Have you ever wanted to punch strong like Mike Tyson with the lightning speed of Manny Pacquiao? This guide will teach you how to punch harder and send your opponents to the ground while maintaining maximum speed throughout a fight.
This is definitively an excellent description of how you can combine hard hits with lightning speed.
You can learn how to punch harder and faster, no matter how many kilograms you have.
Have you ever tried to deliver a knockout but your opponent was avoiding your strikes and remained dominant? This guide will teach you how to deliver a strong knockout in any situation!
Here is the list of important tips if you want to know how to punch harder and faster:
- Master your technique,
- Do not overextend your arms,
- Center of gravity and knee position,
- Relax your arm and contract it few moments before the impact,
- Watch your stance,
- Punch directly through your opponent,
- Use your movement to improve striking,
- Use counterpunch and be patient,
- Improve your stamina,
- Strengthen your upper body, legs, and abs,
- Strengthen your fists and forearms.
1. How to punch harder and faster – mastering the technique
There is no chance to hit hard if your technique is poor. Imagine a bodybuilder who challenges you in the street for a fight and who needs five seconds till his punch reaches the face.
Why would you be like someone who is muscular and slow, when you can be both at the same time?
Have you ever watched the fight between Mike Tyson and Clifford Etienne? This is an example how a technique makes a perfection – Etienne went down after a world class technique shown by Tyson.
If you want to punch harder and faster, you need to utilize the whole body when you deliver a strike, don’t use just shoulders or arms.
Rotate your hips, pivot on your toes, rotate your shoulders, deliver a strike and keep your chin down.
Proper technique is something you must work every day on. Think about it when you come home from your training session, focus more energy on your mental training and visualize the striking pattern.
2. Overextending your arms – a big no if you want to punch harder and faster
Your punch will not make too much damage if you overextend it. Why is that happening when it is easier to throw a long-range strike?
The distance is tricky, especially at the beginning of your boxing career. Every punch requires a specific distance, and this is something you must work on.
If your arms overextend, this will be followed by lifting your toes up and losing balance in 99% of cases. It leaves you opened for counterpunch and at the same time decreases the power of your punch.
Hyperextension is dangerous for your elbow – you may damage it seriously.
If you extend your arm fully, there is no chance to contract your forearm muscles in the last phase of movement before the impact – it will decrease your power.
Do not push your target, punch your target if you want to punch harder and faster!
Train the distance – if you are a beginner try to find the perfect distance for every strike. Practice makes perfection will certainly apply here.
3. How to punch harder and faster – center of gravity – big secret of professional fighters
How will a center of gravity affect the power of your punch? This is not a myth, it really delivers the world class power into every single strike!
All you need to do is to lower your center of gravity and bend your knees. Looks difficult?
If your knees are fully extended, not only you will have a chance to hurt yourself, but you will not be able to maximize the energy of impact nor to put your whole body into it.
Your joints will remain closer and you will be able to explode faster off your feet. If your center of gravity is just 10 centimeters lower, you will be able to generate three times stronger punch!
Bend your knees, lower your center of gravity, be quicker and insert more power into your punches – punch harder and faster!
4. Relaxing your arm and contraction before the impact – how to punch harder and faster – a difference between an average fighter and a world-class fighter
Have you ever contracted all your muscles from the excitement when you were younger and tried to punch a target the strongest you can? Now it’s time to forget it and enjoy harder and faster punches without unnecessary contraction.
Relaxation is the best thing you can do if you want to improve power in your strikes.
Remember, focus your mind on the opponent, but relax your shoulders and arms – the only contraction that is a must is when you block an opponent’s strike.
Joe Calzaghe is the best example of it, take a look at his fight versus Roy Jones Jr, he won because he remained focused and relaxed during a whole match.
When you deliver a strike, your arm must remain relaxed until your punch is few inches away from the target. In the final phase of the movement, contract your abs, shoulder, forearms and punch and send your opponent to the ground!
You think this is impossible? Perform the punch while contracting the whole body in the end of the movement and you will notice the difference!
5. The core of how to punch harder and faster – watch your stance during every second of the fight
Good boxing stance is the key to strong punch. If your stance is not good, you won’t be able to transfer the energy of the impact completely and your punches will be weaker, no matter how strong you are.
There are many various stances related to the fighting style but it is important to follow some general rules. This is not so hard, right?
Are you an orthodox or a southpaw? If your stance is orthodox, your leading leg is left; if not, your leading leg is right.
Keep your legs shoulder-width apart, parallel feet, rear heel off the ground, rear arm on the chin and rear elbow on the ribs, lead fist in front of your face, tuck your chin to the chest, wrists slightly bent. Learn a basic stance and adapt it later to your boxing style.
A good stance will protect you from opponent’s strikes, but at the same time, it will provide you with the opportunities of better footwork, counter punching and body movement.
Take a look at Wayne McCullough, he is an example of basic stance with lighting fast punches.
6. Punch directly through your opponent – how to hit harder and faster and crush your opponent like a tree
The goal is not to hit your opponent, you must hit a target which is 10-12 inches behind, beside or above your opponent, depending on the boxing technique.
When you see the mitt, imagine your target is located behind the mitt if you target your straight punch. Punch the target behind the mitt.
If you punch a punching bag, make sure to finish the impact behind the bag.
Have you ever wondered why your punch doesn’t have much power when you do everything properly? Here is the secret – your target is an imaginary object which is located near your opponent!
Start applying this and you will notice an ability to punch harder and faster after only few training sessions!
7. Movement improves striking – can you hit harder and faster by improving your movement?
Good movement is very important for every fighter. Better movement provides more chances of escaping.
Here is one simple example – what happens with a willow and with an oak during the storm? Willow is very flexible, it may sway to the ground and to the other side but oak cannot – this is why the storm mostly cannot pull the willow out of the ground.
The same situation is with a boxer – if the movement is good, you will be a more difficult target but you will be able to set up strikes from all types of angles.
Your strikes will surely be harder because when an opponent misses, he leaves himself opened. If you are fast enough, you will be able to set up a perfect punch.
Imagine throwing a straight off the distance and throwing a strong straight with the step forward. What do you think, which punch is stronger and faster?
8. A world-class example of how to punch harder and faster – use counterpunches and be patient
A counterpunch is a key when it comes to defensive fighters with nerves made of iron. To be able to immediately follow the attack, you need good experience, movement, skill, and speed.
Just remember one thing, when an opponent misses, your punch becomes stronger because of Newton third law – to every action there is always opposed an equal reaction.
The power of your strike can be calculated by the following formula:
Force (punch power) = mass x acceleration
If you add the power of your opponent who moves towards you after a miss, are you aware that your counterpunch can be two or even three times stronger?
You should only relax, be patient and wait for your opportunity. When you see an opening, slip and counterpunch your opponent!
9. stamina is key when learning how to punch harder and faster
Your stamina can win or lose the fight.
You may have all heart of this world if your gas tank is empty, it is empty. An opponent will move better than you and punch harder than you.
You decrease your chances of winning the match if your stamina is bad. How will you punch someone harder if you have no power left?
Jump rope, run intervals, sprint, do explosive exercises… The best way to improve your stamina is to simulate realistic conditions – use 3-minute rounds and specific demands.
Here is an example – 10 seconds burpees, 10 seconds shadow boxing, 10 seconds strong strikes on the punching bag, repeat six times without break. Rest one minute between the rounds.
Perform ten rounds, just change the demands, for example, 10 seconds strong strikes on the punching bag, 10 seconds pushups and 10 seconds uppercuts.
Looks difficult, right? Nothing is difficult if you want to punch harder and faster!
10. How to punch harder and faster – why is strengthening your upper body, legs and abs so important?
A strong muscle is a need of every boxer. Your technique may be perfect but if your body is weak, you will not be able to knock your opponent out.
Abdominals work during every single punch if done properly. Here are some exercises to strengthen your abdominals, feel free to perform it at free reign.
Strengthen your arms – you need strong shoulders, back, and chest.
When your body gets used to the gym, perform 8-12 repetitions, 6 sets, with a rest of 2 minutes between every exercise. Go to the gym at least three times per week.
Here are basic examples:
Monday – deadlift, bench press, cable crossovers, wide grip lat pull-downs;
Wednesday – sumo squat, air squat, prone leg curls, leg extensions;
Friday – push press, rear barbell raises, chin-ups, hand scissors, laying punches (perform those exercise 30 times for both hands, 5 sets).
11. An ultimate step of how to punch harder and faster – strengthen your fists and forearms
Take the dumbbells in your arms and rotate them in a circular motion.
Perform as many movements as possible in the gym related to hand extension or flexion. Remember, the force of impact goes into your forearms.
You will need iron fists – fill the bag with rice or sand. Fill the bag with corn.
Punch the bag with your bare knuckles.
Conclusion
How does it look like to punch your opponent harder than anyone before and send him to the ground? The best victory you may earn in the competition is via a knockout.
Nevermind if you aren’t strong by nature – go to the gym, train, be persistent and never give up.
What are you waiting for? You know how to punch harder and faster now, apply this in the ring!
REFERENCES
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boxing
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Counterpunch_(boxing)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newton%27s_laws_of_motion
