10 Best Supine One-arm Overhead Throw Alternatives for Core Power

The Supine One-arm Overhead Throw is done lying on your back with a medicine ball. Ranked closest by our scoring: the Oblique Crunch, the Incline Twisting Sit-up and the Bottoms-up.

Updated Ranked by our 12-factor similarity model How it works

Original Exercise: Supine One-arm Overhead Throw

Supine One-arm Overhead Throw
Primary muscle
Abs
Equipment
Medicine-ball
Difficulty
Intermediate
Type
Compound

Secondary muscles: Chest, Lats, Shoulders

How to perform Supine One-arm Overhead Throw
  1. Lay on the ground on your back with your knees bent. Hold the ball with one hand, extending the arm fully behind your head. This will be your starting position.
  2. Initiate the movement at the shoulder, throwing the ball directly forward of you as you sit up, attempting to go for maximum distance.
  3. The ball can be thrown to a partner or bounced off of a wall.
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Ranked Supine One-arm Overhead Throw Alternatives

10 substitutes, ranked by how closely each one matches the Supine One-arm Overhead Throw on movement pattern, muscles worked, equipment and body position. The higher the score, the less you change. Open "How to perform this exercise" on a card for the steps; every card title links to that exercise's own alternatives page.

  1. Best match
    Oblique CrunchPlay demonstration

    1. Oblique Crunch

    68% match
    • Abs
    • Bodyweight
    • Intermediate
    • Isolation

    Use this when you have nothing to train with, because it works the abs with bodyweight alone.

    How to perform this exercise
    1. Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the ground.
    2. Place your hands behind your head or cross them over your chest.
    3. Engage your abs and lift your shoulder blades off the ground, rotating your torso to one side.
    4. Pause for a moment, then lower your shoulder blades back down to the starting position.
    5. Repeat on the other side.
    6. Continue alternating sides for the desired number of repetitions.

    Sets and reps: 3 sets of 10 to 15 reps on each side.

    Why this matches
    • Primary muscle: abs, the same as the Supine One-arm Overhead Throw
    • Equipment: bodyweight only, not free weights
    • Body position: lying on your back, the same as the Supine One-arm Overhead Throw
  2. Incline Twisting Sit-upPlay demonstration

    2. Incline Twisting Sit-up

    66% match
    • Abs
    • Bodyweight
    • Intermediate
    • Compound
    How to perform this exercise
    1. Set up an incline bench at a 45-degree angle.
    2. Lie down on the bench with your feet secured under the foot pads.
    3. Place your hands behind your head or across your chest.
    4. Engage your abs and lift your upper body off the bench, curling forward.
    5. As you curl up, twist your torso to one side, bringing your elbow towards the opposite knee.
    6. Pause for a moment at the top, then slowly lower your upper body back down to the starting position.
    7. Repeat the movement, this time twisting your torso to the other side.
    8. Continue alternating sides for the desired number of repetitions.

    Sets and reps: 3 or 4 sets of 6 to 10 reps.

    Why this matches
    • Primary muscle: abs, the same as the Supine One-arm Overhead Throw
    • Equipment: bodyweight only, not free weights
    • Body position: lying on your back, the same as the Supine One-arm Overhead Throw
    • Balance: easier to stay steady on than the Supine One-arm Overhead Throw
  3. Bottoms-upPlay demonstration

    3. Bottoms-up

    66% match
    • Abs
    • Bodyweight
    • Intermediate
    • Isolation
    How to perform this exercise
    1. Lie flat on your back with your legs extended and your arms by your sides.
    2. Bend your knees and bring them towards your chest, keeping your feet off the ground.
    3. Engaging your abs, lift your hips off the ground, bringing your knees towards your head.
    4. Pause for a moment at the top, then slowly lower your hips back down to the starting position.
    5. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

    Sets and reps: 3 sets of 10 to 15 reps on each side.

    Why this matches
    • Primary muscle: abs, the same as the Supine One-arm Overhead Throw
    • Equipment: bodyweight only, not free weights
    • Body position: lying on your back, the same as the Supine One-arm Overhead Throw
  4. Lying Elbow To KneePlay demonstration

    4. Lying Elbow To Knee

    66% match
    • Abs
    • Bodyweight
    • Intermediate
    • Isolation
    How to perform this exercise
    1. Lie flat on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the ground.
    2. Place your hands behind your head with your elbows pointing outwards.
    3. Engage your abs and lift your upper body off the ground, bringing your right elbow towards your left knee.
    4. At the same time, extend your right leg straight out and lift it off the ground.
    5. Pause for a moment, then return to the starting position.
    6. Repeat the movement, this time bringing your left elbow towards your right knee and extending your left leg.
    7. Continue alternating sides for the desired number of repetitions.

    Sets and reps: 3 sets of 8 to 12 reps on each side, and add reps before you add load.

    Why this matches
    • Primary muscle: abs, the same as the Supine One-arm Overhead Throw
    • Equipment: bodyweight only, not free weights
    • Body position: lying on your back, the same as the Supine One-arm Overhead Throw
  5. CocoonsPlay demonstration

    5. Cocoons

    63% match
    • Abs
    • Bodyweight
    • Beginner
    • Isolation
    How to perform this exercise
    1. Lie flat on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the ground.
    2. Place your hands behind your head with your elbows pointing outwards.
    3. Engaging your abs, slowly lift your upper body off the ground, curling forward until your torso is at a 45-degree angle.
    4. Pause for a moment at the top, then slowly lower your upper body back down to the starting position.
    5. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

    Sets and reps: 3 sets of 8 to 12 reps, and add reps before you add load.

    Why this matches
    • Primary muscle: abs, the same as the Supine One-arm Overhead Throw
    • Equipment: bodyweight only, not free weights
    • Body position: lying on your back, the same as the Supine One-arm Overhead Throw
  6. Cross Body CrunchPlay demonstration

    6. Cross Body Crunch

    62% match
    • Abs
    • Bodyweight
    • Beginner
    • Isolation
    How to perform this exercise
    1. Lie flat on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the ground.
    2. Place your hands behind your head with your elbows pointing outwards.
    3. Engaging your abs, lift your upper body off the ground and twist to bring your right elbow towards your left knee.
    4. Pause for a moment at the top, then slowly lower your upper body back down to the starting position.
    5. Repeat on the other side, bringing your left elbow towards your right knee.
    6. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

    Sets and reps: 3 sets of 8 to 12 reps on each side, and add reps before you add load.

    Why this matches
    • Primary muscle: abs, the same as the Supine One-arm Overhead Throw
    • Equipment: bodyweight only, not free weights
    • Body position: lying on your back, the same as the Supine One-arm Overhead Throw
  7. Decline Sit-upPlay demonstration

    7. Decline Sit-up

    62% match
    • Abs
    • Bodyweight
    • Intermediate
    • Compound
    How to perform this exercise
    1. Lie on a decline bench with your feet secured and your knees bent.
    2. Place your hands behind your head or across your chest.
    3. Engage your abs and lift your upper body off the bench, curling forward towards your knees.
    4. Pause for a moment at the top, then slowly lower your upper body back down to the starting position.
    5. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

    Sets and reps: 3 or 4 sets of 6 to 10 reps.

    Why this matches
    • Primary muscle: abs, the same as the Supine One-arm Overhead Throw
    • Equipment: bodyweight only, not free weights
    • Body position: lying on your back, the same as the Supine One-arm Overhead Throw
  8. Decline CrunchPlay demonstration

    8. Decline Crunch

    62% match
    • Abs
    • Bodyweight
    • Intermediate
    • Isolation
    How to perform this exercise
    1. Lie on a decline bench with your feet secured and your knees bent at a 90-degree angle.
    2. Place your hands behind your head or across your chest.
    3. Engage your abs and lift your upper body towards your knees, curling your torso.
    4. Pause for a moment at the top, then slowly lower your upper body back down to the starting position.
    5. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

    Sets and reps: 3 sets of 10 to 15 reps.

    Why this matches
    • Primary muscle: abs, the same as the Supine One-arm Overhead Throw
    • Equipment: bodyweight only, not free weights
    • Body position: lying on your back, the same as the Supine One-arm Overhead Throw
  9. Elbow-to-kneePlay demonstration

    9. Elbow-to-knee

    61% match
    • Abs
    • Bodyweight
    • Beginner
    • Isolation
    How to perform this exercise
    1. Start by lying flat on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the ground.
    2. Place your hands behind your head with your elbows pointing outwards.
    3. Engage your abs and lift your upper body off the ground, bringing your right elbow towards your left knee.
    4. At the same time, bring your left knee towards your right elbow, creating a twisting motion.
    5. Pause for a moment at the top, then slowly lower your upper body and extend your legs back to the starting position.
    6. Repeat the movement, this time bringing your left elbow towards your right knee and your right knee towards your left elbow.
    7. Continue alternating sides for the desired number of repetitions.

    Sets and reps: 3 sets of 8 to 12 reps on each side, and add reps before you add load.

    Why this matches
    • Primary muscle: abs, the same as the Supine One-arm Overhead Throw
    • Equipment: bodyweight only, not free weights
    • Body position: lying on your back, the same as the Supine One-arm Overhead Throw
  10. Oblique Crunches

    10. Oblique Crunches

    61% match
    • Abs
    • Bodyweight
    • Beginner
    • Isolation
    How to perform this exercise
    1. Lie flat on the floor with your lower back pressed to the ground. For this exercise, you will need to put one hand beside your head and the other to the side against the floor.
    2. Make sure your feet are elevated and resting on a flat surface.
    3. Now lift the shoulder in which your hand is touching your head.
    4. Simply elevate your shoulder and body upward until you touch your knee. For example, if you have your right hand besides your head, then you want to elevate your body upwards until your right elbow touches your left knee. The same variation can be applied doing the inverse and using your left elbow to touch your right knee.
    5. After your knee touches your elbow, lower your body until you have reached the starting position.
    6. Remember to breathe in during the eccentric (lowering) part of the exercise and to breathe out during the concentric (upward) part of the exercise.
    7. Continue alternating in this manner until all of the recommended repetitions for each side have been completed.

    Sets and reps: 3 sets of 8 to 12 reps on each side, and add reps before you add load.

    Why this matches
    • Primary muscle: abs, the same as the Supine One-arm Overhead Throw
    • Equipment: bodyweight only, not free weights
    • Body position: lying on your back, the same as the Supine One-arm Overhead Throw
    • Balance: easier to stay steady on than the Supine One-arm Overhead Throw

Why You Might Need a Supine One-arm Overhead Throw Alternative

You may substitute the Supine One-arm Overhead Throw for shoulder pain, lack of a medicine ball, limited space, or to vary training stimulus. Alternatives let you maintain the same gross movement pattern, overhead arm path and explosive hip-thoracic extension, while reducing load on the shoulder or spine. Use a standing throw or rotational press to keep oblique and transverse abdominis recruitment while altering joint angles and force vectors. Cue: keep ribs down and exhale on the effort to preserve intra-abdominal pressure and protect the lumbar spine.

How to Choose the Right Supine One-arm Overhead Throw Substitute

Pick a substitute based on the movement pattern, required power, and available equipment. Match the primary demands: if you need explosive vertical force, choose a standing overhead throw; for rotational torque, choose cable or landmine chops. Consider joint limits, select anti-rotation holds if your shoulder lacks overhead range. Cue: maintain a neutral pelvis and initiate motion from the hips so the rectus abdominis and obliques work as intended while minimizing lumbar shear.

Supine One-arm Overhead Throw FAQ

What muscles does Supine One-arm Overhead Throw work?

The move primarily targets the rectus abdominis and obliques while recruiting the transverse abdominis for stability. The throw also uses hip extensors for power and the serratus anterior and deltoid for the overhead arm drive.

Can I build muscle without doing Supine One-arm Overhead Throw?

Yes, you can build core muscle and power with alternatives that match the movement pattern and load. Use progressive overload via heavier med balls, added resistance on chops, or higher-velocity throws while ensuring proper bracing and hip drive to stimulate the same abdominal and oblique fibers.

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Similarity scores compare exercise metadata such as movement pattern, muscles, equipment and body position. They are not a safety rating or a check that you own the equipment. Learn about our methodology