A popular exercise item is a BOSU ball. Those who like them hawk their benefits, but there are some issues with this piece of equipment.
A BOSU Balance Trainer, or BOSU ball as it is often called, is a fitness training device, consisting of an inflated half ball attached to a rigid platform. Many call it a “blue half ball” because that’s what it looks like. The name comes from an acronym of “BOth Sides UP” because both sides can be used in exercise routines.
It is mostly used for balance training. When the ball side up is used it provides an unstable surface on a stable platform. With the platform side up it is highly unstable and used for a lot of different balance exercises. Either way it is used for athletic drills or aerobic activities.
Experiments were done at Eastern Illinois University in 2009 to test the effectiveness of the BOSU ball. 12 men performed various physical exercises with and without the BOSU ball. They found that using the BOSU ball didn’t make a significant difference in benefit to the muscles. A second study on just single-leg stance exercises had the same results. The only positive difference found was an increased activation of the rectus abdominus when doing exercises like a curl-up.
That one benefit hardly outweighs the possible injuries from using the BOSU ball. Just the fact that it depends on instability makes the dangers all too apparent. If you have issues with balance you can easily fall and break a bone. Tearing muscles or ligaments is entirely possible. Even those with good balance can hurt themselves if they aren’t very careful. Exercises done incorrectly on a flat surface can hurt you. Doing them correctly on an unstable surface is very hard.
The very few benefits of the BOSU ball aren’t worth the high probability of harm. It’s one piece of equipment to stay away from.
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