Shadow boxing with dumbbell / resistance band

[Deslam724]

2lbs is too much, you're going to injure your shoulders using them.

Yes! should be 1 to 1.5 pounds XD

[Elroy1]

Resistance bands are good for slow methodical movement to feel the peak tension at the end of the movement when the shot lands and are equally important to do in reverse for the pulling muscles. They are great at developing balance muscles in the legs and core and twisting muscles also.

They are detrimental or utterly useless at best for speed etc in shadow boxing and probably lead to injury plus throw your timing off.

Shadow boxing is imo best performed with 1lb (16oz) weights. The pink variety sold in those colour coded ones. This is purely because it replicates the same timing and muscle loading as the gloves do with the added benefit on the grip through holding the weight in the fist.

MORE weight than this MIGHT have a slight affect on power but probably isn't worth it. What more weight will do it train your body to be faster/more powerful WITH that weight. When the weight goes back down it is reasoned that because they feel so much lighter they will fly much easier. Problem is with a heavy weight, the resistance really is more vertical. With a light weight like 1 lb, you are able to move the weight so fast that the resistance is actually more in line with the change in inertia which is horizontal than it is vertical. As you throw the weight out the anterior muscles fire it forward and then the posterior ones fire to rapidly retract it.

If you use heavy weights you are training your muscles to always "load up", which is the opposite of what we want, to be supple, fast and relaxed and not feel the movememt until transfer.

1lb weights in shadow. No more. To make it more intense, throw more, move more and throw faster! And more isometric style resistance band work.

That is my opinion.

[BG_Knocc_Out]

When it comes to speed/endurance training, the goal is to neurologically prime yourself to act on resistance so your body calls upon X amount of muscle fibers. Most athletes who haven't done training like this typically use only 50-60% of their muscles capacity. There's a good video on YouTube somewhere, can't find it though, but basically it gives the example of when you've reached into the fridge to grab some milk, thinking it was full when it was only about empty, and you swing that mother-****er around.

Like the others said, 1lb for shadow boxing. But, you can incorporate other drills.

I like to take 5lbers and burst out 1-2's for 30 secs to a min, depending on fitness level. Not necessarily being textbook on these punches, just shoot them from your shoulders and keep the thumbs up, don't worry about turning them. This REALLY helps with explosiveness, which is a key component to speed.

I like to use resistance bands for a slower, more controlled pace, but you can utilize them for explosiveness as well. The nice thing about them is that you can incorporate form a little bit because you can bring your hands back to your head safely. Where as with free weights you have to worry about knocking yourself out lol. If you utilize them, keep them slow, and when the punch is retracting don't become over reliant only the band bring your hands back, you want full control. Much like when you weight lift, full bodily control.

[Rockin']

When it comes to speed/endurance training, the goal is to neurologically prime yourself to act on resistance so your body calls upon X amount of muscle fibers. Most athletes who haven't done training like this typically use only 50-60% of their muscles capacity. There's a good video on YouTube somewhere, can't find it though, but basically it gives the example of when you've reached into the fridge to grab some milk, thinking it was full when it was only about empty, and you swing that mother-****er around.

Like the others said, 1lb for shadow boxing. But, you can incorporate other drills.

I like to take 5lbers and burst out 1-2's for 30 secs to a min, depending on fitness level. Not necessarily being textbook on these punches, just shoot them from your shoulders and keep the thumbs up, don't worry about turning them. This REALLY helps with explosiveness, which is a key component to speed.

I like to use resistance bands for a slower, more controlled pace, but you can utilize them for explosiveness as well. The nice thing about them is that you can incorporate form a little bit because you can bring your hands back to your head safely. Where as with free weights you have to worry about knocking yourself out lol. If you utilize them, keep them slow, and when the punch is retracting don't become over reliant only the band bring your hands back, you want full control. Much like when you weight lift, full bodily control.

you knock yourself out with the dumbells when you shadowbox with them? LoL

[ukbox]

So how much extra resistance is too much?

I take my lead from research into baseball pitching with various weight balls... which I believe, in the absence of punching specific research, the skill of throwing a ball is representative of throwing a punch too.

The optimum weight balls for developing maximum throwing speed was +/- 20% of the weight of the ball used in competition. So for a fighter competing in 10oz gloves... training in 12oz (+20%) to 8oz (-20%) gloves matches these demands perfectly. If you fight in 8oz gloves, then 10oz and 6oz gloves will do the trick. At the other end of the spectrum, if you fight in 12oz gloves then 10oz and 14oz gloves should be your choice.

Heavier than 20% over your competition weight will affect your punching technique – you can't throw a heavy ball the same way as a lighter ball.
Lighter than 20% under your competition weight will change your punching style too – you can't throw a screwed up ball of paper in the same way you would a tennis ball.

I'd also make the point that true max speed punch training should be done on the pads and bags, rather than in sparring. Trying to hit your training partners full bore in lighter gloves is NOT cool – there's less padding protecting your partner from your knuckles.

It should be obvious by now that punching with heavy dumbbells or against resistance bands are likely to do more harm than good. In fact, resistance bands exert more resistance as you stretch them to punch, slowing your arm as it extends. That's the opposite of the acceleration you get while throwing a real punch – you're training to slow-down as you extend your punch!
But back to the gloves, why heavier and lighter than competition ones?

The heavier gloves develop greater force production (strength), albeit at a slightly slower rate than needed, whereas the lighter gloves train the muscles to contract at faster rate than possible with a regular weight glove.
The combination of increased force AND increased contractile speed, with highly specific skill rehearsal, makes for the fastest possible hand speed. And the +/- 20% loading ensures that the force and speed transfers to real punch performance and doesn't sabotage punching skill.

You can go heavier in more general movements (not punching), because that won’t confuse your punching skill. And then at the other end of the extreme, experiment with +/- 20% weight gloves while punching with the maximum speed possible.

So build the general strength and power needed to boost up your punches, and fine tune that power with UNDER and OVERSPEED skill practice – but get the load right or risk spoiling your technique rather than improving it.


http://heatrick.com/2015/04/14/how-t...unching-speed/

[nivek535]

Resistance bands are good for slow methodical movement to feel the peak tension at the end of the movement when the shot lands and are equally important to do in reverse for the pulling muscles. They are great at developing balance muscles in the legs and core and twisting muscles also.

They are detrimental or utterly useless at best for speed etc in shadow boxing and probably lead to injury plus throw your timing off.

question, how/why are they detrimental?
i personally think resistance bands are great, as you can control the direction of resistance while standing up right (anchored to the right spot).
if you mean it's not good for shadow boxing, then i agree. but for conditioning, resistance bands are nice, no?

[Elroy1]

question, how/why are they detrimental?
i personally think resistance bands are great, as you can control the direction of resistance while standing up right (anchored to the right spot).
if you mean it's not good for shadow boxing, then i agree. but for conditioning, resistance bands are nice, no?

Well I have/sometimes use resistance bands in the manner I described,methodically slow under tension. Simply it is not a ballistic movement and in my opinion may actually lead to a reduction in speed. The resistance is only in the forward motion. But the pulling muscles are equally important for speed power and technique. The tension developed with the bands throughout the movement programs the wrong kind of neurological adaption that the more ballistic light dumbells offer.

You said you liked it because of the horizontal plane right? And feel that dumbells offer vertical resistance? That is truer the heavier the weights are.

What many don't realise is that when you use light (1lb) dumbells with swift moement both extension and retraction of the punches, the resistance actually is horizontal because of the changes of inertia every complete punch. What's more the inertia changes at the end of the punch too to retract it activating your posterior muscles which the bands do not do because they only use the anterior ones.

Strength imbalance and tendonitis results.

A guy above claimed heftier weights can be used for other drills and I agree, just not for shadow boxing. The best here is the medicine ball throw or shot put which does not retract at the end, it follows through. You can use heavy weight balls here. This develops good power and such and the straighter the trajectory of the ball, the more technically correct the movement is.

There are several articles to this effect to read.

Not saying I am dead on correct, each to their own mate. These are just my opinions of what optimal training is. I do have a fairly good background in exercise physiology.

[I Love Jesus!]

Ive seen mayweather doing uppercuts with 40 pound dumbells

[Science]

The higher the weights the slower the movements and shorter the time you shadow box.

[_original_]

Good read in this thread. I've been using 3-5 pound dumbbells to shadowbox for years now and have never had any issue at all. To clarify, I do my shadow box routine with just wraps and then I incorporate the weights into my boxing HIIT circuit. They're just usually quick 1-2s or fast uppercuts to build up speed for a minute or so until the next station, I don't use the weights in an actual rehearsed shadow box session often. Resistance bands work great in the same fashion, also look into ankle weights. I've seen Floyd use them while jump roping or doing quick 1-2s with some small weights.