Crush Your Week: 5 Medicine Ball Workouts to Make You an Obstacle Machine
In this week's Crush the Week workouts, we're building obstacle immunity using medicine balls. Each of the five workouts, designed by Spartan SGX Coach Darryl Partridge, will test your endurance. The full-body exercises feature a medicine ball to challenge your strength and stamina. They're designed to target your core, shoulder stability, hips, and endurance — all of which you need to overcome obstacles like a pro.
What are the benefits of adding a medicine ball to your workout?
With so many different pieces of equipment to choose from at the gym, it can be tough to decide which are worth working with, and which you could do without. Here's why a medicine ball should always be in your arsenal:
- Improves cardiovascular endurance
- Increases power
- Improves functional movement and mobility
- Increases core strength
- Preserves joint and grip strength
Workout: Monday
A two-circuit workout – each done for 4 rounds with 60 seconds of rest between rounds – where you'll do 15 reps of every exercise. After all 8 rounds are complete, rest 60 seconds and then complete the finisher for 1 round.
Circuit I:
- Right lunge with med ball rotation
- Left lunge with med ball rotation
- 60 seconds of burpee slams
Circuit II:
- Single-leg (right) hip lift with heel on med ball
- Single-leg (left) hip lift with heel on med ball
Finisher:
- 15 squat to med ball tosses
- Wall sit with 15 med ball rotations
- 60 seconds of burpee slams
Workout: Tuesday
Four circuits, done in succession for 3 rounds each. Rest 60 seconds between rounds and circuits.
Circuit I:
- 20 med ball Russian twists
- 15 med ball V-ups
Circuit II:
- 30 med ball slams
- 30 med ball toe taps
Circuit III:
- 15 sit-up to med ball tosses
- 15 med ball front raises
Circuit IV:
- 50 med ball elevated mountain climbers
- 15 alternating offset push-ups with med ball
Workout: Wednesday
One circuit, repeated for 4 rounds. Do each exercise for 45 seconds, then rest 15 seconds before doing the next exercise. Rest 60 seconds between each round.
- Alternating offset push-ups with hands on med ball
- Side-to-side overhead med ball slam
- Elevated push-ups with hands on med ball
- Overhead med ball slams
- Rollout to push-ups with hands on med ball
- Med ball overhead slams to burpees
Workout: Thursday
Do these two circuits each for 3 rounds and each exercise for 15 reps. Rest 60 seconds between rounds and circuits.
Circuit I:
- Overhead slams
- Weighted V-ups
- Weighted squats
- Plank jacks
- Weighted alternating reverse lunges
- Weighted hip lifts
Circuit II:
- Overhead slams to burpees
- Weighted V-ups to toe touches
- Weighted squats to overhead presses
- Plank jacks
- Weighted lunges with rotations
- Heel-elevated hip lifts
Workout: Friday
Do this circuit for 3 rounds, performing each exercise for 10 reps. Rest 60 seconds between rounds.
- Med ball alternating offset push-ups
- Weighted Russian twists
- Elevated diamond push-ups
- Weighted V-ups
- Offset push-ups (left)
- Weighted reverse lunge (left) with rotation
- Offset push-ups (right)
- Weighted reverse lunge (right) with rotation
- Feet-elevated push-ups
