Boxing in Isolation: How to Train When You Can’t Punch People
By Bryanna “Pink Ranger” Fissori
Social distancing is difficult for most people. After over a month at home, even introverts are starting to want in-person interaction. For boxers, professional or hobbyist, training is limited. There are no fists coming at your face, and even if there were, your biggest concern should be whether or not they’ve been washed.
Despite a lack of glove to body contact, there are still plenty of ways to stay sharp and ring-ready.
Ways to Train Boxing At Home
Footwork
You can never work on your footwork enough. Look for agility drills or revisit some of your coach’s favorites. Most any drill that uses cones is meant to work on your footwork. Jumping rope also falls into this category. Get comfortable moving all directions in your stance.
Hand-Eye Coordination
A reflex ball (ball attached to a headband by an elastic string) is a great way to work on your hand-eye coordination. Honestly, any time you have a ball that bounces, whether it is a tennis ball, handball, basketball or a bouncy ball you will be improving your hand-eye coordination. Bouncing a ball can happen on any firm surface, be it a parking lot or your kitchen.
Conditioning
This is just one general category with endless options. Go for a run. Do some bodyweight exercises like push up, squats or abs. Get in some jumping jax or burpees. You know what you body needs to be ready, and it is probably not another hour of video games.
Balance
A lot of times balance is taken for granted in boxing. Now is a great time to take up yoga or at least stretch on your own. Challenge yourself to find balance in weird situations like standing on one foot or doing odd angle stretches. This will make you harder to bully in the ring.
Check Your Technique
There is no excuse to throw lazy punches. All of your shadowboxing, striking or evading drills can be done in a mirror. The bottom line is, do you look like you know what you are doing? If not, fix it. Don’t forget to work on your feints. Make them believable.
Get Motivated for Boxing at Home
This is not a break and you can be sure that your coach is anxiously awaiting your return. Are you going to be ready? If you need extra motivation or some help with your technique, make sure to check out the many free online resources for boxing.
