The swiss ball, also known as an exercise or fitness ball, is not new to the exercise world, but has just recently been

popularized with tv commercials and fitness gurus telling you why you should use the ball. It has been used by those in the

physical therapy field for many years because of it's effectiveness.

Basically the ball provides an unstable surface for your exercises. This brings into play your ab muscles, your leg muscles and your upper body. Your entire body comes into play to work to keep you from falling off the ball.

While you do a crunch, for instance, not only are you working your abs, you are also working your body's core muscles. This increases the overall effectiveness of the exercise, meaning you get a more intensive exercise in less time.

In the example of the crunch, you also get about 20% more movement in the exercise on the ball than on the floor because you are able to go back further and get more of a stretch. There's also less strain on your back.

You are not limited to the crunch. Almost any exercise that you currently do can be performed on the swiss ball. Do a pushup on the ball and your entire body quivers as you are not only performing the pushup, you are also working hard to keep the ball steady.

You can sit or lay on the ball, once you have become accustomed to it, and do your dumbbell training. While you are doing biceps curl, as an example, your legs and your core muscles are still being brought into play, helping you maintain your balance. As you do dumbbell flyes lying down, you get the same effect.

Doing your curls not only resulted in a workout for your biceps, but your abs and leg muscles received a workout as well.

Exercising on a swiss ball allows you to add a lot of variety to your exercise routine, making it more fun to exercise and more likely that you will not become bored and give up.

You'll find new, fun ways to exercise. This is not one of those

products that comes onto the scene for a few months and then disappears. Go to almost any physical training facility and they will have a number of different sizes of balls.

The reason is simple. They work.

Pick up a anti-burst swiss ball. The cost is very reasonable. Try it in your next workout. You'll be happy you did and you will notice the benefits almost immediately.