6 medicine ball exercises you should try, according to a personal trainer - chof 360 news

I'll admit it: For years, I avoided adding a medicine ball to my workouts. Frankly, I was intimidated by the large weighted ball, imagining it was meant solely for hard-core exercisers with 18-inch biceps. Turns out, the weighted wonder has plenty to offer people at all fitness levels. It's an excellent tool for enhancing strength, balance and coordination and achieving a full-body workout (and it's not as scary as it looks).

"If your goal is to improve muscular fitness, then strength training equipment can be essential," says ACE-certified personal trainer Chris Gagliardi. He shared six fresh, effective medicine ball exercise recommendations. I tried all of these workouts, and yes, some are much more challenging than others (glaring at you, medicine ball push-ups), but there are modifications you can take to ease in. Holding a sphere in your hands will feel different from gripping a dumbbell or kettlebell handle, but as with any new fitness tool, you'll get the hang of it. You may even find it more comfortable.

You can use dumbbells for these exercises, but try them with an exercise ball first. If you don't have one yet, find one at a gym or check out our best medicine ball pick, tested and reviewed by a personal trainer.

How to choose a medicine ball

Medicine balls come in a variety of sizes and weights — the smaller ones are generally lighter, while the larger ones are heavier. If you're a beginner, consider sticking to a lighter weight until you're more comfortable using them. Some medicine balls are also bouncier than others. For the workouts mentioned below, you won't need any bounce.

When selecting which size medicine ball to use for your exercises, Gagliardi recommends choosing a weight that allows you to perform the movement while maintaining good form and posture. If you're unable to complete all your reps with good form, switch to a lighter weight to avoid injury. If the reps seem too easy, switch to a heavier weight. If your goal is to improve general muscular fitness, you should aim to perform 1-4 sets of 8-15 repetitions per exercise, he says. You can adjust the ball weight you're using for each exercise, as you would with dumbbells.

When to use a medicine ball instead of dumbbells

When you start using medicine balls more often, you may find some workouts are easier to perform with the spheres. For instance, if you're working out with a friend and passing the weight back and forth, it's easier to grab. Using a medicine ball also changes the way the weight is gripped and held compared to holding a dumbbell, Gagliardi says, which can challenge your upper body muscles differently.

Further, if you have a condition that makes gripping a dumbbell painful, such as arthritis in your hands, a medicine ball may be more comfortable to use, he says.

It's ultimately up to you to decide whether to use dumbbells or medicine balls during your workouts, but regularly switching it up can add variety to your exercise routine.

Medicine ball exercises that'll elevate your workouts

I've included six exercise options from Gagliardi that target a variety of muscle groups. If you're ever in a hurry, you can quickly pick a few from the list and still get a full-body workout in. Most of them are a good way to ease into using a medicine ball. You may have tried these exercises using a dumbbell or kettlebell, but doing them with a medicine ball changes things up. If, however, you've never tried these workouts before, do them without added weight at first to help with muscle memory so it's less challenging.

Reminder: Keep breathing through each exercise — generally exhale when exerting effort; inhale when releasing or lengthening the muscle.

1. Half-kneeling hay baler

This exercise may seem easy at first, but you'll feel it in your obliques tomorrow. To protect your knees, I recommend doing this on an exercise mat, a folded towel or a thick carpet.

How to do it: Step forward into a lunge and place the back knee on the floor. With a straight back, hold the ball in both hands toward the knee on the floor. Keeping both arms straight, rotate your torso and bring the ball diagonally across your body and slightly up and over the opposite shoulder.

Muscles targeted: Abs, shoulders, arms, glutes and legs.

Repetitions: Start with 8 reps per side.

2. Medicine ball push-up

I won't lie: This exercise is challenging. I kept my knees on the floor for support, and even that was difficult. It's essentially a push-up but instead of having your hands on the ground, they're on the sides of the ball. Try this exercise on your knees until you get used to balancing on the ball, and move slowly.

How to do it: Place the ball on the floor and hover over it on your hands and knees. If you're modifying, stay on your knees. Otherwise, place your hands one at a time on the sides of the ball, lift your knees off the ground and make sure your head, neck and spine are in a straight line. Your shoulders should be directly over your hands but if not, reposition yourself. It's almost like you're planking on the ball, which is a good strengthener in itself.

Next, draw your abs in for support and slowly lower yourself toward the ball by bending your elbows back as far as your flexibility allows for — not everyone will be able to lower completely to the ball and that's OK. Try to keep your elbows close to the sides of your body.

To come back up, press into the ball until your arms are fully extended again.

Again, this exercise is pretty intense, so don't feel discouraged if you can't do this one yet. Another modification is to keep one hand on the ball and the other on the floor (see exercise 3 on this list). Or you can make it harder by elevating your legs onto a platform.

Muscles targeted: Chest, triceps, biceps, shoulders, core and lower body.

Repetitions: Begin with a goal of 5-8 reps (it's OK if you can't get there on week one). If your upper body is more developed, aim for 10-15 reps.

3. Single-arm medicine ball push-up

While this form of medicine ball push-up isn't as hard, it's still pretty challenging — especially if your upper body strength is, let's say, in progress. I was able to complete this one without using my knees for support the first time, though I'll admit I didn't get many reps in.

How to do it: Get into a plank position on the floor with your core engaged, feet together and hands under your shoulders. (To modify, drop your knees.) Bring one hand up and place it on the ball — your opposite hand will remain on the floor. Slowly lower yourself toward the ball while maintaining your posture — squeeze your glutes and quad muscles to help with stability. Don't let your elbows chicken wing out as you lower down; aim to keep them closer to your body (a little flare is OK and normal).

Once you've hit the lowest point you can go, press upward until your arms are straight again, keeping your head, neck and spine in line. That's one rep.

Muscles targeted: Chest, shoulders, core, back and glutes.

Repetitions: Start with 5-8 reps on each side, and increase to 10-15 reps per side as you get stronger.

4. Lunge with overhead press

If you're looking to get your heart rate up, this will do the trick. While the move is simple, you'll feel the burn after several reps — and you might be out of breath by the end.

How to do it: Standing with your feet together and holding a medicine ball at your chest, step one leg forward into a lunge. At the same time, lift the medicine ball over your head, keeping your core muscles tight. (While you get used to doing the move, you can wait until you're in the lunge before lifting the ball up, to maintain your balance.)

To finish, come back to the starting position with your feet together and the ball at your chest.

Muscles targeted: Shoulders, abs, glutes, quads and hamstrings.

Repetitions: Aim for 8-15 reps on each side.

5. Seated medicine ball trunk rotations

This is a nice exercise to do after one of the more intense medicine ball workouts. But just because it's seated doesn't mean it won't pack a punch, especially if you do the advanced version.

How to do it: Sit on an exercise mat or carpeted floor with knees bent, feet together, heels on the floor. Hold the ball close, at chest level. While keeping your back straight, engage your abs and begin slowly rotating side to side.

Once this move starts feeling easy, move to a more advanced version by lifting your feet off the ground. You'll still maintain a stiff upper body position with your core engaged, but your back will be slightly tilted backward. Expect your core to be sore the next day.

Muscles targeted: Core, legs and glutes.

Repetitions: Rotate side to side for 30 counts, or 15 per side.

6. Walking lunges with twists

This is a variation on the Half-Kneeling Hay Baler and the Seated Trunk Rotation.

Unlike some of the other exercises on this list, you won't repeat the same leg after each rep. Instead, you'll lunge forward on one side and then switch legs.

How to do it: While holding a medicine ball, stand with your feet about hip-width apart and pull your navel in for support. The medicine ball should be just slightly lower than your chest. Lunge forward on one side, keeping your hips in line with your spine (no leaning forward) and make sure your front knee doesn't move past your toes.

While in the lunge position, rotate your upper body toward the side with the bent knee, keeping your abs pulled in. As you rotate back to center, push your forward foot into the ground and come back up to standing. Once you're back to the starting position, lunge the opposite leg forward and twist in the opposite direction. Repeat with no rest in between the reps.

To increase difficulty, pause at the top of each lunge, add more weight or increase the number of reps.

Muscles targeted: Obliques, glutes, quads, calves and hamstrings.

Repetitions: Do 8 reps per side for a total of 16 reps.

Looking to elevate your exercise routine even further? Check out the benefits of adding resistance bands and other types of exercise balls to your workouts Also, here's the trick to building muscle as you age. Plus: How to start a yoga practice.

Our health content is for informational purposes only and is not intended as professional medical advice. Consult a medical professional on questions about your health.