Medicine balls (MB) come in many sizes and forms. At Pat’s Gym we have medicine balls ranging from four to fifty pounds. Each one has a purpose for a workout. The key is using the correct balls with the right movements that help you achieve your goals.
Two kinds of medicine balls we use are Dynamax soft-shelled, and d-balls hard-shelled non-bouncing. We have had great luck with the durability of the Dynamax and not as much with the d-balls. We typically use the Dynamax balls for warm ups, partner throws, wall balls, v-sit throws and any exercises where the person might get hit in the face. The softer shell is extremely forgiving and less dangerous. We use the d-balls for slams, core walkouts, cage throws, cleans and mental toughness.
A typical warm up includes 20 repetitions of chest pass, side throws (each way), swing throws, overhead throws and single leg balance throws. Use a weight you can stand about seven feet away from your partner while maintaining high velocity and power. The movements should be explosive to force your partner to contract their core muscles to catch the ball.
We also use MB complexes to warm up our workout. A typical complex will include 20 repetitions of the following movements: clean and press, side chops, front twist and squat press. Depending on the weight of the ball, you can make this easy or extremely hard.
If you are looking for a good way to burn fat, try using two of our favorite medicine ball movements in a power endurance circuit. Do a ladder of 50-40-30-20-10 slams and wall balls. Use 20 pounds for each movement and make them as explosive as possible. When we slam the med-ball, don’t just drop the ball. Slam it, catch it at the bottom with your chest up and bring it to full extension above your head each time. When doing wall balls, don’t let the ball drop below your chest. Explode through the movement with your legs and pick a target so you ensure proper height of the ball. See how fast you can get through the ladder.
We not only use MB’s for the upper and lower body extremities, but we also have had great luck doing core exercises with them. Med-ball walkouts are a great way to stress the core. 
Another one of our favorite MB core exercises is v-sit throws. Have one person on a Bosu ball sitting in a v-sit. Have two people throw Dyanmax balls with the intent of knocking over the person. One person feeds the med-ball back to the throwers. It shouldn’t take more than 20-30 repetitions before your core burns.
If you have around five med-balls, try this intense cool down. Stand in a squat cage and have two people feed you MB’s in different sizes. Pick each one up and thrust it over the high bar. Race against your training partners and see who can throw 30 balls over the cage the fastest. I like this exercise because it challenges your legs when you squat and explode up. It hits your grip holding on to the ball while hitting your upper body picking up and launching the ball. It will get heart rate up when you go for speed and you will have to push through mentally to complete 30 reps.
The main thing to take away is that medicine balls can be used in your daily workouts. You don’t have to do crazy movements to see results. Stick to some of these basic movements and add them into your program for a well needed change.
