Everyone from PE students to elite athletes can safely use a weighted ball to get a variety of training effects, including power, strength, and stability, and the medicine ball can let you move and express force in ways that aren’t practical or even possible with dumbbells, kettlebells, or any other implement. It’s also great for taking your training outside on a warm day (always a nice change from a dank, dark, and musty gym). Here’s what you need to know to get in great shape using medicine balls, including a sample fat-burning and conditioning workout from an Onnit Master Trainer. 

Benefits of Using a Medicine Ball in Your Workout

The medicine balls you’ll find in most gyms range from just a few pounds to around 20, so, clearly, trying to use one to build maximum strength would be chasing the wrong ball. But that doesn’t mean med ball training isn’t bad ass. It’s easy for a beginner to see the limited loading potential of the medicine ball as a drawback, but it’s really an asset. “Medicine balls are best for developing power along with strength,” says Juan Leija, General Manager of Onnit Gym in Austin, TX. That is, they help train you to explode, so you can use the muscle strength you build with other types of equipment in a way that translates to better athletic and real-world performance.

As with practically any other type of ball, the medicine ball is designed to be thrown. And just as you can’t throw a big, heavy rock very fast or far, a modestly-weighted medicine ball is going to let you generate a lot more power than a heavy dumbbell/barbell/kettlebell will (and yeah, it will also land more softly and safely, too). But if medicine balls are so great for power development, then what are the Olympic lifts—power cleans and snatches—good for?

Clean and snatch variants can certainly build power, but they’re difficult to learn and are risky to perform—especially for older exercisers, or those who don’t have a background in them. Trying to do explosive exercises with a barbell also doesn’t let you produce the maximum amount of force, because you must decelerate the bar at the end of the range of motion (otherwise, it will fly out of your hands). You literally have to put the brakes on. Throwing a med ball, on the other hand, allows you to let go—of the ball, and the braking mechanism that limits your power.

Furthermore, the medicine ball lets you express power in different movement paths than you have access to with Olympic lifts. Specifically, you can take advantage of rotation, which conventional lifting practically ignores.

“If someone is starting off with med ball training, I like having them do med ball slams,” says Leija, lifting the ball overhead and then smashing it into the ground with a downward throw. “I also have clients do some kind of rotational work—maybe a rotating punching motion, or tossing the ball into a wall that you’re not going to make a hole in.” Exercises like this can help develop better throwing and punching power, if you’re an athlete or martial artist, but Leija says they’re also a great choice for anyone to use near the start of a workout to prepare the central nervous system (CNS). Explosive movements sharpen the CNS’ ability to recruit muscle fibers, and they can actually help you feel more alert and focused for the session ahead. Try two to three sets of three to five reps after you’ve warmed up, and before you do any full-body or upper-body lifting.

The flip side to developing explosiveness is the ability to absorb and redirect force, an important skill for any athlete. In other words, medicine balls can train your body to dish it out, but they can also train you to take it. Throw the ball to a partner and have him/her throw it back to you (or throw it against a wall so it bounces back) and catch it. From there, you can toss the ball back, in another direction, or slam it down. If this sounds similar to how you move during a basketball or football game, you’re starting to see how med balls can improve your athleticism.

Sometimes you don’t even have to lift a medicine ball at all to get some use out of it. It can act as an unstable surface that you balance on. Doing pushups with one or both hands on a ball (or balls) can make your rotator cuff muscles work harder, helping to strengthen your shoulders and prevent injury. You can put your heels on one or more balls and do glute bridges or hamstring curls to build stability in the hips and core.

“Medicine balls are great for exploring movement,” says Leija. Unlike machines, which choose your path of movement for you, medicine balls lifts—throws, chopping motions, rotations, etc.—let you move in big, arcing, three-dimensional ranges that your body is free to explore safely. There’s virtually no free-weight exercise that you wouldn’t risk injury on if your form slips a little bit, but thanks to the light weight, breaking form on medicine ball exercises isn’t especially dangerous. In fact, it can even be advantageous. “No lift is ever going to be perfect,” says Leija. “Every med ball rep you do is going to be a little different—just like when you pick up a box off the ground, it’s never perfectly balanced.” Medicine ball training prepares your body for the asymmetries and instabilities of real-world activity, so, Leija says, “it gives you a functional kind of fitness training.”

Do Medicine Balls Help you Lose Weight? 

Busting out a well-designed med ball circuit two to three times a week (scroll down for an example), or working some athletic medicine ball exercises into your program can help you shed some body fat, but don’t count on this medicine being the only prescription you need to be healthy. Any kind of exercise regimen has to go hand-in-hand with dietary changes if you want to get leaner.

“The problem with simply using exercise to lose weight is that even the longest, sweatiest workouts only burn a few hundred calories,” explains nutritionist, powerlifter, and competitive kickboxer Paul Salter, RD (thepaulsalter.com). “If sustainable long-term fat-loss is your goal, then eating less—and eating better—is the only way to make it happen.” 

What Muscles are Used with Medicine Balls?

The most popular medicine ball movements all place great demands on the muscles of the core, including not only the rectus abdominis, or “six-pack” muscle, but also the obliques and the deep core muscles like the transversus abdominis. Not sure where these muscles are? Do some rotational movements like side tosses, punch-throws, or simply tossing around a med ball with a partner, and you’ll feel them the next day.

But another upside to medicine ball training is that it demands that a wide range of muscles work together, and that makes you a more coordinated, more powerful athlete overall. An overhead medicine ball slam, for instance, uses not only the muscles of the core, but also the hips, lats, shoulders, and even the calves and arms—all in a movement that takes about a second to perform. 

In the case of movements where you hold a medicine ball in front of your torso, like cleans, punches, squats, wall balls, or lateral lunges, the postural muscles of the upper back will also get a sneakily hard workout just from keeping you upright while in a range of positions. This is especially true of exercises done with heavier medicine balls, such as cleans that simulate picking up an Atlas stone (a strongman exercise). 

Medicine Ball Exercises

The following moves are Leija’s picks for trainees that are new to medicine ball work. They can be performed for reps, or time (for instance, do as many reps as you can in a minute). If you want to maximize power output, choose a 5–12-pound ball and keep your reps under 10 to focus on moving the ball as fast as possible. Rest as needed between sets to ensure recovery. To get more of a calorie-burning, endurance-boosting effect, string some exercises together as a circuit and perform them for higher reps.

All exercises demonstrated by Juan Leija.

1. Medicine Ball Slam

The slam is a full-body expression of power unlike anything else you’re allowed to do in a commercial gym, and it can work equally well as a CNS-priming warmup, an explosive power-boosting drill, or part of a conditioning circuit. (Just watch that rebound so you don’t catch a ball to the grill. It happens more often than you think.)

“The slam is actually a great way to work on hip hinge mechanics as well,” Leija says. “A lot of people think it’s all in the arms, but the power comes from the hips. Make sure that core is engaged, get your hips back, and generate power from there.”

Directions

Step 1. Stand with feet shoulder-width apart and hold the medicine ball with both hands in front of your chest.

Step 2. Raise the ball overhead, bending the elbows as you come up. Keep your ribs pulled down and your pelvis level with the floor by bracing your abs. You may come up on your toes as you reach to gather momentum.

Step 3. Explosively reverse the movement, bending your hips back while keeping your spine long. Slam the ball into the floor between your feet, and catch it on the rebound. Use the momentum of the ball rising to begin the next rep.

Tip: throw the ball like you mean it, with as much force as possible. “One of my favorite cues is to slam the ball like someone pissed you off,” Leija says. “For some reason, that always works.” 

2. Medicine Ball Russian Twist

Twisting exercises train rotation, a much neglected movement pattern that’s essential for power development and overall stability. They can be awkward to perform with most other training implements, but the medicine ball makes them feel as natural as passing a basketball.

Directions

Step 1. Sit on the floor and hold the medicine ball between your hands in front of your chest. Raise your torso and legs into a low V shape, keeping the knees bent and heels slightly off the floor.

Step 2. Twist your torso from side to side, tapping the ball to the floor on each side. Keep your eyes pointed forward, and squeeze the ball between your hands throughout the motion.

Tip: You can bend your arms more to make the exercise less challenging, and extend them fully to make it harder. “And try to keep your feet from moving all over the place,” says Leija. “That will help keep the core engaged.”

3. Medicine Ball Pushup

The addition of a ball can make an already excellent strength exercise even better. Your chest, tris, and abs will all work harder, and, as an added bonus, you may find that gripping the ball is easier on your wrists than doing pushups on the floor. The conventional pushup position shoves the wrists back into extension, which can lead to pain and injury. 

Directions 

Step 1. Place your hands in a neutral (palms facing in) position on the top half of the medicine ball. Point your fingers toward the ground and grip the ball hard. Extend your legs behind you and set your feet between hip and shoulder width. Tuck your pelvis slightly and brace your core, so your body forms a long, straight line, from your head to your heels.

Step 2. Lower your body until your chest touches the ball. Try to squeeze the ball throughout each rep to limit instability and maximize tension on the chest muscles.

Advanced variation: Medicine Ball Alternating Pushup

Placing one hand on the ball for pushups increases the stability challenge, and helps you identify which side is weaker. This is a smart “level 2” to step up to when regular pushups start feeling easy. It can also work as a step toward mastering the one-arm pushup.

Directions

Step 1. Place one hand on top of the medicine ball and the other on the floor approximately shoulder-width away from the ball. Set your feet at about shoulder-width and get into a pushup position.

Step 2. Perform a pushup, lowering your torso until your chest is about level with the ball. As you press back up, switch hands on the ball and step your feet laterally to the other side of the ball.

Step 3. Perform another pushup on the other side of the ball.

Tip: Don’t attempt plyo pushups too soon. “Lots of people try to do explosive pushup variations using a med ball right away, but their regular pushups are kinda iffy,” Leija says. “I like to make sure they own the pushup on top of the ball before we progress to anything more complicated, like moving side to side.”

4. Medicine Ball Clean

We already explained why a light medicine ball is a great training tool, but a heavy one can be as well. Some medicine balls (such as the ProSourceFit Tread Slam Ball, shown here) weigh between 50 and 200 pounds or more to help simulate strongman training and present a harder challenge for grip strength and conditioning. The closer the ball’s weight gets to triple digits, the more you have to hug the ball to control it, so doing cleans with a heavy ball is an awesome full-body exercise.

But no matter the weight you use, lifting a ball from the floor to shoulder level places immense demands on the hips, grip, core, and upper back. After you’ve cleaned the ball, you can press it, carry it, or toss it back down and clean it again—all movements Leija says he has used to great effect with athletes.  

Directions

Step 1. Place the med ball on the floor and stand behind it with your feet just outside shoulder width. Turn your toes out slightly.

Step 2. Hinge your hips back, keeping your spine as neutral as possible, and grasp the bottom half of the ball. 

Step 3. Keeping your spine long and your lower back flat, use your legs and hips to power the ball off the floor and up to your chest. If it is a light ball, you can clean it to chest level in a single motion. A heavier ball may require you to rest it on your legs momentarily, reposition your hands, and hug it to lift it, or, you can lift it a few inches, and re-grip it in mid air, as Leija does here. Once you’ve got the ball up, drop it back to the floor between your feet. 

Tip: “Picking up a ball from the ground requires kind of a squatty deadlift motion,” says Leija, “so think of it like a hinge: really engage the core, and drive power through the floor using your hips. Then, just get the ball up!”

5. Medicine Ball Skater Lunge

Lateral jumps are a staple movement in Leija’s training arsenal, he says, and he always likes to start athletes off with an unweighted version. But once they can do it properly, Leija likes to add a medicine ball to the movement, held in front of the chest. 

The ball not only adds extra resistance, it intensifies the need for stability and reaction time. Skater lunges are excellent for athletes who have to corner or change directions quickly in their sport, but they can help anyone learn to control his/her body in motion, as well as coordinate multiple muscle groups in multiple planes of motion at once.

Directions 

Step 1. Hold a medicine ball in front of your chest with feet around shoulder width. Lift one leg and hop to that side, landing farther than shoulder-width away. Let the medicine ball cross your body, and allow your rear leg to drift behind your front leg. Make the landing soft.

Step 2. Use the rebound effect to help you spring back to the other leg. You should look like an ice skater pushing off his/her leg to propel forward.

Tip: “Don’t keep the ball too close to your body,” Leija says. “Hold it out in front of you with your arms somewhat extended.” Not only will this make both the core and the postural muscles of the upper back work harder, it will also allow you to squat slightly deeper into the working leg and rebound more powerfully. 

6. Medicine Ball Burpee Slam

This is one case where the weighted version of a movement is actually better and safer than the more popular bodyweight version. The reason is one that’s clear to anyone who has ever winced while watching an exhausted group class gut out burpees when they were running on fumes.

“That pushup position can get pretty shady for a lot of people,” says Leija. Not only does form degrade with fatigue, leading to sloppy, ineffective pushups at the bottom of each burpee, but repeatedly jumping the legs back and landing hard on the wrists is asking for injury. The squat form people typically use to lower themselves close to the floor is no picnic either. Most folks will round their lower backs, setting up a low-back injury.

“With the ball, you don’t have to go all the way to the ground,” says Leija. “You have something that keeps you a little higher.” The range of motion may be shorter, but the exercise is much easier on the joints—even when you’re smoked and having trouble keeping form. The med ball burpee slam is also just a great way to keep it spicy in the gym. “It makes people feel good that they can do something that looks cool,” says Leija, “but is also pretty effective.” 

Directions

Step 1. Place the medicine ball on the floor and stand behind it with feet shoulder width. Squat down and squeeze the sides of the ball while you jump your feet out behind you and land in the top position of a pushup.

Step 2. Perform a pushup on the ball, and then jump your feet back up to the sides of the ball. In a single motion, lift the ball overhead while keeping a long spine and flat back, and then slam it to the floor. That’s one rep.

Tip: Don’t come crashing down onto that ball, or you might find yourself facedown on it! “When people are coming down, they have to really focus,” Leija says. “They’re like, ‘Oh, I’ve got to land on that ball and make sure I control it before I drop down to my chest.’” 

Full-Body Medicine Ball Workout

Perform this workout one to three times per week, either at the start or end of your regular workout, or on a separate day that you want to spend focusing on power and conditioning. (Do not perform it two days in a row.) Alternate sets of the clean and pushup, resting as needed between sets until all sets are completed.

1. Medicine Ball Slam

Sets: 1  Reps: 5–7

2A. Medicine Ball Clean

Sets: 3–5  Reps: 3–8 reps

2B. Medicine Ball Pushup

Sets: 3–5  Reps: 10–12

EMOM Circuit

Finish the workout with the following circuit. Start a timer and begin the Russian twist at 00:00. Do the prescribed reps on each side, and then rest for as much time as is left before the start of the next minute (01:00).

Go on to the burpee slam and perform it the same way, resting until the timer is at 02:00. Then go on to the skater lunge, and rest until 03:00.

Repeat the process until 15 minutes is up.

1. Med Ball Russian Twist

Reps: 20 (each side)

2. Med Ball Burpee Slam

Reps: 5

3. Med Ball Skater Lunge

Reps: 10 (each side)

Follow Leija on Instagram, @juannit_247.

The post The Best Medicine Ball Workouts and Exercises for Getting Fit appeared first on Onnit Academy.

Having these thoughts and seeking out something new is human nature, we all do it. I have a gym with a bunch of different, unique equipment that all provide alternative variations of traditional movements.

While variety can be the spice of life, sometimes the classic basics can be overlooked and completely forgotten about.

Medicine ball training is said to have been a form of strength and conditioning for the ancient gladiators and Persian wrestling athletes as far back as 1000 BC.

Fast forward to today and we find the medicine balls demoted to cute little abdominal exercises that can be done in your living room or, even worse, retired as a dust collector going untouched for months on end unless your 2-year-old finds it and attempts to pick it up and play basketball.

It is time to re-familiarize yourself with medicine ball training and bring this ancient form of exercise back into your training programs and watch your athletic prowess grow.

In this article, I will go over the unique benefits of medicine ball training along with some of my favorite exercises.

Benefits of Medicine Ball Training

If you schlepped through junior year physics class, you might not remember much about Ampère’s Circuital Law, but you may remember Newton’s second law where Force=Mass x Acceleration. This law applies in the strength and conditioning world.

However, the primary focus over the years has been to lift more weight (mass) to get stronger (produce more force); however, acceleration, an essential part of the equation, is often overlooked in training.

If we look closer at this equation we can also increase force production by increasing the speed (acceleration) at which we move an object; training by moving weights faster, can make you stronger and more explosive and Medicine balls are an excellent way to train acceleration for increased force production.

Multiple Planes of Movement

There is a freedom of movement with many dynamic medicine ball exercises that replicate the movement found in many sports that are not necessarily found in other strength training movements.

The foundational movements like squats, deadlifts and bench press are great for building strength but are limited by their single plane of movement and ability to transfer power throughout the whole body.

Not to say you should not build strength with those foundational lifts, but when combining them with medicine ball exercises, you are able to enhance your force production through acceleration training and incorporate the whole body through various planes of movement.

You can project power through a ball in a frontal, sagittal and even a transverse plane depending on how you decide to move the ball.

Safe, Versatile and Fun

Training force production in different ways proves to be the best method for transferring over to sports performance. I am a huge proponent of preparing strength and conditioning programs that have lower risk exercises with higher rewards.

My goal is to always have my athletes be safe and get the most effective training available. I have found medicine ball exercises to be the easiest and safest way to train power.

For a young or new athlete, learning the kettlebell swing or even the more technically complex Olympic lifts requires a lot of technical ability.

The young and/or inexperienced athlete doesn’t generally possess a great foundation of strength and therefore are potentially setting themselves up for an injury if they are not able to perform these dynamic movements properly.

Medicine ball training has proved to show that these athletes are still able to make force production gains safely by accelerating light medicine balls quickly.

With young athletes who are new to training, I am able to have them perform medicine ball training early in their training program where I usually wait a few weeks after some strength gain has been achieved, to teach a kettlebell swing.

Medicine ball training is also very versatile and can be trained for pure power by using an appropriate weight for a particular amount of sets and repetitions, or they can be used for longer durations in a conditioning setting.

You can implement medicine ball slams for 30-second intervals which will not only train power but also train strength endurance which is a necessary energy system essential in most sports.

Lastly, I am hard pressed to find someone, young or old, who does not like tossing the medicine balls. When the athlete is having fun, they will feel good and focus more on what they are doing because it is more enjoyable to them.

All of my athletes perform some type of medicine ball training either to enhance force production in a particular plane or to build their strength endurance.

Generally speaking, if I want to work on power I have the athlete perform them for a particular amount of repetitions closer to the beginning of the workout, or if we want to focus on strength endurance, we throw them into a conditioning circuit for time intervals at the end of the workout.

Remember the physics behind using medicine balls in your training. You want the acceleration to be high to produce maximal force.

If either the weight is too heavy or proper form is not allowing the medicine ball to move quickly, your force production will be low along with your movement quality carry over to your sport.

Below are 5 of my favorite medicine ball exercises that we use weekly at the gym:

1. Standing Chest Passes

Using a training partner, a coach or a wall; set up in an athletic standing stance. Catch the ball with two hands, dip into a quarter squat and use the energy from your legs and to come back up and project through the ball with two hands evenly towards your training partner or wall.

2. Standing Rotational Throws

In the same athletic stance, you are going to receive the ball at waist level, catch the ball and rotate like a tennis swing. Make sure to rotate the knee as well, so it remains aligned with your foot. Drive back through with your hips and core and project the ball towards your training partner or wall. You can repeat on the same side or alternate sides.

3. Behind the Head Throws

One of my favorite movements to teach explosive hip extension; turn your back towards your training partner or the direction you are going to project the ball, hold the ball underhanded, squat and scoop throw the ball over your head in an explosive manner transferring the energy through the hip and lastly through the ball. You can throw the ball for maximal height or distance depending on the trajectory you decide.

4. Medicine Ball Slams

This is one of the easiest power movements to learn, and it is fun to do as well. All you need is a light medicine ball that does not bounce or bounces only slightly. Get the ball overhead and drop your hips and follow through with your arms as if you are making a hole in the floor. Make sure to get the proper timing down, so the ball stays close to the body.

5. Lying Medicine Ball Chest Passes

This is an alternative to the standing chest pass; however, you will not have your legs to help out with the movement to generate power and force. Therefore the upper body will be producing the force. Lying on your back with either your legs down or knees bent; pull your belly button into the floor and either push the medicine ball off your chest toward your training partner or straight up for you to catch and repeat yourself. You want to be like a spring with no pause between the transition from the bottom towards the top.

For more information about how to perform these exercises check out this video:

The post Benefits of Medicine Ball Training appeared first on Onnit Academy.

First thing’s first: you won’t lack for options. The medicine ball has been around for centuries—it may be the oldest training implement next to heavy rocks—and everyone from ancient Greek physicians to gladiators, soldiers, and today’s most elite trainers has contributed to its design and use.

It remains probably the simplest and most effective tool for training explosive power and rotational core strength, and anyone can use it. Welcome to Onnit’s Ultimate Guide to the medicine ball.

What Is It?

Not to be confused with the oversized, inflatable stability (or Swiss) ball, the medicine ball is a solid sphere that usually ranges in weight from one to 50 pounds. It can come in small sizes (like a softball) or larger ones, resembling a volleyball or beach ball.

The shell can be made from many materials, including nylon, vinyl, leather, dense rubber, or polyurethane, and the insides are often stuffed with sand, gel, or just inflated with air.

More traditional medicine balls have a tacky surface but newfangled models may offer grips that make them easier to simulate dumbbell and kettlebell exercises. Some balls come with a rope attached so you can swing them.

Details aside, medicine balls break down into two categories—ones that bounce on impact and ones that don’t. Laura Williams, manager of the online health and fitness community GirlsGoneSporty.com, calls them “live and dead balls—which I know sounds like some sort of dirty joke.”

Balls with a hard shell and air inside will rebound when you throw them into a wall or the floor, making them helpful for exercises in which you want the ball to return to your hands quickly (such as med ball slams on the floor). In contrast, “dead balls don’t bounce,” says Williams. “Maybe that’s the punchline?”

Typically, dead balls have a softer exterior of stitched material, which makes them a good all-purpose option that tends to be more durable.

What It Does (Benefits)

In a word, power. Medicine balls are mainly used for throwing and catching drills, which build explosivity and the ability to absorb and redirect force—all of which are crucial to athletes.

Lifting barbells and dumbbells builds strength, which lays the foundation for power, but according to the American College of Sports Medicine, it doesn’t develop explosivity as well as medicine ball training does.

Imagine doing a bench press with light weight and pushing the bar as fast as you can. Even though you’re training your body to move the bar faster, your muscles still have to decelerate the movement at the top of the lift to prevent injury to your shoulders and elbows, not to mention to prevent the bar from flying out of your hands.

That means you never really maximize your ability to explode as much as possible.

“The medicine ball teaches you to let go,” says Sam Pogue, creator of the Be Less Un-Fit Program (sampogue.com). Because you can throw the ball, you don’t have to worry about slowing it down for safety. Just chuck the sumbitch.

Your nervous system will fire your muscles harder, which translates to harder punches, faster baseball bat swings and pitches, and a more powerful bench press too. It works the same way plyometric exercises like jumps do for the lower body.

Furthermore, Pogue says the med ball gives you instant feedback on your power. “It’s the difference between taking a practice swing with a bat and actually hitting a baseball. If I just swing, I don’t really know how hard I swung it.

But if I connect and see how far the ball goes, I do.” When you use a medicine ball, you can gauge your power by how far you can launch it.

“There is a freedom of movement with many dynamic medicine ball exercises that replicates the movement found in many sports,” says Doug Fioranelli, a strength coach and owner of Rise Above Performance Training in Belmont, Calif. “That’s not necessarily found in other strength training exercises.

The foundational movements like squats, deadlifts and bench press are great for building strength but are limited by their single plane of movement and ability to transfer power throughout the whole body.”

Using a ball, you can project power in every plane of motion—front to back, side to side, and in rotation. With free weights and machines, your options for training your core to twist, and resist twisting, are limited.

But medicine balls allow for natural rotational motions that can help define your midsection as well as prevent injury to the lower back.

But what about the Olympic lifts? Don’t snatches and cleans and their many variants build power and athleticism like nothing else?

For most athletes, particularly young ones and novices, learning the Olympic lifts requires so much time to learn proper technique that many coaches don’t bother with them anymore.

“In my opinion, med balls are a better alternative to Olympic lifting,” says Buddy Morris, strength coach for the NFL’s Arizona Cardinals. “Especially when you look at the learning curve of a large group of athletes. Olympic lifting is a great sport in itself, but is only one of many methods for power/speed development in athletes.” On the other hand, anybody can learn to use a medicine ball in no time.

Unlike free weights, med balls are undeniably safe, making them a must-have if you train alone in a home gym. Even if you drop a heavy one directly on your toes you won’t get injured, or damage your floor, and a med ball takes up considerably less space than a power rack or wall-length set of dumbbells.

Finally, there’s the fun factor. Fioranelli adds that, “I am hard pressed to find someone, young or old, who does not like tossing medicine balls. When the athlete is having fun, they will feel good and focus more on what they are doing.”

What The Research Says

A 2012 study in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research looked at female handball players who either trained with medicine balls in addition to their regular season training or did only their conventional training alone.

Both groups significantly improved their one-rep max in the bench press and overhead press, but the med ball group made significantly greater gains on throw tests as well as bench and shoulder pressing power.

The researchers determined that the use of medicine balls can provide greater sport-specific training improvements in the upper body.

In 2015, a similar study of elite male handball players found that the medicine ball users improved their throwing velocity, muscle volume, max upper-body strength, and power over an eight week in-season period.

6 Ways To Use a Medicine Ball

The medicine ball may be most noteworthy for its use in power development, but the number of ways you can train with it are limited only by your creativity. Below are the main examples.

1. Throw it.

Toss the ball into a wall with feet shoulder-width apart or in a fighting stance/batter’s stance. Use one or both hands. You can also perform throws from your knees, on your back, or while jumping.

2. Catch it.

Throw the ball into a wall and catch it when it rebounds, or toss it back and forth with a partner as if playing catch.

3. Lift it.

No dumbbells handy? You can use even a light med ball as a weight. Set up a circuit and squat with it, press it overhead, and perform lunges, rows, and ab twists or woodchops.

Hold it on one side of your body to challenge your core with an off-set load, or hold it in one palm and do Turkish getups as you would with a kettlebell. Want to train like the World’s Strongest Man? Carry it in your arms or overhead for distance or time.

4. Balance on it.

You can use a med ball as an apparatus. Place one or both hands on it and do pushups to challenge your stability. Rest your feet on it and bridge your hips off the floor to work your glutes. Sometimes you don’t have to even touch the ball—treat it like a hurdle and jump over it.

5. Roll on it.

Foam rollers aren’t the only tool you can use to warm up and increase mobility. Roll your muscles out on the ball. For particularly tender areas, even a soft-shell med ball can provide enough density to release tight muscles.

6. Use it for feedback.

The ball can act as a spotter. Place it behind you when you squat so you know when you’ve gone deep enough, or use it to block you from going too deep if you have a lower back or hip injury.

For ladies who want to tone their inner thighs, they can squeeze the ball between their knees on various lower-body exercises to ensure constant engagement.

As Pogue mentioned above, the medicine ball can provide instant feedback on your power levels on any particular day, so you can use it to determine your readiness to train. When you get to the gym, try throwing the med ball for distance.

Once you’ve established a baseline after a few workouts, you can measure how far you throw the ball in every session and make comparisons. If your power is down one day, you may want to ease up on any heavy lifting you do in that session (i.e., don’t max out your bench press).

Another use: customizing your rest periods. “If you throw the ball 30 feet, and then 30 seconds later you throw it 25 feet, you know you didn’t give yourself enough recovery,” says Pogue. “If you rest three minutes and then you throw it 35 feet, now you know how much rest you need for power.”

Finally, the med ball can help you key up your central nervous system for a better strength workout. Performing throws against a wall or overhead, or slams into the floor, before you do any heavy pressing can help your brain “turn on” more muscle fibers for the effort.

Training Tips

In general, when the goal is power, med ball exercises should be done for low reps to preserve maximum speed and good technique. Pogue recommends 3–5 sets of 2–3 reps with rests of 2–3 minutes for exercises such as throws. Don’t go to failure on any set.

As for how heavy the ball should be, the ideal weight is one that allows you to feel resistance but doesn’t force you to change the mechanics of the exercise, so err on the side of going too light and stop any set when you feel your speed is beginning to suffer or your form is about to break down. “I’d get a 10-pound ball if you’re a man, five to eight pounds for a woman,” says Pogue.

That will provide enough resistance to cover the broadest range of exercises for most people.

For ab training or other work where you use the ball just for load, you can do sets for time. “If you want to get a cardio benefit or just sweat and move,” says Pogue, “do 3–5 sets of slams for 30 seconds straight. Rest under a minute between sets.”

The History of Balls (Go Ahead and Laugh)

It’s hard to say exactly where and when medicine balls were born, but ancient drawings suggest Persian warriors trained with animal bladders filled with sand 3,000 years ago, and the Greek physician Hippocrates was rumored to have stuffed animal skins for his patients to toss around for exercise.

Before modern-day gym workouts, physical activity of almost any kind was considered a form of medicine for curing ailments. An article published in Scientific American in 1889 attributes the name “medicine ball” to a Professor Robert Roberts, a fitness authority of the day.

The article declared that “playful exercise with [the medicine ball] invigorates the body, promotes digestion, and restores and preserves one’s health…As the ball rests on the floor, it is the most natural of all things for a man to come along and kick it or lift it on his toe, and throw it up in the air, thus developing the muscles of the legs and abdomen.”

More than 100 years later, not much has changed.

How to Choose a Ball

The best ball for you depends on what you want to use it for. “If you plan on just doing some ab exercises, tossing it back and forth, or doing stationary exercises like squats and presses, any material is going to be fine,” says Pogue. “If you’re going to slam it on the ground or against walls, you’re going to want something more durable.”

Rubber balls, he warns, have an end life. Months of abuse can cause them to crack or lose shape, affecting their rebound ability and potentially even causing leaks.

“Your medicine ball should be made with a sturdy material, like Kevlar®, so it won’t change shape over time,” says Pogue. A tacky surface is also a plus, as it ensures a strong grip even when your palms are sweaty.

Medicine-Ball Workouts

See our medicine-ball workouts for more.

References

1. American College of Sports Medicine.
https://www.acsm.org/docs/brochures/selecting-and-effectively-using-a-medicine-ball.pdf?sfvrsn=2

2. Scientific American Supplement, No. 689.
https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=coo.31924071607323;view=1up;seq=181

3. Effects of 12-week medicine ball training on muscle strength and power in young female handball players.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22027860

4. Comparison of In-Season-Specific Resistance vs. A Regular Throwing Training Program on Throwing Velocity, Anthropometry, and Power Performance in Elite Handball Players.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25627646

The post The Medicine Ball – An Ultimate Guide To The Oldest Training Tool appeared first on Onnit Academy.

There are 5 medicine ball workouts below to suit whatever yours is—and whichever level trainee you happen to be. Incorporate them into your workouts—or use them as a guide.

Beginner Medicine Ball Workout For Fat Loss

Best for: Gym newbies or those with a lot of weight to lose.

Directions: Perform the exercises as a circuit, completing one set of each in turn and resting as needed between exercises.

Complete 5 total rounds, aiming to finish the workout as quickly as possible.

Record your total workout time. Try to beat it each time you repeat the workout.

You can perform this routine at the end of your regular weight-training workout or on its own.

A1: Squat To Ball x 15 reps

Place the ball on the floor behind you and stand facing away from it with feet shoulder-width apart and toes turned slightly out. Bend your hips back and drive your knees out as you squat down to touch your butt to the ball. Keep your lower back flat and chest facing forward. Come back up to stand tall.

A2: Knee Strike x 10 reps (5 each side)

Stand in a fighting stance—legs staggered—and hold the ball (make sure it’s a soft-shell one, such as the Onnit Ballistic Medicine Ball) with both hands in front of your chest. Drive your back knee into the ball as if performing a Muay Thai knee strike, pulling the ball down to meet your knee at impact. Perform all your reps one side and then switch sides and repeat.

A3: Overhead Press x 15 reps

Hold the ball at chest level and press it straight overhead. Keep your core braced and ribcage down.

A4: Bentover Row x 15 reps

Bend your hips back so your torso is parallel to the floor. Your lower back must be flat with your core braced. Hold the ball at arm’s length and row it to your belly, squeezing your shoulder blades together at the top.

Advanced Medicine Ball Workout For Fat Loss

Best for: Well-conditioned people who want to lose the last 10 pounds.

Directions: Perform the exercises as a circuit, completing one set of each in turn and resting as needed between exercises. Set a timer and complete as many rounds as possible in 20 minutes. Record the number of rounds and try to beat it each time you repeat the workout.

A1: Burpee Thruster x 15 reps

Stand with feet shoulder-width apart and place the ball on the floor in front of you. Squat down and place your hands on the ball. Now jump your feet back to land in the top of a pushup position, balancing on the ball with your hands. If you like, you can drop your hips to the floor for a greater stretch (as shown). Jump your feet back forward, stand up, and press the ball overhead. You may add a jump at the top for a greater cardio challenge (not shown). That’s one rep.

A2: One-Armed Pushup x 10 reps (5 each side)

Get into pushup position with one hand on the ball so it’s elevated. Lower your chest toward the floor and then push up and switch the hand that’s on the ball. If you like, perform the pushups explosively so your hand rises up off the ball and you switch hands in mid air so your opposite hand lands on the ball and you lower back into the next pushup.

A3: V-Up Twist x 20 reps (10 each side)

Sit on the floor and bend your knees 45 degrees so your heels rest on the floor. Point your toes to your shins and hold the ball in front of your chest. Lean your torso back about 45 degrees and twist to one side. Tap the ball on the floor next to your hip and repeat on the opposite side.

Medicine Ball Workout For Building Strength

Best for: People competing in sports, particularly martial arts, baseball, or football.

Directions: Perform the exercises as straight sets, completing all the given sets for one move before going on to the next. You can do the routine at the beginning of any weight-training workout.

A1: Rotational Throw x 3 sets x 3 reps (each side)
Rest: 120 sec.

Get into a batter’s stance (feet staggered) and hold the ball with both hands. Twist your torso behind you (wind up) until you feel a stretch in your core and then explosively throw the ball into a wall. Allow your rear foot to pivot as needed. Pick up the ball and repeat.

B1: Reverse Overhead Throw x 3 sets x 1 rep
Rest: 120 sec.

Hold the ball with both hands and stand with feet shoulder-width apart. Bend your hips back while driving your knees apart to generate power. Explosively extend your hips, knees, and ankles at the same time, jumping up and throwing the ball high and behind you. Land and walk to the ball for the next set. Note: you may need to perform this exercise outdoors for space.

Medicine Ball Workout For Boosting Endurance

Best for: Athletes who want to build muscle endurance and conditioning.

Directions: Perform the workout twice per week for 4 weeks. Do the exercises as a circuit, completing one set of each in turn and resting as needed between exercises. Set a timer and complete as many rounds as possible in 10 minutes. In Week 2, go for 20 minutes. In Week 3, 30 minutes, then in Week 4, 40 minutes.

A1: Squat x 10 reps

Hold the ball at chest level and stand with feet shoulder-width apart and toes turned slightly out. Bend your hips back and drive your knees out as you squat down. Keep your lower back flat and chest facing forward. Come back up to stand tall.

A2: Reverse Lunge x 10 reps (each leg)

Hold the ball at your chest and step back with one leg to lower your body until your rear knee nearly touches the floor and your front thigh is parallel to the floor. Come back up and switch legs.

A3: Deadlift x 10 reps

Hold the ball with both hands and stand with feet shoulder-width apart. Bend your hips back and drive your knees out to lower your torso until you feel a stretch in your hamstrings. Keeping your lower back flat and chest forward, push through your heels to extend your hips and stand back up with the ball.

A4: Bentover Row x 10 reps

Bend your hips back so your torso is parallel to the floor. Your lower back must be flat with your core braced. Hold the ball at arm’s length and row it to your belly, squeezing your shoulder blades together at the top.

A5: Overhead Press x 10 reps

Hold the ball at chest level and press it straight overhead. Keep your core braced and ribcage down.

A6: Chest Pass x 10 reps

Hold the ball at chest level and bend your hips back so your torso faces the floor. Keep your lower back in its natural arch. Throw the ball into the floor with palms facing each other. Catch it on the rebound (or scoop it back up immediately).

Full Body Medicine Ball Workout

Best for: Overall fitness.

Directions: Perform the exercises as a circuit, completing one set of each in turn and resting as needed between exercises. Complete 5 total rounds, aiming to finish the workout as quickly as possible.
Record your total workout time. Try to beat it each time you repeat the workout. You can perform this routine at the end of your regular weight-training workout or on its own.

A1: Jump Squat x 10 reps

Hold the ball at chest level and stand with feet shoulder-width apart and toes turned slightly out. Bend your hips back and drive your knees out as you squat down. Keep your lower back flat and chest facing forward. Go down until your thighs are parallel to the floor and then jump as high as you can. Land, reset, and continue.

A2: Overhead Slam x 15 reps

Stand with feet shoulder-width apart and hold the ball at arm’s length in front of you. Brace your core and raise the ball overhead until you feel a stretch in your abs—don’t bend backward. Slam the ball as hard as you can into the floor and catch it on the rebound (or scoop it back up immediately).

A3: Alternating Reverse Lunge x 20 reps (10 each leg)

Hold the ball at chest level (or with arms extended, for a greater challenge). Step back and lower your body until your rear knee nearly touches the floor and your front thigh is parallel to the floor. Come back up and repeat on the other side.

A4: Wall Ball x 10 reps

Stand in front of a wall holding the ball at your chest. Squat down and then come up, throw the ball at a point on a wall above you, and catch it. That’s one rep.

A5: Overhead Rotational Slam Into Lunge x 10 reps (5 each side)

Hold the ball with both hands at chest level and turn to one side. Split your stance and drop into a lunge position as you raise the ball overhead and slam it into the floor next to you.

A6: Squat x 15 reps

Hold the ball at chest level (or with arms extended, for a greater challenge). Stand with feet shoulder-width apart and toes turned slightly out. Bend your hips back and drive your knees out as you squat down. Keep your lower back flat and chest facing forward. Come back up to stand tall.

Power Up Your Medicine Ball Workouts with the New Ballistic Medicine Ball

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Medicine balls have been used to develop strength, power, conditioning and athleticism for many decades.

They provide a unique resistance and offer a wide variety of exercises.

The MMA Maximum Medicine Ball Conditioning Workout is an endurance workout that is great for MMA and combat fighters.

This MMA conditioning workout will incorporate all three planes of motion and have you ready for any opponent.

Workout Instructions

Rest 10 seconds after each Medicine Ball round with no extra rest between sets. Total workout time of 20 minutes.

A1: Alternating Medicine Ball Floor Cross – 10 rounds of 20 seconds.

B1: Medicine Ball Same Side Jump Knee – 10 rounds of 20 seconds.

C1: Alternating Medicine Ball Knee Ride – 10 rounds of 20 seconds.

D1: Medicine Ball Half Deck Squat – 10 rounds of 20 seconds.

Other Workout Details

Workout Created By: John Wolf
Workout Demonstrated By: Jim Romig
Equipment Used: Onnit Medicine Ball

Power Up Your Medicine Ball Workouts with the New Ballistic Medicine Ball

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Not all your workouts have to be high intensity, circuit style training sessions.

While most athletes enjoy pushing their bodies to the limit, recovery is 50% of the equation when training for results.

Performance and aesthetic based training needs to have equal emphasis on recovery as it does on harder workouts. The Battle Ball Recoup & Recover Workout is the perfect choice to perform on an off day, between intense workouts, or even as a cool down or warmup to a harder session.

The Medicine Ball Recoup & Recover Workout will alleviate soreness, correct imbalances, and improve work capacity.

Workout Instructions

Perform as many reps as possible in 30 seconds. Do not rush through the movement, this workout is not for time. Perform all exercises in a slow-controlled manner. Rest as needed between movements and between groups as possible. If increased aerobic capacity is the goal, rest as little as possible during the workout.

A1: Medicine Ball 3 Way Lunge Complex – 6 rounds x 30 sec (each side)
A2: Medicine Ball Frontal Rotation – 6 rounds x 30 sec (each way)
A3: Medicine Ball Squat Press – 6 rounds x 30 sec
A4: Medicine Ball Half Moon – 6 rounds x 30 sec
A5: Medicine Ball Squat Curl – 6 rounds x 30 sec

Other Workout Details

Workout Created By: Onnit Academy
Workout Demonstrated By: Andrew Key
Equipment Used: Onnit Medicine Ball
See All Workout Details: Onnit Academy Youtube Channel

Power Up Your Medicine Ball Workouts with the New Ballistic Medicine Ball

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I don’t remember any other movie having the amount of actors with such incredible physiques.

With the release of the movie, Mark Twight of Gym Jones released the fitness test he used for the actors called the “300” workout. So, of course I had to try it and oh, was it brutal. On paper it looked easy, but actually going through the workout was such a humbling experience.

Because of Mark Twight’s training plans, many of the actors went from being around 40 pounds overweight to lean, mean fighting machines…in a matter of months.

In Twight’s own words about the routine he created…

“When describing the workout, it is more accurate to say that it requires strength, power endurance and aerobic fitness, as it is generally a person’s inability to continuously produce the power needed to do the movement over and over again.”

The original workout is done in circuit fashion which consisted of 300 reps. You go from one exercise to the next with little to no rest in between.

The aim is to complete all of the exercises in the fastest time possible with the goal of beating that time in subsequent workout sessions.

My Own Variations of the 300 Workout

The workouts have their own unique set up. Some follow the original 300, while others are different.

Your goal is to complete the 300 reps in the fastest time possible.

Are you ready for the challenge?

These workouts are not for the faint of heart or beginner fitness enthusiast. You have to be ready for war!

These workouts can be integrated into your overall training regimen, used as challenge circuits once in a while, or if you are a trainer or coach, you can put your clients and athletes to the test.

Regardless of how you use these 300 workouts you will burn fat, build lean muscle, increase your strength endurance and get the mind set that will propel you into the best shape of your life.

Whether you’re using your own bodyweight, kettlebells, dumbbells, barbells, medicine balls, suspension trainers or unconventional equipment there is 300-workout challenge for you in mind!

The great thing about these “300” workouts is that you can use them as warm ups for your main training or as finishers after you regular workout session.

Prepare for Battle and Get It Done!

300 Workout #1: Zombie Apocalypse 300 Workout

Exercise List

1. Barbell Deadlift and Curl – 50 reps
2. Knee to Chest High Planks – 40 reps (20 reps per side)
3. Bulgarian Split Squats – 30 reps (15 per side)
4. Chin Ups – 30 reps
5. Abs Spring Ups – 50 reps
6. Barbell Chest Press – 50 Reps
7. Burpees – 50 Reps

300 Workout #2: Med Ball 300 Workout

Perform each exercise one after the other for the prescribed reps. Do not move to the next exercise until you are complete all reps of the movement.

Exercise List

1. Med Ball Reverse Lunges – 50 (25 per side)
2. Med Ball Side to Side Plyo Push ups – 25 Reps
3. Med Ball Russian twists – 25 Reps
4. Med Ball Jump Squats – 50 Reps
5. Med Ball Climbers – 50 Reps
6. Med Ball RDL – 50 reps–(25 per leg)
7. Med ball Burpees – 50 Reps

300 Workout #3: Bodyweight 300 Workout

Perform each exercise for the prescribed reps as fast as you can.

Exercise List

1. Abs – In and Outs – 25 reps
2. Jump Squats – 50 reps
3. Pike Push Ups – 25 reps
4. Kick Ups – 50 Reps
5. Burpees – 50 reps
6. Clapping Push Ups – 50 reps
7. Mountain Climbers – 50 reps

300 Workout #4: Dumbbell 300 Workout

Perform each exercise with little to no rest in between. Make sure to time how long it takes you to Get It Done so you can beat your time later!

Exercise List

1. Racked Front Dumbbell Squats – 40
2. Alternating DB Floor Press – 50 (25 per side)
3. DB Renegade Rows – 30 (15 Per Side)
4. DB Jumping Lunges – 40 (20 per side)
5. One Arm Push Press (Right) – 25
6. One Arm Push Press (Left) – 25
7. Bent Over Staggered Rows – 30 reps (15 per leg)
8. Goblet Jump Squats – 40 reps
9. DB Swings – 50 reps

300 Workout #5: 300 Ab Workout

Perform each exercise for 50 reps one after the other as fast as you can. Make sure to keep time so you can attempt to best yourself next time. (Alternate exercise in paranthesis)

Exercise List

1. Prisoner Squats (BW Squats) – 50
2. Close Grip Push Ups (Push Ups) – 50
3. V-Ups (Flutter Kicks) – 50
4. Rotational Burpees (Burpee – No jump) – 50
5. Jumping Lunges (Forward Lunge) – 50
6. Plank Builds (Plank Body Raise) – 50

300 Workout #6: Spartan 300 “Bulletproof” Weighted Vest Workout

Perform each exercise one after the other as fast as possible while maintaining good form.

Use a weighted Vest that is challenging.

Exercise List

1. KB Snatches – 50 reps (25/side)
2. Kick Outs – 40 (20 per side)
3. Medicine Ball Slams – 40
4. One Arm Kettlebell Swings – 25 (per side)
5. Renegade Row Push Ups 40 – 20 (per side)
6. KB Thrusters – 40
7. Burpees – 40

300 Workout #7: Burpee 300 Workout

Perform 50 reps of each exercise for time. Alternate exercises are in parentheses.

Exercises

1. Burpee Thrusters (no Jump) – 50 reps
2. Burpee Jumping Lunges – 50 reps
3. Spiderman Burpees – 50 reps
4. Side-to-Side Plyo Burpees – 50 reps
5. Pull Up Burpees – 50 reps
6. Mountain Climber Burpees (4 Mountain Climbers and Jump) – 50 reps

300 Workout #8: Barbell 300 Workout

300 Workout Barbell Edition. Great challenge workout to help build muscle, strength endurance and mental toughness.

Perform each exercise for the prescribed reps one after the other with little to no rest in between. Make sure to time how long it takes you to Get It Done!

Exercise List

1. Floor Chest Press – 40 reps
2. Jump Squats – 30 reps
3. Cleans – 30 reps
4. Floor Windshield Wipers – 50 reps ( 25 per side)
5. Bent Over Rows – 30 reps
6. Push Press – 40 reps
7. Power Barbell Sprawls with Curl – 40 reps
8. Deadlift – 40 reps

300 Workout #9: Brutal Beatdown MMA 300 Workout

Complete each exercise one at a time for the prescribed reps. Rest when needed to maintain good form.

Exercise List

1. Sprawls – 100 reps (Full body explosive movement, cardio and functional)
2. Rotational Mountain Climbers – 300 Reps (Core Strength, Rotational Power, Shoulder Stability)
3. Jumping Lunges – 100 Reps (Lower Body Plyometric movement, Explosiveness, Lactate Threshold)

300 Workout #10: Combat 300 Workout Challenge

Perform each exercise for the prescribed reps one after the other taking minimal rest. The goal is to get through the workout as fast as you can.

Advanced Version (VIDEO)

1. Single Kettlebell Swings – 20 per arm
2. Pull Ups/Chin Ups – 20 reps
3. Ninja Tuck Jumps – 20 reps
4. Tornado Push Ups – 20 per side
5. Alternating Single Leg Power V-Ups – 20 reps (Left and Right = 1 rep)
6. Dumbbell Reverse Lunge to Plyo Jumps – 10 per side
7. KB Clean and Press – 10 per side
8. Mountain Mules – 40 reps
9. Pistol Squat or One-legged Squats – 10 per side
10. Power Plank – 20 reps
11. One Legged Burpees – 40 reps

Intermediate Version:

1. 2 Arm Kettlebell Swings – 40 reps
2. Chin Ups/Inverted Rows 20 – 20 reps
3. Jumping Squats – 20 reps
4. Push Ups – 40 reps
5. Abs Bicycle Crunches – 20 reps
6. DB Lunges – 10 per side
7. DB Clean and press – 10 per side
8. Mountain Climbers – 40 reps (Left & Right = 1 rep)
9. Assisted One Legged Squats – 20 reps
10. Plank Builds – 20 reps
11. Burpees – 40 reps

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Each of these tools, given enough insightful program design and creativity, can provide great complimentary physiological benefits to a fighter as well as the ability to safely train some of the movements and attributes that can carry directly over into MMA.

As many benefits as these tools provide access to, it would seem that the number of fight specific drills and movements available through each individual tool tends to be limited. The closeness in which they resemble the actual movements performed throughout a fight are lacking.

Sure, things like Kettlebell Swings and striking a tire with a Steel Mace will provide gains in explosive endurance and general physical preparedness, but these moves are limited in how much they can truly contribute to a fighter’s preparation. A MMA fighter does not perform those movements over and over again during a fight.

Many of the drills available through most tools are performed from a fixed, bi-lateral stance and ignore the complex movements and nuances involved in the frequently changing base needed for MMA training.

The more a training drill can mimic the physical demands and subtle nuances found in a fight, the more fight specific benefits a fighter can get out of it.

Getting to explore and develop this wide range of fight specific movements and attributes on a regular basis without the risk of a knee or a fist flying at you can serve as an excellent means of thoroughly learning and conditioning said movements.

Enter the Medicine Ball

So, what implement can successfully and closely develop the complex movements and body positions repeatedly encountered in a fight? I am happy you asked. My personal answer, though there are many, is Medicine Balls. The unique shape of the Medicine Ball requires one to squeeze in on the side of the object, requiring massive recruitment of micro stabilizers throughout the trunk and core to constantly fire off, keeping the medicine ball’s structure in line. This will allow access to the complex movements directly experienced in a fight. The same concept can be utilized for hip recruitment through these movements by pinching the Medicine Ball between the knees, ankles, or thighs.

A Medicine Ball can be held near the face to mimic the hand position of having one’s guard up and maintain this relative position while having to carry the Medicine Ball throughout training. Any fighter can tell you the benefits of being able to “program” the hands up position and develop the body awareness to realize when they aren’t in place.

This also plays a part in training the ability to get up from and down to the floor in various ways, either without the assistance of hands or with the use of an unstable and burdensome object. This ability is very helpful for getting up without receiving unnecessary punishment after getting knocked on one’s ass.

Durability of the Medicine Ball

The durability of the Medicine Ball also contributes to a number of MMA applicable benefits. This “mini heavy bag” of sorts allows one to beat on the ball to train complex explosive and rotational movement patterns that are the basis of things like throwing a punch, landing a solid knee to one’s mid-section, or even quickly pulling the hips down in order to deliver powerful hammer fists. It is very akin to mimicking an entire fight with the opponent being your own shadow and the Medicine Ball.

As mentioned earlier, the lack of an opponent that presents a threat, allows for one to safely and mindfully spend more time exploring and conditioning these movements. This plays a huge benefit in finding where there may be imbalances in a particular movement or area of the body that is hindering the overall quality of movement.

The Shape of the Medicine Ball

The shape of the Medicine Ball also makes for an excellent unstable platform that one can perform positional drills and movements on top of a surface that closely mimics the constantly shifting movement patterns of an unwilling opponent beneath you.

Having to develop familiarity with one’s center of balance and enhancing awareness of where to apply pressure in a top position is crucial in making an opponent’s life miserable while they are on the ground beneath you. Just developing a solid knee ride to apply to the sternum of an opponent on his or her back can help sap the life out of them with minimal effort on your behalf.

Now, inversely, the Medicine Ball can be used to be on top of a person while performing drills on the ground. This more closely simulates having to deal with an opponent being in a dominant position on top of you, while having your hands unavailable to for normal use.

Being able to comfortably find one’s way around underneath an opponent, and possibly, back up to a more beneficial position is another invaluable asset to have in MMA. No matter how good one is on their back, having the option to maneuver and get up out of numerous compromising positions is necessary in having a complete fight game.

MMA Application with the Medicine Ball

Having access to most any movement one may encounter in a fight, all while using one implement, can allow for very customizable programming. Let’s say that a fighter would really like or need to develop the ability to more effectively turn the hips for a punch, throw a high volume of strikes, and be able to change levels as many times as possible in order to stuff or pull of a takedown.

Then, the athlete will be able to train for throwing a high volume of quality strikes and changing levels by first picking a couple or few movements that will do just that, like a wall cross mixed with a squat after. Once the drills are picked, the drills are then thoroughly learned and explored before being combined into a metabolic conditioning routine.

We have barely scratched the surface on the benefits associated with the implementation of thoughtful Medicine Ball conditioning. There are so many more ways this tool can be used, from aiding in mobility and decompression, to working on aim, hand eye coordination, and response time. The diversity of the Medicine Ball makes it, one tool that can be effectively used for nearly any sport.

The post How to Use Medicine Balls for MMA Training appeared first on Onnit Academy.

Like most Unconventional Training methods, Medicine balls are an extremely versatile functional training tool that could be used as a complete fitness system by itself. The Medicine Ball naturally lends itself to full body rotational movements that engage core muscles unlike traditional implements and can also be used as an intense, functional endurance implement as well. Combining the Medicine Ball with MMA inspired exercises turns the tool into a specialized implement used to maximize full body engagement with every rep of every exercise that will up the ante on your next MMA training session.

Medicine Ball Exercise #1: Level Change Floor Cross

Medicine Ball Exercise #2: Dragon Outside Knee

Medicine Ball Exercise #3: Half Deck Squat to Post

Medicine Ball Exercise #4: Knee Ride

Medicine Ball Exercise #5: Angled Get Up

The post 5 MMA Inspired Medicine Ball Exercises You Should Be Doing appeared first on Onnit Academy.

Get ready for an unconventional explosive power workout utilizing triple extension movements with med balls, sandbags, and kettlebells. Use a moderate weight, it should be heavy but you should not struggle on any of the reps. Remember to take adequate rest in between each exercise. The goal of this workout is not strength or conditioning, but power.

Workout Instructions

Perform Set A as a circuit with no rest in between exercises and 1-2 minutes in between rounds. Perform Sets B and C with as much rest as you need in between rounds

A1: Backward Med Ball Toss: 2 rounds x 5 throws
A2: Rotational Med Ball Toss: 2 rounds x 5 throws (each side)
A3: Kneeling Med Ball Toss: 2 rounds x 5 throws

B1: Sandbag Clean and Press: 5 rounds x 5 reps

C1: Resistance Band Kettlebell Swings: 3 rounds x 15 reps

Other Workout Details

Workout Created by: Kyle Moore
Workout Demonstrated by: Eric Leija
Equipment Used: Onnit Med Ball, Onnit Kettlebell, Onnit Sandbag

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