Best Muay Thai Gloves

Fairtex BGV1 Muay Thai Boxing Gloves

Fairtex has a really broad range of gloves and some universally appealing designs to match. From my experience of working with beginners new to Boxing / Muay Thai Fairtex Gloves tend to be well received and are a great entry-level glove for bag work and pad work.

They are reasonably priced and also widely available and their two main glove designs accommodate all hand/fist shapes and sizes. The quality is great and generally with heavy fight style training (5 – 6 times per week) will last around 3 – 4 years.

You can read our full in-depth breakdown in our Fairtex BGV1 Muay Thai Boxing Glove review.

Best Muay Thai Gloves For Heavy Bag

Twins Special

Twins have always had a very durable glove with a hard outer leather design. Their gloves, albeit a bit wider in shape, are very solid and protective which is perfect for working power punches on those hard, dense heavy bags.

There’s just something about that feeling of satisfaction you get when you land a perfectly placed shot into one of the hard Thai heavy bags that have been molded for impact by literally thousands of strikes before you.

This feeling of satisfaction is amplified when you do this with a pair of Twins gloves. The shape, the sturdiness, and just overall design - feel and sound amazing as you slam your fist into those bags.

Best Muay Thai Gloves For Sparring

Top King – Super Air

I’ve used a lot of different brands for sparring and my number one always remains the Top King Super Air range. The 16oz (sparring size) gloves have a very light feel to them and are highly breathable with an intuitive design – hence the name 'Super Air'.

Our hands being one of our centers of heat, can during hard spars overheat and give us a feeling of fatigue. These gloves eliminate this and make you feel as if you could spar all day. The Velcro wrist strap is quite expansive which also gives an added degree of support at the wrist, which is an area susceptible to injury in heated exchanges.

Lastly, the glove has a lot of padding over the knuckles which are great for hard sparring as it prioritizes padding over your main point of contact. These gloves under heavy usage have lasted me about 2 – 3 years before starting to deteriorate.

Best Muay Thai Gloves For Beginners

Yokkao Matrix

If you are looking for a glove that combines comfort, durability, and support with a large range of styles and prints to choose from – look no further than a pair of Yokkao Matrix boxing gloves (you can find my full review of these gloves here). They have a slick and durable design made from high-quality cowhide leather which is very protective and enduring.

The curvature of the glove allows for optimal force absorption so no one area takes too much punishment. The Velcro strap is long-lasting and the gloves themselves just seem to go on forever. These gloves have personally lasted me over 4 years now with me using them on average 3 times per week, a great purchase for someone looking for a well-rounded pair of gloves.

Yokkao sets itself apart by combining arguably the best features of each brand and streamlining it into a glove perfectly suited to a variety of use cases.

What To Look For In Your Next Pair Of Gloves

Size

If you are new to the sport of Muay Thai and just wanting a good pair of gloves that you can use for most training then anywhere from 12 – 14oz for bigger hands and 8 – 10oz for smaller hands will do perfectly. If you are looking at getting into sparring or about to start sparring you will need 16oz gloves as this is the size used universally for sparring at fight gyms.

If you feel like in general you are a bigger person with bigger hands opt for a larger glove – up to a max of 16oz. If you are a smaller person and you know you don't have super big hands getting a smaller-sized pair of gloves will be important. You’d also want one that has good wrist support as wrist sprains can be an issue when throwing hard punches.

Material

Synthetic material gloves are good for those out there who are ethically conscious and don't want to use leather gloves, but in general, they won't last as long as their leather counterparts.

They also often don’t provide the same degree of protection to your hands, so if you know you have a hard punch either go for a high-quality leather glove or get some really solid hand wraps to go underneath.

Padding And Support

When it comes to padding and support a lot of it is based on personal preference as everyone has a slightly different hand structure. That being said a good place to look is around the thumb and wrist.

Does the glove feel firm, padded, and supported around the thumb? This is an area that often can get injured, especially if you are new to Muay Thai and still learning how to punch.

The wrist is another area that can often get sprained when people are new to throwing punches so the more support the better in this category. You want a glove that feels like it has a good degree of support around the wrist in terms of the Velcro strap.

Design

When looking at the design of the glove you want to make sure that the glove isn't too wide, the padding is in the right places, and the shape of the glove contours to that of your hand and wrist.

There are lots of different options for varying use cases as mentioned above but ultimately it comes down to your individual structure.

If you have a long and slender wrist you want to get a glove that has a long wrist strap. If you are going to be sparring more you don’t want gloves that are going to be too big and clunky as this will slow you down in crucial moments.

You will also see lace-up and Velcro strap gloves. The main difference between the two is that the lace-up gloves give you a greater ability to control how much support you get around your wrist but take longer to put on (and you need a training partner to tie them for you).

Velcro straps are very efficient to use but don’t offer that same degree of customization when it comes to wrist support. It really boils down to how serious you want to get into it and also how much time you have to prepare before training.

Lastly, on the topic of design, you want to find a pair of gloves that truly resonates with you from an aesthetic perspective as you are going to be looking at them a lot and will inevitably create some epic memories with them. Find a pair that reflects who you are as a martial artist!

Muay Thai Gloves vs Boxing Gloves – What’s The Difference?

There isn't too much difference when it comes to traditional boxing gloves brands and Muay Thai gloves brands. In Thailand for example there are a lot of Western Boxers and they use all the brands listed above. Most of them are designed for universal use.

For example, combat sports training as a whole includes both Boxing and Muay Thai. Ultimately it comes down to personal preference and what you feel the most comfortable using.

How To Pick The Right BJJ Rash Guard

Material

I recommend going for a polyester spandex or elastane mix. These material combinations feel best on the skin and are sweat-wicking. 85% polyester and 15% spandex seem to be the sweet spot for the soft and cool feeling but 80% polyester and 20% spandex is also a great blend that XMartial uses.

However, other combinations give the rash guard a thicker less stretchy feel such as Hayabusa. Avoid material blends like 80% nylon and 20% spandex, as they can feel like beach rash guards.

Short Or Long Sleeve

Wearing short or long sleeves is a personal preference. If you live in cold or hot climates, that may dictate wearing short or long sleeves. With most BJJ gyms now having air conditioning, you can wear long sleeves all year round if you please.

When competing, I recommend wearing short sleeves. It reduces friction, making it harder for your opponent to control certain positions or submissions.

Waistband

Only a couple of brands I have seen have an anti-slip gel waistband. I would opt for these brands as their rash guard quality is typically better since they went the extra mile for this feature. It saves you from pulling your rash guard down during a roll that you don't want to worry about during competition!

Design

You’ll be hamstrung by design if you compete in IBJJF. Here is what constitutes an IBJJF legal rash guard:

But, if you're training or competing in other BJJ tournaments, the world is your oyster regarding rash guard design. Of the many brands in the BJJ sphere, XMartial has the greatest number and coolest-looking designs I have found.

Brand

Trusted brands are always a safe option when buying rash guards. XMartial has catapulted themselves into this position boasting 4.7/5 stars on Trustpilot. You also can’t go wrong with other well-known brands like Hayabusa.

Some brands are known for creating budget fight gear, like Sanabul and Elite Sports. This doesn't make them bad. They can be great for beginners getting into the sport who are still determining how long they will pursue it.

Frequently Asked BJJ Rash Guard Questions

Are Tatami Rash Guards Good?

Tatami is a well-trusted brand that makes high-quality fight gear. However, I have yet to try the Tatami rash guard, so I cannot say whether they are good. Typically, most rash guards serve their purpose, with cheaper rash guards often being thinner than higher-quality rash guards.

Should A BJJ Rash Guard Be Tight?

A BJJ rash guard should be tight. But there’s a difference between tight and suffocating. I had this problem with the Gold BJJ Camo Rash Guard as it didn’t fit true to size. The large was much smaller than other brands leading to not being able to take it off without help.

You're good to go if the rash guard is against your skin without any loose areas like a t-shirt would have.

Should A BJJ Rash Guard Be Loose?

A BJJ rash guard shouldn't be loose. That'd be like wearing a t-shirt. The problem is getting hands, fingers, and feet caught when rolling. Be a good training partner and wear something skin-tight.

Why Wear A Rash Guard For No-Gi BJJ?

Many submission grappling competitions don’t require you to wear a rash guard and allow you to compete topless (if you’re a male). However, it’s typically best to train in a rash guard out of courtesy to your fellow training partners.

Further, you need to check with your gym owner if you're allowed to train with no shirt. But a rash guard reduces skin-to-skin contact, potentially reducing your risk of infection. Further, if you are a hairy human, it will stop your body hair from being pulled!

And don't forget mat burn. You don't want to feel that on your shoulders and back.

Does BJJ Rash Guard Color Matter?

Rash guard color only matters when it’s IBJJF legal. It should correspond to your belt color when competing and training. So don’t wear a brown IBJJF rash guard as a lower belt.

If you aren't competing in IBJJF, rash guard color typically doesn't matter. But it still doesn't make sense to wear an IBJJF legal rash guard with the belt color you're not. When it comes to design, you can wear anything when training, depending on your BJJ school.

You must check their rules when competing in submission grappling or other BJJ tournaments to see what is permitted. Often, anything goes, so get as fancy with your designs as you like.

What’s The Best Material For Rash Guards?

Rash guards are predominately made from polyester or nylon and spandex. Typically around 80-95% polyester and 5-20% spandex. This gives the stretchy attributes while ensuring it doesn’t rip.

Summary

I recommend your next rash guard to be an XMartial rash guard. They are of excellent quality and have many epic designs to fit your personality. Added features like the anti-slip gel pad and sublimated designs make them worth the price.

Best Strength Training Exercises For MMA

There are hundreds of Instagram and TikTok “gooroos” shilling you entire training programs with “specific” MMA exercises. They don't work.

Specificity exists on a spectrum. I’m not one to say there aren’t more specific exercises than others. But our goal in the gym is to enhance strength, speed, and power (and sometimes muscle mass). Most of these exercises you’re fed on social media don’t have the loading or intent behind them to elicit ANY adaptation.

And that’s all it really is. Are we providing the body with a strong enough stimulus to adapt?

The easiest way to think about exercise selection is to start with the 7 basic movement patterns:

• Squat
• Hinge
• Push
• Pull
• Lunge
• Twist
• Carry

For MMA, I would add:

• Throw
• Jump
• Olympic lift

Should every session have all of these? No. But your training week should cover most of these most of the time. Here's some examples for each category I like to use.

Front Squat

The squat is considered the king of lower body exercises. It targets the glutes and quads but is limited by your back strength. You have many variations to play with, such as back squats, front squats, and even zercher squats.

What you use depends on your injury history, stage of training, and what you feel most comfortable performing. I’m a big fan of the front squat, and here is how to do it:

• Set under the bar and position it across the front of your shoulders. Choose a grip: either a clean grip (fingers under the bar) or a cross-armed grip (arms crossed over the bar), depending on your mobility.
• Keep your elbows high to create a 'shelf' for the bar on your shoulders. Unrack the barbell and step back.
• Begin the squat by pushing your hips back slightly and bending your knees simultaneously to lower your body straight down.
• Keep your chest up and your elbows high throughout the descent.
• Aim to go as deep as your flexibility and mobility allow, ideally until your butt touches your calves in the bottom position.

Romanian Deadlift

While the deadlift is great, the Romanian deadlift is a true hip hinge movement. To perform these correctly, always start from the top. So either take the bar out of the rack or deadlift the weight first.

• Slowly push your hips back as far as you can without bending your knees any further.
• Your knees won't be completely straight. They'll be slightly bent. As soon as your hips stop moving backward, stop and thrust the hips forward to return to the starting position. This means you'll only get to just below your knees if you do this correctly.

Thick Bar Bench Press

My advice is to replace all your upper body pressing with the thick bar. You'll thank me later. The way you bench press with the regular barbell is the same as a fat bar. 

• Setup tight under the bar with your feet planted and tension through your legs and hips. Set your shoulders blades back and down into the bench.
• Unrack the bar by performing a pullover motion. Slowly descend the bar to your chest with your elbows 45 degrees from your torso.
• Violently press the barbell to the starting position using your legs to help.

Weighted Pull-Up

Pull-ups should be a staple within your wrestling workouts. For variation, they can be done with an underhand (chin-up) or overhand (pull-up) grip. You can level them up further by using towels to strengthen your grip. Here’s how to do it:

• Use a dip belt to hang plates between your legs. You can hold a dumbbell between your feet if you don't have a dip belt.
• Grip the pull-up bar with palms facing away from you. Your grip should be slightly wider than shoulder-width apart.
• Create a big chest from the dead hang position like you’re trying to face your upper chest to the chin-up bar.
• Pull yourself up by driving your elbows to your ribs while maintaining a big chest. If you’re strong enough, your chest should touch the chin-up bar.
• Slowly lower yourself back to the dead-hang position.

Step Up

I wasn't a fan of the step up until recently. It is an epic lower body movement to develop leg strength and power. Having a barbell on your back is better than holding dumbbells in my experience. Here's how to do it:

• Use a box that allows your thigh to be parallel with the floor. Step onto the box and forcefully drive your foot down and extend your leg.
• Perform all reps on one leg before changing legs.

Landmine Rotation

The landmine rotation is easily my favorite rotation exercise when it comes to MMA. Being able to resist heavy loads while rotating and exploding to the starting position will give you some real power in your stand up game. I hate seeing this exercise performed with a stationary body and only the arms moving side to side.

Turn your feet and hips with the exercise so you can load not just the trunk, but the hips and legs. This is where you will get that crazy power.

Sandbag Bearhug Carry

Like sandbag loading, the bearhug carry is a brutal Strongman exercise challenging your entire body from your hips to your hands. You can make incredible endurance improvements with this exercise when done consistently. Here’s how to do it:

• When the sandbag is flat on the floor, you must wedge your hands under each side. You'll need to roll the sandbag back and forth over each hand to get your hands and forearms around the sandbag.
• From this position, squat down so you can use as much of your legs as possible to stand up with the sandbag.
• You will likely have to adjust the sandbag on the way up with a little hip bump and readjustment of the hands. You can use a monkey, seatbelt, Gable, butterfly, or S grip.

Medicine Ball Rotational Throw

MMA fighters need to use medicine balls more in their training. They should be a staple no matter the time of year or how far from a fight you are. There are many variations you can use but this is a great rotational version.

The movement should come from your legs and hips to whip the ball as you throw. Not by making it an upper body only throw.

Jump Squat

Jumping is an excellent alternative to the Weightlifting movements. It has no learning curve, and you can express power with varying loads. You can use a barbell on your back or hold a trap bar or dumbbells by your side.

Jumping improves your ability to produce force quickly, which is a key requisite for MMA performance. Here’s how to do it:

• Dip into a quarter squat position. The faster you can turn the descent into the ascent (eccentric to concentric), the better you will train the ability to produce force quickly. Push through your entire foot and drive with your legs as you do this.
• Continue driving with the legs and onto your toes. Absorb the impact when landing by slightly bending the knees.

Hang Clean High Pull

Olympic lifts are most beneficial for athletes manipulating other human beings. Like MMA fighters. But they can be hard to learn or injuries can prevent some of the positions. The derivatives like the hang clean high pull give you the benefits of the lifts without needing mobility or a steep learning curve.

• Descend into the hang position with your shoulders over the bar and your weight through your full foot.
• Push with your legs and extend into a tall standing position as the bar brushes up your thighs.
• Triple extend your hips, knees, and ankles as you violently shrug and drive your elbows vertically.

MMA Strength Profile

With the birth of the UFC Performance Institute, a greater breadth of research has been done in the sport of MMA.

This means we have access to athletic profiles of fully professional MMA fighters. My article “Strength Standards For MMA” breaks down the strength profiles of UFC fighters.

To sum the article up briefly, MMA fighters need a high level of reactive strength (reactive strength index >2.6), explosive or elastic strength (vertical jump >50 cm), and maximal strength (deadlift > 2.5x bodyweight).

Reactive strength players a large role in striking speed while elastic strength highly relates to powerful takedowns.

This kind of high-velocity strength training can potentially increase the number of Type IIX muscle fibers and improve the ability to produce force quickly.

Maximal strength positively influences all strength qualities. Not to mention maximal strength training can desensitize the inhibitory mechanism that decreases force output. Therefore, greater force can be produced.

Balancing these strength qualities in training is how you can optimize performance. Depending on your athletic profile, you may emphasize one over the other.

To dive deeper into MMA strength profiles, we can compare higher and lower performers. 

If there are no differences between levels, we can conclude that characteristic does not differentiate between high- and low-level MMA fighters. What counts as a high-level MMA fighter? In these studies, it was semi-professional fighters with a verifiable record on Sherdog with a >50% professional win record.

Lower-level fighters had win records <50% or were amateurs. When comparing strength and power, high-level MMA fighters displayed greater 1RM squat strength (1.84 ± 0.23 vs. 1.56 ± 0.24 kg/BM), but no differences were found for 1RM bench press
^[3].

This highlights the importance of lower body strength in MMA, which differs from BJJ, where upper body strength seems more important ^[4]. The difference is likely due to pure grappling vs. mixing striking and grappling.

Higher-level MMA fighters also possessed greater peak force, velocity, and power during the squat jump with loads of 0%, 25%, 50%, 75%, and 100% of body weight. This indicates MMA fighters must be able to express high forces and velocities over the entire force-velocity spectrum.

When breaking down the kinetics of the jump, higher-level MMA fighters produce greater concentric force, velocity, and power. Further, they display a greater modified reactive strength index due to less time in eccentric contraction
^[5].

Sounds like a lot of scientific jargon, I know! But essentially, they could produce greater strength, speed, and power in shorter time frames. High-level fighters, utilizing superior elastic qualities, didn't dip as low when jumping. This is vitally important in MMA as you have limited time to execute techniques before an opponent can react to defend or evade.

Legendary Russian sports scientist Yuri Verkhoshanksy has an excellent visual representation of this concept he calls the “working effect.” It’s a force-time graph representing impulse, which is the product of force and time.

I go into more detail in my “Physics of Fighting” article. But to keep this simple, Verkhoshanksy defines the working effect as “the amplitude of the impulses of force overcoming the external resistance force.”

This could be bodyweight, external opposition, or external implement. But what you need to know is this:

An increase in the working effect requires increasing maximal force output and/or increasing time (T1-T2 in the diagram above) of the force generated to overcome the external resistance (P).

However, increasing the time to produce force is not advantageous to the MMA fighter. Taking longer to punch, kick, or shoot makes it easier for your opponent to slip, block, or sprawl.

Therefore, MMA fighters must develop the ability to produce maximum force in shorter time frames, as demonstrated by the high-level MMA fighters in this study. There are many ways of doing this through various eccentric training modalities. Professor John Cronin covered them in our podcast episode below.

Further, the program examples at the end of this article will give you an idea of how this can be developed with simple training methods.

But should all MMA fighters train like this? Potentially not. It may be better for weaker fighters (defined as having squats <1.6 relative to bodyweight) to focus on heavy strength training before emphasizing power movements.

For a 70 kg fighter, that would mean squatting at least 112 kg. Once you’ve achieved a decent level of strength, continuing to develop maximal strength with lower volume and increasing the volume of various power exercises will help build qualities across the force-velocity spectrum.

Strength Assessments For MMA

Just because you reach a certain testing benchmark does not mean you’re suddenly a better fighter. However, becoming stronger and faster with better conditioning can help realize your skillset.

Here’s some basic thresholds that can be helpful for dictating the direction of your training.

• Back squat >1.6 x bodyweight
• Vertical jump >45 cm (17.7”)
• Reactive strength index (40 cm box) >2.5
• Maximal aerobic speed >4.2 m/s

These are what I’d consider absolute minimum thresholds to hit for most fighters based on research and my own experiences. Here’s how a decent range will look:

• Back squat: 1.6 - 2.0 x bodyweight
• Vertical jump: 45 - 50 cm (17.7 - 19.6”)
• Reactive strength index (40 cm box): 2.5 - 3.0
• Maximal aerobic speed: 4.2 - 4.5 m/s

Does this mean your physical training tasks are done? No, these are within the average range of most UFC fighters.

But it gives a few basic benchmarks to aim for. How do you measure each one?

Back Squat: Multiply your bodyweight by 1.6 - 2. It should equal or be under the load you squatted. For example, if you weigh 200 lbs, you should be able to squat between 320 - 400 lbs.

Vertical Jump: Stand against a wall and reach your hand marking the wall with chalk. Jump and mark again. Measure the distance. Not an error proof exercise but an easy no equipment field test. The My Jump Lab is the best phone app for this.

Reactive Strength Index (RSI): Stand on a 40 cm box, step off. When you hit the ground, jump as high as you can as quickly as possible. Ground contact time should be minimal. I like to aim for <250 ms on the ground which you can measure with the My Jump Lab app. There’s a learning curve to this exercise. Here’s what it looks like: 

How Do Testing Results Influence Your Program?

Most people test then forget about it. Testing must influence your training. Here’s some general guidelines you can follow:

• Under strength/power thresholds: Focus on maximal strength with low-volume extensive plyometrics.
• In range: Blend of maximal strength and power-based exercises.
• Above thresholds: Minimal/low volume of maximal strength with higher volumes of power-based exercises.

You may have a 2 x bodyweight squat but lack reactive strength. In this case, you’d perform most of your training towards various plyometric exercise with less maximal strength volume as an example.

Fundamentals Of Strength Training For MMA

Everything we do in the gym to prepare for MMA hinges on this simple graph (and other adaptations, but I like this visual):

It’s taken from a research paper by Paavo Komi [6]. It shows the change in force by change in muscle length. Essentially, the force produced during a muscle contraction. 

For a given change in muscle length (e.g., a bicep curl), we have an increase in force generated from circle 1 to circle 2. We then have the length feedback component known as the muscle spindles.

It is sensitive to the rate of stretch and "excites" the muscle to increase force production to circle 3. But the force feedback mechanism, known as the Golgi tendon organ, doesn't like this.

It pumps the brakes as a protective mechanism to dampen force production, leaving you at circle 4 for the final force output. The goal is to raise circle 4 as high as possible for a given change in muscle length.

How does heavy strength training and jumps/plyometrics help?

• We can enhance the sensitivity of the muscle spindles through plyometric training. Improving sensitivity increases excitation and, therefore, force generation.
• Maximal strength training desensitizes the Golgi tendon organ so it doesn't pump the brakes so early.

Untrained individuals have the Golgi tendon organ kick in too early, and this is why beginners can't express their maximum outputs in the gym. Desensitize this response by lifting heavy loads.

This is one of the adaptations showing why you MUST perform heavy resistance training AND high-velocity strength training.

Here’s another graph by Kraemer and Newton, further illustrating my point and why I’m constantly preaching you can’t follow a bodybuilding or Powerlifting program for MMA [7].

All sporting movements are constrained by time. As mentioned earlier on the “working effect,” we must improve the ability to generate high forces in short time frames. Now, this doesn’t apply as greatly to grappling actions where slow, grindy movements give almost infinite time to apply forces compared to striking actions.

Boxing and Muay Thai techniques occur within 50 - 300 ms [8]. Hence the importance of high-velocity strength training and plyometric exercises.

The graph shows different training types.

• The solid line represents untrained subjects.
• The dashed line represents heavy resistance-trained subjects (e.g. Powerlifters).
• The dotted line represents light resistance power-trained subjects (e.g. track athletes).

While heavy resistance-trained subjects display the greatest force, they don’t display the greatest force generation at lower time points, as denoted by the 200 ms mark.

Again reinforcing the point of performing heavy resistance training AND power training. But can’t you just lift the bar faster as many strength coaches will say?

Moving the bar faster is not the same as leaving the ground when jumping or projecting a medicine ball when throwing.

The black squares represent a bench throw while the white squares represent the bench press performed as fast as possible. Depending on the load, you can spend 40 - 50% of the concentric phase decelerating the barbell.

Whereas throwing the barbell allows you to continue accelerating, which powerful sporting movements mirror.

What exercises show this kind of velocity curve?

• Plyometrics
• Jumps
• Throws
• Olympic lifts

There are many other muscle architecture and neuromuscular adaptations to each type of resistance training but this overview gives you the most important bits of information about why.

Why Full Range Of Motion Is King

Muscle fiber contractile velocity is proportional to its length. Meaning how quickly your muscles contract is determined by the number of sacromeres (blocks of muscle fibers) are in a row. Muscle fiber type also plays a role here.

Sarcomeres shorten at 2x the muscle fiber length per second [9]. For example, having 10 sarcomeres in a row would shorten at 20 fiber lengths/second, whereas 5 sarcomeres would only shorten at 10 fiber lengths/second.

How do we add more sarcomeres? Eccentric training is a potent stimulus for this. Think Nordic curls for the hamstrings and weighted negative pull-ups for the upper body.

But full range of motion lifting is another method that has been shown to be superior to partial ranges of motion lifting [10].

Contractile velocity isn’t the only benefit of increasing sarcomere length. You shift the angle of peak torque up and to the right, meaning you produce more force at longer muscle lengths [11].

This has the potential to reduce your risk of injury in susceptible muscle groups like the hamstrings.

It’s why full range of motion resistance training IS mobility training. And no amount of static stretching will get you there (effectively).

Strength Training Program Design For MMA

For a busy MMA athlete, twice a week in the gym is more than enough. It’s all you have time for anyway. If you’re a recreational MMA athlete who goes to class for the cardio and social benefits and wants to look good, then three to four days in the gym is potentially better.

But I’m going to assume most of you reading this fall into the first camp. MMA fighters who’s main focus is getting better at MMA.

Since you’re in the gym twice a week, they should be full-body sessions. Upper/lower splits can work and, in my experience, can be quite good for older athletes (if you’re careful with the volume).

But full body sessions allow you to hit muscle groups twice a week, which is generally superior for strength development.

How should these sessions look? Here’s a template you can follow:

1. Warm-up circuit
2. Jumps/plyometrics/throws (don’t have to do all 3)
3. Full body power exercise
4. Heavy lower body
5. Upper push
6. Upper pull
7. Core/carry/grip (don’t have to do all 3)

This is a basic template that can change depending on the main goal of training. However, you can use this if you’re after speed and power or maximal strength.

Just reduce your volume of speed and power exercises if strength is your goal and vice versa if you’re going after speed and power.

You can also make one day more heavy strength orientated and the second day more power orientated. Both work, up to you how you want to plan your training. I like the way I presented as if you can only get into the gym once that week, you’ve covered most of your bases.

You’ll notice I haven’t blocked strength training into only strength, or only hypertrophy, or only speed and power. It’s because I don’t believe in block periodization for mixed sports like MMA.

Yes, you can target one quality to maximize training effectiveness. But you blunt and diminish other important qualities you need for MMA. By the time you get to your 6th week of power/speed training, it’s been months since you’ve done any strength or hypertrophy exercise.

Yes, there is carryover between them all. But you need more than carryover. It’s why I take a vertically integrated approach to training. It means you cover all qualities within a training week.

It doesn’t mean you perform maximum-volume jumps and heavy squats. It means you prioritize the quality you want to improve and reduce the volume of the others. But they are always there.

If you spend 8 weeks in a hypertrophy phase, then 8 weeks performing maximum strength, you can’t hit the ground running in week 17 performing intense plyometrics and jumps. That’s a recipe for injury.

2 Day Strength Training Program For MMA

This strength training program is designed in two phases. Phase 1 is more of a general strength and power training program.

It has been developed to lead into the next phase which has more advanced exercise variations.

Phase 2 brings into the program the use of complexes. A complex is when you pair a strength movement where heavier loads are lifted, and therefore higher forces are produced, with a lighter loaded velocity exercise.

The most common example you may have seen before and performing squats then box jumps or bench press then clap push-ups.

The soviet researcher Dr. Verkhoshanksy explains it best in my opinion. He says to imagine what would happen if you lifted a half-full bottle of water when you thought it was full. There would be a mismatch between the force needed to pick the bottle up and the actual force required.

The idea is that the half-full bottle will move twice as fast as intended due to this mismatch. That is the theory behind performing a complex which you will find in Phase 2.

The scientific term is post activation potentiation or PAP for short.

Holistically, this MMA strength and conditioning program is a well-rounded program covering both high-velocity and maximal strength pretty evenly.

If you know you have a deficit in maximal strength or explosiveness, you may want to emphasize your weaker area which will likely carry over to all facets of your overall MMA strength and conditioning.

Phase 1

Day 1

Day 2

Phase 2

Day 1

Day 2

3 Day MMA Weight Training Program

I would highly advise not to perform three days of MMA weight training. Strength training for fighters is to supplement technical MMA training. Meaning spending too much time in the gym can take away from your MMA sessions whether that is time or energy.

If you are in a training block far away from competition or you are trying to move up a weight class, then a third day in the gym may be warranted. This day however should be single joint isolation exercise emphasis as it is easy to recover from and designed to help build extra muscle.

While this wouldn't be considered specific MMA strength training, it allows you to get extra weight training volume without taking energy away from MMA workouts. Here is an example of how this extra day could look.

MMA Injury Profile

Two sets of data are in agreement with facial cuts, bruises, and altered mental states being the most common injuries during MMA fights ^[1,2].

Hand and wrist injuries were the next most common followed by knee injuries during MMA fights. Training tells a different story.

Knee injuries were the most common in training followed by shoulder and hand and wrist injuries. All of these injuries occur mainly when striking.

Grappling has a very low injury rate in both training and competitive fights.

How Many Days A Week Should You Strength Train For MMA?

It doesn’t take much to get stronger. As long as you’re consistent you will make progress. Juggling strength training and MMA training can be more complex than other martial arts.

MMA training has to juggle multiple striking and grappling disciplines within a week’s training. By the time you’ve covered all of your skills, finding the space to fit extra strength work is tough.

Depending on your phase of training, strength training should be performed 1-3 times a week. Two times a week will be the sweet spot.

Does MMA Training Build Muscle?

When you see big, jacked MMA fighters such as Yoel Romero, Paulo Costa, or even guys in the smaller weight classes like Henry Cejudo, you may come to the conclusion that MMA training helps to build muscle.

Sadly, this is not the case. The large amount of muscle mass seen on most fighters is from years of weight training and well-performed weight cuts before the fight.

MMA doesn’t provide adequate loading of the muscle through a full range of motion which is needed to maximize the hypertrophic response.

Instead, MMA mainly focuses on quick striking and isometric contractions when grappling. These are not enough to build muscle no matter the size of the opponent you’re training with.

Should MMA Fighters Lift Weights?

100% yes. There are no reasons why an MMA fighter shouldn’t lift weights. The old myths of lifting making you slow are gradually dying out of combat sports.

Strength training for MMA fighters has far too many benefits that cannot be ignored. From reducing the risk of injury, increasing the power of striking, and helping make you more dominant during grappling exchanges.

When MMA weight training is well designed, you will develop the ability to use it in the cage effectively against your opponents.

References

1. McClain, R., Wassermen, J., Mayfield, C., Berry, A. C., Grenier, G., & Suminski, R. R. (2014). Injury profile of mixed martial arts competitors. Clinical Journal of Sport Medicine, 24(6), 497-501.

2. UFCPI “Cross Sectional Performance Analysis And Projection Of The UFC Athlete.

3. James, L. P., Beckman, E. M., Kelly, V. G., & Haff, G. G. (2017). The neuromuscular qualities of higher-and lower-level mixed-martial-arts competitors. International journal of sports physiology and performance, 12(5), 612-620.

4. Marinho, B. F., Andreato, L. V., Follmer, B., & Franchini, E. (2016). Comparison of body composition and physical fitness in elite and non-elite Brazilian jiu-jitsu athletes. Science & Sports, 31(3), 129-134.

5. James, L. P., Connick, M., Haff, G. G., Kelly, V. G., & Beckman, E. M. (2020). The countermovement jump mechanics of mixed martial arts competitors. The Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research, 34(4), 982-987.

6. Komi, P. V. (1986). Training of muscle strength and power: interaction of neuromotoric, hypertrophic, and mechanical factors. International journal of sports medicine, 7(S 1), S10-S15.

7. Kraemer, W. J., & Newton, R. U. (2000). Training for muscular power. Physical medicine and rehabilitation clinics of North America, 11(2), 341-368.

8. Turner, A. N. (2009). Strength and conditioning for Muay Thai athletes. Strength & Conditioning Journal, 31(6), 78-92.

9. Cormie, P., McGuigan, M. R., & Newton, R. U. (2011). Developing maximal neuromuscular power: Part 1—Biological basis of maximal power production. Sports medicine, 41, 17-38.

10. Pallarés, J. G., Hernández‐Belmonte, A., Martínez‐Cava, A., Vetrovsky, T., Steffl, M., & Courel‐Ibáñez, J. (2021). Effects of range of motion on resistance training adaptations: A systematic review and meta‐analysis. Scandinavian journal of medicine & science in sports, 31(10), 1866-1881.

11. Bagley, R. J., Arevalo, A. J., Malyszek, K. K., Spencer, A. J., Rosengarten, J., Barillas, S. R., … & Galpin, A. J. (2016). Skeletal muscle phenotype and performance of an elite mixed martial artist. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise; Lippincott Williams & Wilkins: Philadelphia, PA, USA.

Best Boxing Gloves For Heavy Bag

Hit N Move All Day Pro Agility Boxing Gloves

To accomplish this, Hit N Move uses four layers of padding, unlike most other gloves with three. This padding provides excellent protection for the knuckles due to the DR-T technology, which reverses the punch impact. Despite that, there is also decent feedback, which is impressive, especially for the 16-ounce gloves I use.

Material-wise, the Hit N Move All Day Balance gloves are made from very high-grade, grained cowhide leather that will last for ages, even with the heaviest puncher's abuse. Lining, stitching, looks—everything in these gloves is premium quality.

You always want excellent wrist support for the heavy bag, and the All Day gloves provide it. There are two bars of padding on the underside and a thick piece on the top of the wrist, forming a brace guaranteeing you are always safe.

Coming at a hefty price, the Hit N Move All Day Pro Agility gloves can be the best investment you’ve made, at least regarding boxing equipment. Which is why they are rated overall best boxing gloves because of their manufacturing quality and unrivaled feel.

You can read my full in-depth breakdown of the Hit N Move All Day Boxing Gloves review with more videos and pictures.

Best Heavy Bag Mitts

Revgear Leather Bag Gloves

The mitts are best used for the speed bag and double-end bag, but I also like using them on the heavy bag because they keep you honest and precise by forcing you to punch with proper alignment. Unlike some old-school mitts, the Revgear model protects the knuckles, so don't worry about bruising.

The Revgear mitts also overtake basic mitts because they have a nice long cuff with a proper Velcro strap, ensuring tight wrist protection. This is a very nice feature compared to the elastic band on many mitts, which is not good enough.

You also get a grip bar, a breathable palm, and an open thumb. The material is high-quality leather stitched together professionally, ensuring long years of service. Bag mitts are made to be used without hand wraps, so measure your hand before choosing a size and get the right one.

Considering the quality of materials, craftsmanship, and features, I find it easy to pick the Revgear leather bag gloves as the best heavy bag mitts.

Best Minimal Heavy Bag Mitts

Cleto Reyes Bag Gloves

Very few models are actually bag mitts, not boxing gloves with a free thumb, and the Cleto Reyes Bag Gloves fit this description.

The coolest thing about the Cleto Reyes is they combine the old-school feel and benefits of bag mitts but also adds a few modern upgrades. They are the mesh palm for extra breathability, the grip bar, and the hook and loop system, giving you much more wrist support.

There is ultra-thin EVA padding, which provides enough protection on the knuckles to go with power on the bag. There is also a grip bar, further making the formation of a fist more natural. The Cleto Reyes is made from premium leather and is built with precision. I am confident these will last you a very long time.

The Cleto Reyes Bag Gloves are not for everyone. This is the last model you would buy if you were looking for optimal protection. But if you want the bare-knuckle feeling that will improve your punching accuracy and condition your hands, or if you are an MMA fighter, the Cleto Reyes Bag Gloves is my recommendation.

Best Heavy Bag Gloves For Wrist Support

Hayabusa T3 Boxing Gloves

The highlight is the recognizable separate pieces of padding on the back of the hand called Fusion Splinting, which serves not only to protect the hand when blocking but to provide locked-in stabilization for the hand when punching. This works in tandem with the famous Dual X closure system, which is why I chose this model for the best wrist support.

The two interlocking straps and the thick padding on both sides of the wrist provide unrivaled wrist support, which is what the T3 is most known for. Add to that the 5-layer padding on the knuckles, and you can see why so many people pick up these gloves and why they are an excellent choice for bag gloves.

The regular Hayabusa T3 comes in engineered leather. Still, the more expensive Kanpeki variation is in genuine leather, making it the ultimate glove for wrist protection. 

Best Heavy Bag Gloves For Beginners

Ringside Apex Bag Gloves

These gloves have excellent protection due to the IMF foam, which, instead of using different layers of padding like most other gloves, injects gel into the foam, creating one big, solid piece of foam. And compared to the layered padding in this price range, the IMF is superior.

The Apex are modern-looking, with a very nice diamond pattern going over them and a ton of pretty colors to choose from. If you like something flashier and more modern, the Apex is surely up your alley.

And when it comes to the price, some colors cost around $35–40, which is dirt cheap for the quality and protection of the Ringside Apex, making them the best budget heavy bag gloves.

The Ringside Apex is a great stepping stone, both as first gloves or as a step to a more expensive model. But honestly, you can stick with these even after you've gone way past the beginner stages.

Best Venum Boxing Gloves for Heavy Bag 

Venum Elite Boxing Gloves

The Venum Elite is an excellent bag glove with triple-density foam of medium hardness, making it suitable for heavy bag use and sparring. What I like to use on the heavy bag are gloves that offer good protection but also give me some feedback so I can feel the punch, and the Elite fits the description.

The Skintex Leather is excellent for a mid-range glove. Unlike the lower-priced models, the Venum Elite is handmade in Thailand, which, in my experience with gloves, always guarantees superior craftsmanship. The stitching is reinforced and done very cleanly.

The abundance of colors and designs, along with the excellent price for the quality, make the Venum Elite an easy choice for heavy bag use and overall training. The only downside is that wrist protection is not optimal, and this is dangerous for beginners on the heavy bag.

How To Pick The Best Boxing Gloves For Heavy Bag

Type

The two types of boxing gloves you can use on the heavy bag are standard boxing gloves and old-school bag mitts. As much as I like mitts, they serve a specific purpose, and it’s unlikely you will use them exclusively on the bag.

Standard Boxing Gloves

All boxing gloves can be used on the heavy bag. But the padding's size, type, and density make some models better than others. Dedicated bag gloves have denser padding capable of withstanding power punches without compressing. Furthermore, most people like feeling some impact, and the hard, dense padding delivers it.

Soft padding is usually reserved for sparring gloves because they serve different purposes. The soft padding also gets destroyed quicker on the bag. This is why it's best to have dedicated bag gloves or buy a model designed to do everything.

A good pair of bag gloves have a firm, solid feel, allowing power transmission while protecting the hand simultaneously.

Heavy Bag Mitts

Heavy bag mitts may look outdated, but they still have a purpose in today's combat world, in my opinion. The point of mitts is they keep you accountable in a way that you must punch accurately or suffer an injury.

The very soft padding and overall minuscule protection mean you feel which knuckles connect, how your fist is aligned, and the full power of your punches.

This feels good and promotes better accuracy and precision and conditions the entire hand to withstand impact. The old timers used it for this purpose, and we should too.

For MMA fighters who don’t have the luxury of a boxing glove on their fists, punch alignment and hand conditioning are crucial. Hitting pads and the heavy bag with MMA gloves also work, but the open fingers often get scraped, and the bag mitt solves that problem easily.

Size And Weight

The other thing is the size and weight of the glove, which is purely a personal choice. Most people, myself included, prefer 10- or 12-ounce gloves because they are lighter and provide more feedback and feel.

These are also the size all fighting styles using boxing gloves use in competition, so you get a more realistic feel than the 16-ounce pillows.

But there is nothing wrong with training with bigger gloves. The bigger the glove, the more padding it has and the more protection it offers. If you have problems with the knuckles, each ounce of protection is welcome.

There are also weighed gloves, coming in at around 24 ounces, used for arm conditioning and endurance. Like the bag mitts, they have a specific purpose and are unlikely to become your primary bag gloves.

Frequently Asked Questions About Boxing Heavy Bag Gloves

What Size Of Gloves To Use On The Heavy Bag

This is a choice made purely based on preference by the user. Most people prefer hitting the bag with 10- or 12-ounce gloves because they are lighter and provide more feel. People needing more protection will go for the 14 or 16 ounces, as they have more padding and protection.

Heavier gloves, like a few 24-ounce models, are also available to improve durability and muscle endurance.

Can I Use Sparring Gloves For The Heavy Bag?

Many boxing glove models, like Hit N Move Balance and Hayabusa T3, are equally suitable for sparring and bag work. They have different layers of padding for different needs, and even cheaper gloves can be used for everything, but you will need to stick to 14 or 16 ounces.

Many gloves, though, are not suitable for bag work. Especially dedicated sparring gloves have much softer padding, which is excellent for protecting training partners, but it also breaks down much faster when used on the bag or pads. So, unless you have gloves designed for everything, I advise having separate pairs for the heavy bag and sparring. 

Should I Wrap My Hands For Heavy Bag Training?

You should wrap your hands for long heavy bag routines and full power punching. The hand wraps provide extra stability and firmness to the fist and wrist. If you use bag mitts, there is no need for hand wraps. Some high-quality gloves also allow safe use without hand wraps.

Summary

Bag gloves come in many shapes and specifications. Still, if you invest in a single high-quality pair of gloves, I strongly recommend the Hit N Move All Day Balance gloves for their quality, protection, and feel.

For those with problematic wrists, the Hayabusa T3 is also a sound choice, and beginners and those on a budget can pick the Ringside Apex Bag Gloves.

Best MMA Gloves

Hayabusa T3 Pro Style MMA Gloves

Hayabusa boasts the best closure system with a dual X strap, stabilizing the wrist in any position. This is great for protection and in reducing hand fatigue.

Additional outstanding features are the pre-curved design, which further decreases hand fatigue. The Y-palm design guarantees the glove will stay in place during striking and grappling exchanges.

Hayabusa always produces top-notch equipment in every aspect, so we've chosen the T3 model as the best MMA gloves. While Hayabusa claims they are also suitable for sparring, I strongly recommend using larger sparring gloves instead.

I don't feel comfortable sparring with or against 4 oz gloves like these, and your training partners will not appreciate it either.

The Hayabusa T3 should meet the demands of even high-level athletes for competition or training gloves. If you want to pay a few bucks more, Hayabusa offers the same model but made from high-quality genuine cowhide leather for enjoyers of genuine materials.

Best MMA Gloves for Training

Revgear MS1 MMA Training Gloves

The MS1 gloves come at the standard 7 ounces for sparring gloves. They are made from high-quality Softech leather, which has an excellent feel and guarantees durability. The overall production quality is excellent. The stitching is good, and everything feels put well put together.

The main benefit of this model comes from the palm and finger loop design. Making a fist feels effortless, and there is no hand fatigue whatsoever.

The gloves are very compact for 7 ounces due to the multi-layered padding, which is soft but not bulky. This feature makes the MS1 perfect for MMA sparring for those who favor grappling over striking.

These Revgear gloves can be your go-to training glove for all purposes. The affordable price makes them even easier to recommend especially when you can save 10% using code "SWEETSCIENCE."

There are more good things to be said about these gloves. You can read my full guide with more pictures and video in my Revgear Pro Series MS1 MMA Gloves review.

Best MMA Gloves For Heavy Bag

Everlast Heavy Bag Gloves

The features making these gloves suitable for the job are the padding distribution protecting the knuckles and fingers, the padding on the thumb, and the gripping bar on the palm.

The larger padding swells the gloves to 9 ounces, almost as much as a boxing glove. The palm bar lets you rip haymakers on the bag without worrying about hand soreness.

The downside of these features is that you can't grapple well with them, but as the title says, they are made specifically for heavy bag use.

Best MMA Gloves For Beginners

XMartial MMA Gloves

The XMartial MMA gloves are perfect in this category. They have the same design as the Venum Challenger but for a bit less money. The gloves feel well made and are excellent for levels way above beginner. The high-quality PU leather will last a long time in the gym without needing new gloves.

You can use them for drills, pads, grappling, and even sparring, although they are too thin for sparring. As is usually the case with this design, these gloves are not great for heavy bag work.

Best MMA Gloves For Sparring

Fairtex FGV18 Super Sparring MMA Gloves

Fairtex are masters at building great boxing and Thai gloves, but they also use their craftsmanship to produce the ultimate MMA sparring glove - the FGV18.

The most important feature of this model is the knuckle padding, which is comparable to that of a sparring boxing glove.

I haven't used other MMA gloves with even remotely comparable levels of protection. The downside is these are not very comfortable for grappling due to overall size.

The quality, as usual with Faritex, is excellent. The FGV18 model is hand-made in Thailand from high-quality synthetic leather.

You can read my in-depth breakdown with more pictures and videos in my Fairtex FGV18 MMA Gloves review.

Best Venum MMA Gloves

Venum Challenger MMA Gloves

The foam padding is layered for better shock absorption, and the adjustable strap engulfs the wrist and bottom of the palm for good stability. All in all, a great glove that you can use in almost every training scenario.

Best MMA Gloves For Grappling

Everlast MMA Grappling Gloves

There is precious little padding, so hitting with force is not advised unless you are working on conditioning your hands. Still, the thin padding is precisely what allows for unobstructed grappling, along with the open palm design.

These gloves have excellent and stable wrist support, and the antimicrobial treatment is a nice feature. They are also cheap, but remember that the materials are not the most durable. In my opinion, grappling is the only thing you should be using them for.

Best MMA Gloves On Amazon

Liberlupus MMA Gloves

You get good quality PU leather, reinforced impact padding, thumb protection, full open palm, and a well-designed wrist strap for a solid MMA glove at a reasonable price.

With more than 6 thousand positive reviews on Amazon, you can be confident every detail was thoroughly tested, and you can find answers to every question in the customer reviews section.

Naturally, these have some issues, but many are inherent for all MMA gloves due to the design rather than specific problems with this brand and model.

Best Budget MMA Gloves

Sanabul Essential 7 oz MMA Gloves

I believe sparring MMA gloves are much more important than normal 4 oz gloves, and for most people, hybrid/sparring gloves are all they will need in the gym. This is why if you are on a budget and want to buy only one pair of gloves, this Sanabul model is the perfect fit.

The padding is enough for sparring, while the design ensures the gloves are flexible enough for grappling. The materials and build are solid, the finger loops are not as irritating as in other budget models, and for this price, I can generally find no flaws.

Best Hybrid MMA Gloves

Sanabul Battle-Forged MMA Hybrid Gloves

These 7 oz gloves are designed with the shape of the hand and cover the middle finger joints, making them suitable for bag use and sparring. The bulk is still not too much, and most of the palm is open, so they are still ideal for grappling.

Unlike in their cheaper models, the synthetic leather is of outstanding quality and will keep even advanced athletes happy. The point of this glove is to be the only glove you need for any type of MMA training.

Best Yokkao MMA Gloves

Yokkao MMA Pro Gloves

Unlike some other competition gloves, the thumb here is covered. The materials used are high-quality microfiber leather on the outside and smooth mesh on the inside. Like other Yokkao products, these gloves are handmade in Thailand, guaranteeing excellent quality.

How To Choose The Best MMA Gloves For You

Size & Fit

Size and fit are critical with MMA gloves. They provide much less protection, and the wrong size means you have injured hands. With MMA gloves, the size is determined by the circumference of the hand.

Each brand has a size chart you should follow and choose the right size. MMA gloves should be tight but not to the point where they prevent blood flow or stop the fingers from flexing.

Protection

MMA gloves are less protective than boxing gloves, but some models offer more than others. Pro-style MMA gloves have an open palm and nothing on the thumb. They are 4 oz and provide the least protection to the hand and the opponent.

Most training gloves are around 4 oz but also have some protection on the thumb. Sparring and hybrid MMA gloves are thicker and weigh 7 oz or more. With them, you get additional protection for the knuckles, the top of the hand, and the wrist.

Wrist Support

There are no lace-up MMA gloves, only Velcro straps. MMA gloves' smaller weight and size means they are easier to strap, and almost every brand on this list offers adequate wrist stabilization.

Material

Like boxing gloves, genuine leather is always the best option, thanks to its durability, look, and feel. Synthetic leather substitutes are also good and offer almost the same qualities as the real thing.

Most brands do not offer real leather options, only premium ones. MMA gloves generally get less punishment in the gym, and a good quality synthetic leather glove will last a while.

Purpose

MMA gloves allow both to be done effectively as a sport with both striking and grappling, but some models perform better in one department. The bigger the glove is, the more striking protection it provides, and worse it is for grappling and vice versa.

The Fairtex FGV18 and the Everlast MMA grappling gloves are two examples on both ends of the spectrum. The Fairtex has outstanding striking protection but poor grappling protection, while the opposite is true for the Everlast model.

Price

MMA gloves are much cheaper than boxing gloves because they use fewer materials. Higher-priced gloves usually last longer and feel better, but mid-tier models are also excellent and good enough for most people. Don't go for the cheapest ones if you respect your hand and your training partners.

Frequently Asked MMA Glove Questions

What Is The Best Brand Of MMA Gloves?

Famous brands are usually renowned for a reason. While with boxing gloves, legacy brands have been operating for many decades, MMA is a young sport, and Hayabusa has made the most significant impact with their equipment thus far.

What Gloves Do MMA Fighters Train With?

MMA fighters spar with sparring gloves and do drills with either sparring/hybrid or training gloves. Some prefer pro-style gloves (without any protection on the thumb), while others choose the more protective models.

Do MMA Gloves Hurt More Than Boxing Gloves?

MMA gloves hurt more than boxing gloves. Even the 7 oz sparring MMA glove is thinner than competition boxing gloves, which are 10 oz.

And on the competition 4 oz MMA glove, the padding is only on the knuckles, which leaves the rest of the hand open to make contact with the head. The overall punch force of both gloves is similar, but superficial damage like cuts and bruises from MMA gloves is significantly greater.

Can You Spar With MMA Gloves?

Yes, MMA sparring is done with special MMA sparring gloves, which are different from competition gloves. Training and pro-style gloves are not suitable for sparring unless both participants are experienced and can dial down the power, while sparring gloves with their 7-ounce offer adequate protection for striking.

Why Are MMA Gloves Fingerless?

Grappling is a massive part of MMA, and MMA gloves were invented to help minimize the damage from strikes and allow for meaningful grappling. This is the reason MMA gloves have no fingers and open palms.

Should MMA Gloves Be Tight?

MMA gloves should be tight enough so the hand won't move inside during a punch and while grappling, but it mustn't be so tight that it obstructs blood flow. If the gloves are too small and tight, they can prevent the flexing of the fingers, which will decrease grip efficiency.

Can You Use MMA Gloves On A Heavy Bag?

You can use MMA gloves on a heavy bag, but most MMA gloves are ill-suited for the job. The open-finger design leaves the second finger joints open, usually scraping on the bag's surface. The overall level of protection is also not enough for most people.

However, there are MMA gloves with features designed for heavy bag use, and they are much better for the purpose than other gloves.

Can You Use MMA Gloves For Boxing?

No, you can't use MMA gloves for boxing. MMA gloves are too thin and small in size to be used in boxing sparring. You can use them for heavy bag work or pads, but if you are only training boxing, there is little benefit in using MMA gloves.

Summary

MMA gloves can have different purposes, but our choice of the best gloves falls to the Hayabusa T3 model. They have a great look and feel and provide excellent wrist support and unrivaled stability in the hand. For sparring, you need thicker gloves, and Fairtex FGV18 is the best choice in my personal experience.

Best Weighted Boxing Gloves

Hit N Move All Day 24oz

Somehow, Hit N Move have managed to squeeze 1.5 lbs. or 24 ounces of padding in the dimensions of a 14-ounce glove.

When you place the 24-ounce glove next to a 16-ounce one, the only difference is that the 24-ounce one is slightly taller, but this doesn't change how they feel.

So let me explain what you get in clear language. These gloves have the size and feel of a standard boxing glove but weigh 1.5 lbs., which means you can reap all the benefits of weighted gloves without any sacrifices. It doesn't get better than that.

Regarding materials and construction, like always with Hit N Move, everything is of premium quality. 100% high-quality genuine leather, moisture-wicking lining, exceptional padding technology, and flawless construction and craftsmanship.

With the same padding technology, shape, and feel of their extraordinary regular gloves, the Hit N Move 24-ounce All Day gloves can be used for sparring, bag work, pads, partner drills, and everything else you want in the gym.

Best Budget Weighted Boxing Gloves

Ring to Cage Deluxe MiM-Foam Sparring Gloves

Like Hit N Move, these gloves do not use additional weights but distribute the weight in the padding, making them versatile and usable in many situations.

The Ring to Cage gloves are made from genuine leather and are among the most protective gloves you can wear.

They are a lot bigger than Hit N Move, but this is to be expected from a glove with this weight. A key feature of this model is the double strap wrist support system, which provides excellent stability, but at the same time, many people are finding it difficult to put on the gloves without help.

So, if you want budget 24-ounce gloves you can use for endurance work, or if you are a heavy dude needing all the protection you can get, the Ring to Cage MiM gloves are a suitable choice.

This model is also available in 18, 20, and 22 Oz, so you can choose the most suitable weight.

Best Weighted Boxing Gloves For Women

Ringside Apex Flash

Of course, both the Hit N Move 24-ounce gloves and the Ring to Cage are unisex and can be used by both sexes, but the Ringside Apex is offered in 18 ounces and a few exciting color options, more suitable for women.

The Ringside Apex gloves are well-reviewed on Amazon for a good reason. For a very modest price, you get decent quality gloves that are durable, comfortable, and have a sleek and interesting design. They are suitable for both bag work and sparring.

A solid feature everyone can appreciate, especially women, is that these are compact on the inside and outside, making them ideal for everyone with smaller hands.

The fact they are offered in 18 ounces makes them a perfect choice for women who want something heavier than usual but without having to wear two sets of hand wraps or look like a cartoon character with hands as big as their bodies.

How To Pick The Best Weighted Gloves

Type

The most important aspect of weighted gloves is how the extra weight is added and what you can use them for. Of course, the materials and construction are always important, but with weighted gloves, the type comes first.

Classic weighted gloves use removable weights around the wrist. Title boxing have a few different models using this technology.

This solution has the advantage of being able to adjust the weight depending on your needs and current shape, but at the same time, having metal bars on your wrists means the gloves can be used only for bag work.

This design is also not overly gentle to the wrist. Furthermore, the feel of the weight concentrated on your wrists differs from when the weight is distributed around the entire glove.

The benefit is that you can add more weight to this type of glove. For example, Title Boxing models weigh 14-16 ounces without the extra weights, and you can load them with 1.5-2 lbs. metal bars.

The other type of weighted gloves, which is infinitely superior in my opinion, are gloves that have the extra weight distributed evenly in the padding of the glove.

This makes punching feel natural, and the extra padding provides additional knuckle protection for the puncher and their training partners.

This is the second significant benefit. Unlike gloves with metal parts, heavier padding gloves can be used for all purposes any regular pair of gloves can.

You can spar, do partner drills, and still do heavy bag work with your weighted gloves and reap all the benefits.

The problem with most gloves that add weight to the padding is they are gigantic. A typical sparring glove weighs 16 ounces, while weighted gloves come at 20 to 24 ounces, and all the extra weight means extra volume.

The unnatural size inevitably makes the gloves less realistic, as you will have to spar with two giant pillows on your hands.

This is not the case with the Hit N Move 24 Oz gloves, which are the size of a regular 14-ounce glove but weigh 1.5 lbs. worth of high-quality padding. This is why I've chosen them as the best weighted gloves on the market.

Benefits Of Weighted Gloves

Increased Resistance

The main goal of weighted gloves is to increase resistance. The extra weight from the gloves aims to improve your muscle endurance.

Holding your hands up, punching, and generally moving with more weight strapped to your hands puts more load on the shoulders and arms.

This is true for all types of weighted gloves (with added additional weights and heavier padding).

Increased Speed

It's not entirely clear if weighted gloves increase the speed of your punches, but when you are used to punching with heavier gloves, your strikes will be faster when you move to a lighter pair.

More Protection

When the additional weight is integrated into the padding, heavier gloves provide more protection for the puncher and their training partners.

Like 16-ounce gloves are more protective than 10 ounces, 24 gloves have more padding than regular sparring gloves.

For people north of 230 lbs., having heavier gloves with more cushioning becomes necessary rather than a training modality to improve muscle endurance.

Drawbacks Of Weighted Boxing Gloves

Increased Risk Of Injury

The extra weight loads the muscles and makes them work harder, but also places more strain on joints and ligaments. You may injure an elbow or shoulder if you shadowbox with weights and extend the punches fully.

Limited Use

Most people use weighted gloves only occasionally when they want to work on endurance. This means you need to have one pair of gloves in addition to what you typically use.

In the case of Hit N Move, they are every bit as practical as 14- or 16-ounce gloves, but the fact that they weigh 24 ounces remains. If you are preparing for a competition, the difference between the weighted gloves and the competition pair may be too significant and throw you off.

Larger Size

The extra padding means weighted gloves are bulkier on the outside. Some people don’t mind this much, but I find it awful.

Gigantic pillows drastically change how you box because they are harder to land around the guard while at the same time making defense easy and can create some bad habits.

If you only use them on a heavy bag, this is not an issue, but if you spar, the extra bulk is something I would avoid at all costs.

Frequently Asked Weighted Boxing Gloves Questions

Are Weighted Gloves Good?

Weighted boxing gloves are good if you know what to use them for. They are not for beginners and serve a specific purpose- to increase the boxer’s stamina.

If you need to work on that area, weighted gloves are an excellent way to condition your body while working on specific techniques or tactics.

What Are The Benefits Of Weighted Gloves?

Weighted gloves increase stamina, muscle endurance, and the speed of your punches. Gloves with more padding instead of outside weights are also more protective.

Can You Spar With Weighted Boxing Gloves?

If the gloves are weighted by adding more or different types of padding, you can safely spar with them. If you get a model using metal bars to increase the weight, they can only be used on the heavy bag.

Summary

The Hit N Move 24-ounce All Day gloves are the ultimate weighted gloves because they can be used as any other pair of all-around gloves while reaping the benefits of the extra weight.

If buying this premium product is outside your budget or you want weighted gloves only for heavy bag use, you can get the Ring to Cage 24-ounce gloves or even something from Title Boxing with metal bars on the wrists.

Best Boxing Mitts

Hit N Move Turtle Mitts

The Hit N Move Turtle mitts offer a combination of unique designs not used by any other brand and supreme quality, which is why I have chosen them as the best boxing mitts.

The unique thing about these mitts is the feature they are named after, and it's the turtle back side of the mitts.

This design solves a big use with all mitts, which are body shots. With all other models, the coach must either twist their hands in awkward angles or present the unprotected back of their hand for body shots.

With the Tuttle mitts, this is solved by having a uniquely patterned padding so you can take shots on both sides of the mitts equally.

The mitts have a depressed pocket at the center, giving you a nice pop when you hit it and substituting a curve.

Material-wise, the Turtle mitts, like all other Hit n Move products, are of premium quality. The leather is high-grade, genuine leather with smell, feel, and durability to match.

There aren't any wrist straps, but the pads fit nicely on the hands, and you have full control over them. A small piece of padding on the wrist further helps with stability.

The overall size is relatively small, and the mitts are light and comfortable. Their best use is for technical and precise punching, and the design makes them perfect for fluid combinations and counterattack work.

They take a punch quite well, but if you need something to take full-power punches from big guys, there are better solutions than the Turtle.