Hello! Welcome to my "Best Boxing Heavy Bag Workouts" article!
Heavy bag workouts are one of, if not the most important training that one should take to improve their hand skills. Heavy bag workouts are also an essential part in enhancing and developing your body.
However, it is not just as simple as punching it. There are proper steps to do it. Apart from that, there are specific heavy bag workouts that you must follow to really maximize the results of your training.
In this article, I will give you the best boxing heavy bag workouts that can really help you! If you are interested, then just read on and learn! Also, leave a comment to let me know what think!
Equipment Needed
The first thing we need to discuss are the equipment you need to start your heavy bag workouts. These are very important to ensure your safety and of course, to make the workouts work well and effectively. Here are they.
- Timer - You will be using this for tracking your time, of course.
2. Boxing gloves or hand wraps - Doing heavy bag workouts without any protection is not suggested. So you better make sure that you use your gloves or even hand wraps to avoid hand or knuckle injuries.
3. Boxing shoes - Make sure to wear comfortable shoes. These are important for you to develop your footwork as well as maximizing your power and speed.
4. Heavy bag - An of course, you need a heavy bag. It can either be the free-hanging or the stand-mounted heavy bag. However, you can also the free-standing heavy bag.
Benefits of Heavy Bag Workouts
In this section, we will discuss the reasons why you should do boxing heavy bag workouts. Furthermore, these are the most important benefits you can get form these workouts.
1. Improves Your Strength And Power
Heavy bags were mainly designed to improve a boxer's power and strength. Moreover, these workouts help in building the muscles.
The muscles located in your chest, arms, shoulders, legs, back and even the core, greatly benefit from heavy bag workouts. With this, it is actually considered as a full-body workout, targeting a lot of muscle groups.
Punching the heavy bag with intense power over time will undoubtedly enhance your power and strength.
2. Enhances Your Boxing Technique
Boxing is not all about throwing punches at your opponent. There are specific and certain techniques you have to follow to be victorious in the end.
One of the benefits of heavy bag workouts is the enhancement of your boxing technique. It is all about executing each punch properly, as well as the proper form, with precision.
When you train on the heavy bag, make sure that you also do it by following the proper technique. This will improve your overall performance.
Furthermore, unlike shadowboxing which is another workout, training on the heavy bag will give you the experience of the impact when you hit it.
3. Can Help In Lessening Stress
Boxing heavy bag workouts are not just for improving your body and physical attributes. It can also help your emotional and mental capabilities.
Having these punching workouts can help in improving your mood, relieve your stress and decrease anger. So basically, these workouts are both physiological and mental stress relief.
Furthermore, based on my research, these workouts initiates the production of neurohormones such as norepinephrine. It is associated with the improved mood and emotions, as well as your cognitive function.
In addition, punching these bags while imagining it as a form of releasing all your negative thoughts and at the same time, seeing the bag as a representation of your problems and burdens is a good exercise for your mental health.
4. Stability, Coordination, And Balance Improvement
When you train on the heavy bag, you will not just be punching while standing up on th e same place. You have to move around and improve your footwork.
With that, when you punch while moving around the bag, you will be enhancing your balance and coordination.
Furthermore, if you manage to stay on your toes and transfer your weight from one foot to another when you do these workouts, you will be building your stability and balance.
Best Boxing Heavy Bag Workouts
1. Punch Accuracy Workout
One of the important factors in boxing other than the power and speed of your punches, is the accuracy. You have to make sure that all of your punches hit your opponent, right?
Here are the steps for you to follow for this workout.
1. The first thing you need to do is to put duct tape or you can also paint some targets around the bag.
2. Make the bag move to start the workout.
3. Let the heavy bag guide and dictate your punches.
4. For this to work, you must only hit the targets on the heavy bag.
5. Repeat these steps for 3 or more rounds with a 60-second rest in between.
Don't forget to move around and work on your footwork while doing this workout.
2. Endurance Workout
For the beginners out there, stepping into the ring and having a match is a lot more tiring than a basketball match. And of course, you will be receiving punches!
In boxing, almost every part of your muscles will be used. If you don't train your endurance, you ca n easily get tired and will lead to your defeat. So this workout is for enhancing your endurance.
Also, we will be using the HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) technique in this workout since it is very good in improving endurance. Basically, you will have an 8x 30 second sets with the highest intensity level you can do.
Furthermore, you will do 20 seconds of punching, followed by a 10-second rest. Watch the video below.
1. Start with warm up exercises. You can follow the one showed in the video above.
2. For 20 seconds, throw full-speed punch combinations at the bag. You have to move around, let the bag swing and dictate your punches.
3. Rest for 10 seconds but maintain foot movement. Move around the bag.
4. Repeat 8 times.
5. If you wish to do a longer HIIT workout, then take a 3-minute breather and do another 8 sets of this workout.
For this to be really effective, never stop moving even during your rest. You must move around the bag.
3. 10-Round Heavy Bag Workout
This workout is mainly focused on enhancing your basic boxing skills. Yes, they may be basics but do not underestimate them because they are the foundation of your skills which can help you win against your opponents.
You must go hard for 2 minutes per round, with a 20-second rest in between. You can watch the video below wherein Nate Bower demonstrates this workout for you.
Round 1: This is the warm up round. Get the bag moving but don't throw punches yet. Just move around it. Pretend that it is your opponent. Move side to side or backward and forward, depending on the movement of the bag.
Round 2: This round, you must start on working your jabs, both singles and doubles. Moreover, move around the bag while throwing them.
Round 3: Throw 1-2 jab combinations while practicing and getting used to your punch range.
Round 4: Work on your 2 and 3 punch combos and this time, focus on your speed.
Round 5: Throw 1-2 punch combos consecutively in 10-second intervals with 10 seconds of rest afterwards. However, during your rest, you must keep moving.
Round 6: This is a "Freestyle Round". Move around and throw any punch combinations you want. Be sure to vary them and maintain your speed.
Round 7: Repeat round 4.
Round 8: Repeat round 5.
Round 9: Repeat round 6.
Round 10: This is the "All-Out Freestyle Round". Just give everything you got. Throw different punch combinations and vary your power levels. Work on your footwork and speed at the same time.
4. Punch Power Workout
Power is very important in boxing, especially in delivering your knockout punches. However, it requires a lot of effort and energy and if you don't do it properly and efficiently, you will be tired before the match ends.
This workout is designed to help you enhance your power and at the same time, deliver your power punches with efficiency.
1. Start the workout with a warm up. Do this by punching the bag for 1 to 3 rounds with 50% of your maximum power.
2. Deliver different punch combos to stretch out your ligaments and joints so that you will have a safe workout.
3. Move around the bag while making sure that you are doing the proper form and footwork.
4. Rest for one minute and you can repeat steps 1 to 3 until you are really warmed up.
5. If you have a friend with you or a trainer, ask them to hold the bag for you. If not, find a way to secure it so that it won't be moving around when you throw your punches.
6. Throw your punches as hard as you can!
7. Deliver each punch with your maximum power and don't stop. Keep this going at 30 to 60 seconds interval.
8. Take breaks in between that are the same amount of time it took you punching the bag.
9. Repeat the process for 5 rounds.
5. Speed Workout
This might have surprised you a bit since usually, speed is enhanced using a speed bag. However, you can also do this with the heavy bag.
You will be improving your reaction time and at the same time, enhance your power combos to make them faster.
For this workout, you will need to do 6x 3 minute rounds with a 30-second rest in between. Check out the video below in which Johnny Nguyen explains this workout.
Warm-up: Start if off by warming up.
Round 1: Deliver light punches while moving around the bag. This will warm up your ligaments, joints and muscles.
Round 2 and 3: For these rounds, you must throw punches as hard as you can. Keep on throwing your combos while maintaining both speed and power.
Round 4 and 5: This round is called the tabata interval rounds. Basically, you will just deliver fast punches non-stop for 15 seconds and rest for the same time in between. Do this for 3 minutes.
Round 6: For 3 minutes, deliver fast punches non-stop. Give everything you've got in this round. You will probably be tired already but give all of your effort!
6. Footwork Workout
You probably already know this. Footwork is an essential factor in boxing. Furthermore, it is the foundation of boxing basics! Here is a workout that will greatly improve your footwork.
1. Warm up before doing the workout.
2. Get the bag swinging and let it dictate your punches.
3. Start moving around the bag and throw your punches.
4. Do this and keep moving for 3 minutes.
5. Afterwards, rest for 1 minute.
6. Do this workout again for 3 rounds.
Bottom Line
Well there you have it! The best boxing heavy bag workouts to improve all aspects of your skills and your overall performance! Before each workout, never forget to warm up for safety measures and to stretch out your body.
Furthermore, never forget to train with proper form and throw your punches with the right technique. Be consistent on your training and perform your best! Surely, you will become a lot better in boxing.
Thank you so much for reading my "Best Boxing Heavy Bag Workouts" article! If you have questions and comments, please feel free to leave them on the comment section below!