29 Boxing Truisms

Can You Handle the Truth?
Photo by U.S. Army

The following boxing training tips are boxing truisms - things that are more or less universally accepted as boxing tips and the basics of a good boxing foundation.  Inspiration for this post came from a 1999 post in the rec.martial-arts newsgroup by Frank Benn, of Integrated Arts, Austin Texas.  Hopefully I've added some additional insight to his excellent work.

Focusing on the basics, with a few bonuses added in, these probably pertain to other sports such as the standup game in MMA as well, here we go:

1.  Stance

Loose, but compact - chin protected by lead arm shoulder and back power hand, head tilted forward, looking up through your eyebrows, turned off from your opponent with legs solidly planted about shoulder width, presenting as little of a target as possible.  Knees are bent, on the balls of your feet, groin protected, feet almost parallel.  Mobile, static, and powerful.

More Detail:  Boxing Basics, Boxing Tip #17 - Clamping Your Way to A Correct Guard Position, Types of Boxing Guards

2.  Range

Highly unnatural, become accustomed to being just outside or even slightly inside the range of your opponents.  You have to become comfortable with things flying at your face and barely missing.  Develop the ability to measure an opponent's reach and remain a fraction of an inch out of it and not freak out and flinch when something comes flying at your face.  Your movements have to be slight and always position you to throw back.  Your defense exists to facilitate your offense - that's it.

More Detail:  Boxing Tip #6 - How to Deal With Getting Hit, Tactical Principles of Boxing

3.  Never Ever Ever...

...take your eyes off your opponent. BUT, be careful of revealing your signs.

More Detail:  Boxing Tip #5 - Learn to Read the Signs

4.  Let it go by

Related to Range, don't always keep yourself outside of your opponent's reach, or he will forever be outside of yours.  Bob, slip and weave occasionally to stay inside but keep from getting hit.  Smaller fighters will magnify this problem against taller opponents - there is no way to be outside of their reach and be anywhere close to being able to launch your own assault.  You have to learn to live and fight in their "zone".

More Detail:  Distancing and the Boxing Battlefield, Boxing Tip #10 - Boxing a Taller Fighter

5.  Everything is a Means to an End

Musashi says "Do nothing that is without a reason."  Beware of wasting energy for no reason.  Every defensive move, without a counterpunch falls into this category.  If you have to move to avoid a punch, you better be delivering one as well or that initial energy expenditure is wasted.  In a sport where conditioning is upwards of 75% of the battle, the less you expend to win the fight, the better.

As well, letting your opponent get comfortable knowing you aren't going to retaliate is just prolonging the inevitable.  You can't block everything, and the only way to win is to fight back.  You weaken your opponent's offense with your own offense.  Isolated blocks and slipping without counters are useless in progressing towards the finish line.

More Detail:  How to Win Any Fight, 7 Proven Ways to Increase Your Energy Levels

6.  Read the Signs

While Fred pointed out the hips in his original article, it is much more than just the hips that will forecast your opponent's intentions.  Hips are one indicator and if a hip is moving, it is a good indication something is coming from that side.  As well, the eyes, shoulders, twitches, ticks, habits, although they may be amateurish, will also tell you the same thing once you pick up on them.

More Detail:  Boxing Tip #5 - Learn to Read the Signs

7.  The Jab

The jab is the fundamental punch of boxing - learn it, love it, use it both as a weapon and as a setup tool for power punches.  If you can jab, you can box, if you can't learn to love getting hit and you are nothing more than a puncher.

More Detail:  The Jab - Boxing's Most Important Punch, Boxing Tip #14 - Jab Fake, Boxing Tip #1 - Jab Tap

8.  The Can Opener and the Spoon

Boxing has a saying that your jab is a can opener and your cross is the spoon.  Consider your opponent the can of meat.  You can't use the spoon to dig out the meat until you open it with the can opener.  In other words, you shouldn't necessarily be leading off your attacks with a cross or power punch.  Use your jab to setup the second punch - punch in combination.  Fred mentions two boxers that were successful at delivering power punches as lead punches (notice they are all super fast) - Roy Jones, Ali, and a pissed off Jack Johnson.  Jabs, feints, and deception are the order of the day to ensure your power punches do the damage they are designed to do.

More Detail:  Boxing Combinations, Boxing Tip #2 - Creating Openings

9.  The Hook - "Crushing Peanuts and Come Here"

Two fundamentals to keep in mind for throwing a devastating hook - rotate on the ball of your lead foot like you are crushing a peanut into the floor and reach out with your arm like you want to grab your buddy in a headlock.  Your wrist has no part in the hook - the punch can be delivered with a horizontal or vertical alignment in your wrist depending on the distance of your oppponent.

More Detail:  The Left Hook

10.  Balls of the Feet are the Gas, Heels are the Brakes

Rules of thumb for mobility and planting - if you're on the balls of your feet you can make quick movements, if you're on your heels you're in punching position and not moving anywhere quick leaving you susceptible to attack.

More Detail:  Boxing Basics

11.  Christmas

It is better to give than to receive.  (I love that one...)

12.  Speed

Speed is extremely important, but only in the aspect of surprise.  To be more precise, the important thing is acceleration.  If you are quick, but start out slow, any opponent with mobility can get out of the way by the time you reach full speed at extension, but if you come out of the gate like a racehorse, they aren't getting out of the way.  Basically you need to develop explosive speed to beat your opponent's reflexes.  Best way to do that - relax.  Tight muscles will actually prohibit you from reaching your speed potential and speed is a key component of force.

More Detail:  Power in the Pivot

13.  Shoe in the Bucket

Describes the failure to shift your weight when throwing certain punches from the rear foot to the front foot.  Most common is the cross as you pivot and rise onto the ball of your rear foot transferring the weight to your front leg.  If you remain flat footed, you diminish the weight transfer and are in no position for follow up - you are now vulnerable.

More Detail:  The Straight Right or Right Cross - Boxing's Natural Punch

14.  Barrel of a Gun

When you punch, look down your arm like you are looking down the barrel of a gun.  This will help to ensure your shoulder is protecting your chin.  Fred uses the analogy of soldiers guarding the fort to describe your hands.  As one of the soldiers goes off to make war, the other must protect the fort.  If you throw, the hand not punching better be on the look out for the enemy.

More Detail:  Boxing Punches, Boxing Basics

15.  When there's weight, there's power

Power punches rely on weight transfer for the majority of their power and to get that, you have to load like pressing on a spring while not telegraphing what you are doing.

More Detail:  Boxing Tip #16 - Power in the Pivot, Boxing Tip #5 - Learn to Read the Signs

16.  Hourglass Stance

At the end of a cross (straight right or left) you are square onto your opponent and thus presenting one hell of a target.  It is at this point, you must be extra vigilant and do something like bob and weave or move to get the hell out of the way of the counter punch.  It is a necessary evil, but be prepared to deal with it.  Have a plan and do something - anything, don't just stand there like a deer in the headlights.

17.  60/40 Rule

Describes weight positioning.  At no time, do you want to put more than 60% of your weight on any one foot (except for extreme circumstances).  Standing off balance is not good for your defensive or offensive game.

More Detail:  Boxing Basics

18.  Dancing

Why waste the energy dancing around the ring?  There is a zone between you are your opponent called no man's land that you are constantly trying to seize.  That's where your quick, short movements should be taking place in order to gain the advantage.  Anything outside of that is wasted movement and energy.  When you take that zone, commit to your punches and derive the power from the floor, up through your legs and hips exiting it through the end of your fist.  The fleety, dancy movements will kill you in the longer rounds.

More Detail:  Boxing Tip #7 - The Pendulum Step, 7 Proven Ways to Increase Your Energy Levels

19.  The Generator

A nice analogy, power has to come from somewhere.  In your house, your appliances get power from plugging into the outlet (or electric generator).  In boxing, your punches get power when you plug into the power generator which is your legs and hips.  All power comes from the bottom up.  Arm power sucks.

More Detail:  Boxing Tip #16 - Power in the Pivot

20.  Better to make him miss by an inch, than a mile

Related to point 4 - if you over exaggerate your blocks or slips and make him miss by a mile, you are likely out of alignment to throw anything back.  Get used to punches brushing your face, head and body and you will be much more successful.  Tight, quick movements.

More Detail:  Boxing Slipping, Boxing Tip #10 - Boxing a Taller Fighter

21.  Head at the Level of Your Punch

If you are punching to the body, you have to crouch down and throw it so your eyes/chin are directly across from your target.  If you don't, think about what happens - you drop your arm completely exposing your chin/head.  By dropping to the same level, you maintain your protection which is why it is absolutely crucial to develop strong power in your legs.

More Detail:  Boxing Tip #8 - Effective Body Punches

22.  Punching Power

The power of your punch comes at the end of it which is why it is necessary to develop ranging capabilities.  If you push a punch (too close to an opponent) or fall short (too far away), you don't transfer the full power of the punch.  It has to be just right.  Fred's analogy - a train - you have to time things just right so that you are at the train station at the same time as the train in order to catch it.  Your punch has to reach its max at the same time it is connecting with your target.

More Details:  Boxing Punches

23.  When to Catch Him

Your opponent is generally ready to avoid your first attack.  He is ready for you and this is also the best time to test him to see where he is going.  In a fight - it is all muscle memory - there is very little actual conscious thinking about what you are going to do - you just react based on what you have drilled into your body.  So, throw that first jab and see what your opponent does, then you'll know what you have to do to catch him.

This is why learning to throw combinations is so important.  Although he can block or move out of your first punches way, unlikely he can get out of the way of a 3 or 4 punch combination, especially if you know what his instincts are telling him to do.  Musashi said "Throw something up at his face, and you'll see his reaction.  Then you can know exactly what to do, since he has tipped his hand, and show his intention."

More Details:  Boxing Combinations

24.  The Chin

The chin is the target.  It can put down even the biggest, toughest opponents with a precise tap.  The skull is hard and takes a long time to break down.  Your best weapon is precision and landing that perfect punch in the sweet spot.  Unless you can break concrete with your punches, go for the chin.

25.  Jab Like a Fencer

Adding to point 7 - some people use the jab like a fly swatter, others like to use it as a heavier punch as well.  Developing the ability to both (light flicks of the sword as well as devastating thrusts) gives you a more complete arsenal of weaponry to call upon.

26.  Sparring

There is little benefit to full contact sparring all the time and will actually deteriorate your performance.  As well, the benefit you receive from sparring is determined by the skill level of your opponents.  Technical and conditional sparring where you actually learn things rather than try to survive are what you should be practicing and saving the brain damage for the bouts.

More Detail:  Boxing Sparring

27.  Shadowboxing

Shadowbox EVERYDAY.  15 or 20 minutes keeps your brain sharp and reflexes ready to go.  Use this time to think and work out things like angles and combinations.

More Details:  How to Shadowbox, Complete 12 Week Boxing Training Plan

28.  Use a Numbering System

Every punch has a number and those you train with can call out a combination or force a reaction simply be spouting of a sequence.  Results in instinctive movements and quick recall.

More Details:  Boxing Combinations, Boxing Punches

29.  Train with a Partner

Only those with incredible self discipline can train alone for any length of time on a consistent basis.  Boxing is about developing and getting better and that takes practice and hard work.  Being accountable to a partner who will push you and help you succeed could mean the difference between a payday and paydirt.

More Details:  How to Be a Training Partner

Well, there you go, 29 ways to improve your boxing game if you apply them.  Before getting to advanced techniques, ensure you have these boxing techniques under your belt and you'll already by ahead of 95% of your opponents.

If you need a complete training plan to help you develop these things, consider the How to Box 12 Week Boxing Program.   Box on.