Sandbag Training - January 16, 2008

by Ben Hanson

After a brief hiatus, (and I mean brief in the most glacial sense of the word) I'm back tapping at the keyboard. To those of you who anxiously awaited the next update, your patience will be greatly rewarded in the coming weeks and months. With the formalities out of the way, let's get to the meat and potatoes.

Among the multitude of exercises that have emerged with the advent of functional training, sandbag training is one of the old hats and has enjoyed ever increasing popularity. Not only do sandbags offer a total body workout, they're also inexpensive, portable, and easy to make. In fact, if I was stranded on a deserted island and needed to come up with something simple to stay fit, I'd find a way to sew palm leaves together and fill them with sand.

Despite its popularity, people still look at me like I have 3 noses when I talk about the benefits of sandbag training. I never really understood why until recently. It's not because they don't have the equipment to make a sandbag or the space to use one, it's that most people are simply afraid to construct such an awesome tool without any design guidance. I can't say I blame them, either. The last thing I would want is a 250 pound pile of sand in the middle of my driveway.

For everyone itching to reap the benefits of this awesome form of training, yet afraid to tap into their engineering prowess, today is your lucky day. I'm going to show you, in a few easy steps, how to make a sandbag that most likely will not break.* I'm also going to offer alternatives so there will be no excuse not to have one.

STEP 1: ACQUIRE THE MATERIALS

The Bag
Sand aside, there are a few other basic materials essential to making a durable sandbag; the first of them being the bag. Perhaps the most common form of bag is a military-issue duffle that can be picked up at any military surplus store. Its drab olive canvas is the most rugged and durable fabric for a sandbag. Other types of duffle bags are just fine, but they will never be as big as the ones from a military surplus store. Personally, I prefer burlap sacks like the old fashioned potato sacks pictured below. While it's not quite as durable as an Army duffle, it's a hell of a lot more pliable. The loose binding of the burlap allows the sand to flow and squish around a lot more, making the lift much more difficult. Ultimately, the choice is up to you. Just don't expect a paper grocery sack to do the trick.

The Liner
No matter what you use for a bag, you're going to need a liner strong enough to support the sand and keep everything in place. Personally, I prefer the material they use to make sandbags when there's a flood a' comin' (pictured below), but that's kind of tough to find if you don't know where to look. If you aren't able to acquire any of it from your friendly local fireman or FEMA worker, a doubled or tripled-up Hefty bag will work..

The Sand
I can't believe I'm saying this, but if you don't know where to find sand for your sandbag, go to a construction site or the beach at night. For the purposes of this article, I bought tubes of sand from Home Depot for less than $3.00 each.

Other
Scissors, duct tape

STEP 2: ASSEMBLY
Prepare a piece of the liner similar in dimensions to the outer bag. Be sure to seal it with duct tape along all of the seams.

Insert the liner into the outer bag as shown.

Fill inner liner with sand and duct tape the top of the bag.

And that, in a flash, completes your durable sandbag. It's simple, clean, and very cheap. Make sure you have a scale handy or at least have an idea of how much weight you're putting into the liner before you seal it. Nothing sucks more than making a training tool, only to find out it's too heavy to budge or too light to bother with, and having to go back and mess with the weight. The one pictured turned out to be 185 lbs, which is a bit light for my training purposes, but should help me with some lighter endurance exercises. Adjust your weight according to your ability.

You've got exactly one week to make your sandbag. Come back in 7 days to discover some exercises that will leave you crying for your mother.

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*The author of this article claims no responsibility for faulty craftsmanship and will not volunteer to clean up your newly made sand pile.

Posted by Ben Hanson at 4:20 PM

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