The Best Medicine

I’m in love love love with the medicine ball. I’ve just recently started dabbling with it more, when trying to find a good finishing exercise for shoulders. What I discovered is that it KILLED my shoulders, gave me a total body workout, got my heart pumping harder than a sprint on the treadmill, and also HAS to improve eye-hand coordination. I would say that it has a lot of the same effects as a kettlebell workout, but I enjoy this more because I like to throw and catch things. Always have. Thats the softball player in me.

This is how I’ve been ending my shoulder workouts. With a 10 lb medicine ball, I’ll start with it in my right hand, elbow bent with ball at my shoulder beside my ear and my legs in a slight squatted position. In a full body powerful motion, I will push it as hard as I can into the air, up over my head, and when it returns down, I will use my left hand to catch it in the same position that I use to push and release it. When it comes down you have to use the left side of your body to cradle it down, in a smooth controlled motion. Then you do the same thing and return it back to the other side. It’s kind of a juggle and there is no rests until the set is finished. Today I got 100 throws in a row for my first set. When I finished that set I took the ball in both hands at my chest, squatting again, and pushed it directly up over my head, caught it with both hands and repeated that for 25 more reps. I did this 4 total times. (I didn’t get 100 throws on sets 2, 3, and 4 but did each set till failure.) Oh also, on sets 3 and 4, I jumped up off the ground as I pushed the ball up, which made it a little more tough. By the end of my workout I was spent. I had planned on finishing with 30 minutes of cardio, but after thinking I might puke, I settled for 30 second sprints for 10 minutes.

Yesterday I used the med ball to end my chest and tricep day with tabata style overhead tricep extension. Tri’s are killing me today.

Of course, there are endless ab exercise you can do with it. Crunches, twists, leg lifts,etc…

I have a ton of ideas that are popping into my head as we speak. Maybe a swing through the leg, release and catch. A hamstring curl, while lying on a bench with the ball between my feet…possibilities are endless and I can’t wait to get back in the gym to try some new things.

If your excuse for not working out, is that you can’t afford a gym membership or you’re intimidated by the gym (thats a whole other blog), then make an investment in a med ball. Its fun, not boring, great for strength and endurance training all in one! plus takes up a lot less room than a bowflex and a treadmill. And if you hate it, you can use it to prop open the front door, or a really big paper weight. You can’t lose.