Medicine Balls are a frequent addition to gyms and sport training venues, sitting in a nice rack and having variable weights to play with. My first association was with a school weight room that had one old leather ball that basically sat in a corner. The only time I used it was in a partnered throwing match, and unfortunately, with unsupervised boys, it can quickly become a target game (see the self-portrait). I wasn’t a good target, or to some I was the ideal target.
Medicine Ball Training
Fast forward to a later date when a high-level training group was exposed to medicine ball work that combined plyometrics and bodywork. A new world opened up! This was a system from Eastern Europe that had been in use for over a hundred years. Surprise: only a few exercises involved throwing or catching - most were held activities. Surprise: as we progressed, we moved towards lighter Medicine Balls, not heavier. As an athlete, and then early coaching, there was always an enduring question: why? Why were these simple additions to familiar and adapted exercises so valuable?
I’m not one to use exercises simply because they are there – I want to see where they fit in. The clues came in, and with information became understanding with a single word from a world-renowned coach = posture. By that time, I had realised that posture was
dynamic posture. More than a static view of the spine or stance, I could look at an area like the ankles or hips, or I could view the entire movement and the space it used. Most of the exercises (but certainly not all) used hand-held positions, and this I realised was also a Core challenge through the shoulder and arm work.
Medicine Balls adapt well to
plyometric conditioning, whether that be at a beginning plyometric stage, or a refinement stage for running stride development or jump takeoff development. Personally, they were invaluable for teasing out right/left imbalances that I didn’t know I had, starting with the lighter
ankle plyometrics and progressing to
plyometrics for speed and hip strength. Note to coaches...I found that MedBalls were very effective at the identify-remedy process of imbalances and insufficiencies.
As an athlete and student, equipment purchases were limited to available funds, and Medicine Balls, with their high return-on-investment were a no-brainer. I had my first MedBall for two decades of bodywork and the ankle stability work that was an ongoing need. No need to throw it around, and most exercises took up a small space at home. Plus, there were hundreds of exercise choices at hand. This was classic homework that would never be part of large sessions, but I needed it for my situation. The programming designed with
Poly2Plyos exercise sheets is often portrayed with Medicine Balls because of their invaluable contributions to dynamic posture and overall Preparation for training. In parallel, the stability networks of the body are challenged to respond in parallel with big movers so that there is a layer of Protection added to the work being performed. Thus, elements like
knee stability and
ankle strength are integrated into whole moves that feed targeted skills. So, as the MedBall Wizard, I encourage everyone to explore
Medicine Ball training, not just as a throwing-heaving tool, but as a great complement to the skills you are wanting to develop.
