A medicine ball isn’t just functional. It’s fun as well. It adds a certain degree of variety to any routine, and of course, it just makes you feel like a pro. If you’ve never used one before, you’re missing out. We can do tons of exercises with a ball for boxing, and many of them are suitable for all fitness levels.
In this guide, I’d like to show you some boxing medicine ball exercises for strength development.
1. Overhead Squat
The overhead squat is a full-body conditioning exercise that challenges your stability, coordination, and flexibility. It involves squatting with a med ball or dumbbell held overhead, which engages your core and lower back muscles. These muscles are further stimulated by the changing center of gravity as you lower and raise your arms.
To build your strength and endurance, perform overhead squats twice a week after warming up with light cardiovascular activity. Start by doing 2-3 sets of 8-10 reps, gradually increasing the weight or repetitions.
2. Power Jump Squats
Medicine ball power jump squats are an excellent exercise for explosive power, and they’re easy to do once you learn the technique. Grab equipment with a good amount of weight to it and stand with your feet shoulder-width apart. Squat down and put your arms out in front of you with the ball between your forearms. Then, jump up as high as you can.
If you’re a beginner, start with a lighter ball—usually 10-20lbs. If you are a more advanced athlete, you will want to work with a heavier ball, usually between 20-40lbs.
3. Offset push-ups
The offset push-up is a variation on the standard push-up that makes the core work harder. A key aspect of offset push-ups is that your hands are placed a bit wider and higher than usual, which increases your range of motion and makes it harder to balance. The medicine ball adds another level of difficulty, as the athlete must keep the ball close to their body during the movement.
4. Medicine Ball Slam
A slam is a great exercise for your core muscles and upper back. It will also make your chest and shoulders stronger since they have to stabilize your body as you slam the ball to the ground. Even if you’re not looking to add muscle mass, slams are a worthwhile exercise since they will increase your strength and endurance so you can perform other activities more efficiently.
5. V-Ups
The boxers perform the V-ups exercise to improve their core strength. The V-up works your core, legs, back, and shoulders in one strong motion. Fitness fans love it because it works the upper and lower abdominal muscles at the same time.
Learn more: Ab workout for boxing
6. Back to Back Medicine Ball Pass
When done correctly, this exercise simultaneously builds both strength and endurance in your arms, chest, and core (abs and obliques) while also improving your overall coordination and agility. To do this exercise effectively, you will need to start by standing back to back with your feet planted. The twist should be the result of a good rotation of the body.
7. Sit up with ball throws (to a partner)
Sit three to five feet away from your partner. The partner holds the ball at chest level. One partner does a sit-up without the ball, the other with it. As you sit right up, throw the ball to your partner. Once you catch it, return slowly towards the ground while keeping the ball close to your chest and repeat. Use equipment from 3–10 lbs. This exercise strengthens the core and improves endurance and power.
8. Medicine ball throws
Weighted ball throws are an excellent way to build total-body strength, explosive speed, and power while also increasing coordination, flexibility, and agility. By throwing the ball with one hand, imitating jabs or straight punches, you can also improve your punching power.
9. Medicine Ball Punch Partner Drill
One partner holds a large med ball against the chest. One partner wears boxing gloves, punches at the target as he moves about. The puncher uses speed rather than strength to move into range and land quick strikes. A bigger leather ball is the best tool for this drill.
The one holding the ball gets used to punches, while the puncher can practice different punches and combinations.
10. Narrow push-ups
The narrow push-up is an advanced variation of the classic push-up. It targets the chest muscles and the triceps of the upper arms. Put your hands close together on the medicine ball. As you lower your body to the floor, keep the elbows pointing backward and your abdominal muscles tight. For this push-up, you’ll need extra strength in the arms, shoulders, and torso.
An example of a boxing medicine ball workout
If you’re looking for a workout that targets your entire body in a way that boxing does, then you’ve come to the right place. The video below uses a few of the techniques that boxers use to increase endurance, power, and speed. We can use weighted balls for high-intensity workouts that help you get stronger and more toned. Besides, you can do these exercises just about anywhere, so you can still get in a great workout during the winter months when you can’t make it to the boxing gym.
To sum up
Medicine ball training has been a mainstay of boxing workouts for decades. With the right technique, this training type can help improve your boxing performance, strength, and endurance and prevent injuries. Try the exercises above, and you will see how powerful these moves are.