The Proper Way to Throw a Punch

It is no secret that boxing is a great activity for those who want to improve their physical health in a way that works the entire body. With the proper training regime you can improve everything from your legs, core and upper body to your cardiovascular health. But, the most basic skill you will need is knowing how to throw a proper punch.

As with any form of physical exertion, a punch needs t be delivered properly or you might be doing more harm to yourself than good. There is more to it than just stepping up to one of the many kinds of boxing bags and hitting it. Let’s start simple. The most common injury that you could be faced with when punching is a fracture in the metacarpals running along the top of your hands. The ends of these bones are your knuckles and they are where you will be delivering the force of the strike. Because we are not talking about how to fight, the best thing you can do for yourself is buy a good set of boxing gloves. Click here to vist www.boxingbagstore.com and look through the different options. Don’t skimp on your boxing gloves. They protect your hands and knuckles.

You also need to learn to properly tape your hands and wrists to isolate them and reduce movement in the wrist. This prevents injury to the wrist and directs the force into the arm, which is where you want the impact to be dispersed. You should have a trainer show you exactly how to do this so that you don’t cut off circulation or wrap too loosely and invite injury.

Your punches and jabs should be delivered with the full flat of your fist and never focused on a single knuckle. I broke my own hand because of an improperly thrown punch and you never want that to happen. It will set you back farther than you can imagine. Certain karate punches are delivered with certain knuckles, but that is best left to someone with proper training in that art. Keep your elbows close to your body and never lock them. Your muscles and connective tissues do more than just deliver force. They act as airbags and absorb the shock of the strike so that you do not injure your joints. As you push your arm forward through the air rotate it so that you thumb is facing across your body.

A punch does not come entirely from the arm as many assume. The activation of the core and hips plays more into it than you may have ever thought. To deliver a real knockout punch you need to learn to punch with your entire body and derive power from your legs pushing off from the ground, but this is a technique you really need a trainer for. So, go out and sign up for some classes.