The range of motion that the board has allows you to challenge different parts of your body’s core. These movements include; rolling, pivoting, sliding, tilting, and rotating.

Balance boards fall into these five categories.
Rocker boards have circular flat boards. Their fulcrums are attached beneath and are the easiest to use. The range of motion is restricted to tilting to the left and right.

Rocker-roller boards offer a slightly higher level of difficulty. They have a board atop a cylindrical wheel that moves with the board. Some users find this somewhat challenging as the range of sliding motion sideways as well as up and down.

Wobble boards have demi-spherical fulcrums that are attached to their boards on the flat side. They provide 3600 movements. Using this kind of board is more challenging than the two later types.

Sphere and ring boards have a little inflatable ball that goes under a board that looks like a wheel-less skateboard. The board has a ring on the underside that restrains the ball from rolling off.

Springboards consist of two boards connected by springs. Your weight compresses the spring when you stand on top of it. Just staying on this board offers a unique challenge.

It is vital to select a wobble board made of quality materials. They also need to be able to withstand at least 350 pounds of weight. Wood and plastic are the most common materials used in the construction of these products.

The top (where you step) usually has a rougher surface for more friction. This trait gives your feet better traction, preventing you from slipping from the wobble board. Rubber molding is commonly used to achieve this effect.

The underside where the fulcrum goes has a smoother consistency. This characteristic creates better traction, slipping the bottom of the board against the fulcrum. The prop is also made from an even material.

For spring based deigns aluminum and steel are used because of their high tensile strength qualities. These elements create a high level of bounce and spring reaction. These materials also don’t accumulate rust as quickly as most metals: assuring you of an extended useful life and hygiene.

Many boards also feature a rubber coating on the top. This quality creates a grip for feet to larch on to and stays grounded even as you move. Reducing chances of slipping off in the face of G-force created from traction. As such, the chances of slipping off and being injured will also be minimal.

Balancing boards can help you achieve a variety of fitness goals and improve your training in numerous sports. Another consideration to make when purchasing a board is the amount of risk you are willing to take in attaining these goals. Different styles of boards are suited for specific goals. Thus before bringing one home, you should consider how a particular type of board could help you reach your goal.

Improving proprioception
Using balance boards continuously will help you improve your balance. Subconsciously, your body is always trying to keep you balanced in space. This sense of spatial awareness is referred to as proprioception.

Poor balance is a sure sign of diminished proprioception. Balance training helps improve your sense of proprioception. By doing so, it allows you to take control of situations where your balance would have been challenged. Giving more confidence and reducing balance related injuries.

With continued training, you will be able to readjust your balance. Helping you stay on your feet rather than tumble to the floor.

Strengthening joints
Regular training with balance boards strengthens joints. It will enable you to withstand the strain and pressure that exercise places on joints. Many professional athletes attest to the reduction of ankle stain from training. This cutback is especially true for athletes that have had previous issues with ankle strain and injuries.

Improved performance in sports
Balance training is widely associated with board sports, like surfing and skateboarding. However, athletes from almost every sport can gain from incorporating it into their training regimen. It allows an athlete to heighten their kinesthetic awareness.

Doing so gives them total control over every movement. In the end, users gain advanced agility and mobility, making them turn, jump, dive, and duck faster than their competition.

Core muscle development
Your core muscles are crucial to all movement. They link the upper and lower body. The core constitutes of the deep lateral stabilizing muscles, the erector spine muscles, and abdominal muscles. Developing your core muscles makes you stronger, more coordinated, and able to handle more strenuous tasks.

Balance training is among the efficient ways of developing a stronger core. Having to balance your body on wobbly platforms exerts your crux. Continually switching your body’s orientation to keep upright works your abs and erector spine and takes tension away from your back. It will make your core stronger while reducing your lower back pain.

Enhanced strength training
Most workouts focus on making your muscles stronger, but they work muscle groups in isolation. However, the key to attaining more strength is a workout that puts all the muscles of the body to task. The targets should include minor stabilizer muscles that conventional training ignores.

Balance board training focuses on every muscle group, including the stabilizer muscles. The constant instability forces the stabilizer muscles to contract. Working them together with larger muscle groups makes for a more balanced training regimen.

Better hand-eye coordination
Balance training primarily focuses on getting as various muscles to work in unison. Standing on an unstable surface with just one-leg forces your whole body to work together. Your eyesight is required to sense the arising instability.

Heightening mental focus
Balancing engages the right and the left hemispheres of the brain. Very few daily tasks and workout routines challenge the body in such a way. Balancing involves your entire mind. This heightened mental activity results in more agility and mental focus.

Improved response time
Quicker reflexes are often the difference in making it to the pro or staying in the minor leagues. When you are on top of a platform and are about to fall off, your body reacts. This short reaction time gets ingrained into your psyche naturally.

Besides standing on a balance board, you can also incorporate it into other exercises.

Yoga
Yoga revolves around achieving balance to unlock focus, control over mind and body, and unlocking centers of energy (chakras). Practicing on an unstable platform can be a way to make yoga present a unique challenge. Balance boards multiply the level of difficulty by a factor of x100.

By practicing yoga on unstable platforms, you get to; tone your whole body, reinforce your core muscles (as well as stabilizers) and unlock new levels of energy and control. Balance boards make yoga poses harder as you will be forced to activate muscle groups that ordinarily wouldn’t be engaged.

Circus tricks
Ever since the circus was invented, balance platforms have been a part of the show. The Rola bola employs the same mechanics as balance boards. However, the level of experience, stamina, and confidence required to produce such stunning displays is at a higher level.

Board sports
Before balance training gained public appeal, surfers, skiers, skateboarders, and other boarding enthusiast knew its benefits. Using homemade balance boards, they practiced until they got their equilibrium and confidence. To this day, you can still find video tutorials and other D.I.Y guides on how to create your own balance boards and even how to perform tricks while on boards.

Developmental disorders
Some innovative educators and psychologists employ balance training as a therapy for children suffering from hyper-activeness. Conditions like ADHD shorten their attention span. Balancing on an unstable platform is not only about muscle coordination. The whole brain is also engaged in this process.

Balance training teaches these kids to focus their physical and mental energy on an individual task. With time and constant practice, this focus can be transferred to their academics.

Aside from the materials featured on your wobble board, they also need to handle a heavy load. Knowing how much pressure a board can control is vital because you can incorporate some weight training into your balance training.

Once able to retain balance, dumbbells or cowbells can be used while atop a balance board, effectively taking your exercise routines to the next level. Most boards in the market can handle up to 400 pounds. However, if a user needs to use even heavier exercise equipment while straddling the board, they can get a customized board.

Weight creates better grounding and reduces exercise-related injury. Grounding can be improved by working out on smooth surfaces. Therefore, a gym or yoga mat can also be employed to improve overall traction and provide support in the case of a user slipping off the board.

Size is one of the most important factors when it comes to selecting a board. A board can be ideal for people with smaller builds but not as compatible for more prominent body types. Its size will determine the types of exercise and the positions you can do while on a balance board.

Proportions are particularly essential, more so if you are using it for rehabilitation. Reason being, a greater surface area equals a lower center of gravity, which means that a user can use it even with a low level of mastery. It also lessens the chances of falling off and worsening their injury.

Boards with smaller platforms are great for more experienced users. Skateboarders, skiers, and other board sports enthusiast stand to gain the most out of their use. They offer the perfect way to fine-tune their balance, which is vital in being able to perform certain tricks.