21 Best Medicine Ball Exercises for Strength and Lean Muscle

In this post, you’ll learn about the best medicine ball exercises.

Here’s the thing: for many of us, we see medicine balls as the usual disused heavy balls around the corners of our homes or the gym.

However, it is a weighted ball usually used in strength training and for rehabilitation purposes.

Using medicine balls for free-weight exercises to improve balance. Such balance training is great for neuromuscular coordination.

Medicine ball exercises can be among the most effective activities to strengthen and tone your body.

Today, medicine balls have become a gym favorite. Including these exercises in your daily routine can help you achieve huge results in different fitness areas. 

Importance of Medicine Ball Exercise 

A Medicine ball is not the same as a dumbbell. You can safely throw and catch medicine balls as opposed to dumbbells. Therefore, you can use it to its full potential.

Medicine ball exercises help tone up the body, improve body balance, and increase core body strength. 

There are other important benefits such as: 

• Helps to build body strength and explosive strength.
• It fast tracks the rehabilitation process after injuries or accidents.
• Can improve socialization skills and teamwork.
• It is as effective as a full-body exercise. 

Related: How to Lose Underarm Fat in 8 Easy Ways

Medicine Ball Exercises to try

Before engaging in any medicine ball exercise, it is imperative to pick a ball weight that matches your condition.

There are several workouts that help to improve body muscles. They include the following:

1. Medicine Ball V-up

The medicine ball V-up improves the core strength of the body. Its primary target is the transversus abdominis and rectus abdominis core muscles. 

How to Perform: 

• Lie on your back, place your arms behind the head and straighten your leg.
• Make the abdominal region firm and gently push your lower back into the floor. 
• Bring your feet and hands up, making the medicine ball touch your toes.
• Lower back down into the starting position slowly. 
• Repeat for about 8-10 times a set.

2. Medicine Ball Russian Twist 

This medicine ball Russian twist focuses on the growth of core stability and overall strength. 

How to Perform:

• Sit and hold the medicine ball in your hands, and your back tilted back a little.
• Lift your feet about an inch from the floor.
• Brace the muscles in your abdomen.
• Twist your torso to the side and keep your arms parallel to the ground.
• Twist to the opposite side and prevent your feet from moving out of their position. 
• Repeat for about 15-20 times in a set. 

3. Medicine Ball Plank

The medicine ball plank forces the core to an increased level of stability and development.

How to Perform: 

• Kneel n the ground with the fitness ball in front. 
• Press down on the med ball and push up your body with your arms. 
• Ensure your body creates a straight line from the head down to the toe. 
• Remain in that position for as long as you can endure.

4. Medicine Ball Thruster

The medicine ball thruster helps to improve the explosiveness of an athlete’s capability.

This exercise engages all the whole body parts. It helps to increase the heart rate and develop explosive power qualities.

How to Perform: 

• Take a convenient stance while holding the med ball to your chest. 
• Do a squat, stand back up, and stretch out your arms to press the fitness ball over the head. 
• Repeat about 8-10 times with adaptive speed and power. 

5. Medicine Ball Slams

The medicine ball slam is great for boosting speed and power. It also gets the heart rate up more.

How to Perform: 

• Take a convenient stance with your feet about shoulder-width apart. 
• Grab your med-ball and hold it at arm’s length distance in front of you.
• Brace your core, lift the med ball overhead, then throw it against the floor as hard as possible.

6. Jumping Medicine Ball Squat

This exercise is excellent for developing explosive power attributes. The jumping medicine ball squat also helps enhance strength in the legs (lower body in general). 

How to Perform: 

• Take a stable stance with feet widely apart, and toes pointed out.
• Hold the ball to the chest or overhead.
• Take a squat and jump up as high as you can in a vertical jump. 
• Repeat 6-10 times for a few sets

Related: 5 Benefits of Jump Rope Exercises for Real Workout Results

7. Overhead Medicine Ball Toss

This exercise works effectively in getting the heart rate up. Doing overhead medicine ball toss is a great way of developing explosive upper body power and speed. 

How to Perform: 

• Take a convenient stance holding the fitness ball to your chest.
• Tighten your core and upper body
• Extend the arms, then throw the ball high and far backward overhead.
• Fetch the ball and repeat 

8. Alternating Medicine Ball Push-Ups

The alternating medicine ball push-up is a great way of boosting strength and speed in the upper body.

How to Perform: 

• Be in a push-up position with one hand placed on the med ball.
• Do a quick push-up and shoot the ball to the opposite hand.
• Do another push, and this time you shoot to the initial hand.

9. Close Grip Medicine Ball Push-Ups

This exercise focuses on improving muscles in the chest, core, and arm areas. The close-grip push-ups become even more effective with medicine balls.

How to Perform: 

• Begin with a push-up position, placing both hands on the med ball.
• Find a convenient stance with both your feet and hands.
• Maintain a straightened body.
• Start close grip push-ups.
• Repeat.

10. Medicine Ball Jumping Chest Presses

This exercise focuses on improving heart rate, speed, and power.

The medicine ball jumping chest press also ensures most muscles in the body are involved in the activity. 

How to Perform: 

• Be in a jumping position while holding the fitness ball to your chest level.
• Start explosive jumps as if you are doing skips on a skipping rope. 
• Extend and retract the medicine ball from and to your chest as you jump. 

11. Crunch with Medicine Ball Hold

The crunch exercise with a medicine ball is a great way of improving cardiovascular fitness. 

How to Perform: 

• Lie on your back having your eyes on the ceilings.
• Hold the ball overheads in your hand.
• Crunch and hold the ball, then lower back to the starting position.
• Repeat.

12. Straight Leg Medicine Ball Sit-ups

This exercise is an effective way of tightening muscles in the abdomens.

Straight-leg sit-ups have many advantages, similar to regular sit-ups. The twist is that you have a handy medicine ball available.

How to Perform:

• Lie on your back and face the ceiling.
• Hold the ball on your chest with both hands.
• Keep your legs straight and do a sit-up.
• Lower your back and repeat. 

13. Medicine Ball Shoulder Press

The shoulder press improves the condition of muscles in the arms. 

How to Perform: 

• Hold a med ball about an inch distance from your chest.
• Extend the arms to the ceiling, taking the ball overhead. 
• Lower the ball back to its initial position.
• Repeat. 

14. Figure 8

Figure 8 works for several muscle groups throughout your body at the same time.

The medicine ball version works primarily on the glutes, hamstrings, biceps, and quadriceps. Your shoulders, upper back, and calves will also benefit from this exercise. 

How to Perform: 

• Stand with legs wide apart.
• Hold a med ball with both hands on one side of the head and arms extended.
• Slowly move with the med ball to form figure 8. 
• Repeat

15. Triceps Extension

The triceps extension exercise helps to improve the stability of your arms and shoulders and improve flexibility.

The muscle strength built further supports bone health and prevents bone-related medical conditions. 

How to Perform:

• Stand conveniently or sit tall on a workout bench.
• Hold the medicine ball in both hands and extend overhead.
• Bend the elbow, lowering the med ball behind the head. 
• Contract the triceps and bring the ball back to the starting position.

16. Bicep curl 

The bicep curl helps to tighten the muscles in the arm, thereby losing armpit fat. 

How to Perform: 

• Stand with feet wide apart, holding the med ball with both hands to your chest.
• Keep the elbow close to the body.
• Lower the ball towards the ground while straightening your arm. 
• Curl the ball back up to the initial position.

17. Single-leg Squat

The single-leg squat with a medicine ball is a special type of squat focused on strengthening the leg muscles.

How to Perform: 

• Hold a medicine ball with both hands.
• Stand with your feet wide apart, your knees should be slightly lowered. 
• Lift up the right foot from the floor and stretch it forward.
• Lower your body into a squat.
• Return to the initial position.

Related: 6 Best Exercises to Activate Your Glutes

18. Step Jump

Step jump exercise using a medicine ball provides improvement to the muscles in the tight. It also improves stamina. 

How to Perform: 

• Get a firm low bench.
• You should be about 6 inches away from your training bench.
• Hold a fitness ball firmly to your chest.
• Do a deep squat, jump up on the bench with feet wide apart. 
• Carefully go back to the previous position. 
• Repeat.

19. Circle Squat

Circle squat with a med ball helps to improve overall body flexibility and stability. 

How to Perform: 

• Stand feet apart, holding the fitness ball to your chest with both hands.
• Do a squat with a straight back, extending arms toward the ground.
• Make a circular movement to the right with the ball.
• Lift yourself back up and bring the ball overhead.
• Make circular movement to the left and squat. 

20. Wall Pass

Wall pass exercise strengthens the arms and also expels underarm fat.

How to Perform: 

• Stand about 4 feet from the wall.
• Hold a lightweight fitness ball with both hands.
• Stand with a slightly lowered knee and brace your core.
• Raise the med ball to the chest and throw it against the wall.
• Watch out and catch the ball as it bounces back. 

21. Squat Press and Throw

This exercise helps to develop the muscles in the thighs and arms. Carry out squat press and throw with medicine ball improve muscle the major muscles of the body. 

How to Perform:

• Stand with feet apart, and a med ball held to your chest. 
• Do a squat.
• Throw the ball up as high as possible.

Takeaway

The medicine ball exercises impact the growth and development of neuro muscles in the body positively.

With the help of free weight exercise, athletes involved in accidents have been able to gain full recovery and even improved their performance.

Medicine ball exercises don’t require extra expenses. It is quite easy to practice by all individuals.