Soldier tosses a medicine ball while working out DVIDS462753

A medicine ball (also known as an exercise ball, a med ball, or a fitness ball) is a weighted

ball A ball is a round object (usually spherical, but can sometimes be ovoid) with several uses. It is used in ball games, where the play of the game follows the state of the ball as it is hit, kicked or thrown by players. Balls can also be used f ...

whose diameter is about a shoulder-width, (approx. ), often used for

rehabilitation Rehabilitation or Rehab may refer to: Health * Rehabilitation (neuropsychology), therapy to regain or improve neurocognitive function that has been lost or diminished * Rehabilitation (wildlife), treatment of injured wildlife so they can be retur ...

and

strength training Strength training or resistance training involves the performance of physical exercises that are designed to improve strength and endurance. It is often associated with the lifting of weights. It can also incorporate a variety of training te ...

. The medicine ball also serves an important role in the field of

sports medicine Sports medicine is a branch of medicine that deals with physical fitness and the treatment and prevention of injuries related to sports and exercise. Although most sports teams have employed team physicians for many years, it is only since the ...

to improve strength and neuromuscular coordination. It is distinct from the inflated

exercise ball An exercise ball is a ball constructed of soft elastic, typically in 5 diameters of 10-centimeter increments, from 35 centimeters (14 inches) to 85 centimeters (34 inches), and filled with air. The air pressure is changed by removing a valve ste ...

, which is larger (up to diameter). Medicine balls are usually sold as balls and are used effectively in

ballistic training Ballistic training, also incorrectly referred to as power training, is a form of training which involves throwing weights, and jumping with weights, in order to increase explosive power. The term ballistic refers to a method of training, where t ...

to increase explosive power in athletes in all sports, e.g. throwing the medicine ball or jumping whilst holding it. Some medicine balls are up to in diameter and up to weight, or in the form of weighted

basketballs A basketball is a Sphere, spherical ball used in basketball games. Basketballs usually range in size from very small promotional items that are only a few inches (some centimeters) in diameter to extra large balls nearly in diameter used in trai ...

History

Hippocrates Hippocrates of Kos (; grc-gre, Ἱπποκράτης ὁ Κῷος, Hippokrátēs ho Kôios; ), also known as Hippocrates II, was a Greek physician of the classical period who is considered one of the most outstanding figures in the history of ...

is said to have stuffed animal skins for patients to toss for medicinal purposes. Similar large balls were used in Persia in 1705. The term "medicine ball" dates back to at least 1876, in ''American Gymnasia and Academic Record'', by Robert Jenkins Roberts Jr. The first known photograph of a medicine ball in the United States was taken in 1866 and shows Harvard athletic instructor

Aaron Molyneaux Hewlett Aaron Molyneaux Hewlett (c. 18201871) was the first African American instructor at Harvard University and oversaw the college's gymnasium. He was the first superintendent of physical education in American higher education. Hewlett was instructor ...

surrounded by his equipment.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Medicine Ball Balls Exercise equipment

History

See also

References

External links