You have perhaps wondered how boxing affects the body, whether it is in a positive or negative way, but in this post, you will see that there are many more pros than cons in boxing.
Anyone who wants to try out boxing can do it. Regardless of age, gender, or fitness level, there are many positive things you can get out of boxing, and two of them are cardio and toning. In addition, you will be able to improve your strength, endurance and develop a strong mindset.
Nonetheless, keep on reading because we want you to understand how boxing affects your body in every way.
- Cardiovascular health
One way that boxing helps you be healthier is by improving your cardiovascular system. When you train in boxing, your heart rate increases, and therefore you lose weight and strengthen your heart. If you are looking for cardio endurance, boxing is a great sport for helping you achieve it.
Boxing is much more than hitting the heavy bag or focus mitts. There is jumping rope, stationary biking, circuit training and using the treadmill, for instance. Many boxers also like to go running or jogging as part of their training.
- Fat loss
Another way boxing affects your body is by helping you lose weight. According to Gloveworx, a boxing gym, training for one hour with the heavy bag can help you burn between 400 and 700 calories. However, many people often check the scale and realize that they have not lost any weight but forget that they have turned fat into muscle and you have probably also trimmed a few inches off your waistline.
- More endurance
Since boxing helps you increase cardiovascular health, as a consequence it also helps you with obtaining more endurance. With a strong heart and strong lungs, you will pump more blood and oxygen into your muscles and you will feel less tired when you work out and in your daily life tasks.
- A toned body
Other muscular effects boxing has are muscle strengthening. One of the main characteristics of this sport is that it makes you strong and powerful because you learn how to channel energy from the ground up to give powerful punches. Some of the muscles you will tone thanks to boxing training are your legs, hips, abs, back muscles, chest, shoulders and arms. In other words, the entire body, and you can read more details about this here.
The reason why boxing is useful for building muscles is that it uses many of them at one time. Can you imagine how many positive consequences this type of workout can have on a person? Perhaps not because they are so many!
Additional ways boxing can make a difference for you
Besides the physical changes you will experience when practicing boxing, there are also mental and emotional changes as well. We know that there can be hard days, but if you push through, you will walk out of the boxing gym feeling like a totally different person that can overcome anything in their lives.
Confidence is something that will begin to pop up in you. You will see that you are suddenly speaking with more self-esteem since you know that you are doing everything that you can to get in shape and live a better life. Once you start seeing results from boxing, confidence will boost and you will feel better mentally and emotionally.
Coordination is another aspect that will improve dramatically after boxing for a while. You will learn how to focus on your feet, hands, arms and your target and this will make your coordination better. Jumping rope also helps with this, which is why boxers train so much with it.
And if it wasn’t enough, boxing is also a stress reliever that some even find to be a form of meditation that can help overcome anxiety. When you train in boxing, you release natural tension that builds up every day from your daily tasks and routines. Even if all you do is sit in front of a computer all day, this creates tension on your back and neck and boxing can be a great way for releasing it.
You can also use boxing to release a little anger too, which is healthy instead of letting it accumulate inside. Finally, you can use boxing to help take your mind of anything that may be bothering you and enjoy the serotonin your brain produces when you are feeling happy and relaxed.
How boxing affects the body in a positive way
We told you how boxing can affect your body in many positive ways and now we want to remind you of some of the benefits that come along boxing as well:
- Increased strength. When boxing, you are moving pretty much your entire body during the workouts and this makes your muscles stronger, which gives you overall strength. You will soon see how the grocery bags do not weight as much as they used to.
- Strong bones. Your muscles are not the only ones that will get stronger, your bones will too.
- Better hand-eye coordination. This can be anything from picking up an object that fell on the ground to be able to punch the focus mitts perfectly.
- More balance. Every time you train in boxing you challenge your balance, which gives you a better reaction to any circumstance in life, such as getting out of the car or not falling if you trip on something.
Have you noticed any changes in your body since you started boxing? If so, what have they been and what tips can you share with others? Which of the benefits we mentioned in this article have you experienced from boxing training? Tell us about your experience in the comments below!
