The stability ball was first developed in the 1960s by Aquilino Cosani of Ledragomma, an Italian company that manufactured plastic toys. Dr. Susanne Klein-Vogelbach, of Basel, Switzerland, brought some of Ledragomma’s balls back to her physical therapy school and is believed to be the first physiotherapist to incorporate the stability ball in the treatment of patients with orthopedic and neurological disorders. Ledragomma branded their first line of stability balls the “Original Pezzi GymnastikBall.”
In the 1970s, therapists in the U.S. began using the GymnastikBall to treat spinal injuries and other medical problems, but it was not discovered as an effective method of general body conditioning until the early 1990s. This trend sparked the development of many new products, such as the Maxafe balls, which are made with a stronger, more durable plastic; egg- and peanut-shaped balls; and the SitSolution, a ball with feet that can be used as a chair. Today, the stability ball is widely recognized in the fitness industry, and many personal trainers believe it to be their best overall training tool for developing core strength, flexibility, balance, and postural awareness.
In early 2000, when I was preparing to publish Balance on the Ball, I traveled to Osoppo, a small town in the Friuli-Venezia Giulia region of Italy, to visit the Ledragomma factory. The owner, Steno Dondè, put me in touch with their U.S. distributor, who assisted with the early stages of my book distribution. (Steno also introduced me to Friulian cuisine, which led me to publish Flavors of Friuli: A Culinary Journey through Northeastern Italy a decade later!)
In 2017, Ledragomma rebranded their company and is now known as Tonkey.
