Text: Dr. Gudrun Paul

Strong muscles and mobile joints in old age

A full-body workout with the Redondo Ball Plus

Especially in old age, versatile and motivating training or exercises with many variants are important to stay on the “ball” to keep fit and healthy.
Aspects  such as  body awareness, training  of muscles near the joint, linking breathing and movement, all play an important role in this. The Redondo Ball Plus is a piece of training equipment that can implement exactly those aspects and also has other benefits.

 

Exciting new exercise positions are possible.

• Thanks to its stability, the ball is ideal for exercises whilst sitting or kneeling, and is a particularly good dynamic support.
• It is suitable as a seat base for pelvic floor training.
• It is as suitable for balance exercises as for swing-action and power training.
• For safety reasons, it is popular with older participants (low falling height compared with gym ball).

Equipment information:
The Redondo Ball Plus is made of foamed Ruton and has a plug valve.
Weight: 500 g
Diameter: approx. 38 cm
Rating: approx. 150 kg
Surface quality: soft and non-slip

Inflating:
The Redondo Ball Plus can easily and quickly be inflated and deflated without a pump.
A straw can be useful for inflating it. Do not fill the ball beyond the max. specified diameter.

The following exercises are designed for motivation, and have been tested and carried out in numerous courses with older people.

Exercise 1
Ball between the lower legs, straddling it

Feel  the tension increase, shift to the right or left leg, respectively.

Effect: Feel the posture, balance.

 

Exercise 2
Lunge:
Place the ball under the back knee.

Lower the leg whilst placing the knee on the ball, then lift again,
the upper body remains upright.

Effect: Strengthening the buttock and thigh muscles, balance

 

Exercise 3
Standing, place one foot on the ball.

Whilst standing, place one foot on the ball and carry out different movements such as rolling forwards and backwards, circling the foot, heel/toe pressure etc.

Effect: Balance, active foot joint exercises, fine co-ordination of heels/balls of the feet.