Body Rhytm.

[Chris Nagel]

Rhythm is made up of the time that it takes to do different movements, be it a slip or a punch. It also refers to the time that is between techniques.

In boxing it's an important concept to grasp in order to be more effective at landing punches as well as avoiding them. You see the jab for instance, if you were to throw it at a steady rhythm like the ticking of the clock you'd become very predictable. That's why you'd want to throw it at different speeds, including stop and go. At times it's just like a change-up pitch in baseball. Having variety in your speed and rhythm can keep your opponent guessing.

It's the same thing when you're moving, slipping and weaving. If you're moving your head back and forth like some kind of human-metronome you're opponent is easily going to figure out where your head is going to be next. This is especially true if your head is tracing the same path over and over again.

One boxer you'd want to look at is Floyd Mayweather Jr. Of course there's a lot more that he's doing right, but rhythm is a part of it. The changes in the speed of his movements (as well as the time in between) is perhaps more important than just him being fast. He talks about rhythm in his interview with Smitty: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YqOJp9WmayoJust try to get a feel for it in your movements, especially when you're shadow boxing or hitting the bags. You can break down certain moves into beats, kind of like dance steps or drummer-beats. Apply it to different techniques, ie. feinting, punching as well as defensive moves.