Free Standing Heavy Bag Vs. Hanging Punch Bag

1. Easy To Set Up

When you unpack free-standing punching bags, you’ll find that they don’t come with too many pieces.

A base and some sort of spring or connection mechanism usually slot into place and may require a screwdriver or spanner to tighten up.

But I found that my non-existent DIY skills were more than enough to get the heavy bag stand set up and ready to go.

2. Not As Solid For The Knuckles

If you haven’t done much punching work, then a free-standing bag might be ideal as it’s less severe on your knuckles.

There’s more give at the upper end of the bag, meaning it will move easier than a hanging bag.

3. Better Portability

This is possibly one of the main attractions for a garage gym where you might not have a permanent space for your heavy bag.

A free-standing bag might not be the lightest gym equipment, but it should be easy enough to move around once you’re finished with it.

4. Space Saving Option

So, the two types of bags are often the same size, but the way they move and the control you have over the movement is very different.

A standing punching bag only moves from the base up, limiting how far it will move and ultimately how much space you need for your heavy bag training.

5. Ideal For Martial Arts

Many martial arts workouts happen on heavy bags, and many fighters find that standing bags are more suitable as they give a better feel for having an opponent.

It just feels more realistic, especially when you consider that the higher up you kick, the more follow through you would expect [1].

And free-standing bags tend to give you that follow through.

That being said, there are a couple of drawbacks with a free-standing bag.

1. Less Resistance

The ability to get a good followthrough that I mentioned as a positive above also tends to limit the amount of resistance you get.

That can become quite a disadvantage once you become much stronger, where every punch and kick in a bag results in a lot of bounce.

You could end up waiting a while in between punches until the boxing bag stabilizes again.

2. Not As Durable

We have noticed with free-standing punching bags that they tend to be made of less durable materials.

The leather is often thinner because they tend not to be used for constant and heavy punching.

The more beating it gets, the more you’ll find that the spring mechanism might start to make noises and even become less resistant.

3. Limited Footwork

Many boxers don’t like a standing punching bag because it can limit the footwork you can do. The bounce of the free-standing bags is very different, and it’s not as suitable for working your way around the bag [2].

We talked to a few boxers and Muay Thai fighters to give us some feedback on what they liked about hanging heavy bags.

We gathered five specific advantages of heavy bags.

1. Favored Swinging Motion

A hanging heavy bag is ideal for punching as it creates a nice and smooth swinging motion, which resembles an opponent’s movement.

This makes y bags ideal for focusing on your footwork as well as your punching technique [3].

You can essentially work on both your offensive and defensive stances without the extreme swings you tend to get with a freestanding punching bag.

“Watch any professional fighter work the heavy bag, and you’ll see that they’re ALWAYS throwing punches. Even when they rest, they only rest for maybe 2 seconds at most.”

- ExpertBoxing.com.

2. Heavy Resistance

Most hanging bags start at quite a heavyweight, which means that they naturally have a lot of resistance.

They are also available as much heavier options than free-standing bags, which suits people with a powerful punch or better kick e bag over, which is less disruptive to your training.

3. Highly Durable

Hanging heavy bags are designed from the start to withstand a lot of abuse, and as a result, they tend to be considerably more durable.

There are also no moving parts like a spring mechanism in free-standing bags. The worst that can happen is that years of abuse will wear the leather thin, and some of the sand or foam starts to spill out.

4. Flexible Workouts

Because the hanging punching bags don’t swing wildly around, they are ideal for many different workouts and training techniques.

Boxers often switch between punching and footwork to take a short breather. They’re also great for doing speed drills as you don’t have to wait until the bag is stable again.

5. Easy On The Budget

You’ll find that for a comparable weight, size, and quality hanging heavy bags tend to be cheaper and longer-lasting.

There are no moving parts to account for or break down, which ultimately means that you get a cheaper heavy bag that is likely to last longer.

With all the benefits, there are a couple of downsides to highlight.

1. Not The Easiest Installation

Now, you have to understand that I have two left hands when it comes to DIY, and my skills barely extend beyond a screwdriver.

But heavy bags require a solid anchoring hook to be installed in your ceiling, and then you’ll need some help to lift the bag off the ground to attach it.

It’s certainly not a one-man job.

2. Fixed In One Place

The other downside is that you really need to plan where you position your hanging bag as they aren’t easy to move out of the way.

It’s also tricky to unhook them without someone else’s help, so it’s not like you can just get it out of the way when it’s not in use.

3. Space For Swinging

Finally, if you want to use it properly for offensive and defensive training, then you need to allow for quite a bit of space.

First of all, hanging bags will end up swinging quite a bit. And then you have to add the space for you to move your body around it in a fighting stance.