A comprehensive list of answers for the most common questions I get every day from readers.
Some of my answers weren’t exactly sweet or polite but somebody’s gotta say it. At the end of the day, boxing is a tough sport. And it’s common for people to feel lost, defeated, and without a sense of purpose.
I hope my answers, as brazen as they are, help you find clarity in your journey inside the ring.
Read more… about No BS Fight Training Advice
The uppercut can be a tricky punch to avoid.
Uppercuts are not as commonly thrown as the other punches (like the left hook or right cross)…but should you ever run across an opponent with deadly uppercuts, they can be your biggest nightmare. They’re actually quite hard to see and don’t telegraph as much as boxing coaches would have you believe.
Sure, anybody can see an loaded uppercut from a mile away. But up in close-range, in the middle of an exchange, you don’t realize you got hit with an uppercut until about 3 seconds later. It’s like you’re safe in your guard and then *BOOM!* your jaw hurts for no reason.
Here’s how you get away from that tricky uppercut!
Read more… about How to Defend Against the Uppercut
Most fighters are not throwing the uppercut from the right position.
If you find it hard to land uppercuts, there’s a very good chance you’re not throwing it from the right place. You may be surprised to know that the uppercut is not only the most improperly thrown punch in boxing, it’s also the most improperly SET UP punch in boxing.
Here are 3 simple adjustments to make landing uppercuts TEN times easier!
Read more… about How to Land the Uppercut
The uppercut is probably the most improperly thrown punch in boxing.
Everybody knows how to throw a sharp jab, and a hard right hand, and killer left hook. But when it comes to uppercuts, oh man…it’s like everybody has their own creative interpretation. If you’ve never been closely adjusted on your uppercut technique by a coach before, there’s a good chance you’re leaving out tons of potential power.
The hardest part about mastering the uppercut
is to disregard the way it looks.
You have to get past the tendencies of dropping the arm, and crouching low, and exploding upwards with the uppercut. And even once you get past these beginner mistakes, you’ll have to adjust a dozen more details before it feels like ‘what the pros do’. It took me at least half a dozen variations by different coaches before I refined my uppercut technique to what it is today. And I’m proud to share those tips with you!
Learn how to get more power out of your uppercut!
Read more… about Uppercut Power Tips and Technique
Fighting on the inside is often a messy affair.
It’s usually two guys trying to push each other around and it always feels like you’re either being really defensive (covering up) or being really reckless (trading punches). You need room to punch and strategy to land these punches.
With a little technique and know-how, you can control the position and action on the inside. You can decide WHERE to place your body and the ANGLES of attack.
Learn how to make space and set up your punches for inside fighting.
Read more… about Punching from Close Range – Inside Fighting
Learn how to bounce in-and-out like a REAL BOXER!
You would think everyone would know how to bounce-step just from watching Muhammad Ali, but things don’t work that way. Like any other skill in boxing, it’s harder than it looks!
If you answered “YES” to any of the questions above, there’s a good chance your bounce-step could be a lot better. The REAL boxer’s bounce-step is relaxed, subtle, grounded, and slick!
Read more… about Boxing Bounce Step – Footwork Technique
Your joints play a tremendous role in generating and delivering power.
It has come to my attention in the recent years of the tremendous role that your joints play in delivering power. Unfortunately, the importance of the joints is commonly neglected in favor of the more popular focus on muscles.
Typically, most people I know are all about the muscles. How the muscles look, how big they are. How to develop powerful muscles. How to train the right muscles. How to get the right kind of “fighter’s muscles”. Etc and etc.
But very seldom do we ever talk about joints.
Read more… about Joint Strength and Punching Power
I was able to get UNDEFEATED professional super middleweight boxer Frank Buglioni to share some power punching tips for us here at ExpertBoxing. He’s currently 11-0 with 8 knockouts! And fighting again on February 15, 2014.
This will the first part of a series where he shares some key tips to boxing training. I hope you guys enjoy and if you have any special questions for him, please let me know in the comments section!
Read on for Frank’s basic keys to training for punching power:
Read more… about Pro Boxing Tips for Punching Power – FRANK BUGLIONI
I met Frank Dunlap 6 months ago when he first wrote to me after reading through my website, ExpertBoxing. He was a fan of the website and a former boxer himself, a multiple-time Golden Glove regional and state boxing champion in the welterweight division back in the 50’s.
He was also a very successful boxing coach, leading his amateur boxing team to winning every regional boxing tournament for 3 years during the 70’s, amassing an impressive win percentage of 70.6% in nearly 1,000 fights!
I figured this was a man with a wealth of information (in everything, not only boxing) and boy was I right. I spoke with him on the phone for several hours and learned all about his inspiring life. He had served in the military during the Korean War. He was a schoolteacher, a principal, a Frito-Lay delivery man, a business-owner and a school bus driver, and also a Golden Glove boxing coach. And at one time, became the local medicine man for a small village in Alaska.
He shared his boxing stories about competing in the Golden Gloves and also having trained great fighters. He once trained the Norris brothers when they were about 10 years old— (Terry Norris and Orlin Norris, boxing champions in the 90’s). He talked about meeting his childhood idol, the legendary Rocky Marciano. There were bits and pieces of practical old school boxing knowledge in every memory and of course…an amazing life story.
It is with great honor and admiration that I share Frank’s personal life story.
Read more… about Old School Boxing Training with FRANK DUNLAP
Knockouts are the most beautiful surprises in boxing.
Punches go back and forth, and then *BOOM*, it’s over. It’s part of what truly makes it “the sweet science”. The perfect combination of physical power combined with mental brilliance. The greatest knockouts of all, are the ones that touch you. Some are so incredible you replay it over and over again, others are so painful you don’t ever want to see again.
As a fighter, I empathize with the pain of losing in the most embarrassing way possible. It’s sad to see a man give it his best and come up short. Every time I see a knockout, it still feels like it’s my first time. And the more connected you are in a fighter, the more emotional it becomes. As common as they are in boxing, I still get chills down my down my spine when a fighter gets knocked out. Sometimes they’re easy to take; a guy gets dazed and then counted out. Other times, it’s serious; it looks like a guy getting killed. It looks like your superhero just died. It feels like your invincible God had become mortal.
As a fight fan, knockouts can be the most satisfying thing in the world. Sometimes seeing your favorite fighter knockout his “enemy” can be the best feeling you’ve ever had. It’s that one thing you’ve been waiting for all year long. It’s like an early Christmas present. You sleep so happy that night, almost as if YOU had just become champion. You can die happy now. All your dreams have come true.
Here are my 10 greatest knockouts in boxing:
Read more… about 10 Best Knockouts in Boxing
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