Gloves or not for heavy bag?

Gloves and wraps every time for me although I've not punched a heavy bag for a few years,the only time I'd hit the bag without is if I was using a palm heel,hammer fist blows.

Best wishes :)***

Some kind of protection is a must on the heavy bag - canvas bags can shred up the knuckles and make a mess, and leather/synth bags usually have seams that can make little cuts or abrasions. I won't let anybody hit the bags at my gym without protection - at least wraps - but I've got some cheesy Everlast bag gloves for those who don't have wraps.

I use some of my old 16 oz sparring gloves when I'm just doing a few quick rounds on the heavy bag - because they are easy to put on and take off. I do circuits that include a 3 min heavy bag set, so easy on/off is a must.

If I'm doing a 10 round bag workout I use Mexican wraps with 12 oz bag gloves - I like the extra support around my wrists for when I start to fatigue.

"Tough Guys" that like bare knuckles are just dumb - they get blood everywhere and end up with scars and those little hickey-like marks from splitting and pulling the skin - it's ugly, messy, and ultimately not beneficial. I believe in conditioning the hands, but not on a heavy bag - use a makiwara or other striking surface for that.

I have and prefer to never use anything other than my body for any physical conditioning activity. Gloves keep the hands supple, which when in a real situation they could tear and bleed as they aren't used to the tension and friction from the hard surface of the head or a jean jacket with buttons and so on. I also don't believe in wristwraps because they don't only reinforce the joints they compensate for the connective tissue. That makes the wrist weaker and easier to harm in a needed situation.

I like punchin on a Makiwara too, and wrapping the rope around a tree too.

That's just my opinion, could be voided with science, though I will remain steadfast in my personal preference. Besides, there's nothing wrong with leaving a little bit of you on the canvas bag, shows hard work.

The skin over my knuckles splits very easily so I wear a bag mit, I know i should wear wraps but have never done so, they makes me feel a bit claustrophobic. I am a bit strange because I also prefer fingerless gloves when hitting pads.

I have been thinking about trying the gel wrap glove things, I think the everlast ones look sturdiest, but they don't show how much wrap there is and I don't think you need the 3m you get with the cimac ones.

Sometimes I like to do a round or two bare knuckle, but I'll often scrape myself on uppercuts. Considering how scared I am of staph infection, I don't consider it an option to grapple with open cuts. So I'll usually use thin bag gloves ( like these: http://www.boxingdepot.com/bx-bg-10.html) without wrist wraps. I never wrap my wrist; I'd rather have it conditioned and used to absorbing shock and trauma without reliance on something that I won't have with me all of the time.

Admittedly, I don't train for real life situations anymore; I train for sporting competition. However, that doesn't mean that I shouldn't condition myself just in case. I also figure that if I can withstand full power punching without wraps, I'm sure as heck not gonna break anything if I'm wearing them.

definitely use gloves, the bigger the better. I use 18 oz which really slow me down, but watch out when I get in the ring. The comp gloves feel like feather weights after training with 18 oz'ers. I've found 18oz + wraps is the way to go to avoid pain. used to train with just wraps when I was younger, then would not be able to punch a bag for a week b/c of the pain. sure, I'm a woman, go ahead and make fun, but it's true. no gloves = pain.

While a student is learning to punch for their own protection and the schools insurance premiums we require wraps. I have my personal students use wraps until I feel that the are competent. I than have them practice without wraps occasionally to get the feel of it. During hard workouts where the students are going flat out I want wraps on to protect their wrists. It only takes one bad hit to put you out of commission for months or permanently damage the wrist. As for bag gloves I require them for work outs for the same reason. I still like to have my competent students to work out a little bare handed again to get the feel of a full force punch unprotected.

That Judomofo he is one smart fellow. Always sound advice. I think he has someone lookin over his sholder.

No gloves. In my everyday existence, if a time comes when I have to hit a person, I'm not going to be wearing boxing gloves or hand wraps. (keeping in mind, I haven't actually had to hit someone with a closed fist in over 10 years) You punch differently when your hands are protected, whether you realize it or not. I don't compete anymore, so gloves aren't practical for me. When I have the opportunity to hit a heavy bag, I do it bare knuckle.

Wraps and gloves, for the reasons judomofo stated above. I also don't like getting deep scrapes or grazes. I can work for a lot longer without them. Also, if my hands or wrists hurt, I can't play my guitar too well.

People younger than 22 yrs old shouldn't be allowed to hit a heavy bag with bare knuckles for any length of time as it causes splayed knuckles .Children should not be allowed to strike a makiwara of any kind as bone formation and joint set is still in progress until 20 to 25 yrs of age even knuckle push ups are not a good idea for them.

After 48 years of knuckle push ups and striking makiwara of various resistance to force I can pretty well hit anything without ill results but I wouldn't let students do it.