Can hitting a punching bag build muscle?

There’s no denying the appeal of the boxer’s physique. Men and women alike are turning to sports like boxing to help build strength and torch calories in a fun environment. If you want to challenge yourself in 2019, then boxing could be the sport for you. But if your only interest is building muscle, is this the right sport for you?

First things first. Yes, hitting a punching bag can help you to build muscle. The force it requires to repeatedly hit a punching bag is enough to build muscle in the arms, back, shoulders, core and even the legs. Boxing is a very dynamic sport that requires your whole body to work hard. Your feet are always on the move, your core has to remain engaged, your shoulders are responsible for generating the power behind every punch. It’s physically demanding, but this isn’t the only reason that people turn to boxing workouts to help build the body they want.

Boxing is a very effective form of cardio, which means it also helps you to trim down and build strength. If you’ve ever felt that you’ve been lifting weights but you aren’t seeing the muscle definition that you would like, cardio can help. By combining strength training with cardio, you can drop body fat and achieve the strong and lean look that so many men and women are trying to achieve. Boxing is the ideal combination of strength and cardio, which means you won’t have to work as hard lifting weights to see the same results.

How to maximise your routine

High-intensity interval training is one of the best ways to get strong and lean. While a punching bag can help to bring more structure to your workout, you don’t even need one. Instead, you can combine shadow boxing routines with upper body strength workouts that only use your own body weight for resistance. Over time, you might find that these bodyweight exercises get easier, so you would simply increase the reps and modify them to make them more difficult. Many boxing workout videos will include recommendations for how to modify an exercise for different experience levels.

Variety is key

Doing the same workout day in, day out is going to get boring. This is why a boxing workout is so great. You aren’t just working out with the sole aim of losing fat and gaining muscle. You’re actually learning a skill. While the majority of people go into boxing for the weight loss and muscle definition, it’s not unheard of for people to discover they have a passion for the sport and go on to compete. Even if you don’t go on to compete as a boxer, every boxing workout you do will be different, which helps to keep things interesting. As your body gets stronger and leaner, the way you move will change, and this will change the way you engage with workouts.

Pitfalls to avoid

If you are determined to build muscle there are a few things you will need to avoid. For starters, you will need to modify your diet in order to make it easier for your body to pack on muscle. You can’t build muscle on cheeseburgers and fries. Focus on lean protein, complex carbohydrates and plenty of fruits and vegetables. Add more fibre to your diet in order to help your body digest food slower. You should also focus on drinking lots of water throughout the day in order to cut down on empty calories from snacks. And finally, make sure you are getting enough sleep. Ideally, you should aim for nine hours per night if you want to make the most of your workouts.