March 19, 2021

Your First Hybrid Fitness Boxing Class!

So, you signed up for a boxing class, but you’ve never thrown a punch before. We cover everything you need in order to prepare you for your first boxing class. You’ll be floatin’ like a butterfly, and stingin’ like a bee in no time! 

 

How Does The Class Work?

 

There are eight stations total, consisting of various types of punching & kicking bags, as well as a few exercise stations. Let’s take a look at what we have!

 

This Class is 45 minutes long, and consists of a warm up, rotation around each station, ~2 minute rest period, another rotation through each station, then a quick cool down/stretch to end the class. 

 

Everyone works at their own pace, and nobody is expected to be working as hard as possible the entire time (although you’re more than welcome to). If you need to take a break, please do! There are a ton of benefits to boxing, including increased stamina, endurance, and confidence (larger list below)! Plus it’s always fun to punch stuff after a long day at work!

 

THE STATIONS!

STATION 1:  

1-2 Continuous Heavy Bag (Light, continuous punches – only 1’s & 2’s) Good for endurance, and gives you an easier bag/break from the combos & heavy hitting punches. 

 

STATION 2: 

Wrecking Ball Bag (Uppercut-focused combinations on this bag) Great bag to practice uppercut punches. You can actually get underneath the bag, making it  a great addition.

 

STATION 3: 

Kickboxing Bag (The only bag we use for kicking combinations) This bag is our kicking bag, and is perfect for adding some leg work into different boxing style combinations.

 

STATION 4: 

Reflex Bag (Smaller bag on a spring so it’s one of the only bags that actually fights back!) Great for working on hand-eye coordination, and reflexes. The bag is on a spring, so it moves back and forth, and will come back at you just as hard as you hit it!

 

STATION 5:

Medium Heavy Bag (This is a nice medium density heavy bag with a relatively easy combination) This bag has a combination that is easier, flows really well, and is a good density to build some strength & power into your punches.

 

STATION 6: 

Exercise Station (This station always has an exercise that usually incorporates core or legs) There is some form of boxing involved in most of the exercises, but this station focuses on building core stability/strength, or working on legs to give the upper body a break while working around the circuit.

 

STATION 7: 

Freestyle/Head Movement Bag (This bag has a rope hanging down in the middle forcing you to practice some head movement) There is a rope hanging right in the middle of the bag so you have to slip underneath and work side to side instead of staying stationary. This is also a freestyle bag you can practice whatever combinations you’d like on!

 

STATION 8: 

Hard Heavy Bag (This is a harder heavy bag station) There is typically a tough combination on this bag and the bag is also a harder density so it’s                                    

You’ll spend about 1 and a half minutes working at each station, then have ~20-30 seconds to rest and rotate to the next station. 

Each station is numbered, and will have either a combination or exercise (usually core based) posted. 

 

THE PUNCHES!

 

There are 6 main punches that coach Mike will cover with you on your first day and they’ll be used with each combination. 

1: Jab

2: Cross

3: (Non-Dominant Hand) Hook

4: (Dominant Hand) Hook

5: (Non-Dominant Hand) Uppercut

6: (Dominant Hand) Uppercut

 

Why Should You Take Boxing Classes?

 

• More stamina & endurance
• Increase speed
• Gain confidence
• Improve core stability, and you’ll feel muscles burn that you’ve probably never felt before! Boxing is mostly rotational which is overlooked in exercise routines and not practiced much in day to day life but is incredibly important!
• Cardiovascular benefit, and calorie burning (fat loss!). These classes are high paced but go by incredibly quickly because they’re so much fun!
• Self defense! There aren’t many sports that directly relate to the ability to defend yourself, but this is definitely one of them.
• Improving reflexes & coordination. We actually have a punching bag called a reflex bag because it’s attached to a spring, and moves around which is great for developing your reflexes! This station is most members’ favorite!
• IT’S FUN!!!! But still gonna make you sweat and get a great workout 🙂

 

Other Equipment to Know!

 

Gloves

 

There are several different weight sizes you should know about.

10oz – very small and typically used by professional boxers in matches. There is minimal padding so they will hurt your wrists more as well as your opponent.

12oz – lighter option for gloves. If your weight is under 120lbs then these are what we recommend. They will also often be used by professional fighters who typically train with heavier gloves. This will give them quicker movement during a match.

14oz – Nice average weighted gloves. Recommended for those who are 120-150lbs. These provide a good amount of padding and are also slightly heavier which professionals will use to train and build strength.

16oz – Recommended for 120-180lb individuals. These provide a lot of padding and are also heavier in weight so are better for training.

18oz & 20oz – Heaviest style of gloves. We recommend these for anyone 150lbs+ and provide a lot of padding. They are heavier and harder to control but more suitable for anyone who wants a lot of padding.

 

Wraps

 

Traditional wraps come in either 120 or 180 inch lengths. 180 is recommended for everyone because it’s better to have too much wrap and do a few more passes around the wrist than to not have enough wrap to properly secure the wrist & hand.

Wrapping thoroughly around the wrist joint, knuckles, and hand will keep everything compressed, therefore reducing the risk of injury. Not only that, but it will help you punch harder, as well!

As you train more and more, your punching power will increase along with the amount of force and impact, so it’s important to learn how to wrap before even attempting something like boxing.

Wrapping your wrists will reduce the risk of hyperextending and injuring your wrists, and adds an extra protective layer to the knuckles as well to help keep them protected.

Boxing gloves should fit snug and not wiggle around too much, so wrapping also helps limit the space inside for a tighter fit. The wrapping process can be daunting where it includes numerous steps, but it’s important to learn early on, and properly, so you don’t injure or limit yourself along the way.

 

[LINK TO WRAPPING VIDEO/BLOG POST]

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And remember…Small Steps, Big Results.