professor

fitness

Great Balls of

WATER
By Ben McDonald

30

ultra-fit MARCH 2012

the Workouts
Beginner:

1. Overhead squat
2. Walking overhead lunge
3. Up press - press up
4. Shoulder press
5. Woodchop (each side)
Do: 3 x 15 reps exercise with 1 min rest
between sets

how can we train in a similar way and also

save our toes from ending up wafer thin? The
answer is here! The Hydro (or water) Ball!! This
piece of equipment is a large durable ball that
you fill with water and then pump up with air they come in three sizes and can be filled with
different amounts of water thus effecting their
weight and stability. As the
balls are filled with water this
challenges grip and your
bodys stabilisation processes
and if the worst happens and the
ball lands on a toe you wont be
making a trip to A&E!

The exercises
Warm up with a couple of minutes of CV activity and then perform functional movements for
all body parts, such as marching on the spot and arm swings.

Overhead
Squat

intermediate:

1. Clean
2. Overhead squat
3. Walking overhead lunge
4. Up press - press up
5. Shoulder press
6. Woodchop (each side)
Increase the weight of the ball and do 3 x
12 reps with 45sec rest between sets

targets: legs, glutes,

core and shoulders
and grip
Stand with feet shoulderswidth apart and the ball
overhead
Flex at the hip and knee at
the same time as if youre
sitting down
Drop to a comfortable
position around 90-degrees
Keep your chest lifted and
your weight on your heels
Drive the ground away
through your heels and
stand tall

Advanced:

1. Burpee complex:
Burpee + press up on the ball + into a
clean + into shoulder press + into an
overhead squat = 1 rep
Do: 4 x 15 reps with 30sec rest between sets
2. Walking overhead lunge
3. Woodchop (each side)
Perform 15 reps x 4 sets with 30sec rest
between sets

professor
fitness

ave you ever watched

strongman competitions? Huge
men picking up, throwing and
carrying equally huge weights,
its a tradition in my house over
the Christmas season to watch The Worlds
Strongest Man!! At the end of each
programme comes the Atlas stones, huge
stone balls that the contenders have to pick up
and put on podiums, dangerous stuff, if you
drop one on your toe! The stones are
extremely difficult to grip and so make a great
training tool however, most of us arent huge
guys that have access to the Atlas stones, so

Walking overhead lunge

targets: legs, glutes, core and shoulders and grip

Water Balls facts and figures

and where to purchase
Water Balls can reach a diameter of 30
cm. (SMALL size), 40 cm. (MEDIUM
size), and 50 cm. (LARGE size), these are
the dimensions of the Atlas Stones.
Water Balls weigh up to 15 kg, 25 kg
and 40 kg when fully filled with water and
are made from a reinforced plastic that can
handle being dropped without tearing or
breaking. They are also air inflated and safe
if hit against the floor or against the body of
other users, the air can reduce the impact
of hits, avoiding damage and/or injury. Each
Water Ball is provided with a special
1.5m/5foot foot air/water-pump and are
both quick and easy to fill and fast to empty
Available from:
http://www.leisurelinesgb.co.uk

Stand with feet hip-width apart and the ball held overhead at arms length
Take a larger step than normal forwards
As the foot lands drop down so both knees are at a 90-degree angle
Step through with the back foot into a large step and repeat, stabilise if you need to

MARCH 2012 ultra-fit

31

Up press - Press up
professor
fitness

targets: chest, shoulders and core

Lie on your back with the ball on your chest
Press the ball straight up keeping the elbows soft at the top

Let the ball return to your chest

Roll over so you end up on top of the ball with your body flat
Perform a press up, once you have lowered yourself onto the ball
roll onto your back and up press again, repeat for reps required

Shoulder
press

Stand with your

feet shoulders
width apart and
the ball on your
chest
Press the ball
straight overhead
to arms length
Return to the start
position keeping
chest lifted

Clean

targets: legs, glutes, hips, core, shoulders

Stand with feet shoulder-width apart and the ball in between
your feet
Reach down and grip the sides of the ball keeping your chest lifted

32

ultra-fit MARCH 2012

Dynamically extend at the hips and knees to drive the ball upwards
Change hand position and catch the ball on your chest
Return to the start position

Woodchop

Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and the ball at your chest
Allow the ball to fall across the body towards the outside leg
whilst keeping your chest lifted

Rotate on the opposite foot to allow the body to rotate also

Drive the ball up from the outside leg across the body to the
opposite shoulder
Decelerate the ball and dynamically change direction driving the
ball back towards the opposite leg
Repeat for reps and change sides

Burpee
targets:
legs, glutes,
hips, core,
shoulders

Stand with
feet shoulderwidth apart
and the ball
in between
your feet
Drop down
into a press
up position
with both
hands on top
of the ball
Bring the feet
back in to
either side of
the ball and
stand up
straight

Ben McDonald is one of the UKs leading fitness experts, who designed and wrote Premier Training Internationals groundbreaking Powerclub
training course. Ben is a health, fitness and nutrition lecturer for health and fitness training provider Premier, he is a television presenter and has
presented at various international conventions and has also written articles for numerous publications. Ben has a varied sporting background and is
a personal trainer to an array of clients including elite athletes. www.benmcdonaldpt.co.uk

MARCH 2012 ultra-fit

33

professor
fitness

targets: shoulders, chest, core (particularly

transverse obliques)