We test and review fitness products based on an independent, multi-point methodology. If you use our links to purchase something, we may earn a commission. Read our disclosures.
XD Kevlar Fitness Equipment is currently making some of the best medicine balls and sandbags in the industry. Combining high-quality materials such as Kevlar with well thought out designs, we recommend XD Medicine Balls to anyone who wants equipment that lasts.
XD Fitness
The toughest medicine ball built with DuPont™ Kevlar® fiber. No medicine ball offers greater durability. Specially woven cover featuring extreme tensile StranTec™ Kevlar® similar to the material used in many body armors, this ball is durable enough to hold up to even the most rigorous movements and training environments. Proprietary lamination provides tacky grip to the ball which aides in throwing, catching, and handling the ball especially in intense training. Patented upgraded panel design and reinforced stitching ensure unparalleled durability as well as better distribution of force when slammed, dropped, or thrown against walls.
Unboxing
The XD Kevlar Equipment showed up on my doorstep in one piece, thankfully. I’m sure my delivery man wasn’t too happy to have to lug the boxes one by one up to the doorstep, but he managed. Actually, I had an argument with FedEx who tried to say they couldn’t deliver my 150 lb Medicine Ball because it was too heavy. It was on my doorstep the next day.
The equipment I received and am reviewing today is as follows:
- 6 lb. 10″ Medicine Ball
- 10 lb. 10″ Medicine Ball (Official Hooverball Size)
- 30 lb. 14″ Medicine Ball
- 40 lb. Sand Disc
- 45 lb. Sandbag
- 150 lb. 18″ Medicine Ball
Everything arrived in good order, although some of the boxes were a little worse for wear. That said, if you’re worried about equipment being damaged during shipment, medicine balls are probably some of the most durable equipment there is.
XD Kevlar Medicine Ball and Sandbag Review
I’ve had the pleasure of using a variety of medicine balls. Medicine balls, also known as the more modern name, wall balls, are essentially a big ball with a varying amount of weight.
The medicine ball that has been most popular up to a couple of years ago was made by Dynamax. They still make medicine balls, however, due to their vehement dislike of CrossFit, they are no longer seen in gyms as often.
Rogue Fitness, seeing an opportunity in the market, started making medicine balls at the Rogue Factory in Columbus, Ohio. These are currently the standard against which all other medicine balls are compared due to their quality, warranty, and price.
In addition to Rogue Fitness pouncing on the opportunity to capture some of the CrossFit market share, other companies have followed suit. Fringe Sport, Vulcan Strength, Rep Fitness, and Get RXd all sell similar medicine balls. I say similar because they’re all considered “premium” options and are imported from what seems like similar places. Now, I don’t have any exact specifics as these companies don’t always like to give out their manufacturer list, but it’s safe to say they are likely similar.
You’re probably waiting for me to say that the XD Kevlar Medicine Balls are superior because they’re made in the USA…but I’m not going to. The reason is that they’re not made in the US, but rather Pakistan as evidenced by stickers that litter every ball.
I’ve written on USA-made vs. imported products in the past, but it must be said that just because something is made in the USA, that does not equate to it being superior. I’ve used many “MIA” products that couldn’t hold a candle to some of their imported counterparts. So, before you neglect the XD Kevlar Medicine Balls because of their country of origin, read a bit further.
There are a few things that are important to look at when purchasing a medicine ball:
- Outer Shell Durability
- Accurate Weight
- Balanced Weight
- Roundness
- Price
Let’s discuss the XD Medicine Balls from the top down.
The outer shell of the XD Medicine Balls is without a doubt their standout feature. Pretty much every medicine ball features a variation of the same vinyl shell, and for good reason, it does a pretty good job of preventing rips. That said, pretty good when it comes to pieces of equipment that will be slammed, thrown, and provided little care for deserves to be better than pretty good. Not only should the shell of a medicine ball be tough, but it should also be grippy.
People use medicine balls for just about everything you could think of, but one of the most popular uses is for wall balls, a movement popularized by CrossFit. To perform wall balls, a sweaty user squats with a medicine ball in the front rack and explodes upward throwing the ball off the wall until it drops and they can catch it going back into the squat. It’s a dynamic movement that requires accuracy, coordination, and endurance (if you’re doing many reps.)
A slippery medicine ball doesn’t help in any way with this movement. People use chalk to grip a barbell, but for medicine balls, there isn’t much that can be done to increase grip.
This is why I’m a fan of what XD Equipment has done with their medicine balls. Rather than use the typical vinyl cover, they’ve combined Dupont Kevlar with a tacky surface that is both durable and grippy. In fact, I can easily say that the shell of the XD Medicine Balls is the best I’ve ever used.
Using Kevlar ensures that the cover won’t rip and the tacky surfaces provide a solid grip during use. Although Kevlar ensures that the cover won’t rip, it doesn’t mean the seams won’t. I haven’t had any problems with the seams yet, but should they fail I will update the review.
The next item on our list of things to look at when purchasing a medicine ball is the weight. Put simply, for a medicine ball, the weight is about as close as you’re going to get. These aren’t calibrated barbells or plates, but compared to other medicine balls, these are right in line.
One of the biggest issues outside of durability is the ability of the ball to remain round with the weight balanced throughout. Although the shell is pretty much indestructible as I’ve said, the balanced weight and roundness of the ball have left a bit to be desired.
Supposedly (as the XD reps have told me,) the XD Medicine Balls get better with time and use as the inner contents disperse. I’ve been using their medicine balls for a little over a month, and I have noticed them starting to get more even, but out of the box, they were quite lopsided. This was actually a bit frustrating at first due to the unevenness making it difficult to use for wall balls, but it’s gotten much better over time.
It must be said, and this makes sense to me, but the bigger the medicine ball, the more uneven the weight initially is. For instance, the 150 lb Medicine Ball, that is pretty much just a soft atlas stone, felt much more uneven in the beginning than the smaller balls did. The Sandbag felt the most uneven and still is the most unbalanced out of all the equipment.
In addition to the weight being somewhat uneven in the beginning, the balls also don’t remain perfectly round. Personally, this isn’t the biggest issue for me as they’re close enough, but I have noticed the Dynamax, and Rogue Medicine Balls retain their shape better than the XD Balls.
Outside of the construction, these balls are great to use. Due to their tough build quality, I don’t have any worries about them breaking. So, I can use them for powerful movements like slamming on the ground or against a wall. If you’ve been following Garage Gym Reviews for any length of time, then you understand how much I like equipment that is made to last, and that’s what I see with the XD Equipment.
The 150 lb Medicine Ball is the perfect idea for gyms that want atlas stones without the mess and liability involved with hard stones. The large medicine balls prevent additional liability associated with heavy stones and also are less intimidating for certain parts of your membership.
The sandbags come with lots of handles to allow for various grips during use. One thing I do really like about the sandbags is their fit and finish. Most sandbags, no matter how good, will leak some sand. The XD Sandbag has leaked nothing thus far, and the grippy kevlar coating is helpful during weighted carries. The only thing I dislike on the sandbags is the uneven weight displacement, but I’m hoping as it gets used more, it will become more even.
Finally, the smaller medicine balls are perfect for throws as well as the great game of Hoover Ball.
The XD Medicine Balls are overall some of the best medicine balls we’ve used and recommend them to anyone looking for a well performing, durable medicine ball.
XD Fitness
Reinforced with DuPont™ Kevlar® fiber, this extremely durable sandbag will help you take your total body workouts to a new level. Kevlar® fiber cover features 5 nylon handles with reinforced stitching allows for the most heavy of use. Special interior construction prevents weight from shifting around in bag and helps the bag maintain its shape. All bags come prefilled with weight so no filling required.
Suggested Improvements
Although I’m a fan of the XD Medicine Balls and other equipment, there are some things that need to be addressed in order to make the equipment greatly superior to others.
The first thing that should be fixed is the uneven weight displacement out of the box. Sure, the weight is supposed to displace over time, but this is something that should be done before the consumer receives it. The XD Medicine Balls are premium products, as such, they should have premium standards.
The second improvement that needs to be made is a way to keep the balls round over an extended period of time. I’ve heard from others that they’ve experienced the same issue with their XD Medicine Balls becoming lopsided over time and I believe this is an issue that should be fixed as soon as possible.
Full Rating
XD Kevlar Medicine Balls
XD Kevlar Fitness Equipment is currently making some of the best medicine balls and sandbags in the industry. Combining high-quality materials such as Kevlar with well thought out designs, we recommend XD Medicine Balls to anyone who wants equipment that lasts.
Product Brand: XD Fit
Product Currency: USD
Product Price: 94.99
Product In-Stock: InStock
4.3
XD Kevlar Fitness Equipment FAQs
What is XD Kevlar Fitness equipment?
XD Kevlar Fitness Equipment is now producing some of the industry’s top medicine balls and sandbags. We recommend XD Medicine Balls to anybody looking for long-lasting equipment, since they combine high-quality materials like Kevlar with well-thought-out designs.
What to look for when shopping for a medicine ball?
When purchasing a medicine ball, there are a few factors to keep in mind:
The durability of the outer shell, Price, Accurate Weight, Balanced Weight, Roundness, etc.
Where to Purchase
XD Fitness
The toughest medicine ball built with DuPont™ Kevlar® fiber. No medicine ball offers greater durability. Specially woven cover featuring extreme tensile StranTec™ Kevlar® similar to the material used in many body armors, this ball is durable enough to hold up to even the most rigorous movements and training environments. Proprietary lamination provides tacky grip to the ball which aides in throwing, catching, and handling the ball especially in intense training. Patented upgraded panel design and reinforced stitching ensure unparalleled durability as well as better distribution of force when slammed, dropped, or thrown against walls.
Further reading
CrossFit is a training style made up of constantly varied, high-intensity functional movements. As such, you want a barbell that can perform a wide variety of movements and last a long time.A good CrossFit Barbell will have many features similar to a general purpose barbell; the best CrossFit barbell makes Olympic lifting, powerlifting, CrossFit metcons, and accessory work all feel smooth and natural. The main differences I see in CrossFit bars compared to general barbells is that a solid CrossFit barbell must have increased durability and allow athletes to easily cycle the bar (that is, it must be great for high-repetition workouts with a variety of movements).A big reason CrossFit bars require increased durability? Most barbells made for CrossFit are used in an affiliate setting, not just a garage gym. This means tons of people use the bars every day and don’t necessarily take the same care of them that the owner would.CrossFit bars are often dropped from overhead, slammed into the ground, and chalked up as if the person using it was drowning in their own sweat. (I've also seen some weird stuff done to barbells at affiliates, like using a barbell as if it was a shovel and straight up throwing the bar.) So, yeah, durability is key.The best CrossFit barbells enable athletes to perform all of the Olympic lifts (snatches, cleans, and jerks), all of the power lifts (back squat, bench press, deadlift), and any type of accessory work. If you're into Olympic lifting or powerlifting, check out our guides to the best Olympic barbells and thebest powerlifting barbells as well.As CrossFit continues to soar in popularity, everyone and their brother wants to sell you a CrossFit bar. To be frank, there are a lot of low quality CrossFit bars out there now. That’s why I decided to compare the best of the best CrossFit barbells all in one place. Keep reading for my top picks for the best CrossFit barbells.RELATED: Looking to build the ultimate CrossFit home gym? Check out our guide to the best CrossFit equipment for a home gym for more details! Read more
Sandbags are a versatile weight training tool for building full-body strength. Find the best workout sandbag for your home gym with our guide. Read more
Pound Padmakes a simple product that does one thing extremely well, reducing the noise of dropping weights. Combining high-quality foam with a durable shell, Pound Pad's are the best option currently available for reducing the noise associated with dropping barbells. Read more
In this Nautilus E618 elliptical review, we’ll cover the specs and who will benefit from this at-home, low-impact cardio machine. Read more