We are going to talk about one of my favorite therapy tools this week, the Bosu Ball! If you are not familiar with the Bosu Ball, it’s basically half of a therapy ball mounted on a solid base. Bosu Balls are great for everything from strengthening to balance. I purchased my Bosu Ball from Amazon and I will leave the link at the bottom of this post.
Today I have some fun activities to share with you using the Bosu Ball. And, in next week’s video I have a follow along Bosu Ball workout to get your heart pumping. So let’s dive in!
Touch Down Game
The first activity I have is a fun game that works on both balance and strength. I call it the Touch Down Game. All you need for this game is a Bosu Ball and this free printable. To make the game last a little longer, you may want to laminate the pieces, but it’s not necessary.
Once you have printed and laminated the pieces, tape the larger square pieces to the bottom of the Bosu Ball. If you think of the bottom of the ball as a clock, adhere the pieces at 3,6,9, and 12. Then stack the small cards into a pile. To play the game, draw a card from the pile. Then stand on the ball and carefully touch the section of the ball to the ground that is shown on the card. This movement works on strengthening the muscles in your legs, hip, and core. It also works on balance and motor control.
Standing Balance
The Bosu Ball is a great place to work on Balance. You can stand on the ball side or the platform side to work on balance. While the platform side is more challenging, the ball side provides more sensory input through the foot and ankle. So, chose the side that will help you achieve your specific goals. Start by simply balancing on the surface. Then, increase the difficulty by adding an activity or game. You can play balloon volley with yourself or a partner using your hands or a pool noodle. Ballon volley will force you to move in and out of your base of support which really challenges your balance.
Strength
The Bosu Ball is most famous for use when strengthening muscles. If you are working with older kids, simple exercises work well. Things like squats, push-ups, and crunches are perfect to do on a Bosu. The rebounding and uneven surface make all of these activities more challenging. However, when working with younger kids simple exercises are a little too boring. So we have to spice things up a bit.
- Squats are a great lower body strengthening activity, and doing them on an uneven surface makes them a lot more challenging. There are a few ways to make squats a little more fun. First, adhere some Squigz to the bottom of the ball and have the child squat down to pull them off. You can also play a card game. Place a stool in front of the Bosu Ball and put the cards or game pieces on the stool. Have the child squat down to the stool each time they need a card. This activity can be challenging, so I would recommend a card holder for younger kids.
- Push-Ups are a great upper body strengthening activity. Just like squats, they are more challenging on an uneven surface. Flip the ball over and place your hands on the ball outer edges of the ball. Simply holding this position can be a challenge or performing a push-up. A fun game to play in this position is placing a small ball (ping pong or tennis ball) on the platform portion of the Bosu and making small movements to move the ball around. You can also try placing pom poms on the flat Bosu surface and blow them off each time you bend your elbow down for the push-up.
- Our Core Muscles are an incredibly important group of muscles. They help with posture and give our arms and legs the ability to move freely. So keeping them strong is really important. Again simple exercises like crunches/sit-ups work really well. But to make them more fun you can use the zip ball or the balloon volley game with a pool noodle.
Jumping
Jumping is a pretty obvious choice for this fun rebounding surface. If your child is just learning, they may need the support of a wall, table, or an adult for support. If they are an experienced jumper, the rounded surface of the ball provides a greater challenge than jumping on the ground or a trampoline. Jumping on a Bosu is also a great way to add some aerobic activity into your day.
Unilateral Stance
Unilateral Stance ,which is therapy speak for standing on one foot, is another great skill to work on with a Bosu ball. When kids are just starting out, allow them to practice just standing on one foot. They can use their arms for balance. Once they get the hang of it, you can up the challenge. Playing catch or manipulating a pop tube are great options. To make the game a more dynamic balance challenge (balancing during movement) you can have your child use one leg to balance on the ball while the other is touching items on the floor. I use these colored dots that I found on Amazon, but you can let you imagination run wild. Colored dish towels, colored paper, small stuff animals are just a few other ideas that work really well.
Well, I hope you try some of these activities this week and let me know they go. I would love to hear from you in the comments. All of the products I talked about this week are linked below, as well as the free printable. Make sure you grab a copy for yourself.
In next week’s video, we are going to put some of these activities together into a fun follow along Bosu workout for you, so make sure to check back in with us.
Thanks so much for stopping by today. I hope you have an amazing week!
-Heather
Products Mentioned: Bosu Ball, Pop Tubes, Adaptive Card Holder.
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