Exercise Ball Bridge with Hip Roll

Starting Position
  • To start this dynamic ball exercise, lie supine on the floor with your heels on the ball
  • Arms are straight and out to the sides of your body
  • Engage your abdominal musculature through the abdominal hollowing exercise.
  • Lift your hips up so that your body is straight from your heels to your shoulders
Action
  • Lead with your heels pointing them outward.
  • Allow your hip to rotate and rise up
Prime Movers
  • Abdominal obliques, hips, glutes, hamstrings, back extensors
Physio Tips
  • Doing this exercise with palms up increases the work done by your rear shoulders, arms and upper back.
  • Doing this exercise with palms down preferentially works the front of the shoulders and chest.
  • Start with small movements until you get a feel for how far you can go without falling over.
Progression
  • Bringing your arms closer to your trunk will make this exercise more challenging by decreasing your base of support.
  • Try Single Leg Raise and Cross
Because you are supine this ball exercise biases the muscles of your back, buttocks, hamstrings, and calves. You will know when you reach technical failure when your pelvis begins to sag or shake. At that point the exercise is over and you need to take a rest prior to attempt number two. Technical failure is the point where you can no longer maintain perfect form. If you are shaking and sagging your stabilizing muscles are no longer active enough to hold you steady.

Once you are able to perform the bridge/plank on the ball exercise for 30 seconds or more with perfect form you are able to introduce some dynamic movements. Your starting position is the same, but slowly allow your pelvis to rotate resulting in one foot lying on top of the other. Hold it for a few seconds and let it come back. Hold that, and then try the other side. you may want to start with only a partial turn until you become familiar with the movement.


1ballsHold each position for 5 seconds.

2ballsPerform this ball exercise slowly for 30 seconds.

3ballsPerform this ball exercise 60 seconds.

      Return to the top of Bridging Hip Roll

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