Boxing Focus Mitt Training

Training on the focus mitts is one the best ways to develop your fighting reflexes, punching technique, defense technique, and fighting strategy. Hitting the focus mitts is not only a great workout but also intellectually stimulating, and FUN! Mittwork is also the most realistic fight training simulation next to sparring.

The focus mitts are an incredibly versatile tool for boxing training and yet many boxers are only doing one thing on the mitts—which is hitting as hard and fast as possible. Focus mitt training is not only about speed and power. There’s also rhythm, timing, accuracy, strategy, style, etc, etc. There are so many different ways you could be developing yourself on the mitts. And by only thinking about power on the mitts, you cheat yourself out of developing the more refined slick “sweet boxing” skills.

Let’s go over some important concepts and methods about boxing mittwork training.

 

 

The Use of Focus Mitts in Boxing

From what I’ve heard, focus mitts are a fairly recent invention. “Hitting the pads” didn’t happen back in the days. Old school trainers didn’t use them with their fighters and many of them became champions without ever doing mitt drills. “Mittwork” was just something the new school guys invented. I never actually checked the dates and details of when the mitts became popular but that’s what I heard.

 

Watch the video for a visual demonstration of how I hold mitts for boxers.

 

Benefits of focus mitt drills

As I’ve mentioned earlier, focus mitts are one of the best boxing drills you can do as a fighter. It allows you to practice more realistic fighting maneuvers without you having to actually fight a live person. I would say it’s the next closest thing to fighting or sparring.

 

Focus mitt training can help you:

• improve punching skills (technique, power, speed, endurance, accuracy, timing)
• improve offensive skills (angles, combinations)
• improve defensive skills (blocking, parrying, slipping, rolling)
• practice moving against a live person (footwork, strategy, mimicking styles, counter-punching)

 

Advantages of mittwork training over other boxing drills:

• drill realistic fighting movements
• work on offense and defense simultaneously
• get used to moving around a live person
• get helpful feedback from your trainer
• mimic and practice for certain styles
• great flexibility to practice many different moves
• fun and challenging

Hitting the mitts can be such a fun and challenging workout, especially when done with an experienced padman (mitt holder). The drills can be changed to develop whatever skill you want, offense, defense, counter-punching. The padholder can mimic styles of different opponents to get you used to different kinds of attacks. The intensity can go up and down. It’s just all around a great and fun workout. And requires lots of energy and coordination. Whereas you can be lazy on the heavy bag, this won’t be the case when you have an active trainer holding the mitts and testing your defense.

 

 

Boxing Mittwork Theory

The top 3 benefits of mittwork training:

1. Developing natural fighting reflexes.
2. Developing simultaneous offensive and defensive skills.
3. Developing rhythm, timing, and accuracy.

The number #1 benefit of mittwork training:
is developing your FIGHTING REFLEXES.

It’s important that people understand what skills the mitts are most important for developing. I would say far too many people focus on the power aspect—which is to hit the pads as hard as possible. And unfortunately, that’s the biggest problem, and the biggest reason for why the old school trainers think the new school fighters waste too much time on the mitts. When you waste time focusing on the wrong thing, not only are you not improving yourself but you might also be developing bad habits or “bad reflexes”.

I personally think fighters doing mittwork should work on developing their fighting reflexes. Hit at a controlled pace that allows them to see not only offensive opportunities but also DEFENSIVE opportunities. Hitting the mitts is not the same as hitting a heavy bag where you just punch non-stop with no regard for defense.

When done properly, focus mitt training should also test your defense. You should be practicing your defensive reflexes. And by reflexes, I don’t mean practicing MEMORIZED or CHOREOGRAPHED defensive movements but to actually use your reflexes. Which means your trainer throws a few punches at you without telling you beforehand, and you have to actually use your NATURAL reflexes to evade.

Mittwork training should test your offensive and defensive fighting skills simultaneously.
Or else it’s no different from hitting a punching bag.

Last but not least, there has to be a focus on rhythm, timing, and accuracy. It’s not a race to hit as hard and fast as possible. It’s about being able to read the punches coming in, and to move in rhythm, hitting and slipping at the same time. Generating power through timing and accuracy and not so much muscle effort. Sure…there are times when it’s good to hit the mitts as hard as possible but that shouldn’t be the goal of the workout…you have plenty of other boxing equipment for that.

 

Developing natural fighting reflexes on the focus mitts

The biggest difference I’ve seen between the best mitt-holders from the average mitt-holders is how they teach you to hit the mitts. The average mitt-holders will typically yell out a combination at you and have you punch the mitts as hard as possible. After a while, they tell you what defensive moves to make and then have you throw a few punches and then slip after, and then maybe also come back with a counter. The whole time, they’re yelling at you. They’ll have you punch here, slip there, make this adjustment, make that adjustment. “KEEP YOUR HANDS UP!” they’ll yell.

And the biggest problem of all is that the whole time, all you’re doing is learning how to remember more and more details…instead of developing your eyes to see punches coming at you and making split-second reactions based on your reflexes. Sure, you move faster, more powerfully and more impressively…but your reflexes are still the same. And you’ll get beat up in a real fight all the same.

The best mitt-holders will talk as little as possible.

The best mitt-holders I’ve seen will talk as little as possible. They don’t tell you to keep your hands up, they’ll hit you and you’ll learn next time to roll under the punch or block. They do tell you what punches to throw but they know how to build their way into long combinations. Instead of always telling you to throw a 1-2, they’ll only tell you to “jab” but they’ll flash the mitt for your right hand afterwards. After a while, you learn that you’re supposed to hit that follow-up punch. It doesn’t take long before you get into a 14-punch combination and yet the coach only had to all out one or two punches. They repeat this over and over and develop your fighting REFLEXES rather than fighting CHOREOGRAPHY. Both will improve your fighting coordination but I imagine having true reflexes is far better than having perfectly memorized movement sequences.

Ultimately the goal is to develop the fighter’s reflexes and instincts so that he can act without you having to tell him to do everything. He should instinctively know to attack, defend, move and look for more counters. He should be automatically trained to hit all the common combinations as well as avoiding the common counters.

 

Tips for Holding the Mitts for Someone

1. Natural

Aim to develop natural movement in a fighter. You have to stand naturally, move naturally, and relax, and breathe if you want your fighter to do the same. This means you have to understand and utilize good body mechanics yourself. If you’re awkward, the fighter will be awkward, too. The worst thing you can do is to have tension in your own body, which then causes the fighter to be more tense.

Whatever the padman does,
the fighter will do as well.

 

2. Rhythm

Work on developing a steady flowing rhythm. Flow smoothly from offense to defense, one combination to another, punching to footwork. Work on develop a nice calm fighting rhythm in your fighter. Holding the mitts is not about suddenly yelling out combinations and having the fighter throw as fast and hard as possible. Work on having the boxer find a fighting rhythm. He will be faster, more power, more energy-efficient this way.

 

3. “Punch back” at the punches

Don’t just hold the mitts up with a dead arm, or a stiff arm. Relax and then at the moment of impact, exhale, turn, and punch back into your fighter’s punch with the mitts. This way it’s like you’re both punching at the same time. This will allow you to absorb the punches better, while staying relaxed, and help maintain a nice fighting rhythm.

 

4. Learn lots of drills

Don’t just do the same boring drills over and over. Learn new combinations, new patterns, new drills. Watch other trainers. Invent some of your own. See what areas your fighter is lacking in and develop new drills to help him address that. There are nearly unlimited pad drills out there. Offense, defense, counter-punching, footwork, outside fighting, inside fighting, etc. Stand southpaw if you want to help him get used to a southpaw style.

 

5. Give feedback (takes time and experience)

Give him technical and strategic feedback. Let him know what you see and make suggestions for what he can do differently. Obviously this part takes time and experience if you want to give truly helpful feedback. It’s not enough to say, “Oh, your hands dropped right here.” You need to know more about body mechanics and boxing strategy.

 

6. SLOW DOWN

This is a big one. If the fighter is having difficulty or failing at a particular skill or movement, simply slow the drill down. Slow it down to the point where it’s perfect. Still have a rhythm, and still do everything the same. But maybe with less speed and intensity. Make sure he really gets it before you move on to a faster pace or a more advanced skill. Don’t just force him to make movements without thinking. Give him time to SEE, PROCESS, and REACT to the movements you’re giving him.

The best way to develop fighting reflexes is to teach the eyes how to see new things. Instead of throwing a jab and making him slip the counter immediately. Throw your counter slower so he learns how to see the incoming counter. Otherwise, he’ll just slip by habit and that doesn’t help his reflexes at all.

 

Tips for Hitting the Focus Mitt

1. Rhythm

Yes, make sure you’re hitting with rhythm. You should have a natural flow to your movements. PUNCH-PUNCH-PUNCH-SLIP-SLIP. Not…punchpunchpunchslipslip! It’s not a race. The best way to know if you’re in rhythm is by your breathing and your endurance levels. If you’re winded as heck and find yourself trying to exert as much force as possible, you’re probably focusing more on power than on rhythm. Use timing! It’s timing that does the most damage. You inflict the most damage when you’re landing a punch right as the mitt is pressing into your punch.

 

2. Accuracy

Focus on being accurate. Take a little off the power if that’s what it means for you to improve your control. Don’t just swing wildly at the mitts and make the padman catch all your punches. Aim a bit and work on your technique. Make sure your elbows and all your other joints are in place so that you’re landing with good support on your wrists.

 

3. Power

It’s not so much that I have to remind you to work on power but I listed power here as last on this list so that you can see that power comes AFTER rhythm and accuracy. If maximum power is really what you want to develop, you might as well go hit the heavy bag. In a skilled setting such as in a fight or on the mitts, you need timing and accuracy to deliver maximum power.

It’s not about using maximum power,
but rather how to maximize the power.

 

 

Boxing Mittwork Drills

1. Punching Drills

Give the fighters combinations and have them hit the pads. Adjust their technique and give feedback on their habits as needed. You can use my punching combinations list for some ideas.

 

2. Defense & Counter-Punching Drills

Start by testing his defense after a combo. Call out 1-2-3, or whatever combo you want, and then throw a test punch at him to make sure he’s being defensively responsible. After a while, you can start to test his counter-punching ability. Make him return fire…no more running away after throwing a combination, he has to stay in range and look for counter-offensive opportunities instead of only relying on a tight defense.

 

3. Style drills

Get accustomed to different boxing styles and fighting situations. Work with him on throwing specific punches such as the left hook to the body. Also work with him on defending against specific punches such as the right cross. Put him in the corner. Make him back-up after every combination, or make him go forward after every combination. Or put him on the ropes and make him hit the mitts from a close-range position and then use footwork to escape. Or stand southpaw and get him used to firing against an opponent in the southpaw stance.

 

 

Different styles of mittwork

Traits of a Great Padman

1. Natural movement

The best padmen are all about natural movement. They know how to hold mitts and move around you in a way that makes you throw and defend punches in such a natural way. They don’t have to say anything, it’s just the way that they move that makes you move instinctively. If you’ve ever worked the mitts with a great padman, then you know what I’m talking about.

The way they hold the mitts, makes you throw with good technique. They way they aim punches at you makes you slip naturally. The way they move, teaches you how to pivot and step around with good footwork. People watching from the outside might think you’ve been taught before what to do but actually you’re only doing what you feel is natural.

 

2. Lots of challenging drills

They’ve got tons of fun drills for you. It’s never boring and it’s never the same stuff again and again. Always fresh drills to keep you on your toes. Great mitt-holders know tons of great mitt drills.

 

3. Great feedback

I would have to say that great feedback comes from having experience, knowledge, and also good chemistry. A good padman can make great improvements to your skills simply by giving you small adjustments. Instead of the same’old “keep your hands up”, he can say something more specific such as “don’t drop your right hand when you throw the left hook”. Or he can say, “don’t look at the body when you throw the left hook to the body”. Or “slide out after the right hand, don’t jerk”.

A padman that has good chemistry with you understands your habits well and knows exactly what to say to make you aware of your habits. He can point out your flaws and help you fix them easily with small adjustments. You never feel like it’s a million things that you have to remember but rather a few little tweaks here and there.

 

Different methods of mittwork

Here I showcase some of my favorite boxing mitt routines I’ve seen on Youtube. You can see how different boxing trainers use different mittwork drills to develop their fighters. I should clarify that each trainer knows a wide variety of mitt drills and just because they’re famous for one style doesn’t mean that they can’t or don’t do other mitt drills.

 

1. Power drills

*** Hard to find a video of this since just about everyone works offense & defense at the same time. ***

Here goes your typical mittwork routine. Maximum power, maximum speed, maximum intensity. RAH-RAH-RAH!!! POW-POW-POW!! Nothing but non-stop power punching. It can look impressive but it doesn’t do much for the fighter in terms of skill development. At best, it’s an exhilarating workout. Training on the focus mitts can definitely be much more than this.

 

2. Offense & defense drills

Some punching and some slipping. Lots of simultaneous offense and defense moves going on. These are one of my favorite mitt drills for developing fighters. You should be careful that the defensive moves are randomly tested rather than choreographed.

 

3. Rhythm drills

Here is the typical Mayweather slick-style pad routine. It wasn’t invented by the Mayweather family but it certainly looks impressive to some people and a waste of time to others. For the record, I love this routine. The detractors who claim this is unrealistic soft-hitting using bad punching technique and bad slipping technique are totally missing the point of this drill (HINT: it’s not about power). There’s also a good chance they’ve never boxed before and have no idea what they’re talking about.

The point of this drill is to build rapid coordination and fighting reflexes. It’s not so much about having perfect punching technique or perfect defense technique but rather to get the fighter accustomed to making split-second decisions. Sure…the combos and defensive movements can be a bit choreographed beforehand but the sequences are changed and switched around the fly and the fighter has to adjust for constantly changing targets and counters. While this drill isn’t necessarily effective for developing power or punching technique, it’s incredibly effective for developing fighting reflexes and fluid fighting movements (rhythm). With good rhythm, comes better timing, which allows you to do more damage using your opponent’s momentum instead of just only yours.

 

4. Pure defense drills

(Skip the video to 2:04 to see the specific drill I’m talking about.) Here is one example of a pure defense drill to help you get accustomed to avoiding punches. Great as a warm-up or warm-down or when you need to practice your defense a bit. Of course, I say pure defense is actually easier than to have defense while punching. Nonetheless this is still a great drill. I was also looking for footage of the more slippery fighters. I would say Tyson’s slipping in this video is a bit robotic and athletic whereas other guys will have a more slicker and creative type of movement. If only I could find footage of Pernell Whitaker’s defense training!

 

5. Accuracy drills

*** I’m still searching for a good video example of this.

Another example of fun creative drills you can do on the mitts. Here, they practice randomized accuracy training where the padman doesn’t tell the fighter where or when to hit.

 

6. Situational drills

The mitts are a great way to introduce new fighting angles to expand your offense and defense capabilities. Here the trainer is mimicking different situations in a fight such as in close-range or from different angles that might occur often in a fight.Or you could also have the trainer do what I call a “style drill” where the trainer will mimic a bit of the opponent’s style. You could have him mimicking a southpaw or have him mimic many other stances or styles. Perhaps a more aggressive one, or a more evasive one. The possibilities are endless and with a little bit of ingenuity you could prepare for any style of opponent that you want using the focus mitts. Of course, it’s still not as good as fighting against the real thing.

 

7. Alternative drills

More creative “mittwork” routines to test a wide variety skills. In this case, I’ve shared a few examples that aren’t actually using mitts. It’s still the same principle of hitting a moving target and using your evasive skills. In this case, the drill is much less about power and moreso about accuracy and defensive quickness.

Up above you can see examples of guys hitting the pool noodles instead of mitts. Or also the Australian boxing coach using tae kwon do kick pads instead of focus pads. There’s another great video of him mimicing the Mayweather mitt routine using the TKD kick pads.