Martial arts are a delicate matter. People spend years studying them and improving their combat techniques for decades. We will start with the most basic, because here, as in other places, everything starts little by little. Today, together with the coach, we will discuss how to properly clench your fists for punching.
CCM in boxing, winner and prizewinner of tournaments throughout Russia
“If a boxer constantly keeps his fists clenched, he will quickly tire from the tension. He must be able to competently combine relaxed, light movements around the octagon with ultra-fast tension in the arms and tightening of the fingers in the final stage. “This way you can save your strength and save it until the last round, as well as in total perform more high-quality attacks during the battle.”
A video tutorial awaits you at the link on how to throw a jab correctly:
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Correct placement of fingers in a fist.
The fist is your main weapon during a fight, and you must learn to use it correctly. If you spend time on this topic, even without having a lot of muscle mass, you can learn to hit so hard and accurately that no one will find it too difficult.
If you watch boxing matches from the outside, you might think there’s nothing complicated about it: you punch, you block, you dodge, everything follows the instructions. But, in fact, each of these elements hides many details and nuances that should be taken into account. Develop muscle mass, reaction, study various striking techniques, be able to combine all this during combat and not just wave your fists. But before that, of course, learn how to properly clench your fists.
Mikhail Bushkov: The position of the fingers when squeezing should be as follows: four fingers, with the exception of the thumb, should be tightly squeezed and pressed against each other, but the thumb, in turn, should also be firmly pressed against the phalanges of the index finger. and the middle fingers, forming a whole.”
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The most important thing here is the position of the thumb, because most often it is with this that beginners have difficulty. Some people keep it to themselves, while others even cover it with the other four. This is a very serious error. The fact is that with this technique of clenching your fist you are more likely to hurt yourself, because instead of the thumb we have a ligament. And if you cover your thumb with your other fingers, the ligament will tighten and you will most likely sprain upon impact.
Therefore, it is necessary to bend the thumb and place it, so to speak, on the index and middle fingers. At the same time, you should look down and observe this. You just need to practice a little and after a while you will be clenching your fists automatically.
Bend the remaining four fingers and place them in your palm so that the fist is solid. With this arrangement of the fingers, the hand will be as fixed and strong as possible.
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Learn to use your hands during sparring
We have figured out the fingers, now let’s move on to the work on the hands, this is no less important. The first thing we should talk about is hand and wrist tension. Even if you fight with gloves, you are not immune to dislocations and fractures. Therefore, be sure to fix the fist so that it does not hang loose and the blow is precise and accentuated. If the hand is relaxed, during the attack the arm can bend and be injured.
Mikhail Bushkov: The tension in the shoulders and forearms when clenching the fists for a correct and strong blow should be as follows: the shoulder is relaxed, but the forearm and fist are as tight as possible.
We explain why: try to tense your shoulder and throw a punch in the air. Do you feel stiff? It will make it very difficult for you during combat and, although your blows must be strong, you should also not forget about the ease of movement of your hands. If you want your lunges to be quick and stealthy, then your shoulder should always be relaxed.
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Exercises and recommendations.
Remember: the tighter your shoulders are, the more restricted your movements will be. So don’t try to inflate them too much. Of course, it is necessary to do exercises with them, as with all other muscles, but do not overdo it.
You’d better spend this time working on your forearms. Here are some exercises that will help you with this: bending and straightening a barbell or dumbbells with your hands, squeezing a wrist expander, hanging from a horizontal bar.
If you raise your hands correctly, every blow you receive will be dangerous for your opponent, which will become a real weapon during the fight. Because whatever your technique, without physically developed hands it will be difficult to achieve the desired result.
We will not tire of repeating the importance of warming up: make sure you warm up before training, regardless of whether it is high intensity or not.
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What part of your fist should you hit with?
This largely determines how much damage you will deal to your opponent. If you hit incorrectly, you can hurt yourself and injure your fingers.
Often inexperienced athletes throw punches at will – this is wrong. Fingers are quite easy to damage or even break, sometimes a not very technical blow is enough. Therefore, take very seriously which part of the fist you need to attack.
Remember: you should hit with the first two knuckles of your fist: the index and middle ones, since they are the largest and strongest. And when you hit with these knuckles, the main load falls on the radius, which is the largest bone in the arm, so the likelihood of injury is much lower than in all other cases.
Of course, no one is immune to injury during a fight. But your task is to reduce all risks as much as possible and prepare. If your hitting and squeezing technique is better than your opponent’s, then you are already one step ahead.
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How to strengthen your fist?
It is necessary to make fists so as not to feel sharp pain after blows. It is good to fight with bandages and gloves, but bare hands are not well protected from injury. The more you train your fists, the more immune to pain they will become.
Here are some proven ways to strengthen your fist: you can stand prone or do push-ups with your fists, practice punches on hard, dense surfaces such as bags and pears. At first it will hurt, there is no way to avoid it, you have to hit hard. But over time, the discomfort will subside and you may even feel good throwing hooks and punches.
Train regularly several times a week and then you will gradually get used to hitting fast and hard. At the same time, it is not even necessary to go to the gym; you can learn how to tense your arm correctly at home; In boxing this is called “shadow boxing”. This is a training technique where you box with an imaginary opponent. Don’t just hit randomly, but dodge and move.
With its help, you will not only be able to learn to clench your fists correctly and on time, but also perfect your striking technique, load your muscles and thoroughly test your endurance.
The link tells you how to perfect the accuracy of your shot:
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