[OT] Punching bags?

[Darklance]

I know...I know...first the fencing and now this....anyway...

I just recently came into possession of a brand new 80 pound punching bag with gloves. I really have never used one before and I was wondering if there is any real technique or do I just punch? I know you don't fully extend the blow as it sends the whole thing rocking.. but do I do combos? Single punches? What about feet movement/positioning while punching? I'm pretty strong so do I punch this thing as hard as I can or do I go for more of a flurry of lighter blows? I searched the internet for a hour today but no guides existed. Am I looking to far into this? Thanks.

 

[MythandLore]

I'm not going to go into details, it's to hard to type all that junk.
But it's every thing.
Anyway, try looking for "boxing training", they should tell you the basics you need.
Just don't hurt yourself.

___________

BTW does it hang or what?

 

[MythandLore]

Here is a site I found that might help you.
http://www.balazsboxing.com/thegym/boxingbasics_heavy.htm

 

[med stud]

Ive trained some boxing and thai boxing for about four years, so I suppose I can give you some useful tips.

1) If you have never punched seriously before, punch very light in the beginning, so you get the feeling. Otherwise you may hurt your wrists.

2) If you dont mind bloody knuckles (or feel like hitting VERY light), get a pair of gloves.

3) Try to keep the punches as straight as possible, that is as close to the mid line of the body as possible.

4) Try to keep the guard at all times. What guard you like is up to which martial art you like, but the boxing guard is generally the most protective. This also strengthens your shoulders.

5) Try to keep the punches as hard as possible without giving up too much speed. Do some combinations, some jabs and some flurries to vary the training.

6) I try to keep up the feet movement all the time. Exactly how to position your feet is too complicated for me to explain without showing, but move so your punch is hard, but it should be easy to regain balance. Sorry that I cant be more specific

That's all I could think of right now, hope it helps!!

 

[GWolf]

I have a punching bag/ thanks for the tips.

 

[Darklance]

Thanks alot.

 

[adndgamer]

Wrist wrappings can be used in place of boxing gloves. They're the long cloth strips that you wrap around your wrists, and you can cover your knuckles with 'em too. They'll keep your wrist straight, and pad your knuckles a bit. I never use 'em though, as they take too much bleedin' time to put on. Something to think about though if you don't like the idea of heavy gloves. And how often in a fight are you gonna have boxing gloves or wrist wraps? Might as well get your hands toughened up.

Anyway, the other guys explained it well enough. Just kinda punch it, keep your hands up. A lot of it depends on what style you wanna do. If you're into boxing, I'd go with a boxing stance and such. Practice combinations of hooks and jabs and all that. If you're into martial arts like karate or whatnot, use a side stance, and, well.... just hit the damned thing That's the best advice I can give ya. Otherwise, if you wanna learn the intricities of fighting, sign up for martial arts courses or boxing lessons.

Oh, and I just had another thought...I got a little boxing guide with a speed bag that I bought once. Not sure if that's common or not, but it's interesting, showing different hits, and suggesting different common combos. So, if you know anybody with a speed bag that lives close to you, you could ask them if they have anything you could use. Oh, and be sure to check out your local library, as it's probably a more reliable source of material (there's more of a chance of finding good stuff) than online.

Punching bags are great. I've been in karate (Okinawan Shorin-Ryu style) for 5 years now (wow. time's flown by...) and a punching bag was the best thing I could have had when starting out, as it gives you experience with whacking something for real Good luck!

 

[Enforcer]

When I was doing Shotokan Karate, they taught us that the best way to not hurt your wrists was to hit with the knuckles of your index and middle fingers. Also, make sure that those two knuckles make a straight line with the bones in your forearm. Punching differently can hurt your wrist.

 

[Eraslin]

Karate punches.

Hello there!

First, I can't stress Enforcer's point more. Make sure that you strike the bag with only your first two knuckles (index & middle), and make sure that the two knuckles form a straight line with your forearm when you strike. I've heard of people breaking their own knuckles by hitting wrong, and I've personally semi-strained mine when striking off-target.

I'm trying to find an online guide to Karate-style punching, but not having any luck.

In Shotokan Karate (only one I have experience with. I assume the other Karate styles are the same...) the idea is to strike with your entire body, not with just your shoulders. The thought is that a whole-body strike is far more powerful than a shoulder-generated punch (there's also less waisted energy due to the linear nature of karate strikes) -- having been on the receiving end of both types of punches (albeit holding a pad ), I'd prefer to be hit by a boxer any day of the week.

I'd suggest either signing up for a session of Karate (it really is a lot of fun; I've been doing it for 3 years now, my girlfriend's been doing it for about 1.5 years, and I've a friend who's been doing it for about 11 years), or trying to track down a copy of Best Karate #2" by M.Nakayama (link = amazon.com).

-Eraslin (2nd Kyu -- Shotokan Karate)

AHA! Eureka, we have a web page: http://www.shotokanforeveryone.com/techniqu.htm
The important ones for a punching bag are "Kiba Dachi" (horse stance), and the forward punch.

Have fun!

 

[adndgamer]

I agree almost-completely with you, Eraslin, but would like to make a point about the differences in punching styles.

Yes, in karate the idea is to punch with your whole body, but this tends to limit your speed, and isn't altogether too useful, imo, when punching a punching bag.

A shoulder-generated punch will usually be much quicker than one from a traditional stance (such as a forward stance, or zenkutso-dachi (sp?)) when you use your whole body to punch. Sure, a shoulder-generated punch won't have as much power, since you can't use your whole body most of the time, but they are effective for street fighting and the like. You can still get pretty powerful blows off with reverse punches and the like (well, in the case of a reverse punch, you are using your body).

I'm not too sure about Shotokan, but if it has any really powerful stances (such as the aforementioned forward, or zenkutso-dachi stance), there's a reason that they were like that (or so I'm told). This is because way back in the day, somebody wearing bamboo armor would be slightly slower than an unarmored opponent, and so you would have more time to make that one powerful blow that would shatter their armor. And so, while it was very effective in its time (and still is now if you can pull it off), I think that the emphasis on using your whole body while punching, while still important, isn't as important as it once was. Err, rather, it's still important, but only if you can pull it off with speed.

Shorin-Ryu is a traditional style, but our dojo also emphasizes street-fighting techniques as some of the traditional stuff won't necessarily be able to help you as much as more boxing-like techniques will.

Anyway, it's late and as you can see, I'm rambling on here. I'm beginning to wonder if my post will make sense to any martial artists, much less non-martial artists...As I said, it's late, and right now my brain's kinda shutting down. This is an interesting discussion. Hope to continue it later. Goodnight