seat height on any of my bikes by a 1/2 cm has me sore for a few days.

 

[Joshh]

Yeah, those Indoboards are

Yeah, those Indoboards are great and they translate to surfing just like skateboarding (or better yet carveboarding), they don't just make you better at those particular activities. I have friends who are pro surfers who swear by those big blow up balls for balance and leg strength.

 

[Barefoot TJ]

Dave, I don't know if I agree

Dave, I don't know if I agree with the study either. I have used the balance balls and the Bosu and have felt the workout for days afterwards, so I do think there is benefit to them. How can working any part of your body be bad, and no, I'm not talking about being lop-sided either.

 

[Abide]

Alright we can agree to

Alright we can agree to disagree, but now you are thinking about it

 

[Longboard]

Barefoot TJ wrote:.....  How

..... How can working any part of your body be bad...

Sketcher Shape-Ups work your body, and the leg muscle "toning" people rave about is very real.

They just work & tone your body in a manner that is of no productive use, and can actually throw it out of whack.

Clench your teeth all night, and soon you will have really pumped-up facial muscles.

HAS to be good for you, right?

 

[Barefoot TJ]

There's a difference there,

There's a difference there, Mr. Board. Those shoes are so built up and overly padded. We know the damage they can cause people.

 

[Jimmy Hart]

My point Dave was that like

My point Dave was that like most things in the fitness world the BOSU and stability ball have been blown out of proportion in terms of what they can accomplish. the point about being able to have perfect balance and reaction in a 360 range being impossible is that the body cannot force that much musclar control and nervous response. When you stand on one foot your foot/ankle complex can roll in any direction if wants to. Put the foot on alone on a BOSU and that range is now put to work and increased. If the ball suddenly tips in one direction in a rapid manner you will most likely fall and no amount of training will fix that. Put both feet on the ball and the range the BOSU can now roll in becomes somewhat limited because you have more points of connection. Now side to side movement can be better controlled and you feel more stable. Still get pushed or tipped forward and you mostl likely will fall due to an overload on the system.

So lets say you train a lot of one leg exercises and get very good at controlling yourself on a BOSU in those exercises. This will not translate to real world use and improvement in a sitation like slipping off a curb. The work on the BOSU will not train you in a manner that will allow you better balance and recovery as you fall off the curb because you cannot beef up the nervous system's abilty to suddenly respond to the change in environment.

Are there good uses for things like balls and BOSUs? of course there are but just not in this huge and wide range that they get reported to do so in. The Indo boards you guys mentioed are great for helping with sports like skating and surfing because it mimmicks what is required in those sports. Surfing is also not a 360 degree envrionment in terms of balance. I surf and on a board I have two feet to stand on. I am also mostly only worried about balancing myself in two directions, those being forward and backwards for my body and the way I am facing. The board does a lot of the balancing for me from nose to tail because of it's length. Get better at controlling yourself from your body's front to back and you can improve as a surfer and working on something (like an indo board or even a BOSU in the right manner) that forces you to focus on balance in that direction will create improvements, just not in a full 360 range.

Does any of that make sense? It's late and I might have rambled in some circles there. I've been doing this for 14 years and have met and worked with some of the best in the world and this is what the science has shown us.