Punching bag

A punching bag ( colloquially Sandbag ) is a training device that to train the punch and kick techniques used by boxers and other combat athletes.

Punching bags are usually cylindrical and have an outer skin of leather, imitation leather or nylon. They are fixed by means of a chain or rope on the ceiling. Despite the name sandbag filling usually consists not of sand but of sawdust, grain, corn, or special plastic pellets. Rarely, they are filled with scraps of fabric, foam or other synthetic materials as they do not reach the necessary weight to workout.

Punching bags as training equipment for pugilists and Pankratiasten already existed in ancient times. The Greeks called the sand (or with flour or fig seeds ) filled bag Korykos ( κώρυκος ), among the Romans follis pugilatorius. He was also used as a medical aid in physiotherapy.