I am a little guy who does not yet have the power to throw a knockout punch. I would like to know the best way to improve my power in my punches. Any info is greatly appreciated and ill keep you guys posted on fight results.
pull ups, rows, curls, dumbell bench press, Hand stand push upsSpartan42 said:I'm pretty tall 6'2" but I am incredibly light 137 lbs, I'm currently training in BJJ but even as my technique starts to get better it is hard to pull off certain things without a necessary amount of strength. Any help in how I should train to gain more strength (especially upper body) in a way that is helpful in grappling and other aspects of BJJ would be very much appreciated.
what about holding weights in your hands does that help hand speed toOnganju said:A little applied physics:
Force = Mass X Acceleration
The second part of the equation is usually the easier of the two to see large amounts of improvement on. That is working on hand speed. Simply punch in a way not to emphasize power, but to emphasize the amount of acceleration you put into it. If you try to "put it all" into a punch, you'll tense up. You need to punch in a fluid, loose manner. How? Repitition, repitition, repitition... Keep punching until your arms feel like they're about to fall off.
An easy thing to do, is to punch using either weights on your wrists, or using big ass 16oz training gloves. Once you take the gloves off, your hands will feel lighter, and they will move at a greater rate of acceleration.
Okay, now the first part of the equation takes a lot of fine tuning. The way that you add mass to your punch is simply by using good body mechanics to train yourself to move you body with each punch. Again, the only way to tune your body movements well enough is repitition.
For instance, when you shoot out a jab, turn your hip towards your target. That will cause your shoulders to rotate into the direction of the punch (thus adding the mass of your upper body into the equation). You can add the mass of your lower body into the equation by pushing off your rear foot and sliding your front foot forward two or three inches. This will greatly increase the amount of force in your jab.
I can probably go on in length about it, but because of time constraints let me suggest a few things:
1) Pick up a good reference book that breaks down the kinesthetics of a punch in an easily understandable manner. I suggest two books that I have right off the bat:
The Tao of Jeet Kune Do by, Bruce Lee (I know, it may be a little dated or philosophy heavy, but the way Lee breaks down the kinesiology of punching is absolutely great)
Savage Strikes by, Mark Hatmaker (A more practical and up-to-date reference and instructional book on MMA striking)
Both books are easeily found for under $20.
2) Get a heavy bag and start working rounds... And more rounds... And more rounds.
3) Find a good boxing gym. These are still fairly easy to find, and even moderate amounts of instruction can make a big difference in comparison to finding out what works for yourself. Aside from that, once you begin learning how to throw a KO punch, you're going to want to learn how to avoid getting hit by one.
Good luck.
Yes they can. Infact, many fighters train using that exact method as part of their routine. In my own esperience, you can usually get a way from using the wrist weights or dumbells if you train with huge 16 oz. boxing gloves. If you think about it, that's an extra pound on each hand. Once that's shed, your hands will feel lightning quick.ozz525 said:what about holding weights in your hands does that help hand speed to
Would 15 to 20 pound dumbbells be a problem then?1) You don't need extreme amounts of weight. To be completely honest, anything more than 3 pounds isn't going to help much as you're not going to be wearing more than a 4 oz glove if you actually fight. Also, you are using the extra weight to build speed and muscle endurance. Anything else will promote the growth of mass, which isn't necessarily a good thing.
Woo-hoo! Again, something I know a little something about...Spartan42 said:I'm pretty tall 6'2" but I am incredibly light 137 lbs, I'm currently training in BJJ but even as my technique starts to get better it is hard to pull off certain things without a necessary amount of strength. Any help in how I should train to gain more strength (especially upper body) in a way that is helpful in grappling and other aspects of BJJ would be very much appreciated.
wat do u mean about the snap how would that lookI.P.Freely said:Wow! Another thread I feel like I can contribute to.
As Onganju rightly said, it's all about acceleration. IMO, in practical terms that means 'snap'. You have to get the motion of a punch to be loose until the last moment, and then unload all the power- the 'snap'. If you don't do it like that, your punch is just a hard push. Very strong people can still do a lot of damage like that, but smaller people not so much. But you need to get someone to teach you- getting this right in some punches is tricky.
It is often said that most people have an aversion to hitting someone full on, and hold back a little. So they say that, at least initially, you should aim to hit a little way back into the target, e.g. when you go to hit them in the gut, imagine you are going to hit them in the spine. Personally I'm not 100% sure about this- someone else can probably vertify.
What people said about having good, firm contact with the ground is 100% right, as is using hip and shoulder.
With all of these things, I would recommend playing with them to get the feel. Get in front of a heavy bag and do it in an exagerated way plenty of times to make sure your body totally feels it. Then practice thousands and thousands of times over.
Similar to what others are saying. Keep your arm and hand loose until the very last moment before impact, and then try to max out the power. That means your muscles will become tense very, very briefly around the time of impact, and then will relax again. It's in the transition from loose to tense that the snap comes.ozz525 said:wat do u mean about the snap how would that look
I.P. is definitely on the right track. Another way to look at it is this: Most people look at their fists like clubs, or battering rams. If you are looking to increase the amount of "snap" on your punches, it would probably be better to look at your fist like the very end of a whip (your arm).ozz525 said:wat do u mean about the snap how would that look
This is an old thread, but it's just been linked to by the extremely expert Onganju, and I'm reading it again. This line caught my eye. This is not quite right.younggunz said:I never knew the direction of your hips could make a diference in your punching.