A quick list of 16 basic boxing tips your trainer should have told you. These boxing tips will improve your boxing training, boxing punching, and boxing defense. Goodluck!
TRAINING TIPS:
- Stay calm and punch lighter on the bag so you can last more rounds, keep your form together, and punch sharp. This will allow you to get in more minutes of quality bagwork. You want to have energy to hit the bag with correct form and keep your punches snappy, instead of spending most of your bagwork panting and huffing to show that you have “heart”. Don’t waste energy showing off on the bag – nobody cares.
- Don’t workout till complete failure. Get tired, break a sweat, and just push yourself a little more each day. If you go until failure everyday of the week without a reason, you’ll probably overtrain and quit boxing very soon.
- Drink lots of water. One cup every hour minimum!
- Make friends in the gym, be humble, and ask people for boxing tips. When another boxer beats you, ask him how he did it; you may be surprised at how helpful he might be at showing you your own weaknesses.
PUNCHING TIPS:
- Turn your whole body into the punch. If your feet are slow, (most people have slow feet at first) you will find that punching a little slower actually hits harder than punching faster. So in other words, punch as fast as your body can turn so you won’t sacrifice power. Again, use your whole body instead of just the arms to punch.
- Throw short hooks, short uppercuts, and short rights but long jabs.
- You don’t always have to throw one knockout punch after another. Combo light and hard punches and use head movement to fake out your opponent. Remember that the harder you try, they harder they will counter, and the harder you will get hurt. Calm down and throw the hard punches when you know they’ll land.
- Never forget to go to the body. Try a jab to the head, and right hand to the body. When you’re in real close, lean your head inside to smother him and throw 2-3 body punches.
- Throw 3-5 punch combos maximum. You don’t need 10-punch combos – all those do is sap your energy and leave you open to counters. Don’t even practice these for now.
- Breathe out when you punch and always look at your target when you punch. Don’t hold your breath and don’t look at the ground. Learn to keep your eyes open during the heat of the battle!
- Let your hands go! Don’t wait around forever to let your opponent hit you all day. Throw something even if it doesn’t land. Keep him thinking and keep your eyes open for more punching opportunities.
DEFENSE TIPS:
- Stay calm and never stop breathing. If you’re starting to panic, ask the other guy to slow down so your mind and body can catch up.
- Hold your hands high, elbows low, and move your head.
- Don’t waste energy running around the ring, just take one step and pivot out of the way if your opponent is overly aggressive. Think of yourself as a matador pivoting out of the way as the bull misses. Don’t forget to hit him back.
- Don’t lean back and don’t take your eyes off your opponent when you’re taking punches (this is especially hard for most beginners). Establish your ground and defend it with hard counters. Pivot so that you don’t get countered.
- Don’t always wait for your opponent to finish punching before you start punching back. Interrupt his combos and hit him! Too many speedy fighters get caught up in trying to block all the oncoming punches that they never get to counter. Let your hands go!
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91 Comments
defiantly good tips to remeber
goods tips useful for us
cool tips
they should help alot!
this is good tips especially i have a fight coming up this may. its my first fight and i need all the tips i can get.
yeah man me too but im in greece and im 15 and first fight is in 7days!
Good luck, Andreas. Record some video for us.
first time sparring tips
Hey bob, thanks for reading! Do come back and let me know how you did and which tips helped the most. Thanks again for visiting!
cool
Nice guide…But I have a question..
I’d like to know a little bit more about the reasons why not to train until complete failure.. And by the way, the tips helped me a lot, especially the 7th on punching.. Keep up the great tips! =]
why not to train till complete failure
The problem with training to complete failure is because of the way that most beginners get there. They don’t get there by slow consistent workouts. They do it by trying too hard, overcommitting on their punches, and wasting their energy pushing the bag instead of hitting it with quick snappy punches. These beginners in a sense, are trying to achieve fatigue faster by wasting energy even faster. Ultimately, they’re building up bad habits that would hurt their fighting abilities in the ring and decrease their ability to improve as a boxer.
boxing
i have just started boxing and those tips were the best i have heard they will help me succeed thanks keep tips going
boxing tips
thanks simon!
Very good tips Thank you
thanks
very good
great tips
gr8 tips… but mma rock.and dont forget to get ufc 2011 and fight night round 5
awesome
how do you measure arm reach
how to measure arm reach
some places measure from the arm pit to end of your closed fist… some places measure from knuckles to knuckles with arms held wide straight out
Pivot?
This may sound like a dumb question, Im new to actually doing the sport, what do mean by “piviot so you dont get countered”? I get the not getting countered part, but a little confused on how to pivot.
How to pivot
To pivot means to keep your front foot down while you’re swing your back foot clockwise or counter-clockwise. Pivoting it better than running away because it allows you to turn your body while still being in range to punch.
If you try to back-step, it takes more energy and you still might get hit if you don’t do it fast enough. Taking a back-step is also not favorable because you might jump back too far out of range and not be able to land your own counter-punches. Pivoting turns your whole body and puts you at a different angle and takes you out of the path of the punch.
sparing
for starters I’m new. on the heavy bag I can throw these very devastating punches that would be a ko punch but it seems when sparing i cant throw them cause i have no no opening so I’m forced to throw jabs or 1,2s and it seems that i don’t have the reach. also I’m fourteen sparring with 20 year old’s.
how to find openings
Yes. That’s a very common problem. The heavy bag never blocks so every one of your exciting punches will land. And then you face a real boxer and nothing seems to get in. Against a real opponent, the jab is going to be your way to finding an opening. You have to use that jab everywhere on his body to try and pry something opening. Only then can you land the right hand. For a beginner boxer, the left hook will never seem to reach.
My advice to you, spend less time on the heavy bag and more time on the double-end bag. Do more shadowboxing.
boxing
this was very helpfull just wondering have you got a good work out plan week by week you could share?
boxing workout plans
@jackalto
I’m coming up with that next. They’re very hard to do since everybody has different goals for workout plans whether it be weight loss, pro fight, amateur fight, or just staying sharp.
mistakes
what are some of thr most fatal mistakes fighters make? what can i look for offensively to take advantage of these mistakes?
fatal mistakes
Awesome question, mrnumber4,
I’ll make that my next article!
gym
i definitely agree on asking other boxers for tips…. i once met this 10 yr old kid that was giving me tips on my guard/covering up and they turned out to be useful in the ring
@powerade – hahaha! Some kids are just so natural at this stuff. I’ll have to admit, too: just the other day, I really liked how this 12-year old kid was moving around the heavy bag so I asked him to show me. I spent the following 2 days practicing it at home. I don’t care that it’s not perfect, I just liked how natural it looked!
best boxing tips ever
Wow! This are the best tips i have ever found and witnessed online, this tips are the secrets of winning in boxing. keep it up dude your tips have started helping me out.
good tips!
gr8 tips thay helped alot.;:-)
Newbie
I was litle bit shocked when i read “For a beginner boxer, the left hook will never seem to reach”! I thought it was just me, haha!
Couple more questions:
When you talk about keeping your eyes on your opponent all the time, where exactly i should be looking at? Into his eyes, ears, shoulders? What gives away your opponents intentions?
Many Thanks
@Newbie
I look at their hands or chest area. That way, I can look at which hand is coming (because I like to weave and slip a lot), and remind myself of the distance. When I’m spectating at the side of the ring, I try to look at the boxers’ footwork to try to guess what they’ll do. Looking at their eyes may give you an idea of either a body shot or a head shot, but try not to look there all the time since it makes it harder to react to punches.
@Paul – just look forward. Don’t focus on any one thing. Just look forward and be ready for any sudden movement whether it be from the hand, the head, or even the foot. Don’t look for any particular thing, just be alert.
so helpfull!
thanks for the help! much appreciated! 
your tips are so helpfull! thank goodness someone has some good tips. every other site i have looked at did not help me, but this, it’s genious! I am a 17year old girl who boxes with her boyfriend and need to learn more haha!
so good
I am happy that someone cares about helping starters your tips are great and I am going follow them
AliCat & jef – keep it up!
shot bro mean tips
these tips are really helpfull .thanks
watch and learn
im amateur and must advise that if your new watch as much sparring as you can and get involved asap. keep a eye out for changes of style and look at where they have improved and talk to them about it in a posititve way so they give feedback and tjhat your comments remain positive and not intrusive. its a gentlemens sport after all. I am going for my licence soon at 23 simply by watching the effects of feedback and training strategy from other fighters its like my own lil jeet kun do experience. so be open with your questions and praise others and yourself no matter how daft and practice what you feel was effective especially if you have the same opponent in another fight. and also if you get criticised use it constructively it will only get nasty if you dont learn from your mistakes as instructors and coaches expect you to respect thier advice as you would expect the less experienced to respect yours right or wrong
i want to box
is boxing good for self-confidence because i used to get picked on a lot and im usually alone most of the time and i dont have good social skills so i want to box because it looks fun.
@lewii87 – great tips. nice to see other experienced fighters sharing their knowledge around here. THANK YOU!
@jessy – boxing is excellent for self-confidence. It’s a lot of fun and will help you socialize with others. Give it a try.
Johnny, For head movement i was thinking about not just moving my head in rhythm but rather in a motion so im moving just outside his right hand and left hand, to my opponent im just moving my head but he might not realize im placing it in a way to if he throws a straight it will miss because its off the punching line. Is that a good idea?
It’s a good idea as long as you’re not taking yourself off balance. Also, you want to keep your head far from where you want it to go. If you want to move your head to the left, then bait with it on the right.
Nice fighting tips it makes me think twice when I am in the ring.
Hi Johnny and before anything else thank you for your kind work and helping others
I wanted to ask for your opinion on breathing while throwing punches and combinations. I’m sure that a good breathing is essential if you want to last longer in a fight so I came up with this theory which i never tried to test properly. It goes like this: When you normally take a breath then your pressure in the lungs goes higher and there is more air in the lungs, than you exhale and the lungs go to their natural size and the pressure goes to its original value, and when that happens you can still forcefully exhale more air until you get winded out and can’t go any further, of course to go past that normal lung state requires extra muscle force, you are longer without oxygen in your blood too.. I think that you always need to take enough air for your next punching combination so you don’t have to go past that limit when you’re exhaling. I hope I didn’t write this too complicated 
Matt, I understood your theory perfectly. For someone to breathe using your theory, it’s like they can only use half their lung. Imagine a runner only taking shallow breaths instead of deep breaths, so terribly inefficient.
Look at those karate guys that breathe really deep when they break the boards. Yes, exhaling deeply requires a stronger muscle contraction…but at the same time, it’s the release of that air that makes your body relax (and contract) powerfully.
In any case, I suggest that you try your theory anyway and see how well it works. Try it at full-sprint, jogging pace, on the heavy bag, and also during sparring.
Thanks for your replay Johnny! Of course that taking shallow breaths is bad because it gives us less oxygen. My point is that you don’t need to take shallow breaths, take as much air into your lungs as you need, no limitations, but when exhaling it’s better not to cross that limit of a “default” lung expansion because it’s actually tiring and if you get cough with a punch to solar plexus your muscles will go to spasm and prevent you from inhaling and you already won’t have any air in your lungs so your muscles won’t have anything to use.
Take a look at this guys
There are for lung volumes defined:
Tidal Volume (TV). The amount of gas inspired or expired with each breath.
Inspiratory Reserve Volume (IRV). Maximum amount of additional air that can be inspired from the end of a normal inspiration.
Expiratory Reserve Volume (ERV). The maximum volume of additional air that can be expired from the end of a normal expiration.
Residual Volume (RV). The volume of air remaining in the lung after a maximal expiration. This is the only lung volume which cannot be measured with a spirometer.
— So what I’m trying to say is that “Expiratory Reserve Volume (ERV)” is one we shouldn’t use. It’s better to take as much air as we need and forcefully exhale it while punching just like we used to but to stop it at zero point and take more breaths rather than using ERV.
And another information about breathing that might be useful is that naturally our inhale and exhale rate must be 1:2 which means that our exhaling must last as twice longer than inhaling and that’s the way we were born. If you don’t believe me try to breathe in 1:1 rate, same length inhales and exhales will get you tires in matter of minutes! So the next time you do some push-ups try to inhale with one push-up and exhale on the next two etc.
Wow Matt, I think you know more about the science of breathing than I do.
Either way, I stand by my original opinion. You have to exhale sharply to contract your muscles explosively. Your breathing theory would be useful in a marathon where athletes have all the time to themselves to build up the perfect breathing rhythm. This won’t be the case in a real fight because fighters are constantly responding and reacting to their opponents. You WILL have to fight whether you’re ready to breathe or not, it’s not common to fight back even as you’re in the middle of inhaling.
Boxers don’t exhale deeply. Punches are thrown with short rapid exhalations of air. As soon as we get a chance to breathe, we replenish the air volume right away. Anytime that we breathe using ERV, it is because the fight forces us and there is no other way. Ultimately, boxers will have to breathe the way the fight is forced upon them. And they’re already always trying to catch their breath, so it’s not like they’re purposely trying to breathe into the ERV range.
Your breathing interval theory is valid. The general principle is that your nose inhales slowly to breathe deeply and then the mouth can exhale slowly in spurts. You exhale through the mouth to slow down the air, which would then make exhales take longer than inhales. The reason why many guys breathe at 1:1 rate is because inhale and exhale through the mouth.
I actually held some platoon push-up records in the Army. All the fastest guys used the same breathing pattern: one sharp exhale going DOWN, and an almost unnoticeable release inhale going UP. Sometimes we’ll do 4-5 sharp exhales going down before we do a big release inhale going UP. But that’s another secret for another topic that isn’t relevant to boxing.
And just one more thing I just read your article about breathing and I agree with you Johnny, breathing trough the nose must be better because if you try to respect 1:2 ratio that I mentioned earlier than it must be trough the nose. It’s hard to take a breath trough mouth and than exhale it twice longer but if you do it trough the nose than it somehow comes naturally
I’m starting to realize the heavy bag is a mythical creature….bigfoot, but not elusive and with no arms.
LOL!
Hey, Johnny, I am very new to this sport ,so while boxing I mostly do shadow boxing, I start my routine with a mile run & then followed by pull ups & push ups after stretching, I wanted to know what is the best breathing technique while doing pull ups to increase my sets ???? Do I have to breathe as I go up or exhale!!! I wanted to improve the strength of my wrists !! What about running? How many days a week should I run & what warm up technique I must follow before boxing.
For pull-ups you exhale as you go up. BUT BUTTTTT…if you’re going really fast, then you breathe as you go down. As for running, you keep a steady breathing rhythm. Most fighters do roadwork 3-5 days a week.
Hi johnny, is there any chance of some target areas / body punching tactics ?? Got a charity bout on , march 31 st and want this as a big part of my offence, great site !!!
Hi Barry, have you checked out my article on how to setup hooks to the body?
Hi ur article seems reassuring as I’m not a boxer but have a little bit experience, so when it comes to keeping my eyes focused on the opponent hen their throwing punches seems hard as I blink or just lose sight. I wante to ask if when sparring/boxing do you look at the opponents face or hands/shoulders?
Thankyou.
If you blink, you’re sparring too fast. I have a guide on “where to looking during a fight”. You have to look forward.
Hi Johnny,, why should we never lean back? is it a good idea to ride the punch (move head with punch) or have a tight guard and take it??
Who said you could NEVER lean back?
There will always be times when leaning back can be useful…for example: when you’re only looking to retreat and not counter your opponent. Riding the punch is great if you’re only retreating. Having a tight guard is good for keeping yourself in range to counter back. Having a tight guard is also useful if you want to push your opponent back using his own punch.
why should we never lean back??
and is it a good idea to ride the punch (move head with the punch to lessen impact) or is it better to tighten up and take it?
Damn, I gotta get back in the game.
Hey man i have the runs, so i didnt go to the gym but for some reason i feel like im lacking determination but i dont think there would be a point to head all the way out to the gym to constantly use the bathroom i think that would definitely disturb my workout, am i lacking determination for not going johnny?
I would probably wait to heal from the runs. After that, I’ll have all day and night to train as much as I want.
how do i move my head without my opponent anticipating where my head is going? maybe instead of side to side side forward side backward thats just an example johnny, and is it necessary to move my head out of punching range your feedback will be great johnny thank you
It’s true, your opponent can predict your head movements. But it’s better to be moving than to not be moving.
hello sir i am a 15 year old and am trying to make a boxing club at school, their ok with it but i need protection and not in a good financial state could you e mail me a list of good and necessary gear for basically setting up a gym ?
Gloves, headgear, mitts, mouthpiece.
Great tips man. Im new to boxing and have been using it mainly as a means of getting fit but i gas out fairly quick when I’m working the bag, found short snappy shots to be a much more efficient workout.
Muchly appreciated.
Also (being new to this) any other good basic combo’s to throw around on the bag that you can suggest?
Check out my Punch Combination List.
Hey Johnny
thanks for the awesome tips!
I just dont understand how to pivot my feet when I punch,ive read all of your power punching articles,and ive been sliding my feet towards the punch so that my body is balanced when I rotate my body,this seems to hit alot harder than the old one legged way I used to punch,i just dont understand how to pivot
Watch my youtube videos. I demonstrate the punching technique for the main boxing punches (jab, cross, hook, uppercut).
Do not drink a cup every hour youll feel so sick. D:
hi guys
Exact same tips my dad tells me,!
Felt like he was the one that typed this. This tips are really good and help alot.
Thanks Johnny, this may sound odd, but I actually have used these tips for boxing …..but…in-world. I’m a director at a Gym in Second Life. Virtually of course some are impossible but the training tips….that’s what I’ve used when ever training a new person and for any sparring/fighting I have done. I have to tweak them but the ground rules are there and once you get the fundamentals down, it makes any training so much easier. I actually refer to this article in a blog I did. Thanks again and any time you are looking to box in down time, look us up. Warrior Instinct Nations and I promise no black eyes or broken noses.
I’d love to see your blog. I did look up Warrior Instinct Nations but couldn’t find any information about it.
http://www.warriorinstinct.com/blog, the site is new…… In second life where the gym is, has been going for 5 years. If you have never heard of second life its a virtual world that mimics RL from stores to sports. Boxing, football and wrestling are huge there right now.
really good tips
Hi Johnny I just started boxing and I am on my 2nd week. I do wear eye glasses. I am considerin practice sparring without my glasses. Do you think I can manage? Or is that not a good idea? I just want to know how to block punches for self defense. That is all. I don’t plan on being an amateur fighter or going to the rings for fight.
You certainly can’t wear glasses so it’s either no glasses and/or use soft contacts. How well you manage depends on how bad your vision is without glasses.
Hey Jonn so wats your record
Click on my name if you want to learn about my boxing background.
i hve intrest in boxing, in my place their is no boxing club so please give me tips for starting at home, how and wht diets i must use as i m fat
Read everything on this site.
i loved your tips but i have one question what do you mean dont work till complete failure.
It means don’t exercise until your body is completely exhausted.
for Riley and Johnny N,
hi guys. if you actually see, you do not punch your opponent with the fingers. you punch them with the fists, so the arm reach is measured from the arm pit to the knuckles.
Mr. Johnny,
Please let me to know if I am a 36 year old than i had well trained, but can i attend any competition under my weight category?
Thanks
Hi Pathy, 36 is not too old for boxing competition. There are are different divisions for older boxers and you’ll definitely be able to find good competition in your age range.
wow …these tips on this page is awesome…just reading it made me a better boxer already….box my cus and friends and they are strong and bigger than me but i kick their butt… i didnt know anything b4 but now i perform these tips and it was enough to win…bc they r new at boxing just as i am …know just alittle more than them made the differences..even though my power did not match theirs..im 140 and they r 160 and the other was 240…woo!…i showed them….but i wont show them this page..lol
good
91 Comments