During sparring we do rounds of body work, and no matter what I do I keep on getting hit in the solar-plexus. I start off with my elbows in but somehow in the middle of the round I guess they go out, is there anyway to avoid this? From what I know there aren't really any muscles that protect your solar-pluxes.

How long you been boxing? if you're still at a stage where you have to think about your defence step by step then don't worry about it, you will learn a natural and instinctive defense. Learning to box is all about reprograming your instincts, most people who get a punch thrown at them flinch or look away, boxing will turn that reaction into a parry and a counter...

It just sounds like you feel uncomfortable keeping your hands tucked in, its common with beginners, soon your hands will feel like they aren't ment to be any other way

Just stick in and practice.

to protect the solar plexus turn your shoulder towards your opponent so it faces him and from here take your lead arm and hold it across your body. your glove should rest directly on the solar plexus. with the same arm take your elbow and use to cover your equally vulnerbale (and equally painful) kidney on the side of your body.




the reason i reccomend this approach is because i find the squared up elbows in gloves on the cheeks method to get youhit more often than it should, as you seem to be experiencing. in order for it to cover the solar plexus it has to take the forearms and place them over the front of the body reducing your vision and your ability to counterpunch. on top of that it also exposes the sides of your body, the kidney, the liver and all. getting hit on either will paralyze you and its something that squared up guard cant protect without comepensating itself to either the sides of the body or to the front of the body. this your opponent can exploit.

Damn, Thomas stole my thunder