You don't need to spend $100 a month for "cardio boxing" at a fancy gym. Learn the secrets of professional boxers, the fittest athletes in the world, virtually free.
In the previous article you learned that spending ridiculous sums of money on "cardio boxing" is unnecessary. You also discovered that the excitement of a real boxing gym could be just the ticket to a happier, healthier you.
After a diligent search you've found a gym, perhaps one close to home. You're nervous as you enter, but it's a good nervous. It's exciting.
New Sights and Sounds
The rat-tat-tat of a speedbag collides with the frantic whipping of a jump rope as their echoes reverberate through the gym. You watch a young person, maybe 17 or 18, their T-shirt soaked through with sweat as they work a heavybag, grunting with every shot. On the floor, on the opposite side of the gym, you see one person doing crunches while another repeatedly drives a leather medicine ball into their contracted belly. This is positively medieval, you think.
You will notice that you have been ignored. Do not think of this as rudeness, it is focus. Remember, the person who runs this gym isn't selling memberships; he trains young men and women to become boxers. Refreshing, isn't it?
It all looks random to you, but if you ask for assistance from a trainer you'll soon see patterns develop. Every exercise has a specific purpose. The training regimen of each fighter is unique, depending on his style, whether he is in training for an actual fight, whether it's a "cardio day" or a "strength day" and other factors, but the basic routines are the same.
Throw Away Your Scale.
The following routine, four times a week, will transform you, but you need to do one more thing before you get started: throw away your scale. Having a scale around will only tempt you to jump on it and discourage yourself every day. Bad idea. You should exercise because it feels good to push yourself to limits you didn't know you had. You're about to trade sweat for confidence and a higher quality of life, not by an arbitrary standard based on how you look in the mirror. Measure your progress by the way your clothes fit.
Kelly Pavlik, who, on September 29, 2007 won the Middleweight Championship of the World by stunning knockout, is not a mass of rippling muscle. Ripped is not the same as fit.
The Routine
The following routine is your goal – if you are fit enough to perform at this level now, you don't need this article. In the beginning, reduce each exercise by two-thirds; that is, two rounds on the heavybag instead of six. Gradually work your way up.
One more thing: Do not start punching the heavy bag until you learn how to properly apply hand wraps and you are wearing proper training gloves. Then it's time to get sweaty.
- Run in place for three minutes.
- Shadowbox: You are practicing your footwork, defense (bobbing and weaving), and punch mechanics. Six, three minute rounds, 30 seconds rest in between.
- Heavybag: Similar to shadowboxing, but with training gloves on and the added resistance of the bag. It's important to approach the bag as you would an opponent, i.e., incorporate your footwork and defense, proper punching technique and combinations. Six, three minute rounds, 30 seconds rest in between.
- Speedbag: develops fast-twitch muscle fibers, as well as a sense of rhythm. Six, three minute rounds, 30 seconds rest in between.
- Jump rope: One minute with the rope is like two minutes of jogging. Serious cardio. 12 minutes without stopping.
- Core work: Alternate 100 sit-ups with 20 push-ups, three sets. Concentrate your first 50 situps on your abdominals, then 25 each on your left and right obliques, respectively.
- Squats: In boxing, this is known as "bobbing" a crucial defensive maneuver. Assume an "on guard" stance. Keeping your butt out, your back straight and your stomach in, slowly bend your knees but do flex them past 90 degrees, slowly raise back up. Do this ten times then switch foot position and repeat. Do three sets.
- Shadowbox: Three minutes.
- Stretch: Do this slowly, no bouncing. Should require at least five minutes.
This routine will take over an hour to complete. If you feel pain, stop. If you feel light-headed, stop. Drink water between rounds and while transitioning from one exercise to another.
