Why Boxing?
Boxing challenges you. It is one of the best cardio workouts that involve your entire body and its efforts and the best part is: you get strength, speed, and endurance. Every athlete boxes, because they know how good of a workout it is for them and how it will improve their mental and physical strength at the same time. The combinations of punches and kicks are hard to learn but when you get a hang of it, you wouldn’t want to stop at any cost. You will learn how to be alive and humble, you will find your instincts and enhance them while keeping you aware of your surroundings at all times.
What do you Need?
Since boxing is the most dangerous form of sports in the world at the moment, right next to MMA, it is always advised to get the best protective gear that will not only keep you safe but would improve your boxing technique as well. And while you are beginning your journey in the bittersweet valley of boxing, here is a list of essentials that you need so you can keep yourself protected while getting the most out of this sport.
Boxing Gloves
The most important piece of the puzzle that forms a boxer, is a pair of durable high-quality leather boxing gloves. In ancient times, fighters realized they needed to protect their hands over a few centuries of broken knuckles that caused advances in protective hand gear. Today, we have some pretty shock-absorbent and cool looking gloves that provide excellent grip and makes your punch rock solid, without the injury. Their purpose is to protect the hands of the attacker and absorb shock while keeping the hand comfortable.
Hand-wraps or Bandages
Now that you have the basics covered, the bag and the gloves, you need to go deeper in the protective gear category. Never hit the punching bag without protecting your hands. Always get good hand wraps that will not only protect your hands but will also make sure that the shock from the blow doesn’t affect your hands even if it crosses the gloves and onto your hands. The best ones are elasticated to ensure flexibility while being affordable and sturdy.
Timer
You need to structure your timings in boxing rounds. Keep a way of timing your boxing rounds and get proper rest after each so you can get the maximum out of it. But that doesn’t mean an hour break after 3 minutes of boxing routines. In HIIT, you measure your workouts in coherence with your rest or intervals. Best example would be to have a 3 minute round with 15 seconds break. Having a timer will add discipline to your routine no matter how intense it gets.
Skipping Rope
Best jump ropes or skipping ropes are the best way to develop boxing balance, footwork, and warm-up or even a warm-down. It’s one of the best cardio exercises and the best skipping ropes are available in both metal and leather materials. 15 minutes of skipping rope also tones your shoulders, back, and legs while creating better coordination between your hands and feet
Gym Suit
Buy a gym suit that is made of a comfortable material which doesn’t bother your workouts and keeps you fresh and active while you are going rounds on the punching bag. Especially when you are training in summers, the material should be breathable and sweat wicking. It should also ensure ease of movement and flexibility.
Punching Bag
You need a punching bag to improve your skills. It will also help you create a boxing stance of your own while developing your punches, power, speed and stamina. You’ll need a sturdy punching bag that will take the beating and still stand to absorb more. It is also a great way to take out the stress at the end of the day. Make sure that the punching bag you get for your home or gym is an easy setup punching bag with ceiling hooks so you don’t stress yourself out while setting it up.
Mouth Guard
You should never go sparring without a mouth guard. It has two advantages. First, it will help you NOT lose a tooth if the punch or hit lands on your teeth instead of spreading over the jaw. Secondly, if it does hit your jaw, you’ll bite your tongue as your lower jaw has more freedom of movement as compared to your upper jaw. Always get an antibacterial boil and bite mouth guard as it will mold itself to the shape of your teeth.
Groin Protector
There is nothing worse than getting kicked in your vitals. So get a sturdy and comfortable groin guard that will keep you at ease of movement while giving you protection against hits.
Chest protector
They will guard your chest region whether you are male or female. They should be unbreakable, durable and comfortable. They would absorb the hits aimed for your chest as well.
Bag gloves
Their purpose is to provide comfort in a glove while absorbing the heaviest of blows. Prefer buying authentic and synthetic leather bag gloves that will protect your hands while lasting a lifetime.
Headgear
Sparring sessions require head gears. They would protect your head from punches and hits so you don’t damage the core of your boxing routine. It should fit you perfectly and if it’s your own, that means it will be covered by your own sweat and no one else’s. Go for heavily padded head guards so you avoid brain injuries caused by hits.
Shoes
These are extremely important for your sessions. They should be comfortable and sturdy while making sure that you don’t feel tied up and eventually decreasing your footwork. So basically, you need to get the gym shoes that allow maximum footwork efficiency. Sports shoe manufacturers design shoes for athletes so their feet are safe and allow perfect movement at the same time. Go for shoes with heavy soles and good cushioning so the arches in your feet are comfortable too.
Exercise Mat
Whether you go to a gym or a home gym, an exercise mat is a must. It would allow you ease of ground work and a goof exercise mat provides you zero friction so you can enhance your performance while being large enough for you to lay down after a session and get rolled up against the wall when you are done.
Are you Ready?
After getting all these for your boxing needs, get posters of your favorite boxers, get a killer playlist that will help you stay motivated and when you’re free, watch movies that will inspire you to become the greatest.
Banter Sports 