How to Make an Iron Palm Bag

Train for open-hand strikes with an iron palm bag.

Iron palm bags are used by kung fu and other martial arts practitioners to strengthen the hands so that they can strike with more force. Iron palm bags are used to strengthen fingers; the bag is struck with fingers open so that the fingers are trained to withstand high pressures. Iron palm bag strikes are also performed with the side and back of the hand and with the fingers cupped. Make your own iron bag and practice strengthening your kung fu striking hands at home.

Things You'll Need

• Scissors
• Old jeans
• Needle
• Thread
• A bag of lentils or rice

Instructions

1. Cut a leg of the jeans just above the thigh, cutting through both sides of the leg.

2. Take the leg you just cut off and make another cut, this time below the knee. You should have a rectangular piece of denim that is open on two sides and closed on two sides.

3. Sew one end of the denim rectangle shut with the needle and thread.

4. Fill the denim rectangle with lentils, rice or a similar grain or bean. Grains provide a softer striking material and are recommended for beginners, while beans are harder and provide a tougher material.

5. Pack the grains or beans tight into the denim and then sew the other side shut. The tighter you pack the denim, the more resistance you will get from the iron palm bag when you strike it.

6. Begin training with the iron palm bag by laying it down on a tabletop or other sturdy flat surface and raising your hand. Let your hand drop with no more than the force of gravity and hit the bag. Once you are comfortable with just gravitational force, you can begin adding your own muscular force to strikes. Practice striking the bag lightly at first to test the strength of you fingers, and gradually build your way up to striking the iron palm bag with full force.

References

• World Kung Fu: Iron Palm I
• Boston Baguazhang: Iron Palm