Why You Should Use Medicine Balls In Your Cardio Workouts – Part 1

When many people think of Medicine Balls, they think of black and white pictures of old boxers or weightlifters. Because of this, many people think that the med ball is antiquated and outdated. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Though not used as it once was, the med ball is still an outstanding piece of equipment and has a ton of uses – especially for cardio workouts. But before we get into cardio, let’s take a look at what medicine balls are arguably the most known for being use for – building a strong stomach.

Pretty much any abdominal exercise take on a whole new meaning when you add a medicine ball into the mix. Take a simple exercise like the basic situp, add a med ball, and now do you not only have a lot more intense exercise, but you also have a whole bunch of new variations you can do. The same goes with almost any simplistic trunk curling motion. Rotational movements such as twisting situps, russian twists, or chinnies, also become a lot more difficult.

But then you can take it up a notch with more dynamic movements like med ball slams, twisting or overhead throws, or even suplex-type throws.

Now, while these are all meant to be abominal, trunk, or “core” (to use a popular word) exercises, if you string them together into a complex of sorts (i.e. – perform a set of multiple exercises in a row without resting in between), you won’t believe the cardio workout you’ll get. Not only will you be building a strong and rugged midsection, but you’ll also be building a “ripped” one, too, because of all the work you’ll be doing!

However, that’s just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to what you can do with a medicine ball!

For starters, just like the movements for your midsection, you can take various exercises and add a whole new twist (and many times a real conditioning element) to them by doing them with a medicine ball.

Pushups can go from just a normal pushup, to a balance-oriented exercise by putting both hands on a med ball, or to an explosive exercise by putting one hand on a med ball and switching hands (pushing yourself over the med ball) with each rep.

Basic squats can be just as brutal. Try doing normal squats just holding a med ball in front of you. Or, if that’s too easy, try holding one at arm’s length out in front of you. If you’re really crazy, you can do them while holding the med ball overhead…

Next time, we’ll look more at complexes, more dynamic movements, and how to combine elements to accomplish as much as three different things with one exercise!