Stability Ball

Core strength and stability are hot items in fitness these days, and for good reason. Your core muscles (your abs, back and hip muscles) determine how straight you can stand and how well you can do everyday activities such as look over your shoulder when you're backing up the car. Core stability affects your balance and your coordination. Your core helps you swing a bat and throw a ball. A weak core can create back problems, a hunched posture and decrease your quality of life. That's why stability balls, also known as balance balls, have become so popular. They're all about building core strength. Take a simple exercise like a crunch or a push-up; try it with a stability ball and it turns into something different and challenging. No matter what exercise you're doing, you're forced to use balance and that builds up core muscles that might not get worked otherwise. You can create dozens of workouts with the stability ball, from a gentle rehabilitation session to an extremely difficult routine. Women exercisers have taken to it, but men have also discovered that it's got a place in sports and in the gym. Because it's so versatile and fun to use, the stability ball has gone from fitness fad to fitness fixture. Everybody should have one!