Looking for new punching bag training options?

The punching bag has become a symbol of punching power in pop culture, and rightfully so. The boxing bag is a large, powerful and durable projectile. It's made to be hit, and it tempts you to test your strength with every hit.

But the punching bag is more than just strength. Use it to develop your punching endurance, punching accuracy, and even your footwork! Here are five bag work exercises that will show you how to do it.

Watch my video for a visual demonstration various exercises on the bag!

1. Strength exercises

The most obvious way to develop your punching power on the bag is to hit it as hard as you can. It's best (especially for beginners) if you can resist this urge and limit yourself to only 50-80% strength. Strength comes more from good technique than from muscle effort, so strength training should also focus on technique rather than pure athleticism.

It is best if you strike in a realistic manner. What does it mean to throw combinations instead of single punches. Strike fast instead of charging like a karate master breaking boards. Use good technique instead of wasting your energy with every punch. And strike until the end of the round.

The problem is not hitting too hard
but in too much FOCUS on strength.

Regular Bag Exercise

This is not so much an exercise as it is a common way to work with a bag. Follow the bag and hit it hard.

Exercise Repeat Combinations

I get very great pleasure from this exercise because it develops muscle memory. Play the whole round throwing the same combinations or the same series of power combos. In a busy gym, this exercise can be performed in such a way that several fighters change with each other, taking turns throwing punches and holding a bag to each other, while the coach calls out combinations. For example, a coach might call out 1-2-3, where the fighters jab-right-hook continuously until he throws the next combo. If the coach calls out the command “change”, then the kicker and bag holder switch places.

2. Endurance Exercises

Exercise Short Hits

Hit the bag non-stop with short, repetitive punches as fast as you can for a whole round. In this exercise, the focus should be on throwing as many "punches" as possible and breathing properly all the while. Some coaches will tell you to lift your legs like you're running, and it will look like you're stepping with every punch. You can forget about technique, because endurance work is about volume, not strength.

The best advice I can give on endurance exercises is to RESIST to punching hard. So many guys end up trying to work on strength AND endurance in one exercise, and it ends up looking like a strength exercise. When you work for endurance, focus ONLY on landing as many punches as possible. This exercise may seem frivolous, but in reality, you are developing muscle memory so that your arm muscles get used to more contractions per round.

Build your endurance
by increasing the number of contractions.

Endurance Exercise Tips:

• Try to exhale with each beat.
• Maintain a straight posture without leaning towards the bag.
• Stand forward, or at least more forward than your normal boxing stance.
• You can aim at any height, many trainers prefer that you aim at head level so that your shoulders work more.
• The heels rise and fall with each stroke.
• The knees bend and unbend. There is no need to rotate the feet with each kick.

3. Exercises for Speed

Tabata Interval Exercises

To develop speed on the bag, use the same exercise as for endurance, but do it in intervals (also known as tabata exercises). The most popular interval is to hit for 15 seconds and then rest for 15 seconds, and repeat this for the rest of the round. This time of 15 seconds is ideal because it's short enough to practice your high-speed flashes so you don't get tired, but long enough to wear you out.

Once again, make sure you focus on your breath. You can lift your legs if you like. It may be more convenient to do Tabata exercises with a partner so that you take turns, first one strikes, the second holds the bag, then change. You can also change levels, such as hitting at head level (straight punches), chest level (straight punches with a vertical fist), and stomach level (using short uppercuts).

Speed ​​Exercise Tips:

• Resist the urge to turn your speed exercises into endurance exercises by skipping breaks between sets. Breaks allow your muscles to relax so that you can always hit at high speed and thus develop your hand speed.
• Speed ​​has more to do with the rate of muscle contraction than with technique. Don't focus on technique when doing speed drills.
• Rapid breathing equals fast speed. Exhale in short bursts of air to increase your hand speed.
• Your heels go up and down with every kick.
• The knees bend and unbend. You don't have to rotate your feet with every kick.

4. Footwork Exercises

Footwork Exercise 1 - Move With The Bag

Use a bag that can swing freely. It's best if you can find one that weighs 50-75% of your body weight. You want a bag that is heavy enough to take hits without flying off every hit, yet light enough to wobble with your punches. You may need to adjust your punching strength to create the desired effect.

Hit the bag like you normally do, but keep moving with the bag. If the bag swings in a circle, circle with it. Sometimes you can even dodge to the opposite side of the bag or completely dodge it. The goal is to move with the bag, not stand still waiting for it to come back to you.

Footwork Tips:

• Always keep the bag at arm's length, follow it as it flies away from you and back away or circle as it flies at you.
• Don't hit the bag too hard if it's moving faster than you can move your feet.
• Try to walk with the bag instead of jumping around it in a pinched stance.
• The easiest punch to throw on the move is the jab!

Footwork Exercise 2 - Angled Retreat

This angled exit exercise is designed to develop good footwork habits when working on the bag. The idea is to always move either back and to the right or back and to the left, and never back in a straight line. Throw a combination and then take a step back and to the right. Throw another combination and step back to the left (right-handed fighters will need to turn on their foot for this). Keep doing this over and over again.

It should look like a very smooth step after the combo, not like a jump! Another tip is not to back too far away from the bag so that you can't reach it after you've moved. When done correctly, this drill should look like you're re-throwing as you step back from the bag. A nimble fighter will look like he's just throwing punches and walking around the bag.

Footwork Tips:

• Keeping your feet on the ground allows you to be ready to hit or counter at all times.
• Constant jumping only wastes energy and takes you too far out of counter range.
• Try to work in a calm, relaxed manner.

5. Exercises for Precision

You wouldn't think that a punching bag could be used to develop accuracy, but here are a few methods to do so:

1. Scotch

What they do in some gyms is they put duct tape on the bag. Some have an organized system where they stick rings of different colors of duct tape separating different levels for blows to the head and body. Others stick pieces of tape in different places throughout the bag. Regardless of how you place the sticky tape, the goal is to increase your alertness and get you aiming at something instead of hitting anywhere.

2. Numbered Goals

There are even bags on which different numbers are pasted so that you can work out certain combinations. I'm not a big fan of this system (because the numbers disappear when the bag spins), but this is also an option, and you might like it.

3. Thin Punching Bags

I've only seen these in Canada, but I really liked them. This is a small but very dense bag, about 15 centimeters in diameter. It is suspended from a chain, but it also has an elastic cord attached to it from the bottom of the bag to the floor. It swings like a heavy sack, but comes back like a punching bag (stretched heavy bag?). Very useful and good for developing power punches TOGETHER With accuracy.

Hitting Accuracy Tips:

Accuracy has more to do with eye-hand coordination than anticipation right moment(which is called a timer). You develop accuracy not by waiting for the target, you do it by using your eyes to help you find the target. Keep hitting and making adjustments to make your next shots more accurate. Don't sit and wait for a moving target to slow down.

Develop ALL Your Punches on the Bag

Most important aspect working with a boxing bag, it's not to get carried away with punching power. IN real fight there are all kinds of strikes. Sometimes, you need more speed, or more quantity...strength is not always needed. A punching bag, for that matter, is designed to develop punching power FOR ALL YOUR PUNCHES (not just power punches).

After improving your striking abilities through the exercises above (strength, speed, endurance, etc.), apply them to your strikes in combat when necessary. Let your strikes go through different qualities and acquire the properties that you need in order to win in battle.

All kinds of strikes are necessary.
A perfect arsenal of strikes has strength, speed and endurance!

Want more bag work tips?

Working on the boxing bag is essential for setting the power, accuracy and speed of the punch. The bag is an imitation of the enemy. It is possible to work on the bag at long, medium and short distances. Strikes to the head and body are also practiced, combining with defensive actions.

Before starting work on the bag, it is necessary to do a warm-up, warm up the joints. Then you should bandage your hands with boxing bandages, this will protect your hands from injury. When working on…..

bag must be usedshell gloves, they perform the most important function - they allow you to work out a blow with more power and less damage.

Starting work on the bag, light blows should be applied for the first minute, putting no more than half of your strength into the blow. This will ensure that the hands gradually get used to the shock load.

IN training process, when one of the workouts is allocated to work on bags, you can organize the process of working out as follows.

1 round. Perform single strikes with the left and right hand. Strikes are practiced at long, medium and short distances. When performing strikes on the bag, it is necessary to monitor the correctness of their application.

2 round. Practicing double strikes. There are many combinations of double strikes. But on initial stage boxing, it is enough to practice several types of double punches, such as: left and right straight, left straight and right side, right straight and left side. The double can be performed both in the head and transferred from the head to the body and vice versa.

3 round. Serial work on the bag. A series must be carried out from 3-4 strokes, while developing speed and strength qualities. Also, when working, explosive force is serially developed.

4 round. Combining strikes with defensive actions. After each inflicted single blow, double blows or serial blows, it is necessary to perform defensive actions, such as: dives, rebounds, or the so-called "pendulum".

5 round. Combination of all kinds of shock actions with movements on the legs. To carry out this round, it is necessary to swing the bag and carry out an attack while moving forward, on the waste, from the left and right sides.

6 round. Practicing strikes with an accent. You need to put all your strength into every hit. During this round, the strength endurance and strength qualities of the boxer develop.

7 round. Explosive work. It is necessary to inflict the maximum number of blows in a given period of time. The round can be divided into intervals of 10, 20, 30 seconds. For example, the round is divided into intervals of 10 seconds. 10 seconds of explosive work, 10 seconds of rest with movement on the legs near the bag.

8 round. Close combat. Work is carried out on the bag at close range. At the same time, blows from below and side blows are carried out, both in the head and in the body.

9 round. Front hand work. It is necessary to carry out the load of the front hand. For this, direct, side and bottom blows are performed. All strikes must be combined with defensive actions.

The last 3 rounds carry out random work on the bag. In this case, all actions worked out in previous rounds are combined.

On the rest of the training days, it is enough to do 3 rounds of work on the bag. At the same time, the boxer works out either his favorite punches, or performs arbitrary work.

All martial arts fans practicing contact martial arts use pears (or bags) in the training process to practice punches. Initially, pears were used in a boxing environment, which is why they are commonly called boxing bags.

Currently, pears are used in almost all types of martial arts. They not only help to develop accuracy and speed of impact, but also contribute to the development of endurance, balance, the development of a sense of distance and the strengthening of striking surfaces.

There are several types of pears and bags.

This is a large cylinder made of tarpaulin, leatherette or leather filled with sawdust mixed with sand, plastic or rubber crumb. The weight of heavy pears is from 60 to 110 kg. The main purpose of a heavy pear is to develop powerful punches and develop lethal combinations. By virtue of its heavy weight, the pear is difficult to swing, therefore it is the most suitable for the work of athletes weight class. In Muay Thai, powerful kicks are practiced on such a pear. The legs must be unprotected. Only beginners are allowed to use light rubbers.

A warning:

• When working with a heavy pear, you should bandage your hands and work only with special gloves.
• Be careful when moving the pear in your direction. When struck, injuries to the wrist joint are possible.
• Working with a heavy pear requires sufficient physical fitness.

2) Medium punching bag

The most common type of pear. It can be used for training both in the gym and at home. The average pear has, as a rule, a pear-shaped form. That's where its name came from. The average pear is made from tarpaulin, leatherette or leather. The filler is sawdust, rags, plastic or rubber crumb. The weight of an average pear ranges from 30 to 60 kg.

A warning:

• The pear is quite mobile, while the pear is moving in your direction, it is not recommended to strike.
• Although the pear can be used for practicing at home, due to its range of motion, it requires sufficient space.

3) Light punching bag

Designed to develop the speed and accuracy of your punches. Its weight is from 5 to 30 kg. Most often, such pears are made from leatherette and filled with rags.

4) Uppercut or horizontal bag

Designed for practicing uppercuts. It is suspended horizontally with respect to the floor level. The bag is made from leatherette or leather, its weight is from 25 to 50 kg.

5) Pneumatic bulb

Inside this pear there is a latex or rubber chamber, which is inflated with air. Such a pear is used for setting fast and sharp blows, as well as for practicing reaction and ligaments with slopes. When working with such a pear, you can beat it in oncoming traffic, fly in or dodge it. Pneumatic pears are available in standard or reduced sizes.

A warning:

- Since the pear is quite light and able to develop great speed when returning to initial position, work with it requires a good reaction and increased attention.

6) Thai bag (in everyday life "banana")

Reminds a standard boxing bag, but has a length of 150-180 cm. The weight of the bag is 60-100 kg. The bag is mainly used for kicking. The bag is able to deform from impacts throughout the entire volume, therefore it is weakly amenable to buildup.

7) Water-filled mannequin

The most modern development. It acts as a punching bag, but is made of the latest materials and is a mannequin on a plastic base.

How to work with a pear

With any kind of pear should be worked only after a warm-up. The warm-up depends on the sport and the training program.

Working with a big punching bag

Work with a big pear should be carried out exclusively in the presence of a coach and, as a rule, according to a plan specially created by him. When working, you should monitor the position of the hand and fist. The fist should be clenched at the very last moment, almost in full contact with the pear. After contact with the pear, the hand should not linger; it should be immediately returned to its original position.

The blow must be delivered with a very high speed. When working with a big bag, punches are combined with movements forward, backward and sideways, which contributes to the development of footwork. The work is often carried out in a free style, which involves a wide variety of movements. Since working with a big pear is quite tiring, in the event of fatigue, classes should be stopped or more attention should be paid not to percussion, but to protective techniques. Otherwise, the movements will be performed and remembered incorrectly.

Video: Working with a pear

Working with a medium pear

Working with such a pear is almost the same as with a heavy pear. The only difference is that the medium bag is much more mobile than the heavy bag, and this allows you to strike from a variety of positions.

Video: How to hit a pear

Working with a pneumatic bulb can be done in two ways. In the first case, it is recommended to strike the pear at different angles, because of which the pear acquires a chaotic movement. After that, you should strike a clear blow on it. In the second case, clear direct blows are applied to the pear, setting the pear in motion of one axis (in a straight line back and forth). Thus, the accuracy of strikes and the correct placement of the fist are developed.

Video: Working with a pneumatic bulb

Everyone knows that a punching bag does not give back, but this is understandable, and sparring is an integral part of training. All right, but, nevertheless, nothing can replace a heavy boxing bag. Each training projectile has its own purpose, and since in our case it is a pear, we will consider its purpose.

There is a difference between a punching bag and a punching bag, but many people speak of a punching bag as a punching bag, and, accordingly, they speak of it as it should - a punching bag. You can’t say that about a pear, since it resembles the shape of a pear in shape. Calling a punching bag a pear is more of a matter of habit in general, and I don't think it's something terrible.

The blog has an article "", which may interest you. To make a punching bag does not need a lot of time and money. By and large, you only need sand and a polypropylene bag (a couple of pieces). You should choose a pear filler based on your preparation, but this is not about that now.

Let's go directly to how to hit the punching bag correctly. Why would a person be interested in this at all? No, I'm not in terms of goals. A person who is interested in the question "How to hit a bag correctly" is most likely training in the gym without a coach, or at home, and he does not quite understand what he needs to do. Alternatively, you have a coach, but you think that he is doing something wrong, and you doubt his competence. Maybe you just don't like the way he teaches. Yes, coaches are different. good coach can always be determined by the achievements of his students.

Which pear (bag) to choose. Weight

The weight of a punching bag that may suit you depends on your weight, but in general, the heavier the better, and weights of 70-100 kg are fine. Naturally, you will not be able to train fruitfully on a 40 kg boxing bag if your weight is 90 kg.

In principle, it is a pear that can be suitable for practicing punches, but nevertheless, it will not replace a good and heavy boxing bag, since on the bag you can practice punches to the head and body, and you can also practice kicks on the lower parts and body. On a bag that is often closer to head height, you won't be able to practice low kicks. Accordingly, kicks fall at the level of the head. The material of the punching bag is not important, but I want to say a few words about it. If you are working with bare hands, then the pear should be exclusively leather. For example, working with bare hands on a tarpaulin pear, you will very quickly erase the skin, and your fists will be in wounds that will not allow you to conduct a fruitful workout.

The bag should not be very hard, because working on a very hard bag, you will unwittingly restrain the force of the blow, which can become a habit, but we do not need it. But, if there is only a hard pear, then it's okay. You can work on it, slowly hardening your fists, and gradually moving on to punches at full strength, but this must be monitored and controlled.

Equipment

Perhaps you have a question - “Why work on a pear with your bare hands?”. The fact is that the athlete must proceed from the goal, and in accordance with it, approach training. If you are training to be in shape and fight back against hooligans on the street, then in this case it is better to use a minimum of equipment, or work without it. By equipment I mean bandages, shells and other gloves.

It is difficult to say what is best for training, the purpose of which is protection on the street.

1. On the one hand - boxing bandages. A wonderful and very necessary piece of equipment for a fighter, but do not forget that on the street you will not have time to wrap bandages, and your fists get used to the corset that is created by bandages, and in case of an incorrect blow, there may be serious consequences. Although, even when training in bandages alone, the hands become hardened, and the consequences will not be very serious, unlike an untrained fist. The same, do not forget that the boxing bandage fixes the hand very well in the wrist, and this gives a certain unloading during training.
2. The second option is ordinary medical elastic bandages. A very good thing, and there are advantages to using these bandages. One of the pluses is that they bandage very quickly. They do not need to be bandaged like boxers. We simply wrap an elastic medical bandage around the palm and wrist, and it is advisable to hide the end under the bandages in the palm of your hand. The option is good and convenient. If the boxing bandage will be let down, if we do not tighten it tightly, then everything will be in order. We can wrap the striking surface as many times as needed, and wind the wrist several times purely symbolically. That is, in this case we simply protect the hand, and give freedom to the hands, which will not be fixed during an unexpected street fight.
3. Rifle gloves are a good option. It is good because the brush is not fixed, and gloves serve as protection for you. Agree that you can’t work with your bare hands for a couple of hours. This is a great option, and if possible, I advise you to choose it. The hand remains as mobile as possible at the wrist, and the bones of the fist are not in the corset.
4. Another good option that I want to advise you is ordinary household gloves. You can fruitfully work on the bag in ordinary household gloves. If they are tight, then put on one pair, and if they are thin, then two or three. This is an economical and angry option. Household gloves do not create a corset and protect hands.
5. Working with bare hands is, in principle, a good option, but work should be done exclusively on a leather pear. But, despite the material, the skin of the hands will suffer, and such a choice can cause inconvenience. I think it's better to protect the fists, and "leave the bones" to the hooligans. The equipment will protect your fists from injury and allow you to increase your workout time.

If you are boxing, then to achieve your goal you need to work in. That is, training should be as close as possible to the conditions that are the target.

The weakest point

Now I want to say a few words about the weak point, and I think that many have guessed that this is the wrist. If you haven't hit a bag for a long time, or haven't hit it at all, then you may be surprised to find that with a strong enough blow, your brush breaks. This may be seriously angry, but anger will not help here. There is nothing wrong with this, since your wrists are not prepared, and accordingly, they must be prepared.

Strong, the wrists become after some time of training with a pear, as they get used to the load, but it would not hurt to further strengthen them and, in general, devote some time to them in training.

Ways to strengthen the wrist.

1. . Great option wrist strengthening.
2. Fist stand. Trains not only the wrists.
3. . There is nothing to add here, since it is already clear that push-ups on the wrists strengthen the wrists.
4. Bending the arms at the wrists with a barbell or dumbbells, various grips. This great exercise, which will help develop the strength of both the wrist and the muscles of the forearm. We put our hands on the bench, palms up, while we squat. We hold dumbbells or a barbell in our hand. The brushes should extend beyond the bench. Now just raise the brushes, and lower them to their original position. You can use another grip - palms down, but for the wrists this does not play a special role. You can also train with a rubber band.

Warm up

Now let's talk a little about the warm-up. Do I need to warm up before working with a pear? On the one hand, this part is not very important, since working with a pear is an aerobic exercise, which is a warm-up. Increasing the pace gradually will not hurt anything.

Legs are very important in combat. If the muscles are not warmed up, then they can be damaged, and they will not have the mobility that heated muscles have. As for the legs, it is not so easy to warm them up just by working on the bag, even by actively moving. The best option there will be a jump rope. This projectile will help warm up both lower part body and upper. You should not tire your body very much with jumping rope, and after 5-10 minutes you can proceed to the next stage.

Then you can go directly to work with a pear, or conduct a round of shadow boxing. Shadow boxing should be done in front of a mirror, but if there is no mirror, then it's okay. You need a mirror so that you can see your mistakes in it. During shadowboxing, try to identify your mistakes, which may be in the movement of the legs, arms, defense. Move - you should always be on the move. A target that doesn't move is an easy target and you should always keep that in mind.

After a round with a shadow, you can move on to beating a pear.

A bit of physics

What is the strength? Based on Newton's second law, we can say that there are two factors that affect force. Perhaps the strength is in truth, but still the one who has more mass and speed is stronger.

Let's break down the formula - F=mV/t.

M - mass

V - speed

T - time

How to hit a pear correctly. Working with a pear for beginners

Punch and push

A beginner who has just started on a bag will most likely start pushing it rather than beating it, and this is normal for a beginner - in any case, there is nothing to worry about, and as you practice, this disappears. If you train yourself, then you should always watch yourself to hit the bag, and not push it. And always remember Newton's second law. The blow must be concentrated and fast. good hit this is an invisible blow, and this should always be remembered, no matter for what purpose you are training.

First, try to deliver single blows, and only then, when you understand that you have the right single blows, you can switch to “twos” and “threes”. Do not forget that the hands must always return. The main thing is not to get used to the fact that the pear does not give back, and, if possible, to spar.

Remember footwork

Don't forget your footwork. During the punch, both feet must be on the floor. Of course, the legs must work properly on impact, but that's not all. As you hit the bag, move forward, backward, and sideways, which will also prepare you for reflex movements on the street and in the ring. Make dives and dodges. Do not stand in one place - do not accustom yourself to immobility. The more mobile you are during a fight, the harder it is to hit you, and the more dangerous you become for your opponent. Do not put your feet together - remember the stance. A wide stance is better than a narrow stance. The movement is the topic of a separate article, but in short, we first take a step with the foot in the direction of which the movement, and then the second. You can make jumps, but they must be short and fast, and this is also a separate issue.

natural style

The natural style is the punching style where you just hit the bag using combinations. Just stand up and hit the bag. No matter how, the main thing is to hit, returning your hands, and not forgetting about breathing. Hit from different angles, from different distances, with different strengths and

Working in this style in the future may be useful to you, especially on the street, since it is in the conditions of the street that non-standard situations are often created.

No need to keep your fist on the pear. As soon as the blow has reached its peak, the hand must be quickly returned.

When working on the punching bag, always breathe through your nose and keep your teeth clenched. This will become a habit and you won't open your mouth during a fight. The jaw breaks just when the mouth is open.

That's all. Now you know how to hit a pear correctly.

You may also be interested in articles:

Learn to work with the bag. No need to just "thresh" it. Here are 10 bag training tips to develop boxing technique and punching power.

1. Be careful

When training on this apparatus, the main problem is that you develop bad "vision" habits. When hitting the bag, fighters often either look at the bag at one point, or do not look at the projectile at all.

Too focused look

Such intense eye contact is good for a hunter aiming at his target. In the ring, this kind of look kind of tells your opponent where you are going to strike. Never look down if you are about to strike to the torso. Otherwise, it will be easy to defend against such a blow and counterattack. Do not look at the point of impact, especially since when you hit the torso, your head is left unprotected.

Do not look at one point.

When working with a bag, you just need to look ahead. Imagine that the bag is your opponent and you need to keep an eye on him. Watch his head and body movements. You hit with precision, but without bulging your eyes at the point of impact.

lazy eyes

This is when the fighter doesn't look at the bag at all. Believe it or not, some fighters can't even answer the question, "Where are you looking when you punch?" Sometimes there are boxers who strike strong blows look at the floor or to the side. Very often, when tired, boxers hit blindly.

No need for your eyes to wander. Lazy eyes make you vulnerable in the ring! Focus and look at the bag. This will give good accuracy and, more importantly, the ability to see the oncoming strike. The best way to cure lazy eyes is to stick squares of tape on the bag (i.e. something that you can look at) or spend more time practicing with other projectiles that allow you to train concentration of vision, for example, with an air bag.

You need to look at the bag, but not "hatch" your eyes at it. The entire bag should be in the field of view, not part of it. Keep a constant eye on the distance (the distance from you to the bag).

2. Keep your balance

Throw punches into the bag, not yourself. Stand on both feet and don't fall on the bag. Maintaining balance promotes a more powerful punch and better footwork when moving around the bag.

Don't hang on the bag. Don't push him with your shoulders - this bad habit allows skilled boxers to "fail" you by shifting when you fall on them. And in no case do not push the bag with your head! This - The best way run into an uppercut.

3. Don't push, but hit

From your blows, the bag should not swing much, but should shake like a paralytic. There is an old saying: "If you want to know who hits the bag correctly, ask a blind man." This means that it is by sound that you can determine whether you are hitting correctly or not. You want a pop or slap from the impact, not a thud. For those who are not in the know: I wrote an article a long time ago "How to throw a whipping punch"

A push (not a punch) will just push the bag and your arms will tire quickly. A quick whipping blow will hardly budge the bag. Relax your arms and throw quick snapping punches. Invest, but in such a way that the contact time of your fist with the bag is not too long. As soon as contact has been made, immediately return the hand back and throw the next blow. If your hands get tired quickly, then you would not hit, but push the bag. I repeat: contact with the bag should be short-term.

4. When hitting, the feet must be on the floor

When hit, the feet must be on the floor. Standing on the floor means good balance, great power, precise blow, the ability to quickly escape after being hit! You can move all you want, but when it's time to hit, put your feet on the floor! If you find it difficult to keep your feet off the floor while moving around the bag, take smaller steps. Professionals hit much harder because they keep their feet on the floor even when they move around the ring.

5. When not punching, move your feet.

Move your arms or legs.

As my coach used to say: “Move your arms, or your legs, or your head.” If your move is not offensive, then it is a defensive move. Because the bag doesn't hit back, we don't worry about head movement, but we definitely need leg movement. When finished hitting, be sure to move.

Keep distance

Always keep the correct distance. Move with the bag and keep it within striking distance at all times. Don't let the bag swing too far or too close. Don't be lazy and work with your feet. Move along with the bag, and do not stand and wait for it to “fly” to you. Move away when the bag comes at you and follow him when he leaves you. If you can't keep up with your kicks to the rhythm of the bag, hit lighter or choose a heavier bag... or train your legs.

6. Don't wait

This is what separates a man from a boy. Watch the pros at work on the bag and you will see that they are constantly throwing punches. They rest no more than 2 seconds.

Beginners always take breaks between series (combinations). After a series, restoring their breath, they walk for 10-15 seconds. Such long periods of inactivity will kill you. In a real fight, there are no 10-second breaks to recover your breath.

When you stop hitting, they hit you.

The moral of this fable is: "Never Stop Hitting". You don't need to constantly hit with all your strength, but you need to constantly throw punches. As you catch your breath and move around the bag, throw light punches and jabs. Once you're ready for some hard hitting, step up and open fire.

7. Less power but more breath

When working with a bag, as well as when running, it is very important to breathe! Don't worry too much about the power of your punches. Concentrate on explosive breathing. In order not to get tired, relax and control your breathing.

Strength comes from good technique
stamina - due to proper breathing.

Strength and endurance have little to do with how much effort you put in to strike. Professionals land hundreds of powerful punches with good technique and proper breathing alone. Proper breathing allows you to stay relaxed and throw a lot of punches without getting tired. good technique allows you to deliver strong blows without overspending the energy that is invested in the blow.

Don't let the bag tire you out. The bag works in your rhythm, i.e. in the rhythm of your beats. Learn to save energy for more serious training(sparring or work with a suspended bag). If bag work tires you, then you are not yet ready for the competition.

8. Throw 3-6 hits

A series of 3-6 hits is what you need. Not 1, not 2, and not 10. 3-6 hits are enough to damage the opponent and don't take long, so there's an opportunity to get away before the opponent throws a counter combo. Connect your punches in combinations. For example, try common (1-2-1-2, 1-2-3, etc.) and uncommon (1-3-2, 3-1-2-3-3, etc.) . Fights take place in combinations, not in single strikes. Hit combinations and keep the rhythm.

Strike high (to the head) and low (to the body). It is often seen that blows to the head are not delivered high enough. When it comes to fighting, it often turns out that due to the habit of hitting low, the fighter's shoulders quickly get tired.

9. Active recreation

Everyone gets tired.
It's important to keep doing something.

When you're tired, don't just stand. Move! If you are going to rest - rest while moving and apply light blows. Don't hang yourself on a bag and don't try to dance like Mike Tyson. It's really bad when you stand still, like that same bag.

10. Keep your hands up

You need to make sure that your strength does not confuse you.

It's easy to get lazy on defense
because the bag does not give change.

You THINK you're holding your hands high, but you can only check if you're getting hit. Until it's time to step into the ring, you can spend hundreds of hours beating the bag and exacerbating bad habits without realizing how open you are. When you jab, don't drop right hand. And never drop it when you throw a left hook. Don't just cover your head, but tuck your elbows in to protect your torso. It's best to have a trainer or friend oversee your bag workouts and yell at you every time you give up.

Heavy bag workout

Such training is aimed at developing effective, but not absolute strength. This is not breaking a brick with one blow. Need powerful blows throughout the fight, not just for one round. Keep your hands up, move around the bag and make sure to apply quick strikes. Be careful, keep your balance and hit! If you do it right, it will be easy. Work on the bag will be a good "warm-up" before the real work - in the ring.

Other boxing bag training guides: