Boxing Monkey

[HAMMER FRENZY]

I have been boxing for a little over a year. I really enjoy it. I recently joined a boxing club so I could learn more and be able to go to amature tournaments some day. Apparently my license is in the mail. Anyone else on the board do any boxing or MMA? I did MMA and wrestled in my younger days. Oddly enough, no other sport has captured me more than boxing though. I really enjoy it. It is a shame I am getting older as boxing at 28 (it is my birthday in tomorrow... )  is considered old.

[WindupAtheist]

I've only ever sparred like one or two rounds, at this martial arts place I used to go to like ten years ago, but I'm a huge nut for the sport in general. I wouldn't sweat your age too much. You're probably too old to make it anywhere serious as a professional or a national/world-level amateur, even in the (unlikely) event that genetics had blessed you with the proper raw material, but you're plenty young enough to have a perfectly good regular guy type amateur career.

Just pick a weight class that's natural for you and stay somewhere around that weight even when you're not fighting. Gaining excessive weight and then having to lose it in training just piles the miles onto your odometer and is about the worst thing you can do for your longevity.

[Nebu]

Boxing is a much better sport than it gets credit for.  Keep at it for fitness, if nothing else. 

As for myself, I wish I could find a club that allowed sparring with 16 oz gloves and headgear.  I enjoyed Gold Gloves as a junior and miss having access to the sport. 

[HAMMER FRENZY]

I've only ever sparred like one or two rounds, at this martial arts place I used to go to like ten years ago, but I'm a huge nut for the sport in general. I wouldn't sweat your age too much. You're probably too old to make it anywhere serious as a professional or a national/world-level amateur, even in the (unlikely) event that genetics had blessed you with the proper raw material, but you're plenty young enough to have a perfectly good regular guy type amateur career.

Just pick a weight class that's natural for you and stay somewhere around that weight even when you're not fighting. Gaining excessive weight and then having to lose it in training just piles the miles onto your odometer and is about the worst thing you can do for your longevity.

Yeah, and to be honest, just being able to go to a tournament and try will be really rewarding to me. I am thinking about fighting at 178 which means I have to cut some weight. My ideal weight, according to my doctor is about 180 ish, I am at 200 though. So I need to get my crap together. I am on the other hand, really into it, and have been doing roadwork and all my training. I am losing the weight slowly but I assume that joining the gym will most likely accelerate that weight loss. I would like to walk around at around 180-185 and fight at 178. That would be ideal I think. I am too short(not terribly short mind you, I am 5'11'') and my little monkey arms are too short to fight 201 and I feel pudgy as hell at 200 pounds.  It is crazy that 178 is light heavy but it is what it is...What really gets me is that the average height of light heavies is 6'1''... To add to the poop pile I fight in a crouch...

[Nebu]

To add to the poop pile I fight in a crouch...

I hope to hell that you're a southpaw.  Inside fighters are a tough breed.  If you have an iron jaw you may be just fine with a shorter reach.  You'll just have to do a good job of closing and dictating tempo. 

I hope you stick with it.  You're still young enough to really enjoy the sport even if it doesn't lead to anything. 

[WindupAtheist]

If you're 5'11" and the doctor is telling you that your ideal weight is around 180, then you're probably a fairly stocky broad-shouldered dude. So on one hand you'll probably be shorter than some of the opposition, but on the other hand you'll likely hit pretty hard for your weight. Admittedly the stocky crouching Marciano/Tyson puncher type usually does better in the pros than the amateurs, but what the hell. As long as you pay attention to learning the craft and stay in decent shape between fights, I'm sure you'll be fine.

Nebu probably has a lot more useful to say than I do, what with him actually having been in the game. I mostly know about pro boxing, and even then as only a fan, admittedly a pretty diehard one.

Edit: This is a site worth visiting. The forums are 90% screaming fantards, but there are plenty of guys with real experience there, including a couple of ranked pros who occasionally post and at least one world champ who's a known lurker.

[Nebu]

Nebu probably has a lot more useful to say than I do, what with him actually having been in the game. I mostly know about pro boxing, and even then as only a fan, admittedly a pretty diehard one.

I doubt it.  I quit boxing young and only after a couple years of it.  I learned fast that I wasn't built right for the sport... which is fortunate.  That's when I got more serious about football!  I'm much better at hitting people with a helmet on. 

[HAMMER FRENZY]

Yeah, I don't consider myself stocky in the slightest, but I am 5'11'' 200lbs right now and I look like I could stand to lose some weight. I know that at one point I was at 160 and I looked like hell. I looked too thin, my lady friend actually mentioned that if I drop weight I have to not get like that again.

nebu: I am orthodox and I have decent head movement. To be honest, I have trained specifically to fight like this because I was shorter and had shorter reach. I really focus on my head movement and footwork for cutting the ring off. I use the jab to set up rolls/slips etc. I am kinda worried that I will get to the gym and they will tell me that they want to change the style I fight, but I don't think that I would do okay at my height and weight if I was an outside fighter or a counter puncher.

Either way, I have sure learned a lot in the time I have been practicing.

[Nebu]

Either way, I have sure learned a lot in the time I have been practicing.

Focus on this.  You have a HUGE advantage as a boxer that you may not be giving yourself proper credit for: you're intelligent.  Sugar Ray Leonard used his head to maximize his potential and look where it took him.  Most people fail to recognize the role that tactics play in this sport.  I think that, with proper conditioning and style, you could still perform better than anything you perceive to be a physical or age-related limitation. 

[WindupAtheist]

Hell this guy is a Belfast cab driver who didn't put on gloves, even as an amateur, until he was 29 years old. At age 37 he's 12-0 as a pro and just won the Commonwealth title in what's been described as an "epic" fight. He likely won't go anywhere on the world stage, but I'll bet he makes some decent paychecks in the near future.

At some point it comes down to how much mojo you have and how hard you've worked, and unless you're a midget or an old geezer, an inch here and a year there aren't going to make the difference.

[HAMMER FRENZY]

Man I am so excited to get in the gym. I am actually writing down a lot of the techniques I am learning and making a little book of illustrations for it. I will post some here if you guys are interested. I have an idea of where I am going with this and it is really fun.

Either way, I have sure learned a lot in the time I have been practicing.

Focus on this.  You have a HUGE advantage as a boxer that you may not be giving yourself proper credit for: you're intelligent.  Sugar Ray Leonard used his head to maximize his potential and look where it took him.  Most people fail to recognize the role that tactics play in this sport.  I think that, with proper conditioning and style, you could still perform better than anything you perceive to be a physical or age-related limitation. 

Well that sure is a nice thing of you to say. I have really been practicing hard, (nearly everyday) and I have read a lot of books on technique and ring generalship. I have also been watching lots of fight tapes and studying various techniques for pressure/in-boxing and classic style match-ups. I really think that solid strategy and a focus on improving my technique and most importantly following my game plans in training and hopefully in matches will help me get most out of the time I have to enjoy the sport.

I will take some pictures of the gym and post them later today. I also got some new training gloves (14oz Everlast protex 2) that are pretty nice. Not as nice at the protex 3's but pretty nice for the price. I was trying to stay away from something too cheap, while still saving up for the eventual purchase of some really nice gloves, and, if I get to participate in any tournaments in the future, my usa boxing amateur boxing gloves.


I kinda have two reasons for joining the gym, one, I love boxing, it is great and I really like the place I found, I think they can really help me improve. Two, My collection of writings on technique and all the drawings I did on boxing techniques/scenarios is growing and I want to do something with them. I think that being part of a gym will expose me too a lot of techniques and interesting nuaunces in various fighters/weight classes boxing techniques and strats. I would like to collect as much of it as I can in highly detailed diagrams/illustrations accompanied by the various writing I have done on all the techniques I have been learning and what not. It has been fun and I would like to keep it going.   

[WindupAtheist]

By all means, post some pics.

[gryeyes]

At 28 your age is not going to handicap you physically for amateur boxing. The experience divide will be far more of a hurdle than anything physical. Its nothing you cant overcome with dedication especially if you have previous experience with sports. When i was growing up i was lucky enough to live near a Boys and girls club that had an awesome boxing program. The skills i learned from that gave me a huge advantage when later in life i got into other martial arts.

Also, unlike some other martial arts most of the things you will learn and the manner you learn them is actually teaching you how to fight as opposed to just learning a martial art. Muay Thai is something else you may want to look into if you enjoy the "cerebral" side of boxing. Nothing will teach you technique faster than hard sparring with an opponent.

You said you had previous experience with MMA what exactly do you mean by that?

[HAMMER FRENZY]

At 28 your age is not going to handicap you physically for amateur boxing. The experience divide will be far more of a hurdle than anything physical. Its nothing you cant overcome with dedication especially if you have previous experience with sports. When i was growing up i was lucky enough to live near a Boys and girls club that had an awesome boxing program. The skills i learned from that gave me a huge advantage when later in life i got into other martial arts.

Also, unlike some other martial arts most of the things you will learn and the manner you learn them is actually teaching you how to fight as opposed to just learning a martial art. Muay Thai is something else you may want to look into if you enjoy the "cerebral" side of boxing. Nothing will teach you technique faster than hard sparring with an opponent.

You said you had previous experience with MMA what exactly do you mean by that?

As I was growing up I was really into thai boxing and when I was about 22 or so I was part of an mma training place in AZ. I did that for a couple of years. Luckily My brother did a bunch of Jui-Juitsu so I learning a lot of that and still do that here and there. I used to do a lot of grappling. When I moved to Phoenix(I am originally from Tucson AZ) I also was at another gym where I was grappling. I also wrestled in Highschool. I got too use all the stuff I had learned when I was at the mma place in tucson though, as I got to spar with lots of cage fighters and learned a lot during my time there.

I have been into martial arts my whole life though and have picked up a lot of stuff. All in all though, I am most interested in grappling and boxing. they just seem the funnest and interesting to me.

[HAMMER FRENZY]

Had my first day yesterday. It was really good. All the training I did on my own really payed off. I was able to keep up and not look like a fool. I went over a few things with the trainer and he said that I was doing well. That I was throwing good punches and that I was generally defending myself well. He pointed out a few minor issues that I could work on. Apparently I drop my hands at the end of combos from time to time. He said it was not every time but here and there. I was really tired at the time when he was observing e, but I need to make an effort to bring my hands back as quick as possible, even if I am tired as hell. The second thing he pointed out which is something I have noticed and am currently trying really hard to correct is my weight distribution on certain punches/punching patterns. I have a bad habit of occasionally not moving forward with a follow up straight which messes up my lead hook. I end up leaning slightly forward on the left hook and giving up my base. I am protecting my self but it is a bad habit and I really have to step out a bit with that cross so that I move my base with me in preparation for the body 3b/3 (body hook or hook to the head).

I went over a few things with him as well for the book, (which I have not mentioned to him, nor will I) I started the diagrams for the leading hook, (emphasis on orthodox fighters as dealing with a leading hook from  a south paw is radically different. I want to do a separate diagram/analysis of that.) I typically throw my left hook as an outside left hook, regardless of the target range. Many trainers teach different types of left hooks but the palm in/palm down variations a more universal, and the outside hook, (in my experience) is taught more often. My trainer teaches outside (palm of hand towards your body) to his fighters. I asked about the palm down variation and we both agreed that it was harder to do, but it has its uses. I explained that I like being able to maximize impact, and that it seems that an outside hook seems to be ideal for a target which is  outside of the elbow ( range wise). It is the most efficient way to throw a hook to an outside target without turning the hook into a swing or haymaker.

Like wise the outside hook can be used for an inside target, (inside elbow range) but the impact of the punch decreases somewhat if the target is moving laterally to your right (his left) and as the punch crosses the chest it losses more of its strength. (impact comes more at this point from the torque of the waist and weight transfer from the legs.) The palm down variation is another option which, if trained and perfected, can result in added snap/impact-surface for the attack.

As the hook is being "turned over" the muscels of the arm (brachiales and radio-brachiales) create a twisting/jerky snap. If you practice these side by side, you start to feel the difference of impact between them. the twisting motion can also have a "cork-screw blow" effect, tearing skin upon impact. Unfortunately this just adds to the left hooks already somewhat high kenetic synchronization level...   

SO this all got me thinking I need to take some time and really practice this technique and see if I can add it to my combos and what not. It seems that there are enough valuable positive aspects to the move that warrant a closer study of the technique. 

Anyway, pictures of the gym, some diagrams and pics of me as an out of shape bum coming up soon, I'd even be willing to put up some videos of me getting silly with the speed bag and some heavy bag work for critiquing. JA!

 

[WindupAtheist]

Sounds like you're learning good stuff. It's lots of individual 'small' things like that which will make the difference. Probably one of my favorite fighters for that sort of thing is Bernard Hopkins. The guy is 43 or 44 years old, but is still fighting and winning at the elite world-class level, in part because he just plain knows where to put his feet, and how to carry his weight, and how to protect himself and control the pace. Partly because he's a genetic freak and trains like a demon, too. But when I watched his middle-aged ass kick the shit out of the reigning middleweight champion, it was painfully obvious that the younger guy just didn't. Know. As. Much. About. Boxing. Period.

Anyway yeah, pics, video, whatever you wanna post.

[HAMMER FRENZY]

SO I have gone a few time to the club so far. It has been really fun and incredibly informative. I have met a good chunk of the fighters there and have seen a few of them spar as well.  Here is what the gym looks like...





It is pretty small but it has all the stuff that is needed. So far I have seen some pretty interesting stuff and some pretty talented fighters. There is group that fights pretty regularly in amatuer tournaments and the random smokers that pop up in the phoenix/mesa/tempe area. Most of them are pretty damn good fighters and one of them is going pro pretty soon. He uses a  really snappy, and incredibly fast flicker jab. To be honest it is one of the most impressive flicker jabs I have seen in a while and I will be basing some illustrated diagrams on the stuff I learn from observing him in the gym and while he spars.

On my end, the trainers and a couple of the other heavier weight fighters have been helping me with my technique and for the most part it has been very helpful and incredibly humbling. I am really happy at the incredible amount of depth the sport has and I don't see myself getting bored of it or burnt out in anyway. I have, for the most part, committed to the style I had been practicing for the past year and will continue to build my footwork, combination's  and defensive techniques around the inside boxing style. I will work on some diagrams and notes that I have been putting together that are just a collection of stuff related to inside/pressure fighting and post those, but in the mean time, I doodled up a quick diagram on the leading left hook. It is not completed and does not have the collected notes I am writing up to go with it, but it has the basic idea of what I want to do with all this stuff I am learning and junk I am drawing.



Anyway, I have altered what I have been doing for my conditioning, training at the gym on Tuesdays and Thursdays and doing roadwork on mondays/wednesdays/saturdays. I mess around with the heavy bag at home on my off days but I need to dedicate more of that time to art and family and maintenance of the house and cars Etc.

Currently, I am running 3 miles every time I go out for roadwork and am pretty sure I will keep it at that pace for some time. I am hoping that between roadwork and lots of rope skipping I will cut some weight and get out of this 201 Heavy weight class. Guys are too damn big and too damn tall.

Anyway, more doodles and junk to come.

     

[Mosesandstick]

Nice. Any chance we get to preview the notes?

[HAMMER FRENZY]

Nice. Any chance we get to preview the notes?

Yeah, I wanted to put them together in a more readable format. As it stands it is a collection of diagrams and notes. I need to put them in the correct order and stuff but I would be fine with posting them if it is something some of you guys want to take a look at.

[WindupAtheist]

Wow, that's pretty elaborate. Yeah, keep posting. Glad to hear it's going well.

[Strazos]

Man, I wish I could box without all the....you know...work.

And very real risk of serious physical damage. I guess I'll have to settle for Fight Night. 


Looking good, though.

[HAMMER FRENZY]

So it came up a couple sessions ago while I was working the heavy bag. A little in-fighter using the bag next to me is practicing a crazy looking overhand right. I was working the typical slipping/ bobbing and weaving pressure drills I am always doing when he notices that I am kinda watching him. It's weird because, until you feel what it is like to be observed not because you are just there, but to actually be looked at critically for the purpose of being used as an example of good technique or a reminder of what not to do is really tough to deal with initially. You typically close down a bit, (at least I did) you get self contious and nervous. What if this guy looks heavier but is in your weight class? What if he plans on dropping weight and knows exactly where your at and is checking you out cause the sparring session WILL come. Should I go crazy, show him what to expect and let him know I have no problem with him looking at me and making a plan? Should I resort to tossing out some basic stuff to throw him off but make sure I am doing it with some great technique (or at least the best I can muster) so he knows I have my shit together but I am not showing my cards?

This happens every day I am in the gym, multiple times. It happens with every weight class and among the best friends. I think that I have, for the most part, met all the members of this club. I think there are about 3 or 4 guys in my weight class with another handful that could drop or add weight to be in the same class. That is a lot of chumps watching each other. A lot of information being exchanged without words, which is why when that little guy said something to me when he saw me checking out that overhand right it was really cool. I think he was cool with it cause he knows he looks like he has his shit together and our weight difference is so vast. He said in his obviously Mexican accent, (cause the gym is filled with blacks and mexican's  ) "that's my move right there." I gave him a look like, "no shit?" and he showed me a couple more times. All from different set ups. Were I his size and matched up with that, I would have fallen for that trash EVERY TIME. It got me thinking, do I have move? How to I decide what my move is and when do I know that this or that move is it. I have stuff I fall back to all the time, so it has to be one of those, but it can't be that easy. It has to be something that I practice a lot, it has to be that move that, if I had a choice of landing anything at all, this would be it. I have to have my own proverbial Shoryuken....

So I have been thinking about this a lot. Obviously it isn't taking  my mind off the the important job of getting my technique down, but I think it would be good to know where my strengths are and build my strategy around the techniques I am excelling at. I have some stuff I am kicking around and I thought that I would diagram it out once it is decided. Just for fun.

I think I am going to have a lot of fun with this.

[Hindenburg]

You are, beyond a shadow of a doubt, insane. That first part of your post is top grade paranoia.

It is boxing. Getting the basics extremely well done will carry you *very* far. Being able to properly use feints will take care of several extra miles. Don't worry about crap like special moves. Don't practice ridiculously long chains. Just do the basics really well and you'll be able to stomp on the vast majority of retards who think haymakers/shoryukens/whatevs are the way to go.

[HAMMER FRENZY]

You are, beyond a shadow of a doubt, insane. That first part of your post is top grade paranoia.

It is boxing. Getting the basics extremely well done will carry you *very* far. Being able to properly use feints will take care of several extra miles. Don't worry about crap like special moves. Don't practice ridiculously long chains. Just do the basics really well and you'll be able to stomp on the vast majority of retards who think haymakers/shoryukens/whatevs are the way to go.

Ha the top of the post is the unfortunate truth of training on a poor side of town. Everyone is watching everyone and sizing them up. It is not a matter of being a tough guy but it is a matter of knowing that everyone might not want to fight, or be the best, but they want to get good and excel at the hobby they chose, they do this by learning via instruction from the trainers and observation of the other fighters. It is silly to assume only the best fighters have something to teach you, cause you learn the importance of a solid grasp of your fundamentals by looking at novice fighters. That being said, I don't think I am paranoid, I am being realistic. I am certain that I look at the other fighters and think, I should do more of that, torquing here, keeping this or that up or down, snap this, turn that over Etc. And I also look at other fighters and say, maybe I do that sometimes, I better pay attention to that so I don't have that tell, or that hole in my defense or that sagging lead hand during my straight.

All this observing, learning and practice makes good fighters. I don't want to come off like everyone is watching me cause I think i am awesome. It is just the opposite, I am watching everyone else so that I can learn and get better, and other people are doing the same exact thing.

The Sunday punch thing is not a matter of me feeling I have to have one, that is not the issue at all. I am more interested in the process that one goes through developing it. That is really interesting to me because it takes a lot of work and practice and knowledge of one single technique. I don't like haymakers or showboating at all. I like good technique, but that is exactly what many good sunday punches are. A really well developed technique and the occasional unorthodox technique which first required mastery of the related orthodox technique.

This journey in learning more about how you fight and where your strengths and weakness lie, is really interesting to me and I look forward to developing as a boxer and having a true understanding of exactly what I can and can not do when I box.

You are totally right, the basics, the fundamentals are the only way to go. I really think that this is the path to take to get good at ANYTHING. But what I was stating(or at least trying to communicate) was that it will lead me to seeing that I have developed a specific technique or set of techniques that will help me to further my style and that is really exciting, but getting there and writing about and drawing about it is going to be awesome.

[gryeyes]

Awesome drawings that is a shit ton of effort. Unless i have misread you started boxing a matter of a few weeks or months ago? You are way over thinking your interactions with other boxers. Of course people are going to observe you and vice versa.
Aren't you sparring with these same people regardless? Sparring at a decent pace with more skillful fighters will teach you so much more about fighting than punching a bag. Its absolutely required.

[HAMMER FRENZY]

Awesome drawings that is a shit ton of effort. Unless i have misread you started boxing a matter of a few weeks or months ago? You are way over thinking your interactions with other boxers. Of course people are going to observe you and vice versa.
Aren't you sparring with these same people regardless? Sparring at a decent pace with more skillful fighters will teach you so much more about fighting than punching a bag. Its absolutely required.

I have actually been boxing on my own for a little over a year. I received a heavy bag for my 27th birthday and put that in my garage. I was using it nearly everyday so I bought some boxing books ( I have a very respectable collection of books on boxing now!  ) and read a lot of biographies on boxers and watched a lot of tape. I just practiced in my garage and wrote/read/drew a lot of boxing stuff. I put a speed bag in my garage, got a jump rope, got some focus mitts, made a slip rope, a maize bag(also for slipping) and pretty much made a little mini gym in my garage. I started running a lot again and watching what I eat and cutting back on the booze/tobacco. I don't smoke or drink much at all anymore. (I think I smoke a cigarette a week at best. which is something I am fazing out entirely with the exception of a smoke with a good pal on a nice occasion Etc.)

I recently joined this gym and the amount of people in it at any given time is pretty crazy. We don't get a lot of 1 on 1 time with the trainers so a majority of the learning you do is from observation of senior members and novice members. Like I mentioned before, learning what to do and what not to do through lots of observation and practice. The weirdness of being looked at, again, is not a paranoia, but more of a interesting practice. Typically in any other training facility, there was less of that because of all the instruction we got, not only that, not everyone in the other gyms I was at were going to fight, but many if not all of the members of the gym I am at are interested in amateur boxing tournaments and this leads to a lot of competition as not everyone is going to get the trainers time. You have to have your shit down.

 Unfortunately the sparring will come later. I don't want to assume I am ready for it at this point and the amount of people in my weight class (which is currently 201 (heavy)) is somewhat small but I think there are a lot of folks that over or just under. all of them either have a lot less experience then me or much, much more, which is okay with me, but the trainer hasn't asked me to spar yet which I take as a favor. I am most likely not ready, but I am interested and excited to get started whenever they think I am.

As for the heavy bag vs. sparring, sparring is obviously better for you, but a heavy bag is more consistent. You don't always get to spar with the best fighters and your interactions with your partners and their skill level can be a detriment if the trainer is not placing you with the equally skilled or better fighters. The heavy bag ALWAYS gives you a great work out if you use it right and you can get better every single time you use it if you are training intelligently.

[WindupAtheist]

I'll echo that worrying about having "a move" is probably counterproductive at this point. The little tricks and manuvers some people have are born as much of experience as anything else.

[HAMMER FRENZY]

I'll echo that worrying about having "a move" is probably counterproductive at this point. The little tricks and manuvers some people have are born as much of experience as anything else.

Yeah, I am not so much interested in getting a move, I am interested in the stuff I will learn getting there.

I have been going regularly to my gym and have been doing okay. I start hitting focus mitts this week, which is going to be awesome cause I have a pair at home which my wife or my pals hold for me to practice on every once in a while. I am excited to get into some more of the one on one training time with the coaches to improve my technique.

Recently, I have been focusing pretty hard on my foot work and going back to work on my basics. Needless to say it has been a whole lot of heavy bag work and double end bag stuff. I have been running consistently and not missing my gym days.

Weir story but I felt really good about it. There was a tournament this past weekend in a city close by, a few of the fighters from the gym were going to fight and were working with the trainers to get ready. (Lots of sparring and mitt work) I was in early one of the days shadow boxing and one of the fighters there asked if I was going to get any sparring before the tournament, to which I replied, "what are you talking about?" He  said that I should get some mitt time and sparring and I explained to him that I am not in any position to be sparring and that I lacked the experience. He looked at me all silly and said well how long are you going to be here before you start sparring? I told him, crap I don't know, I assume a few months at least, to which he replied, how long you been here? And I said 2 weeks, he said It doesn't look like it, you look like you have been boxing for a while.

I am sure he was just being nice, cause this guy looks really good when he trains, but it really made me train hard that day and made it seem like the other members there are getting use to having me around.

Anyway, I will post some more pictures of the res of the gym later as well as pictures of my little training area at home and pictures of an out of shape, goofy looking monkey that likes to box. 

[Nebu]

Speaking of boxing, I watched the 2008 Toughman last night.  I was surprised.  These guys have a lot more talent than they used to.  A couple of them looked like they could be competitive at a higher skill level. 

Keep up the good fight Hammer.  I have to live vicariously through you.

[HAMMER FRENZY]

So yesterday started another week of the boxing. I am trying really hard to stay as busy as I can with the time I have at the gym. I typically get there at 4:15 pm and the place opens at 4:30pm. I stay till 6:30 so I can be home by 7. I do this twice a week and run on the off days. Yesterday I was cranking pretty hard, focusing on my footwork and trying to get my jab where I want it and practicing some combos. I spent a lot of time on the double end bag. My work out consisted of...

(2 minute rounds)

4 rounds - Shadow Boxing, emphasis on foot work and short combos and lots of head movement.
3 rounds - Skipping Rope
3 rounds - Double End Bag, I am really focusing on getting my crap together on this thing. More about that later.
3 rounds - Speed Bag, I use my speed bag at home quite a bit, and have gotten okay at it. More on this later as well...
? rounds - Various weight Heavy Bags , I spent the rest of my time on the heavy bags practicing while watching the sparring going on.


Foot Work and my Lack of it
I have really been focusing on this. I have a terrible habit of setting down and throwing combos on the inside which will only get me counter punched. I have been trying to focus on getting in, throwing some combos, getting some head movement and creating angles. I don't want to give up any ground I have gained, so I need to stay inside, I am typically moving in behind a combination of lunging jabs, jolt jabs and the occasional pendulum/ flicker jab (more on this later). Once inside I am sticking to the body work and good old fashion Cus D'Amato 3b-2-3b, 3b-3b-2 combination's. (left hook body, straight, left hook body/ left hook body, left hook body, straight). I am keeping my combination's short so I can add some head movement and create angles. The angles I am trying to create consist of...

- Combination ending in lead hooks/jabs/uppers -> Left roll/weave ->lead pivot
This set up applies the pressure, creates the opportunity for the angle and masks it with the roll. Typically it is unwise to roll/slip to my opponents back hand, (in this case the fighter is orthodox so as I roll to my left I am moving to his right (back hand) and create the opportunity for a counter hook or uppercut. This is where the inside fighting starts.  When I roll to the left I go back into a peek-a-boo stance to defend against the rear counter punches, or use an archie moore style forearm pin to stuff the counter punches, then go into my next combination.

- Combination ending in rear hook/upper/cross -> right roll/weave/slip -> side step
Same set up, but ends on the fighters weak side. I use this to get in the hooks/shoves/forearm pushes. This is great for the heavy counter punchers as it keeps them having to reset their base to load up the straights and rear hooks while keeping me closer to their lead hook and cutting the power on that attack by limiting its range of travel.
 
As I stated before sometimes I throw jabs from a lead hand low position (hitman stance as some call it) Sometimes on the inside I assume a tight philly shell to position myself for counter hooks and defend against lead hooks and rear hooks/ uppers. This also puts me in a great position to create space and angles by pushing with my forearm and pivoting or side stepping. then shift back to the inside shell and work the combos. I really want to incorporate some defense into my pressure strings to create opportunities for counter hooks. Applying pressure and using fast head movement with the philly shell style defense will allow me to do just that. Unfortunately I really have to practice this and I poop myself out from all the ducking/rolling/slipping. I will attempt to practice this and see what it can do for me, but I will focus on getting my foundations down more diligently. I do know that this style of defense is good for what I am doing, but its difficulty in execution limits my ability to use it regularly. I might incorporate it into some combos but I don't think it will be my main style of defense. Ear muffs for me...   

Anyway, I have been practicing and thinking about a lot of this pretty regularly and am really enjoying myself. I will post more later on some pinning techniques I have been practicing and some more drawings. Thanks again for checking out my silly thread.

[WindupAtheist]

If I can offer a small piece of advice, not that I'm really in any position to do so, go ahead and spar a little bit. Theorycraft is good, but the occasional bit of sparring will keep it grounded in the reality of getting punched in the face. Looking forward to hearing more.

[HAMMER FRENZY]

If I can offer a small piece of advice, not that I'm really in any position to do so, go ahead and spar a little bit. Theorycraft is good, but the occasional bit of sparring will keep it grounded in the reality of getting punched in the face. Looking forward to hearing more.

Yeah, I totally agree. I get to start prepping for that this week. I get some mitt time and more time with this trainer this week. I am pretty excited. I am not too sure how long it will take till the trainers and myself are ready to have me do some sparring. I am really hoping that it is soon but I want to make sure that I am feeling confident in what I have learned and that the trainers think I am ready.

[Stewie]

Whatever you do, never ever,     ever fight like Brian Sutherland.
best fighter ever

[WindupAtheist]

Ah, the old USA Tuesday Night Fights. Man, that was awful. That guy should have never been let into a professional ring.

Also, according to boxrec's automated rankings, I present the worst active heavyweight boxer in the world.

[HAMMER FRENZY]

Well I have not posted any updates in a while and have still been going regularly to the gym. I have been at the gym 2 months now and have gotten to know the majority if not all the regulars and have made friends with more than a few. Overall the experience at the gym has been really positive. I have been learning a lot of new techniques and improving what I already had learned in my time alone. Currently I am now working focus mitts and being shown more style specific techniques as well as drilling the stuff I know more intensely. I have stuck to the new schedule I set up and am going 2 days one week, then 3 the next, allowing for my body to get acclimated to the more constant training and giving me time to do road work and spend time with my family.

I got to do some focus mitt work and it went pretty well. Prior to the day I was scheduled to work with the trainer, I had spent a lot of time reading and studying various styles of focus mitt work and getting more used to throwing as many combination's on the heavy bag as I could, and trying to focus on using combos that I would be drilled on during my mitt work. I read a few things on how to feed mitts (the act of holding the focus mitts and calling out combination's) so that I would be ready when the time came and there would be less start up. It worked out well as the trainer pushed through a lot of the introductory mitt combination's and let me focus on more style specific combos that I would need to start focusing on. I picked up a lot of good things and also gave the trainers some more insight on to how I move around so they could help me out with my trouble areas.

Which leads to my most recent problem, which is only the biggest issue on the large list of areas I want to improve, I tend to have a balance problem. Not a balance problem in the sense that I am unable to stay situated on my base, but a balance problem that is popping up when I throw combination's and set back into my base. My trainer noticed that there are points during my punches that I lean too far forward or to the left or right, not bringing my leading leg or trailing leg with me, ultimately giving up my base for the small amount of time in which I am completing a punch or set of punches and resetting into my base. ( At least this is what I gathered from his yelling across the gym.) This of course opens me up for a world of shit if I am dealing with an even slightly competent counter-puncher. I run the risk of eating counters mid swing WHILE off balance which would most likely put me directly on my ass. So I am really trying to work on that and focus more on my foot work. I am hoping to get some time with the trainer this week to go over some ways to help me get passed this nasty habit as it would sharpen my technique considerably.

And the last bit of stuff. I spar on Monday. Tall lanky guy with a solid reach. way taller than monkey...Way longer than monkey. It will be interesting. Thinking I better buy myself some head gear.

Boxing so far has been one of the most enjoyable aspects of my life. I think about it constantly and spend a considerable amount of time in the gym for a hobbyist. I really want to get away from the "white collar boxer" label, as it is associated with a lack of dedication and sloppy technique, but I know that I can not be nor have the desire to pursue boxing professionally. I hope that the amount of time I am dedicating to boxing will allow me to get the level of skill I would like to see from myself but also not sap all of my time and energy. As it is, it takes up so much of my thinking time and reading time that it seems like less of a hobby and more of an obsession. Anyway more to come and I will post more pics and tell you guys how the sparring session goes.