As an MMA fighter or an enthusiast, who is working out to increase their punching power, or to just get in shape. It is vital that you inculcate a regimen of heavy bag training on a daily basis. Heavy bag training is one of the toughest workouts out there because you are hitting a solid 50 kg bag with full intensity over multiple rounds.
This is a great way to build up your stamina, and power, however, many athletes take their knuckles for granted. Why do you think boxers wear 12-ounce gloves when they go for a fight? To protect their opponent’s face? Not exactly, they are protecting their hands. And so should you while punching that heavy bag.
There is a common misconception that you can hit the bag with any type of glove. You cannot! There are serious dangers to this method. In this article, we will be discussing whether or not you can hit the bag with MMA gloves. Are they good for you? Will it damage your wrist? Can it cause irreparable damage? Let’s find out.
What Are MMA Gloves?
MMA gloves are also known as grappling gloves. These are open-fingered gloves so you can engage yourself in acts such as clinch fighting. MMA gloves are small in size, less padded, and protect the palms and backside of the hands.
MMA fighters wear these gloves to prevent their hands from getting unwanted injuries. These gloves offer ample flex on the wrists and fingers, making it easy for the fighters to grab the opponent. Thus, we can say that wearing MMA gloves would make you a better MMA fighter.
What Are The Types Of MMA Gloves?
Before we can answer, can you hit bags with MMA gloves, we have to cover their types. Most of you might know about MMA gloves, but we bet not all of you know about their types. Note that MMA gloves are of three types depending on their use. The three types are:
- Competition Gloves
- Sparring Gloves
- Hybrid Gloves
1. Competition Gloves
Competition Gloves, also known as Traditional Gloves, are the widely used gloves in the world of MMA. These gloves are known for their lightweight and few ounces of padding. Competition Gloves have four to six ounces of padding that makes them perfect for professional fighters.
Competition Gloves are thin, which means they don’t provide enough protection to the hands. However, these gloves are perfect as they deal a lot of damage to the opponent. As a professional MMA fighter, you can use these gloves for faster and powerful punches. Also, you will note that wearing Competition Gloves has improved your overall performance.
2. Sparring Gloves
Sparring Gloves are perhaps the most durable MMA gloves among all. These gloves are different from other MMA gloves as they offer extra protection for your fingers. For this reason, MMA fighters prefer Sparring Gloves for both Sparring and Grappling activities.
Sparring Gloves weigh between seven to ten ounces due to their durability and extra protection. Additionally, these gloves have a grip bar that helps you make a firm grip. Sparring Gloves are almost similar to boxing gloves, thanks to their sturdy quality. It is the reason why these MMA gloves are considered the best for heavy punching and grappling.
3. Hybrid Gloves
Hybrid Gloves are also known as Training Gloves or Grappling Gloves. These gloves are perfect for MMA fighters during their training phase. What makes them the best option is their less padding. Hybrid gloves have padding up to just the second knuckle.
Hybrid Gloves ensure protection both for you and your training partner. Additionally, the fingers are not covered, making it easy for you to do grappling practice. For this reason, these gloves are known as Grappling Gloves. Another reason why they are called Hybrid Gloves is they might come in a mixture of both Competition Gloves and Sparring Gloves.
So, these were the three different types of MMA gloves that professional MMA fighters use. Whether you are a professional MMA fighter or a beginner, you will have to use any of the three types of MMA gloves mentioned above. It all depends on the type of moves you want to perform.
What Gloves Are The Best For Punching Bags?
Now that you understand the types of MMA gloves, let’s talk about the gloves that are considered the best for hitting bags.
Ideally, gloves that weigh from seven to twelve ounces are the best for punching. Why? Because the gloves that fall in this category are sturdy and lightweight. It ensures that you punch the bag at a rapid speed while protecting your hands.
Keeping this in mind, almost all the MMA gloves could be the best for hitting bags. However, if you want to hit heavy bags, we recommend Sparring Gloves as they offer extra protection and are more durable than the other two types of MMA gloves. Furthermore, Sparring Gloves weigh between seven to ten ounces, which makes them perfect for you to punch faster.
Are MMA Gloves Perfect For Hitting Bags?
Honestly, MMA gloves are not a perfect choice for hitting bags. However, you can call them a decent option for hitting bags. On the other hand, we don’t recommend MMA gloves for punching heavy bags. Below are the reasons why MMA gloves are not perfect for heavy bags. Make sure to read them before you buy MMA gloves for hitting bags.
MMA Gloves Are Thin
MMA gloves are thin because they are designed to help MMA fighters become pros. Thin gloves are lightweight, allowing MMA fighters to perform all MMA moves comfortably. These gloves are not ideal for heavy punching as you might hurt your hands.
No Protection On Fingers
MMA gloves don’t have protection on fingers because MMA fighters have to use their fingers freely. For this reason, MMA gloves don’t have any cover on fingers. So if you punch heavy bags wearing these gloves, you might feel pain in your fingers. However, if you still want to hit heavy bags with MMA gloves, the only option for you is the Sparring Gloves.
No Wrist Stabilization
Here is again a reason why MMA gloves are not perfect for hitting heavy bags. MMA gloves are usually very short, which means you don’t have any protection for your wrists. It is to allow MMA fighters to move their wrists freely. However, you can’t consider them for punching heavy bags because you might get wrist pain or even injury.
These were the three reasons why we don’t consider MMA gloves perfect for hitting bags. If you want to do a light punching practice on small bags, you can consider these gloves. However, if you want to do heavy punching, we recommend using boxing gloves rather than MMA gloves.
What Makes MMA Gloves Good For Hitting Bags?
There are not many reasons why you should choose MMA gloves for hitting bags. However, the latest MMA gloves come with gel inserts that you don’t see in the old MMA gloves. Also, the latest MMA gloves are longer from the wrist area, which means you have added protection for your wrists. For this reason, you are less prone to spraining your wrists.
These are the two reasons that make MMA gloves a decent choice for hitting bags. If you can compromise on the negative points about using MMA gloves to hit bags, you can definitely choose MMA gloves.
Conclusion
There you have it, a detailed discussion about: Can you hit bags with MMA gloves? The answer is not 100% a yes because there are situations where MMA gloves are not good for hitting bags. However, we don’t want to disappoint our MMA fans. If you want to hit bags with MMA gloves, make sure that you don’t hit heavy bags. Also, don’t try to punch too hard.
We hope we made it all clear about MMA gloves and hitting bags through MMA gloves. Now, it is up to you if you want to use MMA gloves to hit bags or not. Just make sure to understand both positive and negative points about MMA gloves before purchasing them.
Thanks for making it this far till the end. That’s all we have for you today. If you enjoyed reading this article, leave us a comment or email us at [insert email].