Using The Power Shield To Develop Powerful Punches With Brandon Gibson

When we look at the development of sports over the years, we notice a straightforward change that is continuously growing, and this is the usage of new tools that take our athletes to the next level.

 As human beings, we are not getting better than our ancestors physically infact we are getting worse, but how is it that our athletes keep getting better and break new records? This is due to the new technologies and tools used by athletes and their coaches that weren’t there before.

In boxing, it is no different; many tools have been developed over the years to increase athletic performance. Lets look at some of them right now:

• Jump rope - used to develop leg endurance and stamina that resembles a boxing fight where we stay on toes
• Heavy bag - used to develop specific power and endurance in our punches
• Double-end bag - used to develop quickness and hand-eye coordination
• Slip bag - used to build awareness of head position and moving our head off the centerline as we are punching
• Punch shield - like a heavy bag, it is used to develop a speed and power but on a moving target

Many coaches face problems when using tools because they get hurt while working one on one with their athletes. With the right technique, this canbe prevented, and like we need to learn how to punch, we need to learn how to use the tools of the trade before we use them.

In the following video, Brandon Gibson will show us how he holds the power shield to develop his athlete’s power punches.

Who Is Brandon Gibson?

Brandon Gibson is a striking coach at Jackson Wink MMA. Brandon has started martial arts at a young age, and he took on the coaching path very early to become one of the youngest high-level coaches today. By being a part of one of the best MMA gyms globally, Brandon had the opportunity to work with many world champions like Jon Jones and help them prepare for big events.

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Using The Punch Shield Correctly

In this video, Brandon introduces us to the Punch Shield, which is his favorite tool to develop power. As Brandon says, this tool gets you exhausted because you can put a lot of pressure on it, and the athlete needs to work his volume and power.

Brandon separates the video into different strikes, and the way to hold the Power Shield for each of them is different. Remember, we are mostly looking for single power shots on the Power Shield, and as this tool does not develop technique, we must focus on power and speed when working on it.

Let’s look now at how we hold the tool for our athletes-

Straight punches:

The Jab - 

• Hold the pad on your left shoulder and your chin tucked down
• The grips are going to be - upper hand palm facing down with elbow high, lower hand palm facing up
• Stay balanced, and meet the opponent’s power punch with your chest coming in, so you reduce the impact and keep your stance

The straight right hand -

•  Similar to the jab, I hold the pad the same way, and the only difference is that I put it on my right shoulder instead of my left

Hooks:

• Hold the shield high, so it resembles the opponent chin height
• Have your arm in a good and solid structure behind the shield, so you don’t get injured
• Use your hip to absorb the impact as the athletes hit the shield

Uppercuts:

• Have your shoulder over the pad as you aim it in a downward-facing angle
• Never extend your shield, have it tucked to your chest, so you don’t get injured

Notice that I am always moving my athlete in and out of range, and we are never stationary. We can also use the Power Shield to develop defensive abilities and combinations, for example:

• Swing the shield vertically over the opponent chin and let him duck under
• Combo: Roll under - Hook/Cross
• Pressure your fighter and let him pivot to an angle to continue the combination

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