Boxing Equipment: The Essentials You Need in Your Gym Bag

 

Organising your boxing equipment in a gym bag is a great way to set up your training session. This is especially helpful on your off days. You know those days:

  • You’ve just come home from a long day at work.
  • Your smelly gym towel is still in your bag.
  • Your hand wraps are still in the wash.
  • You’re having trouble finding the other glove. 

These hurdles can eventually lead to a lazy night on the couch instead of a productive workout in the gym. Having your gear sorted and ready to go can remove any mental obstacles that can arise and ensure that you get to training on time and reaping those GAINS.

Boxing equipment. What you’ll need.

Fortunately, the equipment you’ll need for boxing training can be pretty minimal. These essential items should never be too far away from your gym bag and should all fit snugly in a decent-sized bag. Let’s go through and talk about the essential boxing equipment that all athletes should have.

Boxing Gloves

This one is probably the most obvious item as far as boxing equipment goes. You’ll need boxing gloves to do pretty much all your training aside from skipping, stretching and shadow boxing.

Boxing gloves are a must-have for any boxer. They soften blows by increasing the surface area of contact between hand and target. The main purpose of boxing gloves is to protect – they provide protection to the boxer’s hands, wrists and lower arm. At the same time, it lessens the impact of your punches on your opponent, reducing the risk of injury. By reducing the impact of your punches, both you and your training partner can last longer in training.

Boxing gloves come in several different sizes. An average adult would typically use 12 oz. gloves, though those training to compete may benefit more from 14-16 oz. gloves.

Hand wraps

Hand wraps are strips of fabric that go under boxing gloves to provide support and padding for the knuckles and wrists. They provide a cushioning effect to the wrist when punching. They also serve to form a tight grip between their fingers and palm, for a better fit when you wear your boxing gloves.

These are typically made of cotton or elastic material. Elasticized ones can be stretched to fit snugly over the hands without cutting off circulation. As a result, they add more protection and stability to your knuckles and wrists, and keep your hands dryer as you train.

You don’t have to wash your hand wraps after every use, but do make sure to air it to dry before you store it in your bag. Otherwise, sweat-soaked wraps becomes prime ground for microorganisms.

water bottle

Bringing a water bottle to the gym is a great way to stay hydrated and healthy. Ideally, you should have a tumbler or reusable water bottle. If you prefer to keep your drinks cold, a thermos is a good idea too.

Regardless of what you put your water in, it is important to drink enough water during your workout. Keeping yourself hydrated will help you avoid muscle cramps and fatigue, and helps keep your body at peak performance. When you’re adequately hydrated before, during, and after your workout, you’ll feel better and perform better.

shoes

You can use any pair of gym shoes or running shoes when training in boxing, but if you’re willing to take things a step further, boxing shoes are great.

Boxing shoes provide protection for your feet. They have a high top that protects your ankles from injury. They also have a good grip that allows you to rapidly shift and change directions. Boxing shoes also provide an arch support to keep your feet in the right position. This will help reduce foot muscle fatigue and prevent injuries like plantar fasciitis.

Of course, we realize that not everyone wants to invest in boxing shoes, and that’s absolutely fine. As long as your shoes provide you enough support and mobility, you can use that to train. If it comes down to it, you can even train boxing barefoot, especially if your gym has a dedicated mat area.

towel

You know the feeling of getting to a piece of equipment that is just soaked? It’s very off-putting. And just as much as things covered in other people’s sweat puts you off, your sweat on things will probably put other people off too.

Expect to sweat a lot when you work out—a lot a lot, regardless of what kind of exercise you’re doing. And even if you don’t consider yourself a heavy sweater. If you’re doing something high-impact like Crossfit or boxing, you’ll probably generate enough sweat and splatter it everywhere as you move around.

The boxing gym is a shared space that members must work together to keep safe and comfortable for everyone. Bringing a towel with you to wipe yourself (and any equipment you use) down is common gym courtesy. Moisture breeds bacteria, so this prevents bacteria growing in places we don’t want them to.

skipping rope

Skipping ropes may seem like toys for kids, but they’re actually great for training in boxing. Skipping rope keeps you on the balls of your feet. It’s a great way to warm up and improve your agility in boxing footwork. It doesn’t seem like much when you watch the kids jump around all day. Try it, though, and you’ll see just how much of a workout it is just a few minutes in.

Skipping rope is a great way to warm up the body and improve their coordination and footwork at the same time. It helps develop endurance, rhythm, and coordination, which is important whether they’re punching the bag or sparring with an opponent. It’s also great for speed, timing, rhythm, and stamina, which are all things that will benefit you in the ring.

The best thing about the skipping rope is that it doesn’t take too much space, and you can use it to get some cardio in virtually anywhere.

gym bag

Finally (but most importantly), you need a gym bag to fit all of your stuff in. When picking a gym bag, make sure to pick one that is roomy with a lot of compartments. You’ll want separate compartments for your clean clothes, your sweaty clothes, and your gym shoes. Ideally, your gym bag should be made from a water-resistant material such as nylon. This makes it easier to clean, and avoids keeping moisture and harboring disease-causing bacteria.

A man sits with his gym bag, presumably filled with boxing equipment he needs in class.

And there you have it. When it comes to going to the gym, some days are harder than most. There are just times when you’ll be severely tempted to just skip gym, but that’s when you must persist. Having your boxing equipment all set up and ready to go will make things easier for you.