incorporate boxing into your training
Why Boxing Should Become Part of Your Fitness Routine
Many people ignore boxing as a beneficial addition to their fitness routine. Not only does boxing teach you how to defend yourself, but it is also great for losing weight.
You can burn up to 750 calories per hour boxing class, depending on how much effort you put in. To put that into comparison, that’s about the equivalent to running 6.5 miles on the treadmill.
While running in place for thirty minutes may be fine for some, other gym goers may be looking for a more exciting and practical alternative. We understand! That’s why we offer unlimited boxing classes to all of our members at O Athletik. If you are interested to learn more about our class schedule, click here.
How You Can Combine Boxing and Personal Training
So you’ve made the decision that you want to add boxing to your fitness routine. Excellent! But what now?
There are a few ways to optimally do so. The first is to hire a boxing trainer for one-on-one lessons similar to personal training. Tell your trainer what you want to focus on whether that be cardio, burning calories, striking power, or footwork.
Regardless of what you choose, the boxing classes should still be challenging. If you finish a session and feel like you could do a full weight training workout immediately afterwards, chances are you didn’t push yourself hard enough.
Intensity is key, especially when it comes to fat burning.
The second, perhaps “less serious” option is joining a boxing class. Many of these classes will focus primarily on cardio and will involve quick, repetitive compound movements with little rest time. This HIIT form of boxing cardio is great not only for getting in shape but also for burning calories even after your class is finished!
The HIIT cardio performed in a boxing class is estimated to burn an extra 60-100 calories post workout session. That may not seem like a lot, but after one month, that’s an extra pound of fat lost.
Will Boxing Harm My Weight Training?
If you are someone who lifts weights regularly, you may be concerned that boxing classes or private sessions can harm your performance in the weight room. Is this true?
If executed properly, no. You can definitely balance a boxing routine and a weightlifting routine. The keys are eating a healthy diet, getting a good night’s sleep, and spacing out your different workouts so that your body has time to recover.
A sample training split is as follows:
Monday – Weight training
Tuesday – boxing class
Wednesday – rest
Thursday – weight training
Friday – boxing class
Saturday – rest
Sunday – cardio
The general rule for avoiding overtraining is to listen to your body. If you feel extra fatigued, chances are you are not giving yourself proper recovery time. Like we said earlier, boxing should be physically taxing on your body, and so should weightlifting to optimize results.
For this reason, always be sure that you are training as hard as your body can handle, but no more. Otherwise, you run the risk of overtraining, injuring yourself, and overall not enjoying your fitness routine.
Boxing Classes at O Athletik
We understand that boxing can be intimidating. It’s not easy finding the conviction to step onto the mat and punch a heavy bag repeatedly. You may feel like you don’t have the proper technique to participate.
At O Athletik, we’ll teach you everything you need to know to practice boxing in a safe and effective way. We offer boxing classes for both beginner and advanced athletes. Please reference our class schedule for more information.
In addition, we have many highly trained boxing trainers if you are more interested in one-on-one or small group sessions. Contact us here or speak to someone at the front desk to get connected with our staff.