In fact, it has long been proven that a heavy bag is an excellent cardio trainer.
Everyone chooses their own - some will give their preference to running, some to a jump rope, and some to a punching bag.
Picture 1 – Exercises with a punching bag
If, nevertheless, a fighter decides to practice on a boxing bag, then he must have a clear understanding of what needs to be done.
You should also discard all your worries and thoughts about your appearance. After all, those who decided to practice on a punching bag for the first time, especially beginners, are very worried about how they will look from the outside.
They don’t know how to hit, where to hit, at what speed, etc. This article contains exercises that will help a beginner at first. An experienced fighter can also perform these exercises.
Exercise 1 – Ten rounds on the punching bag
This exercise involves working on a punching bag for 10 rounds. Each round lasts approximately 2 minutes. You should also take into account the 20 second breaks that need to be taken after each round.
1 round. This initial round can be called a warm-up round. First you need to swing the bag, striking it, and then you need to spin around it. It is necessary to imagine that this bag is the fighter’s enemy. The goal of this round is to warm up the body muscles well and walk around the pear.
Round 2 In this round, the work is done with double and single jabs. There is no need to stop moving around the bag.
Round 3 This round also continues the training of jabs. But now we place great emphasis on the force of the blow. If in the previous round all the jabs were approximately the same strength, then in this round you can play with the strength of the blow delivered.
Exercise 2 – Pear – the best cardio machine
Round 4 In this round you can practice the speed of your strikes. As an option, you can choose from various strike combinations consisting of 2 or 3 strikes.
Round 5 In this round, as in others, you must not forget to move. In this round you need to make combinations consisting of two hits.
Round 6 In this round, preference is given to free combat. Now you need to focus not on the force of the blow, but on its speed.
Round 7 Combinations with an accent consisting of 3 hits.
Round 8 Freestyle punching bag.
Round 9 Combinations of 2-3 strikes with an accent.
Round 10 This round is necessary to give it your all. All blows must be delivered at maximum speed.
The benefits of working on a punching bag
Firstly, working with it is an excellent aerobic exercise, which is very useful and important not only for the whole body, but also for the cardiovascular system. Exercise helps improve blood circulation and strengthen bones and muscles.
Reference! In terms of its load, training on a bag can be compared with the most complex speed loads.
When performing strikes, you apply muscle effort, strengthening all joints, cartilage, and bones. All this is important not only for a boxer or athlete in general, but also for an ordinary person. As a result, the body’s “combat readiness” increases significantly, which allows you to feel great in any conditions (be it a battle or ordinary living conditions).
Your body’s “margin of safety” increases, i.e. you will not get tired as quickly as before. Training on a bag and practicing impacts in terms of load and work is similar to the dumbbell bench press. The deltoids, biceps, hands, fingers, triceps, and forearms work here. It is important to understand that the heavier the bag, the more effort will be required to strike, but the recoil will increase significantly.
Secondly, during such training the musculoskeletal system is strengthened. It is important to choose the right load and give the body at least a little rest and recovery. A boxer doesn’t have much time for recovery, but it also needs to be chosen carefully. This is necessary so as not to “burn out.”
Thirdly, training on a bag improves coordination and automaticity. During boxing, a huge number of muscles are involved, a thousand movements are performed, which are then carried out automatically. Plus, the athlete analyzes each situation, he has time to practice various techniques. To avoid injury during such training, you need to prepare for it correctly and perform all techniques “according to the instructions.”
We can conclude that training with a punching bag (or punching bag) largely:
- improve physical fitness;
- help make the blow much stronger, and therefore more dangerous;
- improve striking technique;
- improve coordination - after all, in boxing it is important not only to sting like a bee, but also to flutter like a butterfly;
- many attacks become automatic;
- help strengthen muscles, bones, joints, neck;
- strengthen the cardiovascular system.
Exercise 6 – Hitting accuracy training
This is a very good exercise that trains the accuracy of strikes. Having trained strength and endurance, you need to pay special attention to the accuracy of the strikes.
Picture 3 – Boxer training on a bag
After all, in essence, it is not so important how quickly a boxer strikes, and with what force, if he hits these strikes anywhere.
When performing an exercise aimed at striking accuracy, you need to put aside fuss and not make strikes “wherever you have to.”
You need to learn to aim and strike accurately.
In this case, marking the target on the pear will help very well. For example, you can use electrical tape for this task.
Preparing for training on a punching bag
An important aspect of every workout is a warm-up. Its absence and boxing “cold” is the cause of many injuries. If the body is not warmed up, it will not be as flexible and elastic, both literally and figuratively. By warming up your muscles, you provide important and beneficial nutrients for them. This allows you to avoid injury even with the strongest impact.
Reference! For example, wrestlers knead their ears before training and bouts. This helps to avoid injuries - fractures. After all, this type of injury is considered one of the most “ugly” for an athlete.
For this reason, warming up in any sport is very important. Without warming up your body, you will not enter the game, fight, and show everything you are capable of. According to statistics, athletes receive most of their injuries during training, or when the body is poorly warmed up or not warmed up at all.
Unfortunately, many beginners may find this procedure a bit tedious. But over the years, they begin to understand the very important need for even the lightest warm-up.
Reference! Many athletes use jumping rope or regular running in place to warm up. Sometimes even 10–15 minutes are enough to circulate blood throughout the body.
An important aspect of any preparation before training on a punching bag is bandaging your hands. If this is not done, even with not the strongest blows, you can damage your hands and bones. They are the ones who suffer the most. By properly fixing the hand, you can avoid sprains and even fractures.
Exercise 7 – slopes and defense
A punching bag is an excellent opponent because you can practice punches on it. And this “enemy” will clearly not deliver counterattacks.
But this is the insidiousness of training on a punching bag. The thing is that some boxers, having spent several dozen training sessions with a punching bag, then go out with a real opponent. They have a sharp strike, they know how to put force into it, and in general they are durable. But they begin to forget about the obvious things - about their own protection.
The pear does not remind you of something, but the boxer forgets to dodge and defend. Therefore, it will be better if the boxer immediately trains correctly, so as not to remember “obvious things” later.
Ensuring safe training
Every boxer knows how to properly clench his hand into a fist in order to inflict maximum “damage” on his opponent. It must be remembered that when working on the bag it is very important to compress it correctly. You should always firmly hold your hand while striking. If you do this incorrectly or not strictly enough, at a minimum, you are guaranteed to have hand injuries and broken fingers, and sometimes it can even lead to fractures. Don't be lazy and always do everything in accordance with the execution technique.
Always strike with a measured effort. When striking, it is important not to overdo it. Sometimes athletes deliver such powerful blows that their ligaments may not be able to withstand and become injured. The result is sometimes disastrous - sprains, bruises, fractures, dislocations, etc. Oddly enough, but you need to start training according to the principle: the slower you go, the further you will go. And only then increase the pace and speed.
Where to buy sandbag
Instead of a special sandbag, you can use any sports bag or make a bag yourself, but it is better to purchase a ready-made version. Firstly, it is made of durable materials. Secondly, it is equipped with special handles for easy grip. Thirdly, internal fillers will help you easily adjust the weight of the sandbag (although such bags can be replaced with regular bags). The filling material (sand) is not included in the equipment; you will need to purchase it separately.
Affordable sandbags are sold on AliExpress. We offer you a selection of high-quality bags for sports training with free delivery throughout Russia. The average price of sandbags is 2000-3000 rubles. There are links to one product from different sellers, you can choose an option at a better price (there are often good discounts!), by desired weight or other factors.
Sandbag 15-30 kg with fillings
- Bag from 18 kg to 45 kg
- Bag from 18 kg to 45 kg
- Bag from 18 kg to 27 kg
- 20 kg bag
Sandbag round from 5 kg to 30 kg
- Store 1
- Store 2
- Store 3
- Store 4
The situation with the girls
It's no secret that the weaker sex is not so weak. And women's boxing today is a common occurrence.
Also, not only boxing girls, but also simply those who want to lose weight with the help of a fitbox or exercise exclusively “for themselves” are not averse to beating a punching bag.
Exercises with a punching bag for girls depend on the goals of the exercise. The implementation of the weight loss task is related to the criteria described above in fitness boxing.
Individuals involved in boxing perform work that is not much different from men's occupations. The difference may lie in the parameters and weight of the pears used.
Professional female boxers train according to an intensive program, performing the same exercises as men (more on this below).
Beginner girls are usually recommended to practice with light aqua pears. And in this work, a greater emphasis is placed on fitness.
Single strikes and combinations are also carried out, attacks of different powers are combined, and positions are changed to carry them out.
For serious sports, girls need to be less emotional. In addition, one should take into account the fact that they have lighter bone, which results in less impact force. It is worth remembering about the most vulnerable places: joints and ligaments. Therefore, during training, a lot of time is spent on stretching.
Do not wait.
This is what separates a man from a boy. Watch the professionals at work on the bag and you will see that they are constantly throwing punches. They rest for no more than 2 seconds. Beginners always take breaks between series (combinations). After the series, they regain their breathing and 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 breathing. When you stop hitting, they hit you
The moral of the story is: “Never stop hitting.” You don't need to hit with all your strength all the time, but you need to throw punches constantly. When you regain your breath and move around the bag, throw light punches and jabs. Once you're ready for some big hits, step up and open fire.
Don't push, but hit.
The bag should not swing much from your blows, 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 the 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 don’t know, I wrote an article a long time ago on “How to Throw a Whip.”
Pushing (not punching) will just push the bag and your arms will get tired quickly. A quick hard blow will barely move the bag. Relax your hands and throw quick, whipping punches. Invest in, but so that the time of contact of your fist with the bag is not too long. As soon as contact occurs, immediately return your hand and throw the next blow. If your hands get tired quickly, then you should not hit, but push the bag. I repeat: contact with the bag should be short-term.
Fitness box
In this discipline, exercises are mainly performed with a punching bag for weight loss.
It is important to comply with the following criteria:
- When working with a projectile, you should not round your back. This is a risk of spinal injury.
- Keep your abdominal muscles tense. Hit the projectile with your hands, using impulses from your legs and stomach (it retracts during an attack).
- Do not reach for the projectile with your hands. This way, significantly fewer calories are burned.
- When performing power assaults, do not cover the underside of your body. Heel turns and springy rebounds should be performed. The work is done in a boxing stance.
- Focus on the power of your blows. Be sure to tense the muscles of the arms, legs and back.
- Pauses are not allowed. If you feel tired, reduce the dynamics and force of the blows. In addition, sudden breaks pose a threat to the heart.
- Don't skip warming up.
Classes for beginners
All beginners in this work must comply with safety criteria:
- The projectile should not be very light or heavy.
- The optimal weight of a pear for men is half its weight. For women - two thirds.
- Before class, wrap your wrists in sports bandages.
There are different sets of exercises with a punching bag for beginners. It is advisable that variations of strokes be combined at each lesson.
First, a series is held. The emphasis is then on the final assault of the combination. During this workout, the muscles should not be overloaded.
When tired, it is better to pause or switch to another exercise. Because the muscles begin to remember the order of incorrect movements. There is little effectiveness from such work.
After honing your attacks, focus on defensive maneuvers.
It is important to make powerful accentuated and weak blows. It is necessary to work within a specific speed limit. At a more intense pace, you can practice attacks that are closer to the realities of real combat.
Don't forget to change positions and angles to execute your shots. The sound from them should be clear.
There is no need to swing the bag during the assault. Also, defensive actions should be honed dynamically.
The development of dynamics and accuracy of impact, as well as reaction, is facilitated by a pneumatic bag.
