How To Make a Punching Bag

Boxing is a great sport for increasing your cardio strength and endurance. It's also a great stress reliever. When beginning boxing, you might not be ready to make the costly investment needed to join a boxing gym or buy the at home equipment. If this is the case you can improvise and make a punching bag at home with very little money.

Materials:

• Military duffle bag
• Scissors
• Sand
• Several empty trash bags
• Foam
• Old clothes

1. Purchase the materials. Head to your local army surplus store to purchase a duffle bag. The heavy canvas material is perfect for a punching bag and the long, cylinder shape will make a great heavy bag. Choose a duffle without zippers if possible. Then visit your local craft store for foam sheets at least two inches thick. An old foam mattress pad also might work.
2. Line the bag with foam. You want to protect your hands while punching and help the bag last a while so you need the foam layer. Cut the foam so that it fits as a liner for the entire inside of the bag around the sides. Then cut out a bottom and top circle. Wedge the bottom circle in and set the top aside.
3. Place the weight. Punching bags provide little resistance without some weight. The easiest way to weight the bag is to gather some sand. Place it into a trash bag and wrap the bag until it is closed tightly. It might take some experimenting to get the right amount of sand. You are aiming for at least a one to two inch layer at the bottom of the bag. Once you have a round section in the bag and the bag is secure, place the bag into another trash bag and tie it tight. Repeat this with several bags so that you don't later hit your punching bag and find sand flying everywhere. Place the sand wrapped in several bags down into the punching bag on top of the bottom layer of foam. Arrange so there is a gap between the foam and the sand bag.
4. Fill the bag with foam pieces and old clothes. Place the clothes and foam in several layers and fill the bag so that there are no dents or gaps. Try as much as possible to stuff the bag so there are few air spaces. Then place the top round piece of foam.
5. Secure the bag and hang it. Once the bag is full and the top layer of foam has been placed, you need to tie of or zip the bag closed. How the top closes will depend upon the bag. After it is secure you will need to hang the bag from a hook or support. Be careful if you are hanging the bag from the ceiling because all your punching may damage the drywall and you will need a strong ceiling joist to secure the bag without damaging your home.

By following these steps you can make a punching bag at home for under $40. You should be able to use the bag in your new boxing routine for months before it begins to show wear.