The Ultimate Beginner’s Guide to Boxing

Starting any sport can be overwhelming, and many people ask questions like; what gear do I need, what are the most common punches and what benefits does it have?

To help you out, we’ve put together our very own beginner’s guide to boxing for anyone getting into the sport to grasp the basics:

What is boxing?

Let’s start from the beginning.

Boxing is a combat sport between two competitors fighting with their fists. Boxers fight in square rings with padded gloves.

Boxing is also a full body workout and will help improve your speed, agility, power, endurance and mental toughness!

Ultimately, the sport of boxing pits two athletes against one another to crown the champion. It’s tough and with many challenges, but will help you evolve in every aspect of your life.

What are the benefits of boxing?

With boxing, you l become physically stronger, toned and more agile, as well as mentally stronger, courageous and able deal with the lows of losing and the highs of winning. It will push you, challenge you, and bring out the inner fighter in you!

Many people use boxing as a way of working out their whole body, and to let off some steam, others choose to enter it competitively. No matter why you’ve chosen to do it, we believe it’s a great sport, and think you will to!

What’s the basic boxing stance?

Before you even land a punch, you need to master the boxing stance. A strong stance will significantly help with your boxing technique and help reduce injury.

Here’s how to master the stance:

• If you’re right handed, turn your whole body clockwise so your left shoulder is facing your opponent
• Stand with your legs a shoulder’s width apart
• Bend your knees slightly – it’s important not to be stiff
• Turn your left foot so that it points towards your opponent
• Raise your back heel slightly – your foot should be square with your body
• Make loose fists and keep your elbows close to your body
• Hold your right hand by your chin
• Hold your left hand in front of your face
• Put your chin down and eyes up
• Your body weight should remain central or on your back foot

Once you’ve mastered this pose, get used to returning to it once you’ve moved around. This should be your neutral stance.

Moving from your boxing stance

From the famous words of Muhammad Ali, it’s important to ‘float like a butterfly and sting like a bee’!

Being light on your feet is essential for boxing; you need to be agile, quick moving and thinking, but you should always keep your feet close to the ground (none of that jumping) as you need to be able to attack, defend and move away quickly.

Step and drag movements

The basic step-drag technique allows you to be grounded and means you won’t fall off balance.

Moving forward or left:

• From your basic stance, step your left foot forward
• Drag your right foot afterwards
• Return to the basic stance with feet a shoulder’s width apart

Moving backwards or right

• From your basic stance, step your right foot first
• Drag your left foot afterwards
• Return to the basic stance with feet a shoulder’s width apart

Pivot movements

A pivot is the point of rotation in a lever system. In boxing, this is usually done by pivoting off of your front foot. This movement can be used to defend, by taking you out of harm’s way but still keeping you in range for future punches.

In offence, you can use this movement to find new punching angles, and whilst it’s not the most glamourous of moves, it’s a great basic to grasp.

Pivot to the left

• From your basic stance, push your right foot around 45 degrees
• Pivot on your left foot on its ball
• Throughout this movement, your stance should be retained.

Pivot to the right

• From your basic stance, pivot your left foot on its ball
• Allow the right foot to move with your body so that your whole stance is 45 degrees counterclockwise
• Throughout this movement, your stance should be retained and your body weight should remain central or on the back foot

What are the basic punching techniques?

Learning the correct punching techniques will give you a great foundation to your boxing and be the difference between growing muscles or sustaining injury from poor form.

To throw an effective punch it’s important to remain relaxed, and then quickly accelerate your hand towards the target as you exhale sharply. Practice loose punches and get your breathing technique nailed as it’s a fundamental in any fight!

You should tighten your fist and body muscles on impact for the most effective shot, and release your hand back to you after impact.

Whatever punch you land, it’s essential to retain your stance and balance for better mobility and power and breathe correctly. There are many variations of punches which you will learn over time and are all variations of the below:

• Jab
• Cross
• Hook
• Uppercut

Here’s a breakdown to the basic punches:

Jab

The jab is a quick punch that can be used to create distraction for your opponent and create space, whilst setting you up for other more powerful shots.

• From your basic stance, punch with your left hand
• Twist your hand so that your knuckles are facing the ceiling and your palm to the floor on connection
• As you make the connection, take a small step forward with your back foot and pivot on the ball of your left foot, your weight should momentarily shift into your front foot
• Once you have landed the punch, bring your elbow back down and your left hand in front of your face and return to your basic stance

Cross

The cross punch can also be named a straight punch. This is similar to the jab as you punch your opponent in a straight line, however this punch is thrown from your back hand. When thrown correctly, it can generate lots of power and leaves you in a good position to throw other punches.

• From your basic stance, punch with your right hand
• Twist your hand so that your knuckles are facing the ceiling and your palm to the floor on connection
• As you make the connection, pivot with your back foot and move your weight through your body, when you land the punch, your body should be faced towards your opponent
• Once you have landed the punch, bring your elbow back down and hand to chin, returning to your basic stance

Hook

A hook, if mastered can be one of your most powerful punches as it is tricky to defend against as it comes from a side angle and can move an opponent’s head or body.

• From your basic stance, pivot both of your feet clockwise, dropping you back heel and lifting your front
• Your body should rotate as a solid block
• Bring your front arm around at a 90 degree angle to your body and pivot on your front foot
• Your palm should be down and knuckles up as you land your punch with a vertical fist
• Once you have landed the punch, bring your elbow back down and your left hand in front of your face and return to your basic stance

For a back (right) hook, pivot on your back foot as you move your back arm around with your body.

Uppercut

An uppercut is a powerful punch that comes from the waist and requires the rotation of your entire body. It can be damaging to your opponent as they may not see it coming if it is not in eyesight.

• From your basic stance, move your body without transferring weight
• Pivot your feet clockwise dropping your back heel and lifting your front
• Bend your knees slightly and bring your front elbow up moving your hand out and rotating your palm towards your face
• Bring your fist up for impact transferring your weight through the punch
• Once you have landed the punch, bring your fist back down and your left hand in front of your face and return to your basic stance

For a back (right) uppercut, pivot on your back foot as you move your back arm around with your body.

There are many different types of punches and combinations, as you master the single punches, your trainers will work with you on combinations and maneuvers.

What essential basic boxing equipment do I need?

As a beginner to boxing you may be able to borrow equipment from your club or trainer, but for hygiene and safety, we recommend purchasing the essentials to get you going!

Hand wraps

These are essential for any boxer, and with prices starting at £1.99, they won’t break the bank.

This hand protection should be worn every time you plan to wear gloves. Wrapped correctly, they will protect your wrists and knuckles and reduce the likelihood of injury. The extra support protects your small bones and tendons when they take pressure and contact from hits by better distributing the shock.

Essentially, you wouldn’t wear trainers without socks, so don’t wear gloves without wraps. Not only do they protect your hands and wrists, but they will also be a barrier for your sweat and odours and are a lot cheaper to replace than gloves!

You can read our full guide on how to buy boxing hand wraps here.

Boxing gloves

Using communal boxing gloves is fine when you’re starting out, but you may soon realise that the wear and tear (and smell) in these may be holding you back – not only is it more hygenic, but better for your boxing technique to invest in your own pair.

After time, your gloves will form to your hand and unlike borrowed gloves are always available when you need them.

Coming in a variety of prices, materials, colours and weights, we’d recommend starting with 14oz or 16oz gloves as they’re good all rounders, but when you get into boxing more, different sizes are better for different disciplines, such as lighter weighted gloves for speed work, or heavier for heavyweights and experienced boxers.

You can see our latest boxing gloves here.

Mouthguards

If you do any sparring and like your teeth, a mouthguard is also an essential!

If the impact of an opponent’s punch lands on a tooth, you could potentially lose it, or if you’re caught on your jaw, you could get a serious injury and you may be out of the game for a while. Also, you could get concussion if your jaws are not secured together, and if you don’t wear a mouthguard, you could potentially cut through your tongue.

You should always buy a mouthguard which is moulded to your teeth for maximum protection (so no sharing – not that you would want to anyway)!

Mouthguards are very cheap and easy to come by, you can view our range here. We even offer mouthguards for teeth with braces and upper and lower guards. So there really is no excuse not to get one!

What other equipment do I need?

As you get into boxing, you may consider buying boxing boots, headguards, body protection and clothing. As the UK’s boxing superstore, we are able to provide you with everything you need to up your boxing game.

Sign up to our newsletter for the latest offers and newest releases (just pop your email address in the form on our footer). We also provide everything from weights and custom gear to full boxing rings so browse our store for the best gear around. Some of our ranges are exclusive to us so you won’t find them anywhere else!

Good luck getting into boxing, we’re sure you will love it as much as we do! For more inspiration, follow us on Instagram and Facebook.