Human-shaped Dummy - Punching Bag for Training

I elected to deviate from the normal title for this nifty, human-shaped dummy and/or training tool, since not everybody is aware of a physical fitness mannequin that goes by the name BOB (Body Opponent Bag), and you may be online searching for such things while using different terms, etc. At any rate, this particular punching bag is not limited to punches, by any means. In fact, the one I ordered came from a martial art supply store. Whether you are a mixed martial artist or have a certain style of karate or kung-fu to practice, a boxer, an athlete looking to build up endurance, strength, flexibility, or a person who just wants to vent by beating the crap out of something, and so on, the body opponent heavy bag dummy may be just what you're looking for.

Personally, I recommend the Century BOB XL for serious workouts and training. It is adjustable so it can be used at various heights, and you can fill the base with 270 pounds of sand or water. If you combine the weight of the human-shaped punching bag with the anchor weight, the whole dummy is well over 300 pounds (plus, you can also add a weighted vest to it). I must remind you, however, that these things are somewhat expensive. After the pricey shipping charges and tax, the one I ordered was about 350 dollars. Of course, there are cheaper human-like training bags out there, but after looking at several, BOB seemed like the best quality.

In my opinion, outside of the use for ventilation and anger and/or to relieve pent-up frustrations, this type of punching bag is best when used like a sparring partner. Sure, it can be effective for martial art training - especially for upper body strikes - but I wouldn't recommend it for power kicks nor would I use it for most close-quarter blows like wildly thrown elbows and powerful knee strikes. If you are training for Muay Thai and/or kickboxing, you can't beat a big, hanging heavy bag. I've owned a speed bag and a (WAVE) water-filled heavy bag before, and it was loads of fun, as well. I must say, though, that if you lack a sparring partner, love boxing, and you are looking for a more realistic training experience, the human-shaped dummy / Body Opponent Bags are an excellent option. Plus, not everybody has room or a strong enough ceiling to hang massive heavy bags in their home, and BOB doesn't take up much room.

Another option for the ones who like all that light tapping, fast punching, jittery jabbing junk, is to buy one of those Aerobic Wave Master punching bags. It is lighter weight, bounces back fast upon impact, doesn't look like a human, costs way less money, and should be perfect for your weak assault of punches and light kicks. If all you plan on doing is jumping around and flickering quick little movements towards a target, why waste your money on a big, body opponent heavy bag that is shaped like a human? I'm just throwing that little tidbit in there, in case somebody that is seeking a kicking/punching bag for aerobic-style workouts, will know that they sell special floor-bound, impact-responsive bags just for these things.

Anyway, back to BOB... Is it for Indoor or Outdoor use? Well, per the instructions, they say indoor use only. The main reason why, is that the XL Century BOB doesn't need to be subjected to freezing temperatures. Now, I can only assume that it is because most people fill it with water instead of sand, and we all know that water expands when froze, so you can imagine what can happen from there. Regardless, I have mine outside in the carport/garage at the moment, and I'm just going to worry about what to do with it when winter comes. It will take prolonged temperatures that are well below freezing to freeze 270 lbs. of water, but we'll see.

I was originally going to provide several YouTube videos of random people demonstrating various types of training methods while using this lovely human-shaped punching bag. However, YouTube was packed with cheesy videos that would turn most people off from even giving this body bag a chance. I seen one guy who used it to solely try to kick it down. He would take off running and kick it until it fell over, then acted like he accomplished some miraculous feat. Ha! Then there was some guy who punched at it in such a fashion that it looked more like how a person would use a flyswatter, and I think even the lifeless BOB was laughing at him. Then, yet another ridiculous video showed some person that looked like he was so out of shape, that it made the body opponent bag appear that it gives you the couch potato look after extensive use. Finally, I seen some bar-room guy swipe at it like some crazed drunk, only to last a few seconds and walk off - most likely heading to the fridge for another beer. So, I decided to just post a video that showed some guy talking about street fighting techniques while using the BOB dummy as a tool for his demonstration, as it was the most decent video I could find at the time when concerning the subject of punching bags that are shaped like a human torso.

Update: Human-shaped Dummy - Punching Bag for Training

Up above, within this article, I mentioned about how the storage area for BOB was debatable, albeit the manufacturer instructions recommends that you keep it indoors. I'm assuming they are mainly talking about the ones who use water to fill up the anchor part of this body opponent bag, as it could freeze and burst if subjected to freezing temperatures.
Anyway, I left mine outside in the garage regardless of the warning and it froze! However, I didn't use it during the frigid time frame and when BOB thawed out, my human-shaped punching bag survived! Yep, this is one tough dummy; ha!

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