Top 5 Best Free Standing Punching Bags [Buying Guide]

Whether you are practicing boxing, kickboxing, muay thai, MMA or any other combat sport a quality punching bag workouts is one of the most important parts of the training.

If you have a lot of space or home fitness you can always go with the traditional style punching bag and hang it from the ceiling. We explained how to do that in our guide “How to hang a heavy bag?”. But if you want more flexibility or just don’t have enough space in your home, the free-standing punching bag might be your best option!

In this article, we review the best freestanding heavy bags for you!

SEE OUR #1 CHOICE

Scroll down to see detailed reviews of every bag in the chart.

Best Free Standing Bags Reviewed

• Vinyl cover and high-density foam
• Easy roll relocation
• Eight height adjustments from 47” to 68”
• The base can be filled with sand or water and weights around 270lbs.

CHECK LATEST PRICE

 

Century Sparring BOB XL Review 

• Base can be filled with water or sand and weights around 270lbs
• Adjusts from 60” to 82”
• Base included
• One year limited manufacturers warranty

CHECK LATEST PRICE

 

This is an excellent choice for free standing punching bag as these B.O.B ( Body Opponent Bag ) gives you a realistic target and will help you for your precision as good as it will help you for power training. The base can be filled with 270lbs. of water or sand. As a result, this secures you a nice training without worrying that you will easily knock down the heavy bag.

Extra-long torso creates a more realistic striking surface for body shots and kicks. This makes it one of the largest free-standing heavy bags on the market.

If you already trained on regular heavy bags you will notice that when you hit BOB bag it gives much more resistance. That is because it’s designed to take a heavier punch and to feel like you are punching a real opponent.

However, the surface is not so smooth as other heavy bags and we recommend always using gloves and wraps when hitting the BOB XL free standing punching bag.

One minor drawback of the BOB is that the body is attached to the base by 6 screws and these screws could loosen up over the time so make sure to tighten them up good.

Century Sparring BOB Review

This is BOB XL’s little brother.

The main benefits that this free standing punching bag has over the BOB XL is that it’s $100 cheaper and it takes less space. The height is almost the same but the striking surface is a little smaller as it has no “legs”.

However, if you don’t particularly want to hit the bag with low kicks this is another well-suited option for a cheaper price!

The issue with the base attached to the body by 6 screws remains. Always tighten them up!

This is the most versatile product on the market. Ideal for both stand-up and ground training. The Century Versys V1 is the most traditional looking free standing heavy bag in the Versys line.

Century’s team designed the bag to be versatile and it really provides a lot more opportunities for training. You can use it for sparring as well as using it for grappling training and tossing it to the ground.

Another good feature the Century Versys VS1 has is that the base if pre-filled. Let’s face it – sometimes sipping 270lbs of sand or water in the base is unpleasant so they solved this problem for us. The VS1 weights around 100-110lbs and that means it’s easy to move the bag around your house or gym.

An important note is that this line of bags is not designed for developing power and the base is smaller. Therefore the bag may not keep stable if you are punching and kicking with full power.

If you are muay thai or MMA fighter the top handles are a nice addition for practicing knee strikes. Also, the bag has decent padding so you don’t have to worry about hurting your shins when kicking or your fist when punching, although we always recommend using gloves and wraps.

The most expensive free standing punching bag so far. The biggest advantage is that it can be used from 3 people at once. This is perfect for gyms with a lot of people where the heavy bags are not enough.

Century Versys VS3 is perfect for cardio workouts and for polishing fighting technique. Due to the fact that this bag is lighter than the others, it’s not suitable for power punching and kicking. The VS3 allows the fighter to throw big range of strikes and takedowns mastering his technique.

Advantages of Using a Free Standing Punching Bag

First of all, the best thing about the free standing punching bags is that they are fast and easy to set up.

You just buy the punching bag, fill it with sand or water(some bags even come prefilled!) and you are ready to go. There is no need to search for materials to fill it with – just use water and you will be fine.

Another good reason is that you don’t have to hang it from the roof which is great. Also, this provides you the ability to use the heavy bag even in a small room – you can always move it when you are ready with the workout.

A free-standing punching bag is invented for one reason – portability and that is exactly what it delivers!

Another thing you should know is that the regular heavy bags are often filled with material that can compress and harden over time. As opposite – a good free standing punching bag is softer and you are not going to hurt your knuckles or shins.

Factors to Consider:

When you are about to buy free standing punching bag there are some things you may want to consider. The decision you make depends on what kind of training you want to do with the free standing punching bag.

1. Design

Manufacturers make some free standing heavy bags are designed only to take punches while other can be knocked to the ground and used as grappling dummies. If you are practicing muay thai or kickboxing you must get a bag that can take hard kicks.

2. Weight

If you buy a free standing punching bag that is too light it will interrupt your workout as it will get knocked down too easily after one or two strikes.

This is the most common complaint about the free standing punching bags. The weight and the size of the bag determine how much power it can take before getting knocked down so if you are big and strong adult make sure to buy a heavier free standing punching bag.

3. Price

The price ranges from about $100 to over $400 depending on the size and the fill of the bag. However, the cheaper options are often too light for any kind of training and are most useful for kids. Be ready to spend at least $250-300 If you want to get yourself a good free standing punching bag.

Which is the Best Free Standing Punching Bag?

In conclusion, we would like to say that the best free standing punching bag depends a lot on the kind of training you will do with the bag. For heavy strikes and kicks, you should look for a heavy free standing punching bag capable of taking strong shots without being unstable. Hence Century Sparring BOB XL is a good option.

If you are looking for versatility and want to train grappling techniques as well as striking Century Versys VS.1 Fight Simulator will be best suited for you.

For a beginner in martial arts without a big budget Century Original Wavemaster is definitely the right choice. Low budget, durable, standard free standing punching bag. It is also one of the bags that are both suitable for grown-ups and kids as well.

We hope that this article answers the question “Which is the best free standing punching bag” well enough and if you have some questions, comment below and we will answer!

SEE OUR #1 CHOICE