Pikes on the stability ball

B

Brit-Josie

Cathlete
I've been doing the Timesaver dvd this week, still loving it and feeling great every time I master one of those trickier step moves!....BUT I just can't do those darned pikes on the stability ball! I swear my ball is just too big for me! Ha ha! Actually no, it is a 65cm reebok one and I am 5 feet 8 inches tall, so it's the right size.

So how long has it taken everyone else to master this tricky move? Or is it simply a question of me continuing to build up my upper body strength and doing lots of push ups (which I hate!)?

TIA
Josie
 
With pikes on the ball, it's important to note that not only are the trunk muscles being recruited, as well as the arm and shoulder muscles with a LOT of weight being placed on them, but ALSO the hip flexors and quads as you press up into the pike and control the lowering back down. It's not just a core move.

Do continue to build up your upper body strength (especially shoulders and tris) AND understand the workload coming from the hip joint and legs.

The best way to get good at pikes is to do pikes.

A-Jock
 
I am still trying to master these and I got my videos a couple months ago. I can do like 2 or 3 pikes before I collapse. One thing I noticed is that if I practice them on their own (i.e. without having done an ab routine right before) I can do a lot more of them. But when I put them in at the end of a routine (like in KPC) then I can do a lot less. I think you are right in saying that you need to build upper body strength for this move. I definitely feel it in my shoulders, arms, and back when doing the pikes (and abs too, obviously). I think when these body parts get stronger, the move will become easier.

In an effort to reach this goal, I decided to add the KPC ab routine onto any other abs that I do. Good luck with everyting!

Alison
 
I think it'll be a while then before I can do them....I can't even manage one right now even though I have good core strength from doing pilates regularly. When I watch Cathe and her crew doing them, they just look so simple that I feel that I should be able to do them too! It's good to have a challenge though ;-)
 
In PUB Cathe does 12 pikes, then balances on one leg then the other and then does 4 more pikes. It took me 9 months of doing this workout before I finally did the entire PUB ab routine without pausing between pikes. When I wasn't busy, I'd practice doing about 4 or 5 pikes a day, sometimes barefoot, concentrating on keeping the back straight (not rounded). Another thing that helped was doing other plank and ab work. And push ups. Sorry.
 
I have been doing pikes for a year now and of caourse got better with practice - but let me say this - when I first started to practice I tried too hard. I don't know if that makes sense or not - it is really a lighter move meaning the ball doesn't move much - pracitce just pulling up your core - that is what helped me.

Does that make sense to you? As you are balancing just bring up the butt and the ball only moves a few inches. Within a week of practicing I could do at least 30 in a row. So the reason I couldn't do them at first wasn't because I didn't have the strength in the upper body or in my core but that I wasn't doing it the right way.

Keep practicing and you wil get it - I can do a pike and hold it for a count of 30 too - I love doing them but they do make me sweat and get breathless still after so many.

Good Luck,

Cheryl
 
Holy cow Cheryl - hold for a count of 30??? That certainly does come from lots of practice! I find some days I can do them and some days I just can't! Usually my problem has to do with my upper body workout - if I've really done an intense upper body workout and my arms are very tired, then I have more problems!
 
I still struggle with the PUB pikes - haven't tackled KPC's ab section yet. In PUB, I do the abs section right after the warmup - my arms aren't tired yet and I can do more pikes. Also, someone posted a tip that helped me: brace your core before you go up, and think about lifting your butt to the ceiling. DON'T pull in your legs - if you just get that butt up, the legs will follow naturally.
 
It took me quite a few months to get these pikes. I was also trying to hard. I felt like I was going to go all the way over sometimes. The tip about thinking about getting your butt up in the air helped me alot.
It does take a lot of practice and upper body strength.
Good luck and let us know how it goes.

Beverly
 
<Also, someone posted a tip that helped me: brace your core before you go up, and think about lifting your butt to the ceiling>

I don't know if I saw that tip or not, but concentrating on lifting my rear up really has been key for me. I just noticed this week though, in doing the KPC abs, and the bonus abs in Timesaver #2, I don't have to focus so much on my rear. Now I can focus on pulling in my stomach!

Oh, I also do find that foot placement is key also. Today was a little harder, because I basically only had my feet on the ball, and not my shins. I went back and looked at what Cathe and crew were doing after I finished. They have their whole shin on the ball pre-pike. I think usually I'm somewhere in between that and what I did today.

Good luck!
 
I agree with all of these tips. The other thing that really helped me was I started just sitting on my ball during the day while on the computer. I was shocked how much stronger my core got just from not slouching in a chair all day. :)
 
That's a great idea Vic! I would love to be able to sit on my stability ball whilst at work, however as I'm an attorney, I might get a few strange looks from my clients! :7
 
Brit-Josie, I saw a ball chair in the Fitball catalog that has a chair base (and back) to hold the ball in place--it looks more like a chair than a ball...so it may not be outside of your realm of possiblity after all. However, you wouldn't get all the stabilizing benefits so it might not be worth the purchase...I dunno, just thought it looked remarkable.

A couple of things I learned the hard way about these darned pikes--it is better to have a full firm ball than an underinflated mushy ball. I just purchased a new stability ball in 65 cm to replace my 7 yo 55 cm ball and I can really tell a difference in the ease of the move.

Also, as most of the other posters have stated--the move is about half "trick" and half true strength. The "trick" is to get your body into vertical alignment over your shoulders first with your feet and ball following. Think core first, hip flexors last.
 
I haven't mastered the pukes, I mean pikes, but I am getting good at going for the floor headfirst without injuring myself. Practice, practice, practice! (Where's the kid with the sharp pointy object now when I would be happy to find my ball deflated with a pencil sticking out of it? LOL!) Looking at Cathe's upper body and having read she can do pushups endlessly and like to! (I can't nor could you pay me to!) I am cutting myself lots of slack. Keep building that upper body strength and never give up, never surrender!
Bobbi "Chick's rule!" http://www.handykult.de/plaudersmilies.de/chicken.gif
 
Pukes?...I like that! Quite appropriate!

My ball is definitely inflated properly - nice and firm (probably why it seems so large!)

So I guess that I have to get my upper body into such a position that it seems like I's going a handstand but to get there, just think about lifting my backside up? Sounds pretty scary!

If I ever manage to do it, no doubt I will post to shout out loud about my achievement :)
 
Ha! PUKES is for sure! Josie, I just wanted to agree with the couple posters here who said concentrate on pulling your rear UP, not rolling the ball in. If you watch Cathe do a pike, her ball barely moves. Think of the move as a BODY move, not the ball moving. Once I figured this out by watching her, pikes were easier. NOT easy, just easier! Good Luck, keep at it and soon you will be shouting out loud!
Your-Friend-In-Fitness, DebbieH http://www.handykult.de/plaudersmilies.de/wavey.gif[/img] If You Get The Choice To Sit It Out Or Dance...I Hope You DANCE!!!
 
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