Core · Medicine Ball
Medicine Ball Side to Side Slam
How to do the medicine ball side to side slam, the muscles it works, and the mistakes to avoid. Pulled straight from the Kovo app's exercise library.
- Equipment
- Medicine Ball
- Difficulty
- Beginner
- Logged as
- Weighted reps
- Movement
- Rotation
- Mechanic
- Compound
How to do it
Stand with feet wider than shoulder-width holding a medicine ball. Slam the ball down hard just outside one foot, catch the rebound, then shift over and slam it down outside the other foot. Keep alternating sides in a steady rhythm.
- 1Obliques bracing as you slam down to each side
- 2Lats pulling the ball down through the floor
- 3Your weight shifting smoothly from side to side
Common mistakes
- Rounding your lower back as you reach down
- Slamming with locked, straight arms
- Letting your knees cave as you shift across
Muscles worked
The medicine ball side to side slam mainly works the obliques, lats, and lower abs, with the upper abs, glutes, forearms, lower back, upper traps, quads, hamstrings, and front delts assisting.
- ObliquesPrimary
- LatsPrimary
- Lower AbsPrimary
- Upper AbsSupport
- GlutesSupport
- ForearmsSupport
- Lower BackSupport
- Upper TrapsSupport
- QuadsSupport
- HamstringsSupport
- Front DeltsSupport
- TricepsMinor
- Mid TrapsMinor
- Lower TrapsMinor
- CalvesMinor
- Side DeltsMinor
- AdductorsMinor
- Hip FlexorsMinor
Kovo programs the medicine ball side to side slam for you and tracks it every session.
We build your whole program, drop the right lifts into each workout, and adjust your weights as you get stronger. Free on iOS and Android.
More abs & core exercises
- How to do the ab wheel rollout
- How to do the ankle tap plank
- How to do the ankle taps
- How to do the resistance band dead bugs
- How to do the resistance band pallof press
- How to do the rollout
Last reviewed June 2026.