| "Ten!" shouts the fighter standing to my front, his | | | | for you to properly drill it solo or with a friend (which |
| voice directed straight at me. | | | | is way more fun). |
| I launch another combination, this one made up of at | | | | 1) The goal is to throw as many punches as possible |
| least six quick punches, toward the heavy bag that | | | | against the heavy bag during the one minute duration |
| he is braced up against. | | | | of the round. |
| Another shout roars from his lips "Twenty!" His voice | | | | 2) Ideally it's best to mix up your punching technique |
| seems a little louder this time. | | | | by throwing a blend of jabs, hooks, crosses and |
| I pick up the pace; my next ten punches all land | | | | body shots. |
| within a few seconds. I blast past the forty, fifty and | | | | 3) Throw every punch with proper technique, |
| sixty punch count with ease. Closing in on the one | | | | rotation and leverage instead of simply smacking the |
| hundred punch mark, my arms begin to ache and my | | | | bag with lots of speed but little power. |
| hand speed begins to slow. | | | | 4) Throw you punches from a realistic distance and |
| "Speed it up Jeff!" another voice, this one very | | | | fighting stance, never standing too close to the |
| familiar, originating from behind me reminds me of my | | | | heavy bag, to maximize the realism and |
| momentary purpose. Breathing heavily, I dig my feet | | | | cardiovascular benefits of the exercise. |
| into the ground and manage to speed up my | | | | 5) Your partner -who should be holding the heavy |
| punching a bit more, enough to seemingly satisfy my | | | | bag fairly steady-should keep count of your punches, |
| coach for the moment. | | | | shouting out every tenth punch (10!, 20! 30!...) so that |
| Finally a bell sounds to signal the end of the one | | | | you can have an accurate idea as to where you are |
| minute round. Wiping the sweat my forehead, I take | | | | in regards to number of punches thrown. |
| a few deeps breaths and position myself behind the | | | | 6) Try to improve your punch count each time you |
| heavy bag, switching places with my partner so he | | | | do this drill and you will find yourself throwing more |
| can now perform the same drill. Switching back and | | | | punches during your shadowboxing and sparring |
| forth we each complete three sets on the bag. At | | | | rounds. |
| the end we're fairly tired but the workout is far from | | | | 7) Remember relaxation is the key! Keep your arms |
| over... | | | | loose at all times to execute punches that are harder |
| The heavy bag drill I just illustrated in the above | | | | and much faster. |
| paragraphs is one of my favourites. It focuses on | | | | Next time you work on the heavy bag, throw in a |
| developing hand speed, relaxation and cardiovascular | | | | few speed rounds to keep your workout challenging, |
| conditioning, three important assets for a mixed | | | | exciting, and fresh. |
| martial artist. I'm going to list a few details necessary | | | | |