Medicine balls have been used by fighters for years to burn fat, improve conditioning and harden their physiques for fighters. I remember when I was a boxer doing sit-ups and getting the medicine ball slammed into my stomach with each rep. I am not sure if it did anything, but it sure as hell made feel like Rocky, and at 16 what more can you ask for?
In all seriousness, playing around with a medicine ball for the first time in ages reminded me just how versatile and effective a training a tool they are. There is a good reason why they are older than that scary cougar at the bar! There are a ton of exercises you can do with a medicine ball, most of them can be categorized as either throwing or holding movements. Throwing a medicine ball will build explosive power because you can accelerate right through the full range of motion. In most barbell exercises this would cause joint injury pretty quick. As for the holding exercises, medicine balls are great because they are comfortable to grab and if you drop them you won't break a toe. I find women love medicine balls because it doesn't feel like weight lifting to them, so it is much less intimidating.
Here are some throwing drills:
Ground slams. We did this at boot camp yesterday. Pick the ball up, raise it overhead then slam it into the ground as hard as possible. Repeat until all the anger is out of you.
Forward pass. Like in basketball, throw it from your chest straight out. This is great with a partner.
Overhead backwards throw. Swing it between your legs the accelerate it right overhead and behind you. Try to throw it as far as possible.
Lateral pass. Move the ball to one hip, throw it across your body. This is also great with a partner.
Sit up and throw. Grab the ball with both hands, do a sit-up but chest pass it to your partner at the top. They will then pass it to you and you will absorb the momentum of the ball and go back down into a sit-up.
You may notice all of the these throws are full body movements . This is great for fat loss, but they will really strengthen your abs too! All that throwing requires you to generate power through your hips and waist before launching the ball. The twisting movements are especially beneficial for sports improvement.
Medicine ball carrying exercises are pretty simple. Do lunges, sit-ups, squats, etc but hold the ball with both hands. Hold it overhead or move it from one side of the body to the other. It does not take a heavy medicine ball to turn an easy exercise into a gut buster. Medicine balls are like kettlebells in that they are versatile enough for you to safely create your own exercises. So when you get one, experiment a little and have some fun with it!
In all seriousness, playing around with a medicine ball for the first time in ages reminded me just how versatile and effective a training a tool they are. There is a good reason why they are older than that scary cougar at the bar! There are a ton of exercises you can do with a medicine ball, most of them can be categorized as either throwing or holding movements. Throwing a medicine ball will build explosive power because you can accelerate right through the full range of motion. In most barbell exercises this would cause joint injury pretty quick. As for the holding exercises, medicine balls are great because they are comfortable to grab and if you drop them you won't break a toe. I find women love medicine balls because it doesn't feel like weight lifting to them, so it is much less intimidating.
Here are some throwing drills:
You may notice all of the these throws are full body movements . This is great for fat loss, but they will really strengthen your abs too! All that throwing requires you to generate power through your hips and waist before launching the ball. The twisting movements are especially beneficial for sports improvement.
Medicine ball carrying exercises are pretty simple. Do lunges, sit-ups, squats, etc but hold the ball with both hands. Hold it overhead or move it from one side of the body to the other. It does not take a heavy medicine ball to turn an easy exercise into a gut buster. Medicine balls are like kettlebells in that they are versatile enough for you to safely create your own exercises. So when you get one, experiment a little and have some fun with it!
http://youtube.com/watch?v=vPNRHV1CeCc&feature=related