Focus Mitts: Top Things You Need to Know When Buying

As much as MMA or any martial arts may seem violent and outright dangerous it teaches you the basics of self-discipline and accountability. It’s more than just how you can throw a punch and focus mitt training is one of the ways that prove this to be true. Punch mitt training can help you improve your striking technique.

It can also better your physical fitness and get you up to temperature for your sparring session. This type of training also teaches you self-defence as you also learn how to dodge and not just how to strike. Training with focus target mitts is not the same as using boxing gloves since the former are meant for receiving and not for throwing punches.

Important Features of Focus Mitts

Padding

Probably the most important aspect of a focus mitt is the safety it provides. This is where you need to pay attention to padding the most. Quality focus mitts are well padded, meaning whoever is wearing them is not going to be injured even if a martial arts master were to strike. Although the mitts will be heavier they will absorb impacts better and make things more comfortable too.

Wrist Straps

Something that is not that common with target mitts is the use of wrist wraps. But if you go for mitts with wrist wraps know that you will have a better grip and a safer pair of mitts as the straps keep the mitts on your hands better. This way the mitts feel more stable.

Stitching

The quality of the stitching will tell you a lot about the durability of a focus mitt. Especially if you go for mitts that have lots of padding. This is where the number of stitches should be on the higher end. The more padding there is, the better the mitts should be stitched up. No stitch should feel loos as otherwise, the mitts would quickly fall apart from the punches.

Handles

The design of the handles directly affects the usability of mitts and it also affects the protection of the hand. This section should have an ergonomic design as one that doesn’t fit your hands will make it easier for the mitts to start slipping away.

Cover Material

As you’d presume when it comes to the material the mitts are made of, leather is the way to go as it’s durable and comfortable too. You can go for mitts made of artificial leather but know that they are going to lose their elasticity as time goes by. The only benefit of artificial leather mitts is that you can clean them more easily than ones made of actual leather.

Curved vs Flat Focus Mitts

Why Are Focus Mitts Curved?

The majority of focus mitts are curved because this design makes them more versatile. With a curved punch mitt, you can receive punches from different angles without losing control over the mitt. But not all punch mitts are the same.

Comparison

For example, you have flat mitts which are used more by trainers that need to work with heavy punchers. This is because flat mitts can absorb impacts better than curved ones. Some would say that it’s best to have flat and curved mitts as when you progress to a higher level you’ll make more use of curved mitts.

Tips on Using Focus Mitts

Resist

Your instincts will tell you to put as much force into your punches as you can but that should not be the case. As much as you want to do so, resist the urge to pour everything you’ve got onto the mitts of your trainer. It will be good for your joints and your trainer’s joints if you put some resistance back into your punches. The heavier the punches you throw the more pushback you’ll need to save your elbows and shoulders.

Focus

If you’re the one holding the mitts you shouldn’t have your hands too far away from each other. Try to make them as wide as your mate’s next opponent since this way you’ll make for a more realistic training session since no one has a 30 cm wide head. Doing so otherwise will make your mate build an incorrect technique.

Repetition

Unless you’re in a class, you’ll want to repeat certain moves as much as you can. Especially when starting with the basics, you should repeat them until you can do them in your sleep and that’s what focus target mitts are for. Once you get the hang of the basic movements then you can explore having a more diverse workout.

Movement

Although you’re going to be receiving punches at your padded hands, that doesn’t mean you should forget your role. You should make sure that whoever is throwing the punches is keeping good form and that use you your body to make them follow you. You can also throw some punches back to make the rounds more interesting.