In this video, we're going to take a look at a speed bag routine for beginners.
The speed bag is a great way to increase your hand-eye coordination, your reflexes
and the muscular endurance of your shoulders. It's also a great way to train
your brain to get used to objects moving quickly towards your face without
blinking. Even if you never plan on stepping into the ring, the speed bag is
a great exercise for the shoulders and it's fun. Many people are often
intimidated to give it a try because they deem it to be too complicated, and
they don't want to look like they don't know what they're doing. In this video,
we're going to give you a simple routine that a beginner can easily follow to get
those shoulders into great shape and to have fun at the same time.
I will show you beginners a trick so that you don't even need a speed bag, just in case
you don't have one. Let's get to it. Let's take a look at what you may need.
You might want a speed bag. Many gyms will have this and I'll leave
a link to another speed bag video, in the description below, if you want to master
it. If you're thinking of buying a speed bag, well this speed bag may run
you about 25$. It's not super expensive. I'll also leave a link to
how to build a home gym, if you're interested in making your own platform.
For this routine, I'm going to use a smartphone. You can use anything that
keeps time. There are many timer apps that you can download for absolutely free.
I'm gonna set the timer for 3 minutes of work, followed by a 30
second rest period between rounds. If you find that too tough, well then you
can increase the rest period to 1 minute between rounds. I would
definitely recommend that you use hand wraps, to protect your hands from the
friction of hitting the bag. I'm going to leave a link, on how to wrap your
hands, in the description below as well. Perhaps you don't
have a speed bag but you're looking to add something extra into your home gym
routine. I've been training people for a long time and for new clients at
their homes, who have never tried the speed bag or who don't have one and are
not sure whether or not it's worth the investment, I would often win them over
with this. I would bring with me a flexible ruler, that I got from the
dollar store. You might be able to get one for less than a dollar. Who
knows, maybe you can get two for a buck. I love duct tape, so you can use
that but while I was at the dollar store, I would buy some green painters tape.
Because it's easier to peel off after I'm done. This way, just in case you
have a painted doorway you won't ruin your paint.
This is an overall investment of about 2$.
Then I'm gonna tape up the ruler about halfway on top of a door frame.
Then I would continue on with this exact routine.I know some people are
probably chuckling to themselves but that's because they've never tried it.
As always, I like to give you guys the best tips and always for free.
If you don't have a speed bag then you canuse a ruler to mimic this routine and
get a great shoulder workout at home, for about 2$. Laugh if you want but
try this routine with the ruler and it will absolutely have those shoulders
burning in no time. Finally, before we start this routine, I just want to cover
a few tips that are gonna make hitting this speed bag easier and more enjoyable.
It's easier to make contact with the heel of your hand.
Why? Well that's because it's a flat surface. Because it's a flat
surface, it's gonna make it easier to keep the bag traveling in a straight line.
Also, the heel of your hand has padding to it, so it's much easier for
the impact on your hands. Next, I want to cover this one right away because for
someone who has never tried the speed bag before. This is something that they
may not have noticed. The way in which the speed bag bounces off of
the platform. Just take a look at this for a moment please. Do you see it?l
Do you notice how the speed bag hits the platform?
This is what I mean. Many people who have never hit the speed bag before, think
that it's only supposed to bounce off of the forward part of the platform. Like
I'm doing here. This is not the way to do it. I'm gonna slow this down, so
super slow motion. I'm going to slow this down to give you beginners a
better idea on how the bag is supposed to bounce off that platform.
A great thing about this speed bag, is that you can use it to train your brain, to get
used to objects traveling directly towards your eyes, without having to get
punched in the face. It's a great tool. I want that speed bag to actually
travel towards my eyes, as I keep my focus on it. You're gonna notice here,
in super slow-mo, that that bag bounces off of the forward part of the platform,
after I strike it. Then I let it pass by and bounce off of the back part of
the platform. There it then travels to bounce off of
the forward part of the platform once more. It's only then, that I strike it
once more. You can see that the bag is actually travelling towards my face.
That will help you not blink as punches get thrown your way. It also gives me
enough time to strike that bag. Many people may be rolling their eyes,
because they know all of this. Yet this is a beginners video and of course
everything is always easy when you know it. For those who don't know, that's
the easiest way to hit the bag. I must say from personal experience, that
many people don't realize that at first, because the bag is traveling so fast.
Now you know how to do it. Next, you're going to want to try and keep your
hands up, as you hit the speed bag. They don't need to be super high, but just try
and keep them up. That way, you're going to get used to having the hand that is not
punching up high for defense. It's also going to limit the distance that
that hand has to travel when it needs to strike the bag. That's gonna make you
much quicker. A lot of beginners also have a tendency to want to keep their
elbow up high and away from their body. That will also limit your
speed and it will caused your shoulders to tire prematurely.
It's a lot of work to keep those elbows out, so instead, try your best to keep
your elbows in close to your core. Not too tight but just comfortably in close
and relaxed. One last thing, nobody's perfect.
The best in the world missed the bag sometimes. If you missed the bag, don't
worry about it and don't stress yourself out. Simply stop the bag completely. Reset
yourself and then continue. You're going to notice that over the next few
workouts, that you'll be hardly missing the bag at all. Round 1
For you guys without a bag, use the ruler to get that shoulder workout in.
We're gonna get to the actual speed bag in just a moment. For 3 minutes
we're gonna hit with left, left, left, left. Followed by right,
right, right, right. That's 4 left's followed by 4 rights.
Contrary to what you may believe it is actually easier to do multiple shots
with one arm at a time, then it is to constantly switch arms with every shot.
For this first round, we'll do 4 with the left and then 4 with the right.
For you guys using that ruler, just
keep breathing and keep those hands moving. For you guys that are using the
speed bag, we're gonna do the same thing. We want to simply keep moving.
You don't need to punch very hard. Just hard enough for that bag to hit the platform
a few times. There's no need to throw with all of your power. Don't forget to
breathe, as you go along. Remember that if you missed the bag, simply take a
second to reset and regroup. Then continue as soon as you're able.
If you do get tired then don't worry. Take a few seconds off and then continue when you can.
Remember that it's supposed to be fun. Don't stress yourself out too much.
Another quick thing to note, is that you may find it easier to keep more
weight on your left foot, as you strike with your left hand. Then shift more
of your weight to your right foot, as you strike with your right hand.
That is what I'm doing here. I find it easier to shift my weight back and forth. Yet it's
completely up to you. After you've finished your 3 minutes,
take 30 Seconds to a 1 minute rest, in between rounds.
Round 2. We're going to start with you guys with the
ruler. We're gonna shorten this up to 2 shots per hand. That's left and left and
right and right. Left and left. Right and right. Keep going. You guys with the speed bag,
do the exact same thing. Left and left. Right and right.
You want to try and be fast because this is the speed bag after all,
but you don't want to be so fast, that you're losing control of the speed bag.
Try your best to keep that bag under control. Keep breathing, as you try
and hang in there for the full 3 minutes. You're definitely going to notice
that your shoulders are starting to burn. That's what we're after, so that's a
good thing. They may start to feel pretty heavy by now, but remember that if you
need to take a break, then rest and regroup then continue when you can.
After 3 minutes, don't forget to rest for that 30 seconds to 1 minute in between
rounds. Then we're gonna move on to the third and final round.
You guys with the ruler, we're gonna go one and two. One and two. Left and right. Left and right.
Many people think that this would be easier, but is actually the toughest.
That's why we're doing it last. We're going to really burn out your shoulders now.
Just keep going. You guys with the speed bag, we're gonna do the exact
same thing. Left and right. Left and right. This does take a little more
coordination. You'll definitely get used to it over time.
You have a couple of options here. You could simply stand in place, like I'm
doing here. That's completely fine. Just stand off to one side and strike.
Left and right. Left and right. Or you can use the momentum of your body
and move from side to side. Like I'm doing here. I find this is easier for me
and my lower back. Yet it's completely up to you. Either way, you just
hang in there and try and finish off this last round of 3 minutes.
Whether you use the ruler or the speed bag, you're gonna notice that your
shoulders got a great work out in 3 rounds. Just as important, it was easy
and it was fun. You don't really need more than 3 rounds of this.
I would recommend that you simply add this onto the end of one of your workouts.
Perhaps a few days a week. It's super simple. It doesn't have to cost you
anything. Most importantly, it's fun and super effective.