Valeo Medicine Ball with Sturdy Rubber Construction and Textured Finish, Weight Ball Includes Exercise Wall Chart for Strength Training, Plyometric Training, Balance Training and Muscle Build

I love this medicine ball! It can take a pounding and the exterior is textured so you can have a nice grip on it with or without gloves. I use it to work out my abs by slamming it against the wall, I also toss the ball up in the air as high as I can and let it hit the ground, and I slam the ball on the ground, pick it up and do it all over again and the medicine ball is still fine! This medicine ball is durable, after all that pounding I have yet to pump air in the ball because it doesn't need it. The ball is just as strong and firm as the day I received it. I've even left the ball out in the rain and it does nothing to ruin the texture. I wish Valeo made heavier medicine balls. Aside from that, I highly recommend this item. There are several uses for it and it's fun to toss this thing around. One important thing to point out is that the ball has a strong rubber smell. If you're thinking about using this medicine ball for indoor use or store it indoors you might want to store it in a box or keep it wrapped in a plastic bag.

Okay, a medicine ball is a medicine ball, thats what this is. But the rubber smell took weeks to go away and it was very very strong, made me feel sick. Can't they get rid of the smell before they ship it? right now its sitting in the furnace room and I'm stilling waiting for that strong odor to go.

I have been looking for awhile for a lower priced basket ball sized medicine ball. I don't like the gel/bead like medicine balls they have out there for cheaper price. This medicine ball is almost exactly what I wanted. Only thing, which is minor, is the size of the ball. It's a tad smaller than a basket ball, but probably perfect for most females and probably not a big deal to the guys. I just got use to using a larger medicine ball at the gym I use to go to and wanted the same one, but didn't want to pay the same price. Besides that, it's got a rubber texture to it like a basket ball and it's hard so you can toss it in team exercises with no problem. I'm happy with my purchase.

I read in reviews that the grip on the ball was excellent.. truthfully, within the first use I went and found a pair of mismatched socks and made some gloves for gripping purposes. I believe that the description of "excellent grip even during intense workouts" a tad misleading personally(-1star). I treat my gym equipment properly and attempt to make any purchase last as long as possible.. but within a week: using it twice a day, I am able to see the grip "dots" wearing thin in multiple areas areas(-2nd star), and I haven't "abused" the item whatsoever; I bought it for typical daily usage in my home gym. Nonetheless, I enjoy the item and it is perfect for the purposes I intended, and it was pleasant to see a chart for different workouts along in the packaging. So, these reasons alone speak for itself, why I make it only three stars.

Product: Valeo Medicine Ball (various sizes) Rating: 4/5 (very good) QUICK COMMENT ON WEIGHT SELECTION: Before getting into the meat of my review, here's a quick tip for my fellow newbies regarding shopping for medicine balls: one of the biggest difficulties in shopping for a medicine ball is that you NEED to know in advance exactly what type of exercises you intend to use it for, because that will determine the type of ball you need (i.e., soft or hard, large or small, rebounding or non-rebounding, etc), and its optimum mass for your needs ... and there's a scarcity of helpful information out there, especially on choosing the latter (mass). The Valeo is of the hard variety, and is intended primarily for things like plyometrics (ex: P90x) and rebounding. That narrows things down quite a bit, but it still doesn't give online shoppers a feel for how much mass they need. Here's my key point: the equation for Kinetic Energy is 1/2(Mass x Velocity squared). In other words, the KE of an object of known mass increases with half the square of its relative velocity. So, what does that mean to the average lay person ? Essentially, if you're doing low speed plyo movements, the KE isn't that dissimilar from it's motion while at rest, but once you start doing higher velocity movements (ex: rebounding), the kinetic energy involved in starting/stopping those movements goes up DRAMATICALLY, which is why you need a lighter ball for rebounding than for plyo. So, if you're using say 10 or 12 for moves like 'chops', I recommend starting 2+ lbs lighter for rebounding until you are well acclimated ... especially for WALL rebounding (where you replace gravity's role). In fact, you might even want another (even lighter ball) specifically for wall use - like (example) 12 for low speed plyo, 10 for vertical rebounding, 8 for wall rebounding. Hope that helps. Ok, on to the review. STRONG LIKES: * DURABILITY: The rubber material used in construction seems extremely tough, and well suited for long term heavy use, which is important for use in rebounding. * REBOUNDING: I haven't had a chance to experiment with inflation levels yet, but rebounding seemed pretty decent straight out of the box - a moderately firm overhead slam of a 10# ball onto concrete rebounded to around waist high, which seemed ok. * GRIP: The grip is very securely non-slip. MINOR DISLIKES: * SMELL/MATERIAL: The smell and tactile feel of the exterior is very similar to that of a car tire, which most will either dislike, or at best tolerate. Because the material is uniform, it's probably permanent and unlikely to fade ... which could be an issue for people with sensitive noses who use/store these in smallish indoor rooms (ex: physical therapy). The smell also tends to linger a bit on your hands. The material can also leave minor scuff marks on hard abrasive surfaces, and tends to attract dirt, necessitating periodic rinsing. In my case, I've avoided the problem by moving from my patio (slate) to my garage, which has a poured concrete floor sealed with heavy duty epoxy-paint. * OVERHARD: These balls are quite hard, which can be either an advantage or a slight disadvantage, depending on how you use it. A harder non-slip ball is great for things like ball-pushups, but an over-hard ball that's close to your weight tolerance can be quite jarring to use for say wall-rebounding, and leave you wishing for something a bit more forgiving. Also, for rebounding, don't even think about trying to use these against indoor dry-wall (not strong enough), wood floors (too noisy, bouncy, loud and scuff-prone), or carpeting (wont rebound enough) ... smooth concrete (preferrably epoxy-sealed), or a rebounder rig, is best. * INFLATION: Most web-based descriptions of this product appear to go out of their way in avoiding mention that this ball must be inflated for use. The manufacturer provides a standard needle, but is unhelpfully vague in how much pressure is optimal. Bottom line: despite the annoying car-tire smell and texture, this is a very solid and durable ball that's well suited for both outdoor rebounding, and indoor plyometrics ... although first time shoppers (like me) are recommended to be mindful of the different weights needed for both types of use (i.e., less weight is needed for rebounding than for plyo). Recommended.

I love this medicine ball and the way it feels. The texture is amazing and is certain not to slip out of your hands. I also love to use it with my JumpSport Rebounder. It is the perfect size and weight. I hope the smell fades a little... it is a bit strong. Love this brand, Valeo!!

I purchased this ball for a client who wanted to do some ball slams into the ground for chopping speed and accuracy, the ball broke the 3rd day he used it. Maybe 10 minutes of actual use. I went onto the amazon return policy and since the client was hesitant to tell me we are outside of the window of return policy. Since the seller is amazon I am looking into who to tell about this. I have used this companies products for 10 years and just want another replacement ball I am sure it was defective, He stated that he did not use if for 10 minute total. Not happy at all. I have 6 of these balls on my gym floor and never had a problem. Not loving this.

I have been working out for years, and I have belonged to a variety of gyms. Now that I workout more and more at home, I started buying some of my own equipment. I think that a medicine ball is a great, simple piece of equipment, especially for core training. Having used a variety of medicine balls (with and without handles), I can say that the Valeo is my favorite because of the size (this is smaller than some and easier to hold) and because of the basketball-like texture (which is easier to hold with sweaty hands than a smooth or leather cover). I always shop around--you will not find a better price (especially at your local sporting goods store). I purchased the eight-pound ball, which I believe is a good all-around size. I will likely add a 12 pound-er to my collection soon (I figure, since my family is on a budget, I can use a 10 pound dumbbell or plate instead of a ball if necessary). I have tried a variety of routines over the years; if you are looking for a very good program or just looking for some alternatives to crunches, check out the program created by UNC's basketball coach: [...]. I don't know if Amazon will censor a link to a magazine's website; if so, Google something like, "Tarheel's Med ball workout."