Punch out your stress and get fit with the Liteboxer

If yoga, virtual barre classes, or even spinning can’t quell your rage, there’s a new at-home workout to help you blow off some steam. Liteboxer is a moveable punching pad with target areas that light up a la Dance Dance Revolution. Like Peloton, you also fork over some cash ($29) for a monthly subscription to the app that offers routines from trainers and the ability to sync the machine to music.

No bruises or heavy rigs — Maybe, in the Before Times, you imagined a world where you took up boxing, but the actual sparring part made you uneasy. Or perhaps you’ve just unlocked a level of rage you didn’t know you could access, but you like the people and / or hole-free walls in your home.

The $1,495 Liteboxer is easier to pick up and move around than a punching bag rig and far more dynamic than a heavy sack. You can adjust how many punches per minute, from 20 to 60, based on your experience level and follow the lights across the pad to know where to land your blows. Sensors in each area can track your accuracy and the amount of force you apply.

You can follow training routines or practice punching Nazis to the sound of your own playlists, and integration with Universal Music Group means you'll never run out of appropriate music to jab to. This is definitely the kind of product, however, where you’re going to want a professional in your corner at first, even if it's only a few of the guided classes.

Mind over matter — Modern boxing technique isn’t just about jabs and footwork; there’s a psychological strength one needs to hone as well in order to effectively connect with another opponent. This, along with the promise of money and fame, has made boxing particularly enticing to POC and lower-class white people throughout the sport’s history — it's a release valve for society’s ire, and if you're good, can unlock a new sort of life for you... assuming, of course, like professional football, you don't sustain a serious, career-shortening head-injury.

In the middle of a pandemic, the uncertain tendrils of an insurrection, and a fever pitch of bigotry, anyone reading this can understand that sometimes you just need to hit something.