Training dummies

For a martial artist it is important to have a variety of targets to practice on.  Standard heavy bag, focus mit and muay thai pads all have their merits, but it is better to leave solo training for home and make use of training partners for more complex drills.

Shaolin was said to have 108 wooden men some with springs and levers making them slightly robotic.  Here are some modern renditions of the shaolin dummies that are effective and of good value.

Body Opponent Bag- Bob's are great.  I've worked with these for years.  The bonus is that you can mark acupoints on it to practice targeted hitting.  You can also hit downward and around the neck.  This is also an excellent bag for uppercuts.

Arms: 

Hanging wood- A variation of this can be to put sand bags around the exterior.  They sell 500lb heavy bags, but I think these are of little use.  At this point the bag is mostly immobile, so it makes sense to simply pad a large rock or a tree.  The benefit of wood is that you can find pieces with limbs sticking out.  Cut them to size, pad them or duct take them.  If you can find an old tree, then its even better.

Tires:  Cheap, effective and resilient.  These should be used often for martial arts training.  You can lay them flaw and practice circular footwork.

 

Not a bad idea.

Choy Li Fut Dummy patterned after Shaolin dummies.

Bagua dummy:  I saw versions of this on plum flower posts for stepping patterns  A convenient DIY version of plum flower posts is to fill coffee cans with cement.

Sandbags