The Peanut Ball is a great piece of equipment that comes in a range of sizes to suit each child’s unique size & therapeutic needs! It is a fantastic dynamic sitting option, providing a bit more stability than a standard exercise ball.

The Peanut Ball encourages weight bearing through the lower extremities, while leaving the upper body free to engage in activities such as crossing midline, reaching, and manipulating objects. It can be used to promote developmental positions such as prone propping, quadruped, and tall kneeling. It is also a fun tool to incorporate in dynamic balance challenges for older children!

Here are five fun ways we can use the Peanut Ball to build strength, stability, balance, and motor skills!

Sitting Strength

We use the Peanut Ball as an alternative sitting option to address postural awareness via trunk strength & stability. Pictured above, the child is able to engage the abdominal & back musculature while interacting with a toy placed on top of a cube chair or on a vertical surface for added shoulder activation.

We can adjust the size of the Peanut Ball to facilitate proper positioning for each child. Here, we utilize the Peanut Ball to promote postural control as the child uses a theraband to engage upper body strength & stability.

Prone Extension

Prone positioning over the Peanut Ball is a wonderful way to encourage upper body weight bearing & strength.

Quadruped & Kneeling

We can use the Peanut Ball to promote quadruped positioning with shoulder & hip stability.

Try tall kneeling or half kneeling using the Peanut Ball for dynamic support!

Peanut Ball Bridge

Using the Peanut Ball as a dynamic support during bridging exercises challenges the lower body & trunk musculature.

For an added challenge try a single leg bridge using the Peanut Ball as a dynamic support. This is a great way to target the posterior chain musculature, postural engagement & hip stability.

Dynamic Sit to Stand

The Peanut Ball is a wonderful dynamic surface to practice sit to stand transitions. It encourages engagement of the trunk musculature before weight bearing through legs. As the child rises into standing, we can promote proper biomechanics, fluid weight shifting and motor planning.

Try out dynamic floor to stand transitions using the Peanut Ball while promoting the sequence from tall kneeling through half kneeling to standing.

For more activity ideas check out Five Fun Activities with Dyna Discs here!

Learn more about Dinosaur Physical Therapy!

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