Have you ever wondered how you could get one of the best workouts of your life for just one singular price and with just one piece of equipment? Well, look no further. The humble medicine ball is an exercise tool that’s been around for the past approximately 3000 years; it made its bones being used by ancient wrestlers in their own training and now today, in recreation centres, physical therapy clinics, and home gyms worldwide.
Among other things, medicine balls have and can be used for:
- Increasing balance in both athletes and the general population
- Core strengthening and stabilizing, which is also a learned skill that transfers to a multitude of other functional exercises!
- Improving speed, agility, and overall strength
- Rehabbing injuries
It’s clear that medicine balls have tons of applications, and they’re not just your standard free-weight. You can check out Our Good Living Formula to see The Best Medicine Balls Review 2020.
Keep reading below to find out 15 Medicine Ball Exercises for Shoulders, Arms, and Abs that you can try out for yourself!
Shoulders
1. Wall Balls
This one sounds exactly like it is, and can be done virtually anywhere a sufficiently tall, solid, free-of-obstructions wall is. I would recommend outdoors for this one if you’re doing it at home!
Instructions:
- Start with your feet hip-width apart, facing the wall at about an arm’s length away
- Holding the ball at chest height, identify a target about 9-12 feet up the wall
- Slightly dip with your knees and then explode upwards while subsequently throwing the ball at your identified target
- Catch the ball and repeat for 3-4 sets of 15-20 reps for a solid shoulder and lung burner!
- For added difficulty, aim for a higher target and/or substitute the knee-dip for a full squat
2. Frontal Raises
This is a great movement for developing shoulders, and while it’s traditionally done holding dumbbells, a medicine ball is a perfect substitute.
Instructions:
- Hold the ball with your hands on opposite sides, palms flat
- Keeping your arms straight or with a very small bend in your elbows, raise the ball directly in front of you without passing the height of your shoulders
- Your arms should be parallel to the ground and you should be holding the ball straight out in front of you
- Slowly and with control, lower for each rep
- Rinse and repeat for another 3-4 sets of 12-15 reps
- For added difficulty, pause at the top of each rep and/or lower the ball slower
3. Arms-straight Hold
A hold is an isometric strength movement, meaning that the muscle is being contracted and force is being applied, but there is no actual movement involved. Isometrics have been linked to increases in bone density, shoulder stability, and even as a means of reducing blood pressure
Instructions:
- Complete the same sequence as for frontal raises, except pause and remain there when the ball is directly out in front of you
- Hold in this position for as long as is comfortable to begin, and then based off of this number, choose a time amount that you can repeat for 3-4 sets of holds
- To increase difficulty, just increase the time of the hold or decrease rest in between holds
4. Ball Slams
Another fairly self-explanatory one, ball slams not only work your shoulders, but also your core, triceps, and cardiovascular endurance as well.
Instructions:
- Holding the ball securely in both hands, raise it above your head
- Forcefully throw the ball down to a spot that is just in front of your feet -- if you throw it too close to your feet or even in between them, it will likely bounce behind you or otherwise awry
- Catch the ball on the bounce by bending at the knees and maintaining a flat back
- Repeat this sequence for 3-4 sets of 15-20 reps
- To increase difficulty, decrease rest in between sets or add another movement in between slams such as burpees or squats
5. Waiter Presses
Overhead presses are an amazing way to build shoulder strength, and while it may seem counter-intuitive due to their awkward shape, medicine balls have their applications in the overhead pressing arena too.
Instructions:
- Using one hand at a time, hold the ball flat in your palm as though you were a waiter carrying a plate
- The medicine ball should be at shoulder-level at the beginning of the movement
- Press the ball overhead with one arm while flexing your abs to pull your rib cage down and maintain a non-arched back throughout the movement
- Slowly lower the ball back to start position
- Repeat on both arms - completing a full set on each arm before switching to the other - for 3-4 sets of 8-12 per side
- To increase difficulty, add an extra component such as walking with the medicine ball overhead; this is an amazing drill for shoulder stability and has numerous both athletic and real-world applications
Arms
6. Push-ups
The famed push-up gets a functional facelift once you add a medicine ball, including-but-not-limited to being a great movement for shoulder joint stability, balance, and certainly tricep strength.
Instructions:
- Begin either laying flat on your stomach or if standard push-ups are not yet achievable for you, standing in front of a wall
- Place both hands flat on the ball as if you were going to do a push-up -- in the case of the wall modification, place the medicine ball at approximately chest-level on the wall
- Starting at the “top” position - arms locked out with hands placed flat on the ball - slowly lower yourself to the ball until it makes contact with your sternum
- Keep your whole body as straight as possible for this movement; squeeze your butt, flex your abs, and maintain a neutral spine
- Press back explosively to lock out your arms
- Repeat for 3-4 sets of 12-15 reps
- To increase difficulty, slow down the lowering component, increase reps, or elevate feet
7. Alternating Push-ups
This one is just the same as the previous, with the exception of hand placement. Alternating push-ups on a medicine ball are an excellent way to build balanced unilateral strength across your upper body, which is a key factor in terms of injury risk mitigation!
Instructions:
- Set up just the same as for push-ups, except place one palm flat on the medicine ball and one palm flat on the floor or wall
- Slowly lower towards the ball by bending both arms, just until you are past a 90-degree angle at your elbow
- Press back up, and without losing tension in your body, switch your hand placement so that the opposite hand is on the ball (the same goes for the hand on the floor or wall)
- Repeat for 2-3 sets of 6-8 reps per side, alternating sides each rep
- To increase difficulty, slow down the lowering component and/or increase sets
8. Hammer Curls
Curls for the girls, tris for the guys -- am I right? Hammer curls with a medicine ball are an easy, incredibly beginner-friendly way to work your biceps anytime and anywhere.
Instructions:
- Hold the ball between your hands with both palms flat and arms relaxed and hanging
- Slowly curl the ball up towards your chest as if you were making a reverse “hammering” motion with both of your arms; squeeze your biceps at the top!
- Lower the ball slowly to start position
- Repeat for 3-4 sets of 12-15 reps
- To increase the difficulty, add a cardiovascular element, and really fatigue those biceps, make it a superset with ball slams
9. Tricep Extensions
Triceps are the largest muscles we have in our arms, and they are the most important to consider when it comes to that fit, aesthetic look coveted by men and women alike. Tricep extensions with a medicine ball can be done lying or standing, and they’re an awesome option as far as full-range-of-motion and beginner-friendly movements go.
Instructions:
- Holding the ball with both palms flat, raise it behind your head as if you were about to throw a soccer ball
- Keep your elbows nice and tight towards one another -- actively think about holding them still right around your temples, and don’t let them move!
- Slowly extend your arms while keeping your elbows still, lifting the ball over your head and squeezing at the top with straight arms to maximize tricep contraction
- Lower back to the start position under control
- Repeat for 3-4 sets of 12-15 reps
- To increase difficulty, slow the lowering portion exponentially and really focus on feeling the stretch in your triceps in between reps!
10. Lying Bench Press
The bench press is famed for its ability to gather gym bros, recreational lifters, competitors, and those who are new to attending the gym alike. This variation with a medicine ball mainly targets the chest and triceps, and it’s an awesome option for people who may only have access to a heavier medicine ball or are trying to get their first push-ups!
Instructions:
- Lay flat on your back with the bottoms of your feet planted firmly on the ground, and your knees bent at a comfortable angle
- Hold the ball with both hands on your chest
- Press the ball away from you until your arms are locked out; slowly lower the ball back to your chest
- Repeat for 3-4 sets of 12-15
- To increase difficulty, superset the movement with another pushing motion such as push-ups or tricep extensions!
Abs
11. Russian twists
Also referred to as “v-sit twists”, these are fantastic for targeting the main rotational muscles of the abdominal group; the obliques. Rotational strength is a long-overlooked part of exercise regimes, and medicine balls provide the perfect opportunity for you to add some rotational strengthening movements to your own exercise plan and build those much-desired abs!
Instructions:
- Starting seated on the floor, hold the ball in your lap to begin
- Lift your feet up while keeping your knees bent; the best way to counterbalance this motion is by leaning back, and by doing so, you should begin to feel your abs working
- Maintaining the hovering foot position and slight lean; twist from your torso to touch the medicine ball to the ground on either side of your hips
- Repeat for 3-4 sets of 30 seconds to start
- To increase difficulty, increase work time or lessen the bend in your knees (while still keeping your feet off the floor!)
12. V-ups
Adding a medicine ball to the V-up mix means there is both a counterbalance and an extra weight added to the original movement. The core stability, strength, and overall coordination required to complete weighted V-ups make them a fantastic full-body, yet still abdominal-focused movement.
Instructions:
- Start by laying flat on the ground with your arms stretched overhead, holding the medicine ball
- Moving both your lower and upper half at the same time, essentially crunch into a “V” shape so that the medicine ball meets (or nearly meets) your toes
- Slowly lower back down to start position -- the medicine ball should make contact with the floor before the next rep
- Your arms and legs should maintain as much of their original straightness as possible, but some variation in this is to be expected as you get fatigued!
- Repeat for 3-4 sets of 30 seconds to start
- To increase difficulty, slow down the eccentric component and/or increase work time
13. Lateral Tosses
Lateral tosses with a medicine ball are another fantastic way to target the obliques and can be done anywhere there is a solid, flat wall available.
Instructions:
- Begin by standing about an arm’s length away perpendicular to a wall
- Hold the medicine ball in both hands around your belly button
- Explosively twist from your torso to throw the ball against the wall and catch it; your lower half from the hips down should not move during this
- Thinking about your upper half moving as one unit, remember that your abs are doing the work, not your arms
- Complete the same sequence on both sides; repeat for 2-3 sets of 20-30 seconds of work per side
- To increase difficulty, decrease rest between sets and/or increase work time
14. Stir-the-pots
No, this isn’t a social term. Stir-the-pots are certainly one of the lesser-known medicine ball exercises, but are total powerhouses in terms of targeting the entire abdominal muscle group.
Instructions:
- Begin by lying flat on the ground or a mat, on your stomach
- Place your elbows on the medicine ball as if you were about to raise up into a plank
- Raise up into a plank -- keep your body as stiff as a board; you should be able to envision an invisible straight line running all the way down from your head to your toes
- Instead of remaining still here, begin making very, very small circles (either left or right) with the ball by moving your forearms as is you were stirring a pot of soup
- The importance of remaining under control and only making small, minute movements cannot be understated, and the payoff is huge!
- Repeat for 2-3 sets of 20-30 small circles in either direction
15. Medicine Ball Plank
Planks are a staple abdominal movement, and their medicine ball variation is an added way to get the benefits that standard planks have always had to offer, but with a twist.
Instructions:
- Begin lying flat on your stomach or a mat
- Raise up into a plank on top of the medicine ball; either with palms flat on the ball and arms straight, or resting on your forearms as in the case of both “low plank” and “stir-the-pots”
- That’s it! Hold and repeat for 2-3 sets of 30 seconds of work
- To increase difficulty, decrease rest between sets, increase work time, or even perform a couple of sets to failure at the end of your workout
If it wasn’t evident already, it certainly is now. Medicine balls are one of the most useful tools that any person with an interest in investing in their health and fitness can have in their arsenal, and their versatility is only somewhat illustrated in the movements above.
