The common saying is that dancers get bored quickly, are chaotic, and need to structure their workouts. Let’s flip the coin and look at the reverse. Entertaining people is hard, and performers must raise the bar above the level of regular exercise. When you see strange-looking workouts on the BOSU ball, there may be a reason behind it – not boredom, but a challenging workout that targets specific muscles such as the core, glutes, and legs, and movement patterns like balance and stability. These unique challenges of BOSU workouts can be intriguing and motivating for those seeking a new level of fitness.
BOSU workouts – examples
BOSU is very important for balance training. I spend a lot of time doing handstands on both sides:
- Rubber, floppy side put pressure on my wrists doing handstands
- Flat, stable surface for general balance and finding proper handstand posture
What is important is that those workouts are very demanding, engaging my complete focus and deep muscles, especially core muscles. It is the next-level pilates training. When I feel mentally disturbed or physically weak, then I don’t use BOSU for handstands.
I saw trainers and people doing much simpler exercises on BOSU. Some of those are designed for physical therapy, but this article is not about them. We will uncover the pros and cons of the more challenging BOSU workouts. Interestingly, scientific publications about the benefits of BOSU workouts are inconclusive. However, the potential benefits of improved balance, core strength, and stability are worth exploring. The best idea is to give it a try and decide if it works for you or if there is too much effort compared to the gains. Here, we have two YouTube shorts with BOSU exercises of different intensity and difficulty levels.
Challenging exercise for your core and arms
Tough exercises engaging your legs, glutes, and core muscles
The pros and cons
What are the pros of using BOSU?
- Engaging your central nervous system and forcing your mind to work in extreme conditions. Neural preparation could be helpful during competitions where the environment is not static (for example, a slippery floor in a dancing competition)
- Core and deep muscle activation
- Part of a Pilates training
And what are the cons?
- BOSU is unstable, and you can hurt yourself or someone else if you are not physically or mentally prepared. Gradually increase the difficulty level and avoid falling into the trap of Instagram influencers doing dangerous exercises in crowded spaces (please, don’t pose a risk to other people!).
- BOSU workouts are complex, and sometimes, you won’t be ready to perform them (e.g., crowded spaces, lack of focus, body strength asymmetry).
Future articles and discussion
You may expect more articles and exercises on BOSU in the future. I find it invaluable. And what are your thoughts? Leave a comment and let everyone know!