Heavy bag workouts are great addition to any type of workout. And it is not just for workouts related to boxing. You can use that time for general fitness, upgrade boxing skills or letting out some stress. It is also a good idea to vary your workout or changing the pace. Have different parts of your heavy bag workout focussed on strength, cardio and also technique. With all those exercises available you got to ask, “how long should you train on a heavy bag?”
When deciding how long you should train on a heavy bag, it would be helpful to breakdown your workout to timed rounds like a boxing match. 3 minute rounds with 1 minute rest. Having a heavy bag workout that is 3-5 rounds, will make a total heavy bag workout of about 15-20 minutes. Which is common and a good amount to add on top of other workouts.
It is also important to note that the amount of time you spend training on a heavy bag can vary depending on your fitness level and goals. For example, if you are a beginner, you may want to start with shorter rounds and gradually increase the duration as your fitness improves. On the other hand, if you are an experienced boxer or athlete, you may want to increase the duration of your rounds or the number of rounds in your heavy bag workout to challenge yourself and see improvements.
Use a pace that works for you, if you prefer to go all out during each round, take extra time to recover if needed. Or if you’re training at a lower intensity, have a shorter window of recover but add on multiple rounds to your exercise.
Ultimately, it is important to listen to your body and make adjustments as needed. If you find that you are struggling to complete your heavy bag workout or are experiencing excessive fatigue or muscle soreness, it may be a sign that you need to reduce the duration or intensity of your workout. On the other hand, if you feel that your workout is too easy and not challenging enough, you may want to increase the duration or intensity to push yourself further.
General guidelines for how long to spend on the heavy bag include:
- Beginners: 10-15 minutes, 3-4 times per week
- Intermediate: 20-30 minutes, 3-4 times per week
- Advanced: 30-45 minutes, 4-5 times per week
It is important to note that these are general guidelines and may vary depending on individual factors such as skill level, training goals, and overall fitness level. It is always best to consult with a trainer or coach to determine the appropriate duration for your specific needs.
How Long Should You Use A Heavy Bag As A Beginner
When you’re just starting out, it’s important to get down proper boxing technique and be familiar with protective gear. Having boxing gloves and hand wraps are essential to when it comes to safe boxing training.
On top of that, get acquainted with the basic punches and beginner combinations you will be doing. This is helpful in getting the basic technique down, some to keep you mind focussed on, and can help gauge your progress down the road. When you’re ready, aim to start with 15 to 20 minute of heavy bag work which is about 3 to 4 rounds of a boxing workout.
For the beginning, its probably best to plan out 2-3 sessions per week and gradually increase the frequency as you become more comfortable and confident with the bag. This will help you to avoid over extending your body and allows proper recovery between sessions.
To keep things interesting, have each round focus on a particularly set of skills. For example, one round could focus on power punches, the next on speed and the third on endurance. This would help give you a more well rounded workout and also help you transition into other types of punching bags such as speed bags or double end bags.
You can check out all the other types of punching bags in our article here.
Should You Hit The Heavy Bag Everyday
Hitting a heavy bag is a great way to improve your physical fitness and release stress, but is it a good idea to do it every day? Ultimately this depends on a few factors, such as your fitness level, the intensity of your workouts as a whole and general overall health. We always recommend to have a proper resting schedule.
When you strike the bag, you are using your arms, shoulders, and core muscles to deliver powerful punches and kicks. This type of training can help you build strength, endurance, and power. However, hitting a heavy bag can also be physically demanding, and it’s important to take that into consideration when deciding how often to do it. Start slow and build off of it.
Since hitting the heavy bag can put a lot of stress on your joints, especially on hands, wrists and shoulders. There are also many other areas of boxing training and fitness in general that you can focus on when you aren’t meant to use the heavy bag. Cardio, foot work, movement are all types of exercises and boxing training that you can do off of the bag. And still keep you active throughout the week.
In short, think of all the different type of training you will be doing. Whether its boxing or general exercise and divide it up throughout the week so that no certain type of training or area of your body is being overused in a short period of time.
Conclusion
Hitting a heavy bag can be a great way to improve your fitness and release stress. It’s important to start off with some moderation and caution and build your boxing workout routine from there. Staying consistent is also something you want to be on top of. Create your schedule and workouts and be sure to show up and complete it. Increase your workout as you see fit and by gauging how much you could handle.
