First, I would like to apologize for my language – but it did get your attention, didn’t it?
I woke up at 4:35AM Wednesday morning, the same time I wakeup every weekday. I rolled out of bed, and the first thing I did was check my phone. I checked to see if any clients texted me past my bedtime, to see if any clients facebook messaged me past my bedtime, and to see if any clients emailed me past my bedtime. All three happened. But, to this point – I was still happy 🙂
When I got on facebook, the first picture that popped up on my feed was a picture of a foot in a immobilizing brace/walking boot. The picture was posted by one of my former clients, and the caption with it was: “Broke my foot jumping on a bosu ball during an exercise class last night… Needless to say I am not happy!” I messaged my client and asked her to send me more info. She then told me that the “trainer” of the “fitness class” had the group jumping AND doing 180 degree, in air turns, on the BOSU!
No, no, no, no JUST NO! Here is why I am so upset:
I am sick of seeing and hearing about fitness “professionals” doing such stupid exercises that put people in such danger! How does jumping on BOSU trainer, doing a 180 degree turn, help with anything? Unless you are training to be the best BOSU jumping/spinning person in the world, this exercise will not help you with ANYTHING!
“But Mike, this will help with stability and balance!” – No. When in your everyday life do you jump on an air inflated surface, spin around in mid air, and land on it? The risk outweighs the reward by leaps and bounds. If you want to train for balance and stability, do something on one foot, or moving your body through a motion while on a stable surface. Have you ever ran down the street on a moving surface, played hoops on a moving court? I think not.
BOSU’s and unstable surfaces are great for increasing awareness – or in fitness nerd terms – proprioception, especially after an injury or as a rehab element. They are not great for increasing strength, power, burning fat, or many other things.
Bottom line: Just because you see something “cool” on youtube, doesn’t mean its a great exercise – ESPECIALLY for a group fitness class composed of many people with different abilities.
Question your trainer or bootcamp instructor if you think something is pointless or dangerous. If they can’t give you a quick, legit answer as to why they are having you do it (because it looks hard or cool isn’t a legit response) – ask for a modification or just leave the class and talk with someone who knows what they are talking about!
There, rant over. 🙂