Balance Board Workouts

​One common item of workout equipment you may have seen at your gym, but might have been a bit reluctant to try out, is the balance board. Because most gym fans seem to prefer the more complicated equipment like treadmills and ellipticals, you probably won’t have to stand in line to use what might look like a simple children’s toy, but balance boards are actually a very good way to address both physical fitness training and rehabilitative therapy needs.
 
Every physical activity you perform requires balance and equilibrium and both are also important for proper hand-eye coordination and motor skills. Spending time on a balance board can be an excellent way for anyone to improve their balance, strength and coordination and athletes and board sports enthusiasts can use balance board training to help improve their speed and reaction times for their respective sports. Training on a balance board can help users ranging from small children up to professional athletes get multiple benefits because the act of balancing, sensing any imbalance, and reacting quickly with precise body movements and subtle muscle adjustments is something anyone at any skill level can perform. Balance boarding levels the playing field because larger and physically stronger people will not have any advantage unless they’ve got the coordination and muscle control to go along with their size and strength.
 
Training on a balance board is never a grueling workout, but instead is an easy workout that can be a lot of fun too. Beginning balance boarders will need something nearby to hold onto for added stability like a handrail or the back of a chair until they get a little better at their balancing act. Typical balance board training consists of practicing three basic motions; front to back, side to side, and circular rotations. After those three basic moves are mastered, you can progressively increase the time on board for more of a workout. Studies have shown that athletes who train with balance boards not only improve their coordination and overall athletic ability, they also experience fewer injuries.
 
Depending on their chosen sport, many athletes who train on balance boards will develop their own particular routines, like maintaining balance for set periods of time, balancing while throwing a ball against a wall and catching it, or standing on the board with one foot at a time. Fitness fans desiring a more advanced balance board exercise can try maintaining their balance on the board with both eyes closed, a feat that sounds easy until you try it. Anytime you are balancing, you are obviously also able to fall, so it is important to start slowly and increase the time spent on the board and the difficulty of your routines gradually as your skills progress.
 
The next time you’re at the gym and waiting to use a particular workout machine, consider spending some of that wasted time on a balance board instead of standing in a line. Even though balance boards require only minimal amounts of strength and skill to use, they can be very worthwhile fitness training aids for anyone brave enough to step up and give one a try.