Knock Out Your New Year’s Resolution Part 2

Posted February 9, 2008 at 03:00 PM by Donnell Peavy

Section: His Fitness, Cardio Training, Alt. Therapies, His Health, Physical Health, Lifestyle Health

This article is part 2 in the series “Knock Out Your New Years Resolution.” To read other parts of this series, click here.

Okay, now that you have an idea of what you are going to be doing, now it’s time to actually learn how to do it. As I stated before, you won’t be able to fight like Pavlik – I am only going over some basics in this article – enough to get you moving and grooving. Let’s begin with stance.

Without a decent base, you can’t move and can’t generate power behind your punches. As fundamental as stance is, it is also by far the most important.

Begin by standing with your feet about shoulder width apart, a little wider if it’s more comfortable for you. You don’t want them too far apart though, as the wider your stance is, the less mobile you will be. On the other hand, you don’t want your feel too close together, as you will then compromise your balance. Step your right foot backward, lining the toes of the rear foot with the heel of the lead foot.

Rotate your toes approximately 45 degrees clockwise and turn your torso to match that angle. This keeps the center of your body angled away from your opponent, making yourself a smaller target to hit. Bend your knees slightly, keeping you weight centered between your legs, which will allow you to remain balanced and come up onto the balls of your feet. Now, this isn’t ballet or a Michael Jackson video, so you don’t want to be all the way up on your toes, your heel should only be slightly raised. This is called an orthodox stance. If you are a lefty, reverse the above steps. A left handed fighter is called a southpaw.

Bring your elbows into your sides – actually touch your sides with them – and curl your arms upward to your face. Your rear hand should ALWAYS be touching your face, unless you are punching with it. You have options with your lead hand, depending on what range you are in with your opponent – if you are close (in-fighting) to your opponent, you want the lead hand against your cheek also, so that your jaw line is as protected as possible.

If your opponent is a decent distance away, you can float your lead hand a few inches in front of your face. This will allow you to parry strikes easier and measure distance. Keep your fists relaxed and slightly open. Your chin should be tucked down into your chest, your shoulders relaxed. Notice the focus on relaxation. You can move faster when you are relaxed, which lends a hand to harder strikes – A tensed arm moves slower and would have less of an impact – remain relaxed until the point of impact.

Now, you at least look like a fighter. From here, you can learn how to punch like one. All offense begins with the jab. This is the most basic punch you will learn, but it is also the most useful. The jab has offensive and defensive applications, and is the core of punching strategy. From your stance, push off of the ball of your back foot and rotate your hips clockwise as you extend your arm straight out. As the arm extends, begin to rotate your fist.

By the time the punch is fully extended, your fist should be fully rotated, your palm horizontal to the floor. You want to strike with the first two knuckles of your fist. Be sure to keep your elbow in while you are punching, keep the chin down and keep the rear hand next to your cheek. While your fist is extended, use your shoulder to protect your cheek. Offensively, the jab is used to set up combinations and stronger punches. Defensively, it can be used to keep an advancing opponent off of you.

Next, we will learn the cross. The cross is the power punch of boxing. The jab is used to set up strikes and the cross is the slobber knocker. Drive off of the ball of the rear foot, pivoting it, so that it points directly ahead. As your foot is pivoting, rotate your hips counter clockwise and begin extending your rear arm, making sure that the elbow stays tucked into your side. Your lead hand should be simultaneously retracting back to your cheek. That serves the dual purpose of protecting your chin and adding extra force into the cross. The fist rotates just as it does with the jab. Return to your stance.

You’re almost ready. You now know the basic stance, two punches and their uses. In the next installment, I will cover the hook and uppercut and get into more advanced things such as combinations. The combinations will lead into the workout that you will be doing. Until then, keep your hands up!

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