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Punching A Punching BagPunching a punching bag is not as simple as it looks. The idea is to sharpen your skills while developing strength and stamina, but if you don’t hit the bag correctly, an injury could be right around the corner. Punching a bag can cause injury to both the wrists and the hands so good form is important. The type of injury caused can linger and affect performance so try to adhere to the following.

First, any time you are punching a punching bag start with some jabs. This is the quick punch from your lead hand that sets everything else up.  When your stance is correct, your lead hand will be the one closest to the bag or your opponent, so always be aware of your position and don’t get caught out of sync.  It’s best to start your routine with a jab because it comes the fist and is quick.  You don’t have to get your entire body involved in this because the power comes from your arm before you get to the shoulder.  Most other punches are powered behind the shoulder down the torso to the hips and legs. I call it the hand shake because you just use it to introduce the other punches. Even though the jab rarely does severe damage, it should always be quick enough to catch the opponent off guard and take him out of his fight plan.  A proper jab gives the fighter the ability to sense what his opponent may or may not be doing so you’ll know what to deliver next. Perhaps the most interesting part of punching a punching bag with jabs is to see how quickly you can pull them back into proper defensive position to either recover or buy time to switch from offense to defense. The jab is also what helps you build up your wind and get in shape. Definitely jab the bag at what would be your opponents eye level and move around the bag getting as much work in as possible.  Avoid injury by punching with knuckles and not fingers.

Next, use the cross. A cross will complement the jab and create a little confusion by introducing the other arm in rapid succession. A cross obviously comes from your rear arm and your power will depend on the your stance. Plant yourself to generate power but when punching a punching bag lay off a bit or your wrist will can absorb a lot of shock.  Be aware of your hips during the entire cross and start by moving your rear hip toward the punching bag.  Follow through with your midsection, back and shoulders and allow your fist to be the deliverer of the force created from the shoulder and beyond.  Visualize your entire body getting involved for power but work on landing at the end of your motion to avoid injury the arm.  The cross requires good form more than power so practice, practice, practice.

Mix things up with a few hooks. Like the jab but the approach is from slightly outside your body. The hook can be a devastating knockout punch and should contact the opponent’s chin or cheek from the side. Your power is distributed through the hips so concentrate on this one while swinging your lead hip toward the punching bag and follow through from your shoulder shoulder for more power. Hit the heavy bag on the side. The hook is best thrown following a jab and a cross.  Do alternate types of MMA Workouts for the most effectiveness.

Finish with an uppercut. This low to high strike is to catch the chin and knock out your opponent. The uppercut can be thrown with both hands. Bend your knees to lower your center of gravity, dip punching his fist in, then rocket it up when you pop your legs and hips high. The uppercut should harness the power of the whole body and makes the heavy bag shake

Make sure to move your feet while punching a punching bag because good leverage is important.  Striking a bag creates shock that the body must absorb so proper form includes the entire body not just your fists.  The idea is to punish the punching bag and not beat up your body. Leave that for the ring.

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So for all of us so interested in punching a punching bag to get in shape, there may be another way. You can now punch your way to fitness and do it with ever landing a punch.

The Perfect Punch is supposed to be one of the best MMA workouts to come along during the latest fitness craze and it sounded like something we should try. One feature of this particular workout is that you could take it with you as opposed to having to stand in front of a punching bag to workout.

From the infomercial you can see that these MMA workouts offered by the Perfect Punch system can be done by anyone regardless if you are used to hitting a bag or just getting started.

Jay Glazer gives great instruction along with several MMA Workouts. Each will challenge your muscles and also give a good cardio workout. That’s what is important for me but others looking to learn how to train like an MMA fighter will probably be very pleased with Perfect Punch. I can see and feel how it will improve your technique and develop punching power.

But what is it like to hit a bag without really hitting a bag? It is awesome. Because of the resistance bands, each blow feels like you are actually involved in punching but there is no impact on your wrists because you never really strike. The workout wears you out and your arms are spent but your hands and wrists are spared the punishment. This allows you to workout longer and there is no cumulative damage to the joints which we often hear about with heave bag work.

For me, what started as a curiosity in my gym has turned into a good cardio workout that I can take on the road while I travel. I never feel like I’ve missing gym time because I can hit every major muscle group and work myself to exhaustion if I choose. It’s really a great at home fitness product.

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Perfect Punch ReviewsI was compelled to write in after reverting back to my old Punching A Punching Bag workout.  I have had my perfect punch for over a month and I love it!  But, I had to return home and take care of my mother who needed a hip replacement, and I forgot to pack my perfect punch.

I know it is portable and you can use it anywhere you want but I simply forgot it.  I’m hooked on my new MMA workouts so I found my old Wavemaster in my mother’s garage and started punching it.

First of all, punching a punching bag is not as I remembered it.  I love the perfect punch but I didn’t realize how great of a workout it was until I left it behind.  The Wavemaster is decent punching bag I suppose but it is hard as a rock. After a few minutes of punching, anything other than my jab created wrist pain.  I wasn’t hitting excessively hard but the shock was startling.  It was then I realized who terrific a no impact workout really was.

Unlike a punching bag, the perfect punch doesn’t punch back.  It is 100% shadowboxing and I now understand how cool the progressive resistance is.  I have to admit that the progressive resistance was not one of the reasons why I bought the perfect punch but if anyone says it will not make you stronger, they are nuts.

I enjoy punching a punching bag because it’s fun, but it clearly does more harm than good with regard to working out.  I punch myself out much quicker with the perfect punch and feel no pain. I only wish there were some perfect punch boxing gloves out there in addition to the MMA gloves.

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wavemaster punching bagIt’s so funny that I would be writing in about punching a punching bag instead of going to the gym but I’ve been reading about celebrities doing these hot new boxing and MMA workouts.  I didn’t think to much of it until I took a class at my gym and I loved it.  It’s a lot more fun that weightlifting.

It wasn’t just punching a punching bag either.  It may be the fact that there are only two heavy bags in my gym and there were more than 10 people in the class, but the trainer came up with some cool shadowboxing routines that really killed us.  The worst part was the jump rope warm ups.  Not only is it tough to jump rope, but it is exhausting.  But once the class was warmed up we received instruction on punching a punching and who knew it could be so challenging.

The immediate challenge was just learning the basic punches.  There was a jab, a cross and a hook.  The footwork was pretty much the key to effectively throwing these punches and I was surprised that the fist is actually little more than a delivery mechanism.  The lesson here is that punching a punching bag, and boxing in general requires a lot of stamina.

No wonder boxing routines and MMA Workouts are the hottest fitness craze.  Any workout that isn’t boring is going to catch on but there is something about punching a punching bag that relieves my stress and because of that, I’m hooked.

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Punching A Punching Bag CouchNobody denies Punching A Punching Bag is a great workout, but now this form of intense training just may appeal to us couch potatoes.  I recently came across one of the most interesting pieces of furniture I have seen in a long time.

My favorite sport is Extreme Sitting so when I found out you could literally kick ass while sitting down I was more than impressed.  The “Champ” sofa by http://tobiasfraenzel.com/ is not only cool looking, it transforms into a punching bag so you can do a little training right in your living room.

Now I can certainly see this punching bag as a conversation piece in a bachelor pad or a man cave, but I doubt it would get any serious use.  But, how bout in a play room?  Kids have a knack for jumping up and down and destroying furniture, so would this be a pleasant surprise for a bunch of rug rats.

As far as the woman in the photo goes, I think it’s a nice thought but do you really think someone would do an entire kickboxing workout on their couch? I doubt it, but you gotta hand it to the designer for thinking outside of the box, but I think I’ll be punching a punching bag outside in the garage.

Punching A Punching Bag Couch