Blitz Sport Firepower Curved Focus Pads Review

One of my favourite martial arts training exercises is padwork. It’s a great combination of power, strength and cardiovascular exercise, especially when the trainer is moving, and is a fantastic way to sharpen your striking skills.

There’s a variety of pads out there, but the main two are the long thai pads and focus mitts. Focus mitts, or pads, are ideal for boxing or training punches rather than kicks, though kicks can still be performed on the pads too. In general, there are three styles of focus pads: standard, curved and mini-pads. The standard focus pads are decent sized flat mitts, with curved pads exactly that – structured in a curved shape – and the mini mitts small in size for training better accuracy in punches.

In this review we’ll be looking at the Firepower Curved Focus Pads from major martial arts equipment brand, Blitz Sport.

The Firepower Curved Focus Pads are a decent sized pair of focus pads, 3.5cm thick with the target area measuring 18cm wide and 23cm in height at the peak points. Made from leather, the focus mitts feature a white circular target, stitched onto the centre of the mitt, which helps to maintain focus and accuracy when punching. The Firepower curved focus pads feature red lace across the bottom half of the pads, fastening the pads firmly.

The back of the focus mitt, where the trainer inserts their hand, features enclosed fingers which allow for a secure fit. The curved construction of these focus pads bode well with the contour of the hands and help prevent aches and pains which can occur from holding the flat focus pads over a period of time. One of the features that I love about these mitts, that are missing on my pair of Sandee curved focus pads, is the wrist strap. After sliding in your hand, you can secure the mitt in place with the velcro wrist strap fastener and, along with the concealed fingers, the focus mitts feels much more secure and less likely to become loose during training. Training with the Blitz Sport Firepower Curved Focus Pads, I’ve found them better suited to my smaller hands than the Sandee’s which offer little in the way of preventing the mitt from slipping when the hands become sweaty.

The focus mitts are available in one colour way – red and white. The contrasting colour design is simple yet striking, with the Firepower brand’s Full Contact logo on the front and back of the focus pads.

These Blitz Sport Firepower Curved Focus Mitts are lightweight and durable, making for ease of use for the trainer for practicing and honing both punching and kicking techniques. To punch, the focus mitts put up good firm resistance which is what you need when training. You can tell the quality of these mitts are superb compared to the other budget mitts on the market that ‘swallow’ your strikes.  Budget doesn’t mean ‘cheap quality’ though. Despite their low price, the Blitz Sport Firepower Curved Focus Pads are excellent, top quality mitts and do the job required. As someone who holds the focus pads more often, the support the Blitz mitts provide to give a tighter, secure fit are next to none.

Rating:

Firepower Curved Focus Pads are available for £30.64 from Blitz Sport