Boxing is popular, not just as a sport, but also as a great workout and a self-defense mechanism. It strengthens your muscles as well as improves the cardiovascular functioning. But every person who knows how to throw a punch is not considered to be a boxer. It is important to learn the proper techniques to avoid injury and improve the power in the punch. Whatever may be the reason for you to learn boxing, the first techniques should be for self-defense. Boxing Exercises When you decide to be a boxer or want to box to stay fit, these are some exercises that should be done in repetition as per your need. The whole set of this boxing workout would not take more than 15 minutes. Shadowbox: Throw punches in front of a mirror or an imaginary body, both on the body and head, repeatedly for 30 seconds. Bob and weave to protect yourself from imaginary counter punches. Jump Rope: Practiced by most athletes, jump rope involves major muscles and most parts of your body. Do it for 30 seconds, and take a 15-second rest. Then do it again for 60 seconds, and repeat this three times. Push Ups: As boxing involves use of the hands, arm strength is very important. Push ups help strengthen the muscles of the upper arms and chest. This in turn, helps in increasing the force of your punches. Crunches: For abdominal exercises, experts always advise to begin with crunches. Crunches is an excellent exercise for the abdominal and shoulder muscles. Weights: Many believe that weight training decreases flexibility and leads to weight gain. But these are just myths. Weight training improves a beginner's boxing techniques, as it benefits the whole body. But one should keep away from machine weights, and concentrate on free weights, for about three minutes at a time. Training Tips The best tip for someone who wants to start boxing is to go to a good trainer. It is often said that without proper guidance, a boxer perfects his mistakes, rather than correcting them. Learning the right moves is important to prevent injury. If these are not controlled and corrected in the initial stages, it becomes difficult to correct them later on.

1. Use Proper Gear: Aimed mainly at preventing injury, boxing gear plays an important role, especially for beginners. Usually, boxing gyms store most of the necessary gear, but if you are training at home, always buy good quality equipment, like boxing gloves, headgear, boxing shoes, hand wraps, punching bags, and a mouthpiece.
2. Learn the Jab: Learning the jab correctly decides your fate as a boxer, and teaches you the correct fundamentals. It is a long-distance punch, but of lesser intensity. It helps keep the opponent at a distance, and weaken his position. This prepares you to shower the opponent with much harder punches.
3. Practice in Front of a Mirror: Devoting time to practice in front of the mirror is an important part of learning the tricks of boxing. Here, rather than other people correcting you, you are your own critic. Watching yourself helps understand where you need to improve, and assists in avoiding injury.
4. Perfect the Jab: Don't go for a light bag just because you are a beginner. Again, start with a jab once you have moved away from the mirror. Move in circles and throw jabs at the heavy bag. In the process, adjust your distance to increase the intensity at which you hit the bag. Perfecting the art of the jab guarantees your success as a boxer.
5. Strengthen Your Cardio: Boxing is a strenuous and intense workout, which requires you to be in top physical form. Strengthen your cardiovascular system by taking small steps between workouts, and jumping ropes before the start and finish of every workout. This would help improve your stamina, and keep you active during and after training.

Learning the correct techniques in boxing creates the right foundation for every boxer. Never make the mistake of thinking you know it all. Apart from training, boxers need immense stamina to maintain their energy level. Since their weight too needs to be kept in check, always maintain a low-fat but nutrient-rich diet from the beginning.