A weighted ball can help strengthen different areas of your body.
People visit a chiropractor when they feel pain in a certain area of their body, usually in the back, neck, arms or legs. The chiropractor can adjust your body to relieve tension buildup and knots in those areas, but they can also teach you strengthening workouts that will prevent the pain and tension buildup in the future. Some of these strengthening workouts include the use of two small weighted balls that fit in each of your palms, and others include the use of one large medicine ball.
Body Strengthening
Virtually every health care professional agrees that exercise is paramount to overall health, According to Today's Chiropractic Lifestyle magazine. Because of this, more chiropractors are working out on a regular basis and then sharing their experiences with their patients. Chiropractors on this website state that core training is most important, because if the core is strong, spinal health is improved and patients will feel less pain in all areas of the body. Also, they state that cardio workouts aren't enough to reverse what gravity does to the body. Weight training is needed to improve the quality of life. That is why chiropractors implement weighted exercises into their practices.
Weighted Balls
Some chiropractors have their patients use small weighted exercise balls to increase resistance and strength in certain areas of the body. The balls are small enough to fit in the palm of a hand, they are filled with soft materials that allow patients to easily grip them and the weight can increase as patients increase their strength. Also, the weighted balls can be purchased by patients to use at home, and they are small and convenient for bringing to the office, in the car or anywhere a patient travels. The exercises that the chiropractor teaches in the office can therefore also be used at home.
Weighted Exercises
One strengthening exercise that the chiropractor might show you with the weighted balls is for your wrists and forearms. You place your arms on a flat surface, allowing your wrists to dangle off the end. Holding a weighted ball in each hand, you bend your wrists down as far as they will go and hold for 10 seconds. Then you lift your wrists up as far as they will go and hold for 10 seconds, and then you turn the wrists to each side as far as they will go and hold. This strengthens the wrist muscle and prevents carpal tunnel. Other exercises are available for strengthening your shoulders, neck, back and knees.
Medicine Ball
Another type of weighted ball that chiropractors use on their patients is a medicine ball or stability ball. These balls are large in size and weigh up to 25 pounds. Chiropractors can show patients exercises to do on a medicine ball that improve their balance, power and stability, according to DrStreet.com. As soon as you lie on the ball, your legs and abs contract to keep you balanced. Therefore, sit-ups and other type of exercises are enhanced on a ball, and the core and back muscles are strengthened on higher levels than with regular exercises on the floor.
Stability Exercises
Exercises on the stability ball will strengthen your core and open up your back. For example, the chiropractor might have you sit on the ball and then roll down until your back is against the ball. This alone stabilizes your body on the ball and contracts your abdominal muscles, increasing your core strength. When your core is strong enough, you will work your way up to doing sit-ups while positioned on the ball like this. The chiropractor might also have you sit on the ball and then bend backwards so your hands and feet are touching the ground and your back is bent over the ball. You could also lay with your stomach against the ball and your hands and feet on the ground. These stretches allow your back to open up and relieve tension.
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