Heavy Bag Thrust

Execution

1. Get into the staggered stance, knees slightly soft, hand set on the bag.
2. Rotate the hips and torso fast, driving the bag away as hard as you can through your palm.
3. Fully extend the arm at the point of maximum push, sending the force from the legs through the hips and out the hand.
4. As the bag swings back, receive it by bending the elbow slightly and shifting your weight back a touch.
5. If the bag comes back faster than you can receive it, step out of its path instead of blocking it with a straight arm.
6. Complete all the reps on one side, then switch the lead foot and pushing hand to the other side.

Quick cues

• Power starts at the legs, through the hips.
• Torso rotates first, the arm follows.
• Receive the bag with a soft elbow.
• Switch sides evenly, never favor one arm.
• Think about pushing straight through the bag.

Common faults

• Fault: Pushing with just the shoulder and arm while the hips stay still

  Fix: Drill the hip rotation alone without the bag a few times before adding the push back in.

• Fault: Standing with feet parallel instead of staggered

  Fix: Reset one foot in front of the other, wider than hip-width, before starting the set.

• Fault: Locking the elbow stiff when the bag swings back

  Fix: Cue a soft elbow bend the instant the bag touches your palm.

• Fault: Only training one pushing arm and skipping the other side

  Fix: Split the sets evenly between both sides and log it if one side is clearly weaker.