Hi,

I've recently started boxing after doing a year of MMA. I have always enjoyed boxing, but made the switch after I tore a ligament in my ankle and had to take a year off for recovery. I play soccer very competitively, so decided to give up the MMA for the beautiful science (broken noses and cuts are easier to recover from I figure).

I am looking to just box for conditioning, and to be able to protect myself should the situation arise. I'm 6' tall, 175-180lbs with very little if any fat to lose. I'm in pretty good shape from soccer.

I train at a gym 3-4 days a week, spending a lot of time with the skipping rope, ab exercises, push ups, and bag. I don't have the confidence to spar yet, though people are encouraging me to get in the ring (not necessarily because of my skill, but more because they really think I will enjoy it I believe).

What I am currently working on is the amount of weight I step forward with on my jab. I seem to always want to "stomp" forward (not a real stomp, but it isn't the nice glide you see in professionals). Anything I can do to correct this besides shadow boxing and just repetition?

Thanks for any help, and I'm glad to have joined the forum.

Welcome aboard mate, I think you hit it on the head yourself, repetition is the way to get things right. Coming from MMA your style of throwing is going to be slightly different. If you look at good striker in MMA some of them seem do have that stomp you mentioned. I think it's from them jabbing and trying to then get their feet set to avoid a takedown, but that's just my observation and opinion.

just find a trainer or someone at your gym that can work on smoothing it out for you and throw a million jabs and you should go OK.

Welcome to the forum.

It is really hard to answer that without seeing, but it sounds a bit like you are finding yourself flat-footed when jabbin forward?

Overall, I think practice and conditioning will help with it, and getting used to transferring your weight properly. Maybe getting off the balls of your feet some? I mean, we are always working on that (transferring weight) and no one can ever get it perfectly right. So in a way, you have sort of answered your own questions, repetition, sparring, time.

Am sure some others will chime in also with differing thoughts, which is always good.

We posted at nearly the same time jamiebhoy and similarly lol.

Yea, I agree too about the MMA having an impact. There is a huge difference in foot work, and they tend to need to be a lot more square.

Originally Posted by shafty85

Hi,
What I am currently working on is the amount of weight I step forward with on my jab. I seem to always want to "stomp" forward (not a real stomp, but it isn't the nice glide you see in professionals). Anything I can do to correct this besides shadow boxing and just repetition?

Try pushing off with your right foot, and immediately stepping forward with your left foot. Don't think of putting your weight on your front leg, just concentrate on pushing off of the ball of your right foot (never flatfooted), and lifting your left foot to step forward.

When you feel comfortable with this, try jabbing at the same time that you lift up your left foot. Think to yourself that your jab is in sync with your left foot. Practice this on the bags, staying at a range in that you can only hit the bag by stepping with your jab. This will help reinforce the movement, as well as help you get a feel for distance. Try circling the bag while you're doing this.

Glad to have you here. This just reminds me of a boxer by the name of Sergio Martinez, he was a soccer player too and took up boxing as another way of conditioning. He found so much enjoyment in boxing, that he eventually made the full transition, taking up boxing as a full time career. He's a very successful boxer now.

Originally Posted by Youngblood

We posted at nearly the same time jamiebhoy and similarly lol.

Yea, I agree too about the MMA having an impact. There is a huge difference in foot work, and they tend to need to be a lot more square.

Ha ha , funny thing was i almost said , wait and see if Youngbllod offer some advice he's usually on the mark, didn't want to sound like a suck up

Thanks for all the help.

It is true that striking in MMA is slightly different, and I agree with jamiebhoy and youngblood regarding the defence of takedowns. Just another thing I will have to mentally adjust to (the whole thing about not having to worry about being taken down or kicked in the head). That being said, there is nothing as sweet as a good jab by a boxer. In my opinion, MMA fighters are not great strikers (except for maybe Anderson Silva, a lot of MMA fighters are just brawlers when it comes to striking) but boxing truly makes it an art.

Originally Posted by shafty85

Thanks for all the help.

It is true that striking in MMA is slightly different, and I agree with jamiebhoy and youngblood regarding the defence of takedowns. Just another thing I will have to mentally adjust to (the whole thing about not having to worry about being taken down or kicked in the head). That being said, there is nothing as sweet as a good jab by a boxer. In my opinion, MMA fighters are not great strikers (except for maybe Anderson Silva, a lot of MMA fighters are just brawlers when it comes to striking) but boxing truly makes it an art.

Before you start sparring, try not to stand square. Otherwise you'll get the wind knocked out of you. I should know, that was what my first sparring session taught me. Standing more oblique, or side-ways makes you a smaller target, and helps you get a little more length into your jab without telegraphing it.

Your biggest obstacle is probably overcoming your MMA instincts. We've had a couple of MMA guys at our gym before, and this was something they had to deal with constantly. On the bright side, they knew how to clinch.

[quote=Chris Nagel;779100]

Originally Posted by shafty85

Hi,
Glad to have you here. This just reminds me of a boxer by the name of Sergio Martinez, he was a soccer player too and took up boxing as another way of conditioning. He found so much enjoyment in boxing, that he eventually made the full transition, taking up boxing as a full time career. He's a very successful boxer now.

That's pretty cool that that was done. It really is good cardio for soccer though - bursts of speed followed by constant movement is very typical of soccer, so its great. Plus, I really enjoy it as well (the boxing, as well as the soccer) though I have no plans to make a full transition.