Backward Medicine Ball Throw
A full-body throw where you swing a medicine ball from between your knees and launch it back over your head, releasing at full extension. Because the ball leaves your hands, nothing decelerates the effort — you get to accelerate through the whole range in a way no dumbbell or barbell permits.
Own the movement
Set up first, then execute. Every cue below is something you can check on your next set.
Before the first rep
- Pick a 3-6 kg ball. Heavier feels serious and kills the speed that is the entire point.
- Throw outdoors, onto a field, or against a wall you have permission to hit — this ball travels further than people expect.
- Stand feet shoulder-width, toes slightly out, ball held in both hands hanging between your knees.
- Set your back flat and your chest up before you dip. The spine should not round to get the ball low.
Every rep
Breathing & tempo — Inhale as you dip, exhale explosively at release. The dip and reversal should take under a second combined; there is no slow phase in this movement.
Before you load it
- Know where the ball is going to land and make sure nobody is behind you. The throw goes over your head and you cannot see the landing.
- Use a non-bouncing slam-style ball if you are throwing at a wall. A bouncy ball coming back over your head is how people get hit.
Sets, reps & load
Where to start, and what to change when it stops being hard.
Start with a 3-4 kg ball; 6 kg is the top end for most people. Progress by throwing the same ball further, not by picking up a heavier one — distance is the honest measure of power output here. As a rough field marker, 8-10 m with a 4 kg ball from a standing start is respectable for a trained adult. Only move up in weight once distance has plateaued for several sessions at full speed.
What goes wrong
The errors that show up most often, and the cue that fixes each one.
Keep the elbows locked long and cue 'jump the ball backwards'. Throw for distance and let the hips supply it — the arms only need to hold on and let go at the right moment.
Stop the backswing where you can still hold a flat back, usually around knee height. Use a smaller ball diameter if the size is what is forcing you low.
Dip only to a quarter or half squat and reverse in under a second. A deep, slow dip drains the stretch reflex you were trying to use.
Let go while the arms are still rising past your ears, not once they have stopped overhead. Aim the flight at roughly 45 degrees behind you and judge it by the landing spot: a throw that comes down within two metres was released late.
Why bother
Every weight-room lift ends with a brake. You have to slow the bar down or it leaves you. A throw removes that constraint: hips, knees and shoulders keep accelerating right up to release, so the top end of the movement gets trained rather than damped.
Read the label carefully. The shoulders finish the throw, but the distance comes from the hips — a hard triple extension of ankle, knee and hip with the arms acting as a rigid lever. If your arms are doing the work, you are throwing a 4 kg ball with your delts and wasting the drill.
Where it fits
Straight after the warm-up, before you lift, in sets of 3-5 throws with a full rest. It pairs well as a primer before squats or deadlifts. It is not conditioning: once the distance drops off by a metre or so, the nervous system has had enough and further throws are just wear.
If this one isn't it
No kit, too hard, or too easy — here's where to go instead.
Same job, different kit
Start here instead
When this gets easy
Asked and answered
Slam ball, wall ball or medicine ball — which one?
A sand-filled slam ball or a firm rubber medicine ball. Avoid anything with real bounce: this throw goes over your head into ground you are not looking at, and a bouncing ball comes back at you. Soft wall balls survive a field but tear on tarmac, and a leather medicine ball soaks up water on grass. If you only own one, buy the slam ball.
Do I need a partner?
No. Throw onto an open field and walk to fetch it, or throw backwards over your head at a wall from a safe distance. A partner just speeds up the turnaround, which matters less than you would think given you want long rests anyway.
Can I use this instead of power cleans?
As a power primer, yes — it trains the same triple extension with almost none of the technical learning curve, and nothing to drop on yourself. As a strength builder it is no substitute: a ball you can throw is far too light to load the posterior chain meaningfully.
How do I know if I am improving?
Mark where the ball lands. Same ball, same stance, more distance means more power. Track it like a lift — three throws logged per session tells you more about your explosive output than a rep count ever will.