Mitts Training
Recently, boxing Punch Mitts training has become critical for coaches & fighters in the boxing & martial arts world. You can’t hang it simply with a roof and start throwing punches after putting on your boxing gloves. Without any argument, we all can agree to the fact that focused mitts training is an essential part of a fighter’s training routine. Your training partner or coach is supposed to hold them for you. Holding mitts need proper knowledge and certain techniques. A good mitt training session involves right punching and holding techniques. Here are certain tips that will help with both.
Benefits of focused mitt drills
Before we start with effective tips for mitts training, here are benefits this training has to offer. It is the best drill that a fighter can do. It allows the practicing of realistic fighting maneuvers without fighting without a real person.
Focus mitt drills help with:
- These drills help in improving punching skills, techniques, power, impact, speed, endurance, timing, and accuracy.
- Help in improving your overall offensive skills, punching angles, and all the combinations)
- Plays a great role in improving your defensive skills such as blocking, slipping, rolling, parrying
- Practicing live moving without an opponent makes you work on footwork, mimicking styles, strategy, and counter-punching
- It makes you work on your distance & timing, which is nearly impossible with other equipment like a heavy bag.
- If the fighter is training for his upcoming fight, these drills are an amazing way of keeping his senses sharp.
Tips For Mitts Training
Focus mitts training is a great tool for developing accuracy & proper boxing mechanics. If practiced wrong, it can develop poor techniques & wrong habits. Let’s dive into some most effective tips for holding the mitts.
1. First Discuss the Goals with Puncher
Before starting the starting the most important thing is your fighting and training plans should be communicated with the trainer. You have to be specific about your training goals before heading for your training sessions. Unlike punching bag workouts, Punch Mitts provide fighters different fighting options. Most of them focused on rhythm & accuracy, maintaining defense, reaction drills, or simulating your opponent. Knowing why your training partner is performing these drills will help him in getting the best of it and will synchronize the trainer’s tone with drills. Make sure the plan is discussed beforehand.
2. Proper Positioning of Mitts
These drills are supposed to help the fighter in preparing for the actual match. While holding the mitts, the trainer needs to simulate the punching opponent. The mitts should be held closer to the body’s silhouette. This way the trainer may feel more comfortable as mitts aren’t near his face. Make sure the trainer keeps the elbows close to his body. For straight punches, mitts should be placed at their forehead height, a few inches apart from the trainer’s head.
in front of you. The mitts should be angled inward slightly. For uppercuts, the training pad should face the floor, in a way the angle is slightly up. It should be held at chin height.
3. Hand Movement
For hand movement, it is essentially important to maintain the right balance. The fighter’s hands shouldn’t be in the air for the whole time or swinging towards the mitts. Mits should be brought lightly towards the fighter. Avoid extending the arms too far away as it will make the fighter punch hard. The trainer should avoid keeping the hands raised the entire time. Drop the hands at the waist level between the combinations.
4. Don’t Call-Out the Combinations Always
The trainer can also practice this approach in which he doesn’t call-out the punching combinations, but just put up the mitts & let the fighter practice. It will help them in getting used to throwing strikes & combinations instinctively, contrary to what they are being told. It will help them in developing their punching rhythm between different combinations.
5. Moving Around
If you have space, try utilizing it. A real fight doesn’t involve two fighters simply planting their feet & banging out. It’s a highly unlikely scenario in professional competitions. A trainer should be circling and the fighter must follow them at the front while landing different combinations. Doing this will perfect their striking angles and footwork.
6. Throwback the Strikes
In a professional boxing competition or combat sports match, the opponent is also going to throw punches back and fight by applying his moves and techniques. A trainer and fighter must keep this in mind while practicing mitts drills. The pad holder should also exert strikes while forcing the fighter to slip out or roll. It will help a lot in hiking his overall game. The trainer can also apply the combinations of jab, hook, cross, slip, jab, hook. Also pick up the speed while throwing these combinations.
7. Arm and Wrist Tension
While holding mitts for the fighter during his training session make sure your arms & wrists are somewhat tensed. The wrists should not snap back each time the fighter throws a punch and hits the mitt. The wrists & elbows should stay firm during the training.