April 01, 2004

By: Maxwell Stone
Website: http://www.1st-in-fitness.com

Fitnessheaven.com adds Swiss ball exercises to Virtual Trainer workouts

The Internet’s most comprehensive health, fitness and wellness Web site, FitnessHeaven.com, has added Swiss ball exercises to its innovative Virtual Trainer. Swiss balls, also known as stability balls, are quickly becoming a popular addition to exercise routines and rehabilitation programs. The balls promote spinal health and posture awareness by stabilizing and holding the spine in a natural position.

“The addition of Swiss ball exercises to a person’s fitness routine not only adds variety to a workout, but increases core muscle strength,” said Brennan Fogel, a kinesiologist and FitnessHeaven contributor. “The ball creates a level of instability so that stabilizer muscles are used in addition to the core muscles being worked, thereby making the exercises more effective.” The Swiss ball exercises have been added to routines recommended for the abdominal/torso muscles. The new routines include modified crunches, a forward roll exercise and leg lifting/lowering.

The Virtual Trainer on Fitnessheaven.com (reserved for Silver and Gold level members) is a proprietary, interactive component that recommends exercises for specific muscles. A member selects a male or female trainer and a muscle group, and the trainer demonstrates, through video with voiceover, recommended exercises.

Much of the content at FitnessHeaven.com is available to everyone. However, two levels of membership provide extra benefits: The free Silver Membership, available through a simple online registration process, permits access to certain interactive services; Gold Membership, which is $7.95 per month or $49 per year, allows access to all of the site’s interactive components, including Online Diets, Web Racing and the Member Savings Center for deep discounts on health and fitness merchandise.

FitnessHeaven.com is a pioneering online, one-stop source for health, fitness and wellness information and interactivity. The site provides the most comprehensive, indepth expert content and an innovative, three-dimensional experience for visitors, including virtual trainers, real-time competitive workouts, personalized fitness and diet regimens, and access to unbiased information ranging from scientific to folk, from Western medical to Eastern mystical.

Author Notes:

Maxwell Stone contributes and publishes news editorial to http://www.1st-in-fitness.com.  A source of information and helpful tips on various types of fitness equipment.