You don’t need us to tell you the importance of hand wrapping in boxing!
But what you may need us is to tell you is the right way of doing it. Too tight, and the wrap will obstruct your hand movement. Too loose, and it will fail to serve its purpose. It sounds like a complicated deal, right?
Well, not any more, as we bring you this comprehensive guide on wrapping your hands for boxing. Let’s begin, then!
How To Wrap Your Hands For Boxing?
A good hand wrap essentially archives two things: security and confidence. For the former, the hand wrap should protect the knuckles and wrist for a full power punch. This, in turn, gives you the confidence to not feel the impact of yur punch on his bones or joints, keeping injury concerns at bay.
Now, there are different hand wrap styles in boxing, but the fundamental purpose of each style is to keep the hands protected without compromising on mobility. These styles will mainly depend on the size of the fighter’s hand and the area where they want to emphasise protection, the preference for which develops over time with practice.
On that note, let us walk you through the steps for the standard yet secure hand wrap that’s most suitable for beginners.
Step 1
Start by unrolling the hand wrap to reveal the thumb loop, where you will put your thumb to begin wrapping over the wrist. Insert your thumb through the loop on the base and place the wrap across the back of your hand. This guarantees that the wrap securely goes over your fist as the beginning “cliches up”.
Step 2
Take the rest of the wrap and go over your knuckles at least three times. Make sure that you’re wrapping it high, almost under the first knuckle, so that the entire punching surface of the hand remains padded and protected.
Step 3
After the knuckles are protected, cross the wrap over the back of the hand and go around the wrist three times. Come across your palm with the remaining wrap and twist it halfway around your thumb. After this, come across the palm again over the back of the hand and twist it halfway around the thumb from the opposite direction. This step will secure the thumb from either direction.
Step 4
Wrapping back from around the wrist and using the thumb as the “anchor,” wrap between each finger. Start by wrapping between the tiny and ring fingers; take your time with this step for adequately secure wrapping. Keep the thumb extended at all times to ensure that the wrapping originates from its base.
An excellent way to gauge the effectiveness of the wrapping is to see if it creates the same separation that naturally exists between the knuckles. Beyond that, it maintains proper cushioning between the knuckles even if you mishit from any side. Likewise, the wrapping prevents them from smashing into each other if you fail to hit any surface directly.
Bring the remaining portion over the back of your hand and wrap it at least three times around the wrist. In case there’s a lot of wraps still left, make an “X” pattern on the back of your hand by crossing it over back and forth. Attach the velcro strap, and you’re done!
Things To Keep In Mind
As we’ve already mentioned before, there are plenty of styles to wrap your hands for boxing. However, this wrapping technique will help you protect all the bones in your hand, including the carpals (in the wrist), metacarpals (in the middle of the hand), and phalanges (digits).
Apart from that, a couple of more things may influence the overall tightness of the wrap. So, allow us to walk you through them quickly.
1. Length
Ideally, the length of the wrap should be such that it should go at least three times across your wrist for the final round. If it doesn’t, you should opt for a longer one for foolproof protection of the hands. On the contrary, if the wrap is too long, it may prevent you from making a “tight fist.”
2. Type
Since there are many types of wraps available for you to choose from, like gel hand wraps, Mexican hand wraps, elastic hand wraps, cloth hand wraps, etc., opt for the one that feels the most comfortable around your hands.
That’s A ‘Wrap’
With that, it’s time for us to finish our guide for the day.
Before we leave, here’s one last bit of advice: practice wrapping your hands quite a few times before you head out for a boxing session. The practice will come in handy when you have to wrap a hand while the other is already wrapped.
For more information on protecting your hands when boxing, check out our guide on choosing the best boxing gloves.
To purchase new hand wraps for boxing, reach out to our team. We are happy to assist you and answer any questions you may have.
We will see you another day!
