Do Professional Boxers Have Bad Form?

If you've done any type of boxing training - even for just a couple months or so - and then watched a professional fight, you will likely notice something kind of odd. Sometimes, maybe even oftentimes, the fighters aren't necessarily throwing punches and moving in the way you were taught. Particularly in the heavier weight classes and particularly when it comes to a Golden Rule of Boxing itself, which is to keeping your hands up at all times. Coaches repeat this endlessly but then you turn on the TV and see both fighters with their hands down. So what gives? Do these rules just not apply to the pros? Or do some of these so-called pros actually have good form?

The answer is multi-faceted and before I go on, I do want to say that plenty of professional boxers don't have these issues. Their technique is clean their form is precise, and they put on a boxing clinic every time they fight. Canelo, Lomachenko and Naoya Inoue are certainly a great examples here but there are plenty more. Here are some of the reasons though, why others may not box the way your coach teaches you to box.

1) Styles/Good Enough to Break the Rules

Muhammad Ali crossed his feet constantly. Floyd Mayweather Jr. keeps/kept his left hand down on purpose. Tyson sometimes got into a completely square stance. Roy Jones even put BOTH hands behind his back before knocking out James Toney. One thing these guys have in common is that they are some of the greatest fighters of all time. They were able to develop their own style that worked for them specifically. If others could simply emulate those styles and be as successful, they would! We'd have tons of people fighting just Ali, knocking people out with their legs crossed but as it happens, we only have the one guy who did this stuff at a high level. In the case of Floyd Mayweather Jr, there are actually many others who use a similar "Philly Shell" defense (before and after him) that Floyd uses. And plenty of them win high-profile fights too but it still represents a tremendous risk and requires lightning-quick reflexes as well as a certain mental aptitude to pull it off. If you just do a cursory YouTube search for boxing knockouts, you will notice that 99% show the guy being knocked out with his hand(s) down. Plus, in many cases, it is imperative for someone training in boxing to master the basics first before thinking about adopting a different style.

You will also see some boxers exhibit bad form or a lack of technique but they are so good, they can get away with it and still win. Having a lot of natural punching power can sometimes be like an eraser, making up for little mistakes. But this is does not mean YOU will be able to get away with it. Or even the other person be able to get away with it forever. The better boxer generally wins out and learning the proper skills will only help someone with their craft and as I have said a million times before, even just their workout.

2) Keys to the Door

Punching another person who does have their hands up, protecting themselves, as well as moving around means that if I just throw a perfectly straight jab, I could be punching right into their glove. Now sometimes I will do that on purpose but let's say in this case, I really want to punch them in the face. To do that, I may alter the angle and form of my jab so that I punch around/underneath/etc. their glove. Thus, my jab looks a little awkward now. Think of it like fitting a key into a keyhole. Or fitting in a puzzle piece. I have to adjust my strike so it fits in just right. This doesn't necessarily equal bad form though. Not at all. But it can lead to my punches appearing a little less than textbook perfection.

This can be even more true for hitting a moving target. What starts as a beautiful cross may turn into a dipping, half-assed looking overhand if my opponent starts to drop their head while my hand is in flight. With boxing in general, you kind of have to take what's there, what is open, and the structure isn't always as critical as landing a shot is, in the heat of the moment.

Does this mean we shouldn't train with such a rigid structure? Not at all. The better you get at throwing punches and moving properly, the better you will get at throwing slight variations of those punches and moves when things go live and situations present themselves. If boxing is something that really interests you, read that sentence again. My slightly off-form hook will be stronger as well as more efficient and effective, the more I practice throwing hooks the proper way, using every muscle in my body. If boxing doesn't interest you as much, know that once again, throwing punches the proper way will get you a better, safer workout than just going willy nilly.

3.) Feints

Feints are something you will see in the ring constantly. A fighter fakes doing something - stepping a certain way, throwing a punch, etc. - and then quickly does something else. Sometimes they aren't even totally planned either. I start to step in but then I instantly think better of it and step away. Much of the time they are intentional though, designed to set up the opponent. For example, I pretend that I am going to step forward in an attempt to draw my opponent out, have them throw a strike intended to catch me on the way in, but since I never did come all the way in, their strike misses and then I am now ready to pounce. You see this with punches, head movement, everything. 

So is that bad form? Not at all again! Feints are a huge, critical part of boxing, especially when fighting against counterpunchers, but because they are seemingly an incomplete motion, it is possible that they might appear strange to a relatively new viewer. Sometimes, feints will also go further outside of the box, appearing even stranger. You might see someone raise their hand straight up in the air in an attempt to draw the opponents eyes up or away from the intended target. Watch highlights of Prince Naseem Hamad or Emanual Augustus for some crazy examples.

4) They're Tired and/or Hurt

This is a big one with the bigger fighters. You will almost never see two heavyweights fight more than a few rounds and not obviously appear a little fatigued. Once you get tired, the first things that will happen are that you become flat-footed (no longer bouncing on your toes), head movement slows down and the hands drop. Punches then become sloppier too. It's not just because the hands are heavy and keeping them up requires energy, it is also just the mental part as well. Staying sharp mentally when you're exhausted becomes harder and harder so remembering all the million things you are supposed to do while boxing becomes harder as well.

You can multiply this by an exponentially higher number when a boxer is hurt. Mental and physical capacity drop dramatically and they go into survival mode. Great boxers have learned how to just coast on muscle memory here but punches are going to get extra sloppy, once balance and pain thresholds are compromised. 

Even if a punch doesn't hurt, it is also common in boxing for the fighters to both land punches around the same time. It's probably beyond obvious to say that if you are trying to throw a punch and get hit while doing it, that punch may not turn out as well as it normally would. At the very least, your body is being moved and jostled, affecting your balance, rhythm, timing and attention.

5) Some Fighters Are Just Kind of Sloppy

George Foreman was another one of the all-time greats. Don't tell him that I said this but he wasn't the most technical fighter, by any stretch. He was extremely powerful (maybe the most relatively powerful puncher ever), good at cutting off the ring, and used his strong jab pretty well but his signature power punches were also big, slow and looping. The only reason that Ali was able to beat him in the famous Rumble in the Jungle fight, using the "rope-a-dope" technique was because Foreman was a little sloppy. Had he tightened up his punches like coaches generally teach, he would have likely run over Ali as predicted. Just like I talked about in point #1, George could get away with his less-than-elite boxing skills because of his other talents

And there are plenty of boxers who are far less sharp. Not to pick on the big guys again but this is usually where you will see it. There is also a conversion process that happens when you go from practice into the ring. I'd estimate the average person is 20% wilder in a real fight than they are in the gym. Some even more so. Thus, what you see on TV will not be a perfect representation of what you and the fighters are coached to do. Plus, now we have all these "celebrity boxers" who may indeed get some good training but just don't have the experience and ring IQ to really showcase the sweet science. 

Oftentimes though, when you are watching some of the best coached, highest-level fighters, there is a very solid translation between training and fighting. You can even find footage of people like Canelo and Tyson practicing drills that played out perfectly in their fights. This is the ideal scenario and something to strive for.

So I guess the answer to the initial question isn't a simple Yes/No but boxing is also an incredibly complex sport with many variables and not a lot of easy answers. That is one of the things I love about it! But I will leave you with one simple truth that I have already said several times and will say over and over again: the better you learn the rules and box with best, most textbook form you can, the better everything else will get. Even if you eventually develop your own style, break the rules, when you have to adapt and when you get tired or hurt, you will be better for having mastered the basics first. Good form and technique will also get you a better workout with less chance of injury and more chance of being able to develop more skills. I've said this one before too - technique is everything!!!

Should My Hand and/or Wrist Hurt While Punching the Heavy Bag?

Provided your hands are wrapped properly and you are using adequate boxing gloves, your hands, wrists and knuckles should not hurt when punching a heavy bag, even when hitting that bag with a lot of force over and over again. It is NOT just a part of boxing training.

That being said, people have certainly reported feeling some discomfort at times. The good news is that if someone does experience any pain or hand issues at all from the heavy bag, there is always a solution (so long as there aren't any underlying problems that would lead to making heavy bag boxing unsafe). The solution of course, depends on the problem, and I am going to go through a list of the most common issues I hear accompanied by the cause and specific solution(s) for that issue.

First and foremost, for just about all of these potential issues, there are 2 important things you can do to prevent them from ever happening. The first is warming up your wrists and hands before hitting the bag. The idea of the warm-up is to get some some flexion, extension and blood flow happening. Here are 3 exercises I demonstrated in a video last year -   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x141CXJdI6U&list=PLN0PPf0o8X6X1Te2zEgHrqy-BtyI-RAg3&index=38  - and even when you do start punching, take that first round or so a little lighter to get your hands used to that contact.

The other thing you can do is strengthen your hands and wrist. The stronger they are, the less likely injury could potentially happen. Things like push-ups on your knuckles and bottoms-up kettlebell presses will really help you keep your wrists straight and stable and any exercise you can do to overall improve your grip strength will help for delivering tighter, more solid punches. There are a lot of little muscles in the hands and forearms and all of them are forced to stabilize when your punches land. You don't need to spend a ton of time on this training and it is very possible to do other lifting work at the same time. Even something like pull-ups, where the hands and wrists aren't targeted at all, can do wonders for your grip strength, especially with a fatter/thicker bar.

Before I finally get to the issues, I also wanted to say one thing about hand-wrapping. It is critical to wrap your hands before putting on the gloves and hitting the bag and it is also critical that they are wrapped correctly. There is no one, unified way to wrap and many different variations but as long as it...

1) Is tight enough that it doesn't become unraveled

2) But not so tight that you cannot feel your hands and get good circulation to them

3) Allows you to make a tight fist and fully close your hand

4) Doesn't bind any of your fingers together

5) Provides some padding for the knuckle

6) Provides some wrist support

...then your hands are wrapped properly. Once again, here is a video I made showing a couple different ways to wrap - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HZM6OXoCSfg -  If all of these things are true and/or we wrap your hands for you at our club, any hand or wrist issues are likely NOT due to the wraps. I say this because it is often the first thing people wonder if they encounter pain. Maybe I'm just not wrapping correctly? Or not wrapping tight enough? Usually though, this is not the case and in fact, wrapping too tight can probably cause worse problems because if you do lose circulation and can't feel your hands or wrist, you won't be fully aware of what they are doing and where they are when they hit the bag. And that is the most important thing of all! Speaking of which, here are the more likely culprits and how to fix them:

Abrasion

Problem 1 - You have blisters on your front 2 knuckles (index and middle finger knuckles)

Solution a - This could be simply due to newness. You just started hitting the bag and/or have brand new gloves and/or a brand new heavy bag and your hands simply aren't used to it. As you get more used to it, these scrapes and blisters will go away. But punching a bag with blistered hands hurts, even if just in the interim while you heal. You can go with regular band-aids (replacing at least every time you box) or better yet, moleskin bandages for more padding and wrapping.

Solution b - You are not landing the knuckles flush and are instead, sliding off the bag on contact, pulling on the skin. You never want to skim or partially hit the bag and if you find that happening, slow things down a little. 

Problem 2 - You have blisters on the other 2 knuckles (ring finger and pinkie knuckles) and/or the inside, door-knocker knuckles.

Solution a - You are hitting with the wrong knuckles! All contact should happen with the front, outside big knuckles where you index finger and middle finger begin in the hand. If you are hitting with the smaller knuckles or worse, the "door-knocker" knuckles that are right in the middle of your finger tips and hand knuckles. You will likely have other issues if you continue to punch this way so the abrasion blisters are actually a useful warning sign! Just like the issue above though, you are going to need some kind of bandage until the blisters heal.

Knuckle Pain

Problem 1 - Your knuckles hurt when you hit the bag. Generally in both hands but more so on the dominant hand and generally, when throwing all the punches though again, some hurt a little more than others.

Solution a - You do not have a tight fist upon impact. And sometimes this is a little tougher wearing wraps and gloves but you really have to make sure those fists are as tight as possible. Don't squeeze all the time though, or you'll burn out your forearms, but from the moment you decide to throw that punch, squeeze those fists tight. There are schools of thought that preach not making that tight fist up until the exact point of impact, which is certainly logical but could cause an injury if you are even slightly wrong about the timing of that point of impact. i.e. if the bag is moving and you connect a little before you expect.

Solution b - You may need new gloves. If your gloves are older and the padding has started to wear, it is time for new ones. How long does this take? I have found that it totally depends on the glove and how hard you hit. Sometimes, expensive gloves are more economically smart, as well as safer, because they won't wear down as quickly. You just have to make sure you get the right ones. If you are a heavy hitter, you are going to likely need heavier gloves. 14-ounce may be okay but 16-ouncers are often better. Some brands are definitely better than others and some styles are too. For the TITLE Brand, I have said many times that the World Bag Gel 2.0 gloves are better for hitting the heavy bag than any other TITLE style, even those which are more expensive. 

Additional Note About Gloves: In all the time I have punched a heavy bag, I have only hurt my knuckles one time. I was trying out some weighted gloves and my fingers were too crammed together so the tendon pulled a little bit upon impact. This was kind of an edge case scenario but my point is just that if you do buy or try new gloves and something doesn't feel quite right, those are not the gloves for you! New gloves should always feel pretty good. Maybe a little stiff at first, slightly tight but if the hand feels wrong or very uncomfortable, try something else.

Problem 2 - Your knuckles hurt only on one hand but not so much, the other.

Solution a - You had a specific, acute injury. Maybe a punch landed wrong (not a tight enough fist, wrong knuckles, not wrapped properly, using old gloves, etc.) and created an injury that now leads to pain. If it's really bad, get it checked but most of the time, it just needs to heal in these cases. You can still box during this time but I would recommend a couple things- just not going so hard for a little bit and/or use to something to help absorb some of the shock from your knuckles. A few different things can work. The first is a toe separator used primarily for drying painted toenails. But if you put it over your knuckles when you wrap, it will provide some padding and made all the difference for me that first and only time I hurt my hand while boxing. If it doesn't help you, the next step is to try something a little better. I have found that Silipos hand pads provide plenty of shock absorption. Just like the toe separators, you place them over the top knuckles and then wrap over them. There are also knuckle shields made specifically for boxing that you can use too.

Solution b - Your punch is not landing properly on that hand. Likely it is your power side so while you might have the same technical issue on your non-dominant hand, the issue isn't as prevalent as you don't hit as hard on that side. Take more time to see how your hand is landing and make sure you are hitting with A) a straight wrist, B) a tight fist and C) making contact with the top two, big, hand knuckles only. The ones your index finger and middle finger attach to. To find out for sure, throw each punch on that hand and freeze so that you can see exactly where where you're making contact. Then make some adjustments and quickly get out of this habit of freezing at the end of your punches.

Problem 3 - Your knuckles hurt specifically on particular punch.

Solution a - This means you are almost definitely not throwing and landing that particular punch properly. Just like above, practice throwing it, freezing on impact, and checking to make sure that A, B and C are true. If you're not sure, have someone else look at it. Just remember that even when you fix it, there may still be some residual pain as the initial injury heals. You can also take the steps in “Problem 2, Solution” a while it does.

Wrist Pain

Problem 1 - Your wrist hurts when you punch the bag.

Solution a - Your wrist is not straight upon impact. It is bent forward or backward, which puts immense pressure on those wrists, the harder you hit. You may not even realize that this is happening. Before even throwing a punch, try straightening your wrist and see what it looks like. Then throw a slowed-down punch and take a close look.

Solution b - Your wrist bends upon impact. Maybe it's straight coming in but bends once it hits the bag. Oftentimes, this is because either the fist is not tight enough on impact or the elbow is not behind the punch. Or both! We've talked about keeping a tight fist but the elbow is really important too, not just for your wrist but your shoulder is well. We see this a lot on hook punches. A good rule of thumb is to make sure your elbow is never below your fist on hooks.

Solution c - Just like with the knuckles, it is possible to generally maintain good form but on one particular punch, you manage to tweak your wrist. Or you have an unrelated injury that makes your punches hurt until that injury heals. A more nuclear option here is to take something like masking tape or duct tape and literally tape over your wrist after wrapping (and maybe down the wrist as well). I would not necessarily wrap the hand wraps tighter, as a loss of circulation will only compound the problem but taping over will add support as well as remind you that there is an injury, and not to go too crazy.

Problem 2 - Your wrist hurts particularly on hook punches.

Solution a - Besides not keeping a generally straight wrist, another very common problem we notice on hook punches are people hitting with those inside, smaller, "door-knocker" knuckles mentioned earlier, so the hook is delivered more like a slap. This could be due to being too far away from the bag when throwing the hook or a slap just feeling more natural. Open palm-style strikes (hitting with the hard part of the bottom of the hand) have their role in self-defense and MMA but when punching a heavy bag, particularly with boxing gloves on, this is a dangerous thing to do. You are putting a lot of pressure on that wrist and you are very likely losing power and speed to do it anyway. Hooks are compact, powerful punches that should be delivered quickly and with low probability of being successfully blocked. If this is you, try getting closer to the bag, maintaining a right-angle L-shape with your arm and throwing hooks, and slowing things down to make sure you're landing in the right spot.

Hitting Too Hard? No!

One final thing I want to say here is about hitting to hard. I have also heard some people report issues these hand or wrist issues and wonder if they are just punching too hard. Unless you have a pre-existing injury or aren't sufficiently warmed or wrapped up with proper gloves, it is impossible to hit too hard. If punches are causing pain and the harder you hit, the more pain you feel, it is because you are not hitting correctly, not too hard. Sure, you don't want to necessarily go all out when you first start boxing. It is better to start slow and learn the technique. And you generally don't want to go all out when you first begin a heavy bag session either but once you are warm and your hands are used to it and you're wrapped properly with appropriate gloves and you've got proper form, let loose!!! A great thing about the heavy bag in general is that it is the best way to really train your power. You don't have to worry about hurting your training partner and again, as long as you are smart about it, you don't have to worry about hurting yourself either!

Nervous To Try Out Boxing?

Starting anything new can be tough, especially when it's a boxing class with other people who have likely done it before and seemingly, already know what they are doing.  Just about every single person who comes to our club - regardless of age or fitness level - has been nervous for that first time. Even some who said they weren't nervous later told me that they really were!

I was just like them too. I've often told a story about how I started getting serious about combat sports. There was a Krav Maga gym that opened up in my old neighborhood in San Francisco. I was really interested in checking it out as I had done some Muay Thai and BJJ years ago, loved it, and really wanted to get back into that kind of a disciplined exercise program. Despite previous experience, I was still very nervous. The idea of me looking like a noob and not knowing what to do when everybody else did was daunting. I passed by the studio every day on my way to and from work and would always look in the window to see large dudes, many of them in local law enforcement and security, training there and looking totally intimidating. At the time, I was a 32 year-old-video game developer and not in the best of shape. There was no way I could compete with those other guys!

Plus, for me, there is always this fear of the unknown. I always want to know exactly what is going to happen and where everything is. Even if I have a reasonable idea and it doesn't really matter anyway, it is still important to me. Besides not knowing the content of the new training, I don't understand the structures and procedures either and that can make me just as uncomfortable.

So anyway, I finally mustered up the initiative/courage to do it BUT instead of stepping totally out of my comfort zone and join the regular boxing and kickboxing classes classes at the gym, I sort chickened out and bought 10 private training sessions with their head instructor first. That way, only one person, the trainer, would see me sucking and hopefully teach me how to not suck anymore. After my 10 sessions, I decided to finally try out a regular class. But I was STILL nervous about it! In fact when I went to the class and people asked if I had any previous experience, I pretty much lied. I said "No" and maybe mumbled something about working with Barney (my trainer) "a couple" of times. So if I still sucked, they would hopefully not judge me too harshly and if I did pretty well, would be extra impressed! 

Writing this all out is pretty embarrassing as clearly, I had/have issues, but I guess the point is that I can definitely relate to being nervous about trying something new and to varying degrees, most all of us have these kind of social anxieties. And they are often irrational. But working through them can be well worth it! For me, it changed my life forever. Set me on a path of health and wellness and inspired me to get into helping others down that path. My confidence went up and my overall social anxieties went down. I became a transformed person in many ways and I liked the new me a lot better! Maybe it won't have such an extreme effect on you but I can pretty much guarantee you that you will be proud of yourself and feel good about yourself for surviving something you were nervous to try.

In our club, we truly do have people of all fitness levels, skill levels, backgrounds and ages. Everyone's on their own heavy bag and goes at their own pace. Every single one of them was new once too and will understand what you might be going through that first time.

I would say that a little more than half the people who sign up with us online to check out a  boxing class for free actually make it in. Getting through that door the first time really is the hardest part. But again, everybody who makes it is glad that they did. Whether you end up loving boxing and wanting to do it more or not, the experience will be positive. So if you're on the fence about taking the jump, now is a perfect time to  do it. And if you're already training, share this with someone who might be interested but is still, like ALL of us, a little nervous!

Most Important Muscle Group to Train in Boxing

It is somewhat odd that the largest, longest muscle group in the human body is also one of the most underappreciated- at least in terms of their most basic function. I am talking about the gluteal muscles and as it relates to boxing, these muscles could not be more important. In fact, I would say that if you could only train one muscle group for boxing, it should be those glutes.

But why? Don't you throw punches with your arms? Wouldn't things like the chest and shoulders be more important? I (and I am pretty sure anyone else with an understanding of boxing mechanics and human physiology) would say that while important, no muscles in the upper body are as important to train than your lower body. And in my opinion, it's not even close.

Every punch in boxing starts "below the belt." The first thing to activate once a punch is about to be thrown is in the lower body.  Either pushing off the ground, dipping at the knees, or turning of the hip. Once activation starts, the rest of the body follows in step.

Boxing isn't just about punching either. There is constant movement of the feet in all directions (even rotational) with maximum quickness and agility. Changing direction, moving in, moving out, faking one way and going the other way, all the while remaining on your toes and shifting your weight. In fact, you could also say that literally every movement in boxing - offense, defense, footwork, head movement, etc. - is about shifting your weight from one foot to the other when done properly.

So, if I take a step forward in a fighting stance, I push off of my back foot, lift my front foot up, step forward with that foot, and the weight shifts to my front foot as I step. If I throw a lead hook, I am transferring weight from that front foot to the back foot as I turn my hips into the punch. If I were to duck underneath a lead hook from my (orthodox) opponent, I would first dip down, then transfer the weight from my front foot to my back foot. Then I would likely throw my back hand - let's say a cross - where I once again transfer that weight that is currently on my back foot to my front foot as I rotate my hips and shoulders. I could go on and on.

To make these transitions possible, I need to use a lot of muscles in cooperation with each other. The quads get a lot of work, but they don't turn the hips. It is also important that I maintain balance and proper posture throughout. Transferring weight is one half generating the movement and the other half stopping the movement- "catching" the weight. Quads can help here too, especially with footwork, but again, they are generally missing the most important component of boxing, which is rotational. This is where the glutes and to a greater extent, the core, come in (Note that glutes should indeed be considered part of the core). The glutes are responsible for generating and stopping movement in all planes of motion, maintaining your balance in all situations.

Learning how to box properly will functionally train your glutes, but if you are looking for more strength training (and/or changing the appearance of your glutes), there are plenty of good exercises you can do. Squats are a simple, popular move but here are 5 more that I like a lot better:

1.            Step-ups (using a high enough step, like a park bench)

2.            Kettlebell or dumbbell swings

3.            Skater lunges or zig zag hops

4.            Single-leg glute bridges

5.            Donkey kicks

You can do everything but the swings without weight, but you can also add some weight to everything there too. These exercises- along with boxing itself- will definitely improve your athletic performance. It will also help your basic balance (standing or locomotion) and posture, as glutes are the primary muscle group for these jobs too. So, if you've never had a chance to think about how much they do for you, maybe now is the time to thank these functionally underappreciated muscles for their help as well as focus more on their training.

8 Reasons Group Fitness Classes are for YOU!

I used to be someone who did not like the idea of working out with a group. I was more of a loner type and did not want anyone looking at me - judging me - while I did something that was physically challenging. When I got into martial arts, I was kind of forced into a group atmosphere and while it was uncomfortable at first, I soon discovered that the pros drastically outweighed my reasons for hesitancy.

As I have said many times before: the best workout is the one you enjoy yet still challenges you. Even without a lot of fitness knowledge going in, a cursory search online can lead you to some physically-challenging workout routines. But will you be able to push yourself to rise to those challenges that should consistently escalate? And even if you can, will it be fun and exciting for you?

This is where the magic of group exercise classes come in. You have an opportunity to try something new, often with no commitment, that can change your life forever in multiple ways. Here are 8 great reasons why that is true:

1. You Need Some Instruction

This is a big one. You can read up on everything online now but when it comes to something physically challenging, skill-based or not, you are going to need some personal instruction on how to do it. Going on your own can result in injury, not learning the proper way to do the thing you're studying or at best, not being able to get much better after your first month or so.

So from there you've got 2 options: you can hire someone to teach you privately or a group fitness/small group training type of session. Private training will generally average anywhere from $40-$100/hour whereas group classes cost only a fraction, yet still give you access to the high level instruction of a trainer without the barrier to entry. (Note: Sometimes a friend or family member will have some experience or expertise here and will train you for free. Provided they know what they are doing, that could be great! But especially as it relates to boxing, I have seen some people who had trained with a friend that really shouldn't be training someone else. I've seen some good examples here too, but mostly bad.)

Any decent fitness studio will have coaches who know form, cues, and mechanics, as well as how to deliver that information in a room full of people, correcting improper form and giving you feedback. If you try out a group class where the coach does not do this, then you are probably in the wrong place!

2. Unless You Are One of the Remarkable 1%, Someone Else HAS to Push You

Very few of us can consistently push ourselves outside of that comfort zone during a workout. And the ones that can would probably still work that tiniest bit harder if someone else is telling them what to do. I have seen it time and time again on both ends. No matter how I try, now matter how determined and diligent I am, I will never work as hard alone as I would with even someone else in the room, let alone an actual trainer.

And even if that other person pushes you just the tiniest bit harder - like you skip that microsecond of rest you would take on your own - that tiny bit can make a HUGE difference. It's those microseconds we spend out of our comfort zone that lead to results. Plus, it's easy to get distracted on your own. I generally start thinking of other things, which can be great for activity like jogging, but having someone else driving me will keep me focused on what I am doing.

3. Planning Workouts 

One area where I believe less thinking is better is when it comes to planning workouts. Let an expert take care of this for you, designing the next 45 or so minutes of your life so all you have to do is show up and work.

Besides saving time and energy, this is better for your body. Unless you are fitness professional yourself, odds are that you don't have the prerequisite skills needed to create a workout program that is truly effective as possible, working everything in the way you want to. Again, there are plenty of workouts you can find online but also again, it may be harder than you think to tell the good from the bad. And none of it is personalized for you in any way.

4. Getting Bored

On a similar note, group fitness programs are a great option if you get bored easily working out on your own at the gym or following videos from home. A good instructor will mix things up, keeping it fresh, and focusing on creating a fun, enjoyable experience as well. Despite all I have said about challenging yourself and pushing yourself, my first goal when creating a class or individual program is to make it fun. It could be the most challenging workout in the world but if it's not fun, most people won't want to come back. Or in my case, it could also be the most perfectly instructional boxing lesson ever but if it's just cold, clinical and no fun, the average person isn't going to want to keep doing it. The "fun" part should relate to everything too - the workout itself, the instructor's personality, music, everything.

5. A Little bit of Competition May Be A Good Thing!

While I wouldn't necessarily think about being competitive at first - and it was part of the reason I was initially resistant to group fitness classes - a little bit of competition once you can get used to the workout may help you take that next step. It doesn't even have to be direct. If I am in a class and see someone else working hard, I will be motivated to try and match or exceed their intensity levels.

Then if you are more of a competitive type, even better! Many group fitness classes have some sort of technology that tracks elements of their workout. At my boxing club, we have sensors on the all the heavy bags, which detect how many punches someone throws, as well as the force delivered on each punch so we have some members who like push each other to score more points or at the very least, compete with themselves yesterday.

6. It's Good To Be Around Other People Too!

Once again, this as not necessarily my jam originally. It's not that I didn't like people, I just wasn't exactly a social butterfly. But even if I wasn't looking for buddies, it was still good/healthy for me to be around others and I think that is true for most of us. No person is an island. And while it might be a little out of your comfort zone, it is a great way to ease into being more socially comfortable. You don’t have to interact and if you do, there are time constraints (like class about to start)  that make the interaction less of a commitment. I found that particularly helpful and eventually realized that I wasn't a social butterfly but a social caterpillar, who eventually emerged from his chrysalis!

No matter what stage you might be in, meeting people can be especially difficult these days but as part of a class, you can really get to know other members over time as well as the coaching staff. Going through a challenging workout together can even be bonding.
And of course, even if you don't meet friends at your class, you can still workout with your friends. Sign up for a new class together. With family members too. Workouts are a fun, healthy way to connect with your favorite people.

7. There is a Support System in Place

Along those lines, having external motivation to stick to your routine is extremely helpful and a group setting can provide just the encouragement you need. There is some accountability that doesn't exist when you exercise on your own. I have seen this work successfully time and time again and even seen members reach out to others who have gone MIA.

8. Keeps You On Track To Meet The Minimum Fitness Recommendations

It might sound obvious, but group fitness classes are a great way for people to inch closer to the recommended minimum movement requirements set forth by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention. They recommend that adults participate in a minimum of 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic physical activity and two or more resistance training sessions each week. Going to programmed, group exercise classes will check those boxes for you. Exercise functions like medicine and helps lower your risk of all-cause mortality and cardiovascular disease. 

There are certainly additional health benefits in going beyond the recommended amounts and that is where your specific goals come into play. Whatever group exercise option you pick, it should align with those goals. As much as I love boxing and think everybody should do it, if someone walked in and said their goal was to bulk up and build 40 pounds of muscle mass, I would say that boxing is not necessarily the right training for that goal. Whereas if someone came in and said they wanted to lose 40 pounds of fat while building some tone, lean muscle, then boxing is the best way to do that!

So if you've never done group exercise classes before, try one right now! Or if you have done them in the past but didn't have the best experience, then try a different kind of class. I can almost guarantee you won't regret it, whether it is something you choose to do long-term of not. You likely have nothing to lose and probably the most valuable thing to gain - your own health and fitness!

Do New Year's Resolutions Actually Work?

When was the last time you made a New Year's Resolution? How did it go? Did you stick to it? Does anyone stick to them?

There are plenty of statistics out there and none of them are particularly encouraging. Very people who make New Year's Resolutions feel any kind of success by the end of the year. Many go into it feeling confident and maybe even by the end of January they still feel on track but as the months go on, everything falls by the wayside.

Sounds pretty hopeless BUT you CAN be one of the success stories. I can almost guarantee it. It will require some work on your part though, and it all comes down to the planning and tracking stages.

 

S.M.A.R.T. GOALS

 

If you want to actually follow through with your resolutions, New Year's or otherwise, you have to be smart about your goals. Both in terms of considering them thoughtfully and the acronym – SMART, which stands for Specific Measurable Attainable Realistic and Time-Bound.

 

It really is important that you hit on each of those letters.

I could say that I want to be fit and healthy, which I do, but that is way to vague. I could say that I want to be the fittest and healthiest I've ever been, which is also true, but that is also vague, not particularly measurable and probably not that realistic as I get older.

How about this then: I want to lose 10 pounds by my next birthday on April 16th. It's very specific, easily measurable, definitely attainable and by making it time-bound, I have set the expectation and can start formulating a plan for success. Of course your goals may be more detailed than this but for the sake of brevity in my explanation, I will keep it simple and assure you that this system can work for anything.

I cannot stress enough how important SMART Goals are. It is not just one of those catchy acronyms. Most people fail because they don't understand this part. Common resolutions like, "Lose weight" or "Eat better" or "Get to bed earlier" are not an actionable goals. Certainly all good things but without those specific, SMART details, they are pretty much just wishes, not goals.

 

YOU NEED A PLAN!

So the next step is to figure out that plan for success. How am I going to accomplish this SMART goal and lose 10 pounds by April? Well, according to the calendar, there are 106 days between January 1st and my birthday. That's about 15 weeks, let's say. So I just need to lose a pound a week. What's that, you say? That my goal was for 10 pounds and if I lose pound a week for 15 weeks, that would be 15 pounds. True, but I believe in giving myself some slack. A week is a pretty short interval of time and the pounds may not come off in lockstep like that. I may lose 2 in one week, then not lose any for 2 weeks. I want to give myself a little more aggressive of a mini-goal to stay on track for the macro-goal and this is a pretty good cushion. Plus, that way, I don't freak out if I don't lose a pound in a week and feel like I am never going to hit my goal. This is another big reason people don't make it. There plan quickly seems unattainable and they give up. By allowing myself some extra slack, I can better stay composed throughout the process.

The harder part comes next. How am I going to lose a pound a week? Then very general rule-of-thumb is that 3500 calories equals a  pound so using that, I need to create a 500-calorie deficit per day.

So how can I create such a deficit? Diet and exercise! But again, that is too vague. I need to figure out how many calories I am taking in a day, on a regular day, and how many I generally burn through exercise. The exercise part is harder to track accurately but there are plenty of ways to get a decent approximation. Once I have the baseline figured out, I can start to think of ways of cutting down calories in and increasing calories out to hit that 500 number per day. I could go on and on about the different ways to do this - how much should come from eating and how much should come from exercise - but I will save that for another time. For now I will just say that whatever way I pick, it just needs to be sustainable and the one thing I would NOT recommend doing is cutting out breakfast. A lot of people do this but there are many statistics out there to show that skipping breakfast and weight loss do not work as well together as they might seem.

 

ACCOUNTABILITY AND SUPPORT

 

Okay! So I have my SMART Goal, I have a reasonable plan to achieve said goal so now I just need a way to track it, to stay accountable, and to get the support I need to help ensure success.

Tracking my particular goal of losing 10 pounds by my next birthday isn't too tough. I can use an app like MyFitnessPal to track all the meals I eat as well as exercise sessions I am doing to see if I'm hitting that 500/day mark. I can also use a scale to see that those calories are turning into pounds. The only tricky part with scales in particular is that weight is not necessarily lost in consistent chunks and the number can be very determined by when I weight myself. In this case, I will just plan to do it every Monday, first thing in the morning. But again, when it comes to weight loss, it is important that I don't get too bogged down by the numbers I am seeing on the scale. The weight may not come off at all for a few weeks but as long as I'm sticking to my calorie plan, I should be good.

Oftentimes though, it really pays to be accountable to not just yourself. I should tell other people about my goal. Why? Because that makes the whole thing more real. Now I feel a little bit of pressure, good pressure, to really stay on task. I don't want to ever have to tell them that I completely failed! Plus, by telling a spouse or roommate, they may not bring as many snacks into the house or maybe be encouraged to try and get healthier too.

Because there is also the good kind of support and accountability. You want your friends, family, co-workers etc. to encourage you. It really can help. Maybe they'll have some good advice for you too. Teamwork indeed does make the dream work.

ANTICIPATE ROAD BLOCKS AND CELEBRATE SUCCESS

If things like weather and illness and just general lifetime events will prevent you from sticking to your plan, make alternate plans for situations that you cannot avoid. Like if I know I have a wedding to go to in March and plan to eat and drink a lot, I should build this excess into my plan and tweak the days around it to compensate. Most importantly, do not let a missed day or two throw you completely off target. Once again, this is what happens to so many people, New Year's Resolutions or not. They get off to a good start, feel good, feel committed and the instant life gets in the way and messes with their schedule/plan, they can't recover. Instead, do your best to get back on track as quickly as possible, which should not be extremely difficult if you have set appropriate goals.

It is easier to stick to your plan when you feel good and successful. Try to find a new way to reward yourself when you meet your smaller goals. Maybe each month I stay on track, I give myself a little gift/reward of some kind. If the goal is fitness-related, get yourself a new clothing item or piece of equipment (like boxing gloves). Something that makes exercise feel better, more appealing. Even just feeling like you look better when you exercise will help. It makes the whole thing feel more serious, more committed.

Then finally, the only way your goals/resolutions are going to become reality is if you believe in them and most of all, believe in yourself. You can do this! Maybe you haven't had success in the past but you can always take control and turn it around. If you aren't sure how to do it, seek out professional help. The internet can be a great resource (like right now as you read this!) but every body really is different and you may need some more personal attention. As I've said many times before, you are worth it!!

Best Gift to Give the People You Love the Most?

I am an only child raised by a single mother who worked full-time and went to school for much of my childhood. This was in Los Angeles so when you factor in travel distance and traffic, I didn't see my mom a whole lot. Still though, that was better than my dad. He lived out of state, traveled a lot, was generally disinterested in me. Even with Christmas and Summer breaks, I could count the number of times I visited him on both hands. He and my mother split when I was 3 and 44 years later, I still barely know the guy.

That's the end of my sob story but I promise I am not telling you any of this to feel sorry for me. There is another point I am getting to here. I grew up fine, followed my passion for work, got married and when we had our first child, a boy, I decided I was going to do the opposite of what my parents did. I was going to be there for my son in all the ways my dad wasn't for me. And this is not unique. To some degree, the way we raise our kids is a referendum on our childhood. It is evolution at work! 

As I have mentioned in previous autobiographical posts, I was always an active person but it became more and more difficult to "find" the time to exercise and just generally, take care of myself as a parent now. Especially as my son got a little older, I couldn't reconcile taking an hour to go work out or spending every precious minute with him. I didn't want to be anything like my own dad. And there was nothing more important to me than him. So how could I possibly take inessential time for myself instead of my son?

My regular routine then became not-so-regular. And of course my health started to decline. I was overweight, out of shape, but there was a mental aspect there as well, even more significant than the physical. You hear people say this all the time, most of us nod our heads in agreement, but it really is true - your physical and mental health are very much intertwined. I was not happy being out of shape, I didn't feel good, and this adversely affected my ability to be the father I wanted to be. Plus I started to think about the future. Suddenly, having a child with plans for more meant that my long-term health more and more important. I was already going to be an older dad and wanted to live long enough to see my kids grow up, hopefully have kids of their own, and me being still spry enough to play with those potential grandkids.

Plus, regardless of physical health, I (and I think just about all of us) needed some Me Time. As many sacrifices we make, and should make, for our children, it cannot and should not be ALL about them. Just as we need a work-life balance, we need an us-family balance too. Not just for us but for them too. Taking care of yourself will help you better take care of others.

Again, this was stuff I had heard before, thought about before, but it was only now that I fully realized how true it was. The best gift we can give to the ones we love the most is our own health, mental and physical. So we can be there for them in the long-term and even the short-term. Taking an hour or however long a day for yourself to truly invest in yourself helps everyone who depends on you. YOUR health and wellness is a gift to THEM. You don't have a be a current parent either. Your own parents, family and friends all care about your health and wellness too!

It's one thing to know this and even believe it wholeheartedly but it is another thing to actually do it. I want you to ask yourself a question right this very second: What are you doing for own mental and physical health right now? For real? Every single one of us should ask ourselves this question frequently. And if we don't have a good answer or think we should have a better answer, now is the perfect time to start working towards one. No matter where you are on your holiday shopping right now, I can tell you that this is the best gift you are going to be able to give anyone who really cares about you.

Who Is the Greatest Boxing Coach of All Time?

Most people have, at some point in their lives, heard about the greatest boxers of all-time. Even someone who's never seen a fight before can generally recognize names like Muhammad Ali, Floyd Mayweather Jr., Sugar Ray Leonard, and Mike Tyson. But unless you really study the sport, it's unlikely you'll be familiar with great coaches and trainers. They are not nearly as high-profile as their fighters, most certainly, and also get much less exposure than just about anyone who coaches a team sport. This does not mean, however, that coaching and training boxers is less significant than the role that say, a football coach.

Boxing competitively is a whole different emotional journey than any other non-combat sport. Oftentimes fighters put their complete and total trust in their coach. They had better, as they are also putting their lives on the line every time they step into that ring. As such, trainers have the opportunity to truly mold their fighters. Whether they become pros or not, the coach is a teacher, mentor, a sometimes father figure, and really guides the fighter along as their skills and boxing brains develop.

Here are those who are generally recognized to be the greatest boxing trainers of all time, by most accounts (including mine). Right now, the list is pretty old-school but modern trainers like Eddy Reynoso and SugarHill Steward may eventually earn their places in history as well.

Cus D'amato
Eddie Futch
Angelo Dundee
Freddie Roach
Ray Arcel

Lou Duva

Emanuel Steward

Teddy Atlas

Roger Mayweather

Interesting thing is that with exception of Roger Mayweather, none of these men competed at a high level, some with little ring experience at all. This is generally true in ALL sports. Take a look at any one - football, soccer, MMA, tennis, bocce ball, etc. - and check out who the experts consider the greatest coaches to be. Almost none were superstars in their own right. There is a reason for this. Being a great coach is an entirely different skill-set than being a great fighter or player. Sometimes these skills can even be somewhat contradictory. Many great athletes are born with natural physical ability that not everybody else has. Some things just come easier to them than others. This can make communication, motivation, instruction and sometimes even relatability tough when they coach others who are not as talented. I have known boxers who literally can't even describe how to throw an uppercut. Not that they describe poor technique, I mean can't really explain it all. They can certainly throw and show a good punch but the breakdown is less apparent to them as they have pretty much always been able to do it well.

Anyway, back to the original topic, who of these legendary trainers really THE best? For me, it's Cus D'amato but I am very biased. Not only did he train Mike Tyson (my favorite fighter) but also created a whole new style of boxing that Iron Mike was the perfect vehicle for. Together, they made the sport must-see TV for people like myself and after Cus passed away and Tyson later fired his protege, Kevin Rooney, Mike's skill-set declined significantly and he was never the same, mentally or physically. That famous loss to Buster Douglas would not have happened had he continued to work with Rooney and Tyson's full potential was never potentially realized. That is how important a trainer can be. A truly great basketball or football player can be great regardless of who coaches them. In boxing, I think this is far less common. The right trainer can make the difference between champion and also-ran.

As far as the opinion of those not as biased as I am, I think most would tell you that Angelo Dundee belongs at the top of the greatest trainer list, since he worked with both Muhammad Ali and Sugar Ray Leonard. Although it is Eddie Futch who has probably trained more great boxers than anyone else, including 4 of the 5 men to beat Ali. Plus, one of his disciples was Freddie Roach, who is himself also considered by many to be the greatest trainer of all time.. Then of course there are countless fighters trained by all of these men who never became famous but whose lives were positively impacted by the time spent together.

Besides being a great teacher, communicator, motivator and brilliant boxing mind, a big thing that any great coach in any sport on any level needs is to care. To care about those who they coach (as well as the sport itself). Not just in their success but in their development as athletes and people. This care will flow into everything else they teach and do. Doesn't have to be all warm and fuzzy either. I was fortunate enough to work with a great coach for several years who wasn't particularly nice at all. But he definitely cared about me getting better and his tactical mindset was something I really admired and wanted to emulate as best I could. He also inspired me to want to teach this as well, which why I am sitting here writing this in the first place!

How Can You Stay Fit Around the Holidays?

Can anyone actually do this? For some, it would officially qualify as a Christmas Miracle. How does one handle the challenges of being confronted by tons of delicious food, parties, travel, relatives and just generally crazy schedules?

Oftentimes, it simply leads to complete resignation, which causes people to give up all regular routines, self-discipline and otherwise manageable self-restraint related to health and fitness. I’ve certainly been there!

If this sounds familiar to you too, your first step is to change your mindset. Practicing sound nutrition, health and fitness habits is vital to life-long wellness. Healthy eating, effective physical activity and regular rest are practices that should become part of who you are and essential to your daily life, just like brushing your teeth or taking a shower. This shift in mindset sets the stage for greater self-empowerment and self-confidence, as well as a transition of control from external to internal.

The key is to recognize that you have the power to transform your life by applying key foundational behavioral principles. When you do that, you won’t get bogged down with seemingly endless challenging choices in every situation.

Here are a few tips to help avoid being derailed during the holidays:

Eating:

Anyone can tell you to eat healthy foods and instead of cookies, just eat celery. Those people are certainly correct but they are also jerks. Who is going to eat celery instead of a cookie? So what can you do? Well, for one, drink lots of water. Besides hydration just being key to survival, it might help you feel a little bit fuller, especially during a party where snacks are plentiful and if you happen to be drinking other things at one of these parties, it helps balance you out. For every alcoholic beverage, make sure you follow it with one full glass of water.

When it comes to food, definitely try to have fewer snacks and sweet treats in the house over the holidays, as you probably run into plenty of this stuff at parties and under the tree at Christmas. Or if you do have them, try to make a healthier alternative easier to grab (ie put a bag of almonds in front of the cookies). And hey, if you can resist some of the temptation and eat that celery, by all means, do it! And I will tip my cap to you.

Exercise:

Understand that your schedule may be thrown off and you may not be able to stay in your normal routine but you can maximize the opportunities that you do have for exercise. Try doing 2 boxing classes in a row! Or more!! You might think you can’t do it, you’re tired after 1 class, but I would bet you some Christmas Celery that you absolutely can do it and will feel very proud of yourself afterwards. Or push yourself a little harder in a class. For our club, try to get a higher Impact Wrap Score, really speed up during a burnout, do planks on your toes instead of your knees, keep your hands up during class, try to cut down on rests, do the active rest exercises, ANYTHING!

Also, something positive is better than nothing. Get away from an all-or-nothing mindset. If you don’t have time for a full workout, do 10 minutes of exercise and you’ll reap some positive benefits. Get down and do 5 push-ups at some point during your day. You can come late to a class here, leave early, or even stop in when a class isn’t going on to get some workout in if schedule really doesn’t allow.

Sleep:

The most underrated component of fitness. Getting regular, consistent sleep is essential to your physical and mental health. But just like everything else, this becomes harder to maintain when our schedules get thrown off by the holidays. At least though, it is a little easier to be stay disciplined with than eating. And you’ve just got to be disciplined! Get 7+ hours of sleep every night. Or at least go to bed at a time where that could actually happen. Be consistent about this bedtime. This isn’t just to keep you from feeling crabby in the morning. A better sleep will actually help you with weight loss, muscle gain, stamina, energy, you name it!