The weight of a punching bag is often the deciding factor when buying one, and it is crucial that you get a load heavy enough for you or else the bag will fly away as you punch it or not even move an inch and be quite hard for you. In this article, we will be making recommendations on how heavy a punching bag should be. Let's get into it
I don't recommend getting a punching bag lighter than 20kgs as for most adults and even teenagers, the bag will fly away when you punch it. 25kgs can be a good starting weight for beginners however punching bags heavier than 30kgs are heavy enough and can accommodate the needs of the recreational boxer.
PUNCHING BAGS BELOW 20KGS
Most of the cheaper punching bags that you find on amazon lie in this category. Brands like aurion, kore, adrenex, hrx and others make bags that weigh less than 20kgs. Most if not all of their 3 and 4 feet bags weigh less than 20kgs and some even go to as low as 13kgs, which is not ideal at all. Aurion and adrenex make 5 feet bags which may weigh 20kgs or a little bit more but since I've not used those bags, in particular, so I'm not sure.
But overall punching bags in this category are too light for adults and only ideal for kids honesty. Even if you're a beginner, below 20kgs is too light for most people. The bags will fly away as you punch and you will have to upgrade to a heavier bag within the first month itself. If you just want to get a punching bag for fun and are not keen on learning boxing then you can get bags from this category. They are also the cheapest bags available as well.
PUNCHING BAGS IN 20-30 KGS RANGE
Punching bags in this range are great for beginners. I wouldn't say that this is still the heavyweight category, but 20 - 30 kgs weight for most people are good enough. The bags will definitely move with your punches, but not fly away. A great bag in this range is the Hard bodies 3 feet punching bag. It weighs exactly 25kgs and the quality is great for a bag that just costs around INR 2500. You can checkout our full review of the bag here.
As you progress in boxing you will outgrow bags in this category, however, for recreational boxing this weight category is perfect. The bags are neither too heavy nor too light and you will have a great experience with them. Usually, companies like USI and Hard bodies make bags in this category and along with the added weight, you are also getting a much better build quality bag that can last you years, without tearing. To understand how the quality of a punching bag, affects its durability, check out this article that we wrote.
PUNCHING BAGS IN 30 - 40 KGS RANGE
We are getting into the professional category and bags that weigh 30 - 40 kgs can be considered heavy bags. The bags are actually heavy enough for most people who are serious about boxing and beginners as well. Some beginners may find the bags too heavy for them however if you keep at it, you will develop the necessary strength and get adapted to it.
Punching bags in this category come from premium brands, the hard bodies 4 feet bag that I own weighs 35kgs and feels very heavy while punching. I've also seen the USI fury bag weighing in at around 40kgs and I need not speak about USI highly for the quality of their boxing bags as most people are already familiar to it.
If you can spend over INR 3000 on a punching bag, you should definitely get a bag in this category even if you're a recreational boxer. Needless to say, if you are serious about boxing then this is the weight category that you should start with it.
PUNCHING BAGS ABOVE 40KGS
There's no limit on how heavy a punching bag can get in this category, starting at 40kgs all the way up to 100kgs and I've even seen bags that weigh 120 - 150 kgs which is very very heavy, you get the idea. The bags in this category are usually 5 and 6 feet long weighing ar 45 - 60 kgs generally. Needless to say that these bags are used y professionals and are some of the best-quality punching bags that you can get in India.
40kgs and above can be too heavy for beginners to start with and most people will find the bags too heavy to move while punching, so I don't think beginners should be looking at this category. You need to have some experience with boxing before getting a bag from this category and are usually suited for people seasoned in boxing.