For the Nth time, punching speed!

If you got a weight in your hand you should be hitting something, not throwing into air. Your elboes won't like you if you spend a lot of time punching air with weights...

Anyways, one of the biggest things most people can do to improve hand speed is to clean up there technique, a lot of speed can get lost through wasted movement.

Here's a drill you can try to develop the right muscles and speed:

Get someone to hold a pair of focus mits for you. Throw 50 jabs into one of them as fast as you can with good form. Now throw 50 into each alternating sides as fast as you can. Now partner moves mits into a low/high position and agains throw 50 into each with good form. Switch leads, repeat with other hand.

Another thing to look at is basic rythym drills, alternate right / left stay relaxed and throw from the legs. Cross - Hook, Jab- Uppercut, hook-uppercut, etc. Don't look at speed at first, just rythym and shifting your weight properly, minimize arm movements. Work up the speed as you get the feel for it.

Another thing you could try is to push the sandbag up a bit and then try hold it there for as long as possible using only punches. It's harder than it sounds.

As for weights in the hands. The elbows won't like it but still, you can get injured wrists with weights in your hand when you punch the sandbag [The body isn't used to additional weights in the fist plus the fist won't be clenched properly]. It's a lose-lose situation, so, decide which one you want, bad elbows or bad wrists.

-Taison out

Ok, some sensible advice I got from my boxing mate.

Usually, in a KB match you spar with a 14 oz glove, right? Change to 16 oz.

Practice on bringing your hand back into the guard faster after you punch. My boxing coach once told me that it should be brought back at least as fast as you shoot it out there. I later read some Bruce Lee teachings that said, it should be going at 50 mph and coming back at 100.

Now, the big issue is here: If you do this you will more then likely be lacking power and just have speed..this is "good" if you're going for points but in the big picture of reality it's a waste.

So basically, if you focus too much on speed, your technique will take a hit and your punches will have less power. Don't forget, power is a must in boxing. Take this away, why not go do TKD and forget punching.

-Taison out

punching speed and punching power come with time and effort...but neither will matter if you dont have the technique down, so worry about that first and the rest will fall into place...chuck lidell wouldnt be what he is if he was just out there throwing blind haymakers with his power and speed, he has precise, thought out combos that work

Agreed.

Still, technique alone won't make a great fighter. You need balance. A good punch with good technique without power and speed, is a useless punch.

-Taison out

To develop a skill easily and properly, you must learn the technique, then develop power, then it becomes easy to develop speed.