Power Boxing – Double Your Punching Power With These 5 Secrets
You don’t have to be a competition boxer to put more power in your punches. If you can punch harder in good form in your home or gym workouts you will get fitter and lose more weight – because it means you are using the right muscles and putting more of your body into each punch. Here’s how to double your punching power in 5 steps.
Power Punching Secret #1 – Use Your Whole Body.
Bruce Lee used to knock a man down from a punching distance of just one inch. The secret? He used his full body weight. If we just swing our arms we get nowhere, but if we really engage our Abs, legs and torso our power can double. Engage the core when you punch, and rotate the torso. Your arm is just the nail. Your body is the hammer.
Power Punching Secret #2 – Connect To The Ground.
One of my boxing mentors told me “the power comes from the ground.” He got me to connect to the ground at the moment of impact as if there was a chain of energy that ran from the center of the earth, up through my body into the target. Many people mistakenly punch on their tippy toes. Try to Drop first, then Drive. In other words, bend in the legs, and feel the connection to the ground before releasing your punch. This will make a massive difference.
Power Punching Secret #3- Tighten Your Fist.
If your fist is loose and floppy you won’t want to punch hard. You will hold back. So make sure you have hand wraps, solid boxing gloves and just before impact, really clench your fist. Think Hands of Stone.
Power Punching Secret #4 – Relax & Breathe.
Most people tense up when boxing. They think it’s all about aggression and trying hard. But the secret to a really powerful punch is the opposite. Relax. Just as a tennis player or golf pro is relaxed and fluid when they swing, we can punch more powerfully if we relax. One way to relax is to breathe. Really exhale on impact. Martial artists do this, and often make loud noises as they strike. Try saying Shhhhhhhh! as you punch. It works.
Power Punching Secret #5 – Follow Through.
Bruce Lee told us not to punch at the target – but through it. This is as much about the mind as the body. Concentrate on driving through the punching bag or punch mitt (as long as your partner can hold mitts well). If you are punching a punching bag try to really sink your punches in. You may even dent it. Of course, you need to build up to this level gradually.
Sometimes it takes time to build power, other times it just happens. Work on one of the 5 secrets at a time, and you will find you will double, even triple, your punching power.
