[Umy]

Train how you fight, if you fight 3 minutes then do 3 minutes, do it until you feel you have worked enough, remember though 12 rounds is 36 minutes, plus the minute or so between rounds, if you want to spend that much time on the bag its up to you, personally id only spend half the time on the bags as long as im working hard I dont think I would really last 36 minutes on the bag (ie working at a moderate pace, not throwing 3 or 4 punches then stopping and shuffling around for 20 seconds).

[The BadBoy]

I just read the King's article on the boxing stance,

http://www.fightauthority.com/forum/...le.php?aid=150

,and with would like to add a few additions to it.

All that was said in the article is good, especially the bit about youngsters coming into the gym and wanting to imitate their heros like Naz and Ali but soon realise that they neither have the skill nor the physical ability to do so.

But that said, I feel that the subject of body positioning and its relationship to how to minimise the target area you present to your opponent would be a beneficial topic to touch upon.

So Umy bro, I hope you don't mind me adding this post to your excellent thread. I'm gonna break my post up into a number of posts to make them easier to read.

MY COACH ONCE SAID TO ME THAT BOXING IS THE NOBLE ART OF SELF DEFENCE - TH WAY TO WIN IS TO REMEMBER THE BASICS AND IF YOUR OPPONENT DOES NOT THEN THAT IS THE TIME TO STRIKE.

So here are the basics of body potioning in addition to what Umy has said in his article.

[The BadBoy]

The Head

Lets begin with the head, you should always keep your chin tucked in. An agressor who comes at you with his head up and body leaning forward is an idiot who is asking to be KTFO.

Keep your chin tucked into the groove at the top of your chest, you should be looking at your opponent through the dark shadow of your eyebrows.

When you throw punches keep your head tucked in, its doesn't move. But your shoulder does. For example when your throw a hook teh gap between your shoulder and chin should be fully closed. At the final point of delivery you should be looking over your shoulder at your opponent. Use your shoulders to aid in greater power and defence.

If any punches do get through they will hit your forehead. This is the hardest part of your skull and you will soon realise that taking a punch on your forehead is not biggy compared to getting hit in the jaw.

[The BadBoy]

Arms

Keep your elbows down. If you lift your elbows you expose yourself to those viscous, viscous shots under the heart and to the liver. Trust me you do not want to get hit by these. Your elbows should be down but not resting on your body.

[The BadBoy]

Torso

The torso should not be squared on to your opponent and thus fully exposed. Turn it at an angle so that you lead hand is in an advanced position and your rear hand is close to your chin to protect it and yet cocked to explode on your opponent when th eopportunity arises. by doing this you will effectively half the traget area you have presented to your advisary.

If there is anything that you want to add or that you don't agree with please add your thoughts.

[Umy]

Thanks bro, i really appreciate it.

If any of you have anything you want to add to this thread please do, plus im sure you guys are getting sick of hearing me all the time

[Umy]

Just to add to the body being turned off and elbows being tucked in remember this, you can shake off blows to the head but not the body, if you take a lot of body shots early on in later rounds you will find your legs wont be with you and you'll be a lot more worn out.

[Scopius]

Hey UMY, I have a question about hand conditioning and knuckles.

Although I stopped the sweet science for about 6 months to try my hand at traditional martial arts, I started to notice an issue with my knuckles in the last year or two of my boxing. Once my hands, wrists, and knuckles got really tough, I started practicing without gloves or wraps. I've never injured the knuckles because I had a good instructor early on and he taught me to punch square and always aiming with ring finger knuckle. Over time I noticed that my ring finger knuckle and my pinky knuckle have slowly worn down become.... flat. Totally flat. There are no visible knucles left on the last two fingers of both hands. Now that I've started full contact, combat Tai Chi boxing and freestyling I've been doing lots of iron palm stuff as well. This made the knuckles even flatter. There's no pain... yet. But it's getting me worried. If you have any thoughts about this or any advice it would be much appreciated. Thanks.

[Umy]

My knuckles changed shape over time when I used to condition my hands, I dont think its anything serious that you should worry about as long as you arent rushing your conditioning, which is a huge mistake many make and regret in later time, do not, i repeat do not just rush into hand conditioning as you will regret it. I asked Matt's Sensei, Wali Islam (who used to be the old 'ask sensei' ) about hand conditioning when I was a newbie to the site and that is the advice he gave me, dont over do it and to be patient, it may not seem like a lot but those small words will save you a lot of pain later on in life.

I have a bag filled with sand and small jagged stones which hangs from a wall in my bedroom, everytime I come in and out I will hit it several times, over a period of about a year my hands are now strong enough to strike most hard surfaces and my wrists (from heavybag hitting) can also take a lot of pressure.

This has also helped my boxing as well, I can now hit my opponent without fear of hurting my knuckles and wrists which is often a fear of many fighters (a lot of people I train with have had hand injuries from hitting opponents, even with gloves on).

If you do think there is a serious problem, which from your description may not be the case then I would strongly reccomend seeing a doctor, thats probably the best advice I can give because 1) im not a doctor and 2) I cant really see your hands

Hope it helps,

[Umy]

I have a question for you guys, where were you taught to keep your eyes?

I was interested to know this as I was always taught to keep my chin tucked in and to look through my eyebrows, i often look at my opponents chest and play about with my eyes now and then.

I dont usually bother with it as my peripheral vision helps me see most things that are thrown anyway.

Interested in hearing your views on the subject.