How-To #2: Core Strength Builder

Do you know how important core strength is, but just don’t know how to go about building it? Here is one simple exercise to get you started. All you need is a Training Ball and a little floor space!

Training Ball Crunch:

a) Lie on the ball with it centered under your lower back, feel flat on the ground, shoulder-width apart.

b) Fold arms across your chest.

c) Curl your upper torso up and in until your shoulder blades – not your back – are off the ball.

d) Focus on the contraction in your abs for two seconds, then slowly return to your start position.

~ 8 reps is a good place for beginners to start – and build up from there! ~

Harbinger’s Training Ball can also be used to build core strength through leg curls, leg crunches, push ups, wall sits, and buttocks lifts.

Just go to www.harbingerfitness.com, select Gear Guides, and then select an accessory from the Choose a Guide drop-down menu to download your training guide (pdf). Each training guide has general guidelines on how to use each Harbinger accessory.

Ready? Set? Start!

How-To #1: You can have a ball and get fit, too!

Just because the equipment is pretty, doesn't mean it's not going to give you an effective workout. Harbinger's Weighted Fitness Balls are to be taken seriously.


1. Walking Lunges

Start by standing with legs shoulder width apart. Hold fitness ball in front of you with both hands at hip level. Lunge forward with one leg and move the ball to that hip, keeping core straight ahead. Pressing through the front foot, bring back foot forward to standing position, and bring ball back to the front. Repeat on the other side, walking across the floor.

2. Hamstring curls
Now that you're a bit tired from all those lunges, lie down! That's right - lie flat on your back with your knees at a 90-degree angle and your heels on top of the training ball. Keeping your heels on top of the ball, raise your hips straight up into a bridge position. Maintaining your core in this position, push the ball out and back under your hips while your feet roll across the top of the ball. To increase the challenge, bring your hands to your hips, or straight up toward the ceiling.

3. Reverse Butterflies
Stand back up and grab a big Harbinger training ball. Place it in front of you and put two weighted fitness balls on the floor in front of the training ball. Place your chest and stomach on the training ball, balancing on the balls of your feet or toes with your shoulders extended out over the floor. Pick up a weighted fitness ball in each hand and extend your arms out to your sides, elbows slightly bent. Lift balls straight up, squeezing your shoulder blades together and keeping the training ball beneath you as still as possible. Bring weighted fitness balls back down slowly, almost to the floor, before raising them again in a reverse butterfly motion.

There are plenty of other exercise tips for other muscle groups, which you can find at www.harbingerfitness.com. Just click on Gear Guides and select Weighted Fitness Balls from the pull-down menu. Have...a ball!