Punching bags are a fantastic addition to home gyms, whether you’re training to be a fighter, doing high-octane cardio sessions, or enjoy hitting something to release stress. Many punching bags come pre-filled with stuffing that allows for immediate use of your bag. But other punching bags come empty, allowing you to fill them yourself. You can use many materials to fill a punching bag, including common items from around your house.

1. How to Fill a Punching Bag

3. Punching bags are a fantastic addition to home
gyms, whether you’re training to be a fighter, doing
high-octane cardio sessions, or enjoy hitting
something to release stress.
Many punching bags come pre-filled with stuffing
that allows for immediate use of your bag. But
other punching bags come empty, allowing you to
fill them yourself. You can use many materials to fill
a punching bag, including common items from
around your house.

4. Why Use a Self-Filled Punching Bag
Buying an empty punching bag that you can add filling to
yourself is a great way to save money. Empty bags come much
cheaper than pre-filled options.
Also filling them yourself gives you the ability to customize the
way the bag feels and responds to match your experience
level. You can control the bag’s tightness, weight, and shape.
Light bags are better for beginners or young players. As you
increase experience, you can add more weight. A good rule of
thumb is that you need a 1⁄2 pound of weight for every pound
of the boxer. So for a fighter who weighs 150 pounds, they’d
do well with a bag of at least 75 pounds.

5. Fighter Experience
Before you can fill your punching bag, you’ll
need to consider what bag would be best for
your needs. You’ll need a different type for
MMA than you would boxing.
You will want to make your bag short and wide
for boxing, while for any mixed martial arts
training, you’d do better with a longer, thinner
bag.

6. Hard vs. Soft
How your bag feels when you hit it is something
you want to give serious consideration. Soft
bags are easier on the hands’ joints, which is
useful for injured or limited players.
Softer surfaces are also more giving, which is
better for beginners. They also provide better
movement without as much power.

7. Heavy bags offer more resistance, so it requires
a harder hit to make it move. As a player gains
experience, they can move up to a stiffer bag,
which offers more resistance against blows.
Hard bags are also better for power training.

8. Materials for Filling a Punching Bag
When you buy an empty punching bag, you
have multiple options for what to use as the
filling. Which option you choose will depend on
how you want the bag to feel once full. Let us
look at some of the best materials for filling a
punching bag.

9. Old Clothes
One of the easiest ways to fill a punching bag is to
stuff it with old clothing. Fold these pieces and stuff
them into the bag, compressing them together
tightly to get an even fill.
Many experts recommend placing a small bag of
sand on the bottom and then piling the clothes on
top. Pay considerable attention to the fabric against
the sides. You can use a broom handle or long tool
to push the clothing tighter into the bag for more
compression.

10. Fabric Scraps
If you don’t have any old clothes, you can also
use fabric scraps of cotton or other materials.
Cutting the fabric into thin strips provides a
denser filling, but you’ll need more of it.
The downside of using fabrics or clothing is that
the material tends to sink to the bottom,
causing the top to be too soft and yielding.

11. Sawdust
Sawdust is another common filling for empty
punching bags. This material will produce a
more rigid surface, which may offer too much
resistance for beginners.
However, you should not use a punching bag of
only sawdust, and you should never use loose
particles. Fill bags with the sawdust, wrap them
in duct tape, and add them on top of clothing or
other soft materials.

12. Sand
Sand is another DIY filling you can use for filling
your punching bags. Similar to sawdust, you
should never use only sand but also add fabric.
The process is the same as using sawdust.
Ziplock bags or small rucksacks work well to hold
your sand or sawdust particles. You can find
sand and sawdust at your local hardware store.

13. Rice
Some people like to use rice instead of sand or
sawdust. Fill your bags with dried, uncooked
rice, tape them up, and stuff them into your
bag, along with thin pieces of fabric.
Pack the bag, so the harder materials are in the
center, surrounded by the fabric packed against
the sides. Rice provides a strong, hard-hitting
surface.

14. Water
Some bags allow you to use a water core – a
waterproof container in the middle of the pack
that holds the liquid.
This method gives the bag a more natural feel
and movement. But it also becomes heavier and
harder to hit, so it might not be the best option
for beginners or lightweights.