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If you want to make serious gains when it comes to core strength, start adding some form of resistance to your core workout. Crunches and Russian twists are fine, but you’re more likely to see results when you add something like a medicine ball to those basic core moves because the abs and obliques are forced to work that much harder. Beyond basic core exercises, you’ll do even better if you start adding medicine balls to dynamic moves that challenge the stabilizer muscles throughout the body.
Related: Your back hurts after skiing because you’ve neglected your core and glutes
Chris Miller, former strength and conditioning coach for the U.S. Ski Team, is a big fan of incorporating this versatile piece of gym equipment in moves that target the core’s bracing and rotational strength, since that’s what skiers rely on when gravity is working against us on the slopes. Medicine balls come in all weights, sizes, and casings, but they’re all especially effective training tools for working deep core strength because you can throw them against the wall or floor, working both strength and power at the same time.
In this video, Miller outlines his four favorite medicine ball exercises designed specifically for skiers. All you need is a hard-shell medicine ball, a concrete wall, and some space, and you can string together the four moves into one effective stand-alone core circuit that also works the stabilizer muscles of the full body.
Outside+ members can access Chris Miller’s full four-week “Get Fit to Rip” bootcamp for skiers here
Watch: Chris Miller’s Medicine Ball Core Circuit
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