Friday, January 13, 2012

5 Things to Know About Boxing Training Workouts


Boxing is a sport that demands serious training. Fighters have to get in superior condition, they have to practice throwing punches, they must learn to avoid them and they must find a way to call on energy reserves when they are exhausted. This sport requires both physical and mental strength and an inner confidence that allows a boxer to come through when a fight is on the line.
Overall Conditioning
From the time a fighter starts to prepare for a fight date, he must get his body in the best condition possible. Fighters do several exercises to help their conditioning, but the most important exercise to build endurance is running. Boxers generally run 3 to 5 miles early in the morning three or four times per week during the training period. Boxers refer to their running routine as roadwork. After doing their roadwork, boxers head into the gym for the rest of their training day.
Speed Bag and Heavy Bag
Boxers use the speed bag to learn how to throw quick and accurate punches and a heavy bag to learn how to throw punches with power and explosiveness. These are exercise tools that have been used in fighting for decades. In order to hit the speed bag correctly, a boxer must hit it in the center so that it bounds off a support ring and bounds back to the fighter. That allows a fighter to hit the bag in a rhythmic pattern that build quickness and hand-eye coordination. The heavy bag forces the fighter to use his entire body when it comes to throwing punches. Instead of using the arms, the fighter must also use his hips, glutes, back and core muscles to learn to be a power puncher.
Rope Jumping
Rope jumping helps a fighter build quickness and determination to finish the job along with coordination. Fighters jump rope with quickness and speed so they learn to move into a position to throw dangerous punches and move out of range to avoid dangerous punches from opponents. In order to make rope jumping an effective exercise, the boxer must jump rope non-stop for three minutes at a time--the same as a boxing round. Hitting the speed bag for five rounds can help a fighter get into excellent fighting condition.
Sparring
The most effective way to prepare for a fight against a top-level opponent is to get in the ring and practice with another fighter. Boxers wear head gear and larger gloves to keep themselves from getting hurt, but the punches are thrown with serious intentions. The fighter uses the sparring session to hone his skills and prepare for a fight. This is perhaps the best exercise because the fighter does the same thing in a sparring session that he will do in a fight.
History
Elite-level boxers try to stay in good shape throughout the year. However, when they have a big fight on the horizon, they normally use a six-week training cycle to do their most intense work. Heavyweight fighters such as Muhammad Ali, George Foreman, Mike Tyson and Lennox Lewis have often left their homes and gone to training complexes many miles away from their regular gyms so they could isolate themselves and prepare for their most important fights. Their exercises, diets and sleep patterns are carefully monitored in an effort to get a fighter in peak condition prior to a fight. Some of the classic moments provided by the sport indicate the training sacrifice is effective.

 
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