Heavy Bag Training.

[SaiyanGoth]

I just purchased a 70 pound heavy bag today, as well as gloves, wrist wraps etc. My question now is, does anyone have any recommendations as how to use it properly? For example, my goal is to use the cardiovascular aspect as means of fat burning, as well as building muscle at the same time.

Does anyone have any specific workouts (using the bag of course) they could recommend with these goals in mind?

I am 21 Years Old, 6' tall, 205 pounds, and I'm asthmatic.

Thank you very much in advance.

[anfeyd]

I'd recommend going to www.rosstraining.com You'll find more boxing information in that realm.

[SaiyanGoth]

I'd recommend going to www.rosstraining.com You'll find more boxing information in that realm.

The heavy-bag specific training he has listed on there are means of adding to a pre-existing heavy-bag workout. I personally need a complete workout, start to finish using the bag.

[Aiden Bloodaxe]

Shouldn't this be in the testicles forum?

I am 21 Years Old, 6' tall, 205 pounds, and I'm asthmatic.XD! XD! XD! I just found adding the asthmatic bit quite entertaining.

I'm pretty sure you can't build muscle through cardiovascular heavy bag training.

[Honken]

I'm pretty sure you can't build muscle through cardiovascular heavy bag training.

Please elaborate. I'd really like to know how you thought on that one.

[DarkXacreD]

I just purchased a 70 pound heavy bag today, as well as gloves, wrist wraps etc. My question now is, does anyone have any recommendations as how to use it properly? For example, my goal is to use the cardiovascular aspect as means of fat burning, as well as building muscle at the same time.

Does anyone have any specific workouts (using the bag of course) they could recommend with these goals in mind?

I am 21 Years Old, 6' tall, 205 pounds, and I'm asthmatic.

Thank you very much in advance.

I don't think of heavy bag training as the most efficient way to build muscle, but anyway

Here's my contribution:

Get a timer or a clock or something. And just do different things with the bag alternating intervals. For example:

set the timer to 1 minute work and 30 seconds rest (or keep your eye on the clock, get your dog to bark when time's up, whatever works)

during the 1 minute, you punch the bag repeatedly: left, right, left, right, as fast as you can

for the 30 seconds you hit the bag however you want, pacing yourself and focusing on delivering powerful shots

Cycle through that for a while, change up the times and exercises (elbows, knees, kicks, etc.). Kinda has an HIIT idea behind it.

[CodyLee1337]

Roundhouses many many roundhouses non stopping

[Aiden Bloodaxe]

Please elaborate. I'd really like to know how you thought on that one.
I must be wrong then,go ahead & tell me what you got? So you can build muscle through cardio?

[chicanerous]

Learn to punch and kick before you just go and start beating a bag.

[Rahf]

To elaborate on chicanerous' eminent proposal: Join a proper kickboxing club or something similar to get the proper technique down. Putting yourself infront of a bag without any type of technique is a recipe for disaster, not in terms of injury or anything like that, but it won't end up well.

I've been doing sanda training for a mere three months and have evolved a tremendous amount in terms of kicking and punching technique. While saying that I can tell you that I am truly a beginner in those fields, there is so much to learn.

[DarkXacreD]

Wow I never even thought that he might actually not know how to hit a punching bag properly.

Which brings me to this:

Dude, why would you buy a freakin' heavy bag if you don't even know how to use it? That's like going into a washroom and not knowing where to piss.

[compleks]

How much experience do you have in terms of boxing/kickboxing?

I'm going to assume that you are a beginner, since you're asking how to use your bag.
Your best bet is to join a kickboxing gym and learn everything you need to know there.

If you don't care about technique etc... and just want a workout, then it's pretty simple. Set your timer for X amount of time, and beat the hell out of the bag. Rest, then repeat. Sometimes focus on punching, then kicking, knees, elbows, mixing it up etc...
Do sprints on the bag, or long slow rounds. Do pushups etc... between rounds. Experiment, it's not hard to figure out what works.

[Kon-El]

If cardio and technique are you main goal, think about shadow boxing for rounds. It's very tiring and is very open to your own creativity, yet it's safer than hitting a punching bag for extended periods (beginners tend to hurt their wrists if their form isn't very good, although having wraps and gloves is a good start)

I would say, get your form down. Start with mainly practicing each type of punch indiviually, then practice combos, then do set rounds of shadow boxing. When you're more confident in form, use the bag. As you get better replace the individual punching and combo work with full-on boxing drills on the heavy bag.
I'm not a trainer or anything but I've done some boxing and this is my opinion based on that. Good Luck.

[Honken]

I must be wrong then,go ahead & tell me what you got? So you can build muscle through cardio?

1. You can build muscles on cardio. Any physical activity that is streneous will build muscles as long as you're eating enough. Cardio is plain endurance and training so will promote growth of slow twitch fibers (muscles are made out of fibers).

2. You've never punched on a heavy bag have you? Just whailing out punches full power will get anyone dripping wet with a heart rate sky high in a matter of minutes. Punching at full power for a long time is an excellent way to train strength endurance or even power endurance.

q-vJpTArhTM

[Ashtar]

If you want to use it for cardio, you might want to get a timer and/or heart rate monitor, it can be a way to get some number feedback... although the inconsistancy of the activity (you might slow down or speed up at times) makes numbers sort of hard to apply to something like this, I bet a computer continuously monitoring average heart rate would be valuable for something like that. It is not that cardio has to be steady-state (intervals are gaining a good rep) but just that averaging the work of intervals would still give some feedback as to progression.

I think it would be a good general physical activity to do, complimenting other forms of activity. A heavy bag is a good thing, a lot more useful than one of those stupid Bally kickboxing PoS you put water in the bottom and they're full of air and offer no resistance or anything save for bashing it on top with an axe kick in which case it offers way too much and you fall on your ass.

For building muscle it's even tougher. You can build it this way, but again, number feedback, you might not. A lot of the time, for people who are not naturally fit, their problem is that their intuition has not been sufficient to build physique, numbers are good to keep accountable. Something like pushups would be better for building muscle, since you can't hit and call it hard when it's not, because if it is weak, you don't leave the ground. Doing a number activity (weight/resistance training) along with an intuitive one (like hitting a bag) is a good combination, because you will be able to compare how much force you put into the intuitive (bag work) with how much force you put into the measured (weights) so you'll know about how close to your limits you are hitting with.

Slower stuff like pushups on knuckles (perhaps with padding like doing them wearing gloves to avoid scratches) is probably a safe way to build wrist stability in prep for bag work, although it doesn't make you immune, since hitting stuff is the prime way to verify you are able to hit it properly. Getting tutouring in a gym from someone who knows what good punches look like as someone suggested, is the best thing for that.

That said, you won't die if you don't hit a bag with proper form. People say it builds bad habits, but I think if you are just messing around not using any sort of consistant punch, you won't actually do that, it's probably more if you are consistantly practicing 1 punch constantly in a wrong way and learning it badly that it builds a bad habit. When you're not trying to learn anything and just fucking around, it probably won't harm and future training you do in punching.

That Ross Enamait guy is really cool. Also, watch Hajime no Ippo, because it makes boxing a lot more exciting and teaches you about some boxers and their trademark moves (which you can research for real) which are referenced in the series.

I used to have asthma back in elementary school, I don't really know if I still do or not, but I know that kind of stuff sucks, I hope you can get better.

Darkacre: don't hype on him for buying a heavy bag, heavy bags are cool. You can do all sorts of stuff to them like bash your head into them to relieve stress. It can be a way of working up to training since you'd look at it and say "I wish I knew how to hit this betteto make it fly harder with less pain". If he does take it up, it'd be a place to try out bagwork at home, instead of being limited to only training katas and/or shadowboxing as most are.

Would it be better for someone untrained to practice elbowing or kneeing a bag instead of punching or kicking? Are those less likely to cause injuries to your extremities? Are they less complicated in skill, and more likely to toughen you up? Just curious people's opinions on that since I don't know anything about Muay Thai.

[compleks]

q-vJpTArhTM
Where did you find that video?

That was filmed at my gym!

[Ashtar]

Holy shit!

[compleks]

Watch your mouth!

[DarkXacreD]

Darkacre: don't hype on him for buying a heavy bag, heavy bags are cool. You can do all sorts of stuff to them like bash your head into them to relieve stress. It can be a way of working up to training since you'd look at it and say "I wish I knew how to hit this betteto make it fly harder with less pain". If he does take it up, it'd be a place to try out bagwork at home, instead of being limited to only training katas and/or shadowboxing as most are.
Why do you always spell my screen name like that? And, to each his own, I guess. I was just appalled for a second.



Would it be better for someone untrained to practice elbowing or kneeing a bag instead of punching or kicking? Are those less likely to cause injuries to your extremities? Are they less complicated in skill, and more likely to toughen you up? Just curious people's opinions on that since I don't know anything about Muay Thai.

I don't claim to be an authority, but I would suppose elbows might be safer than punches. Knees vs kicks, I really don't know. They both seem kinda unsafe to do on a bag if you don't at least know the basic technique. I'd say elbows weren't really as satisfying as punches in terms of stress relief, too, but that's probably very subjective.

[Papa Lazarou]

q-vJpTArhTM

Am I missing something?

[Honken]

That's Mike Zambidis. World champion kickboxer and a finalist at most K-1 events (MAX not GP). For weighing 145lbs his punches and kicks are insanely strong.

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[SaiyanGoth]

Wow I never even thought that he might actually not know how to hit a punching bag properly.

Which brings me to this:

Dude, why would you buy a freakin' heavy bag if you don't even know how to use it? That's like going into a washroom and not knowing where to piss.

Who said anything about not knowing how to punch? All I asked for was a proper workout routine using the bag, not "How not to break your wrists 101"

[DarkXacreD]

I didn't think you didn't know how to punch to begin with. I only realized that it might have been a possibility after someone else mentioned it.

Why do people always pick on my discrepancies?

[anfeyd]

Who said anything about not knowing how to punch? All I asked for was a proper workout routine using the bag, not "How not to break your wrists 101"

If youre looking for something like:


"Left jab, right roundhouse..." You're not going to get it. Just kick and punch your bag until youre tired.

[compleks]

Who said anything about not knowing how to punch? All I asked for was a proper workout routine using the bag, not "How not to break your wrists 101"

No offense, but if you really knew how to punch, then it's almost certain you would have some experience using a bag.

[Aiden Bloodaxe]

Who said anything about not knowing how to punch? All I asked for was a proper workout routine using the bag, not "How not to break your wrists 101"
Pick up the bag,hold it like a barbell across your back,begin to squat:smile:.Squat until your knees drop off.