the next bit is passive.
now its not really right for me to call this passive defence, as you will still be moving, and you are still aware of everything.
you have 3 choices whan your opponent throws a punch:

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a) block it. this is the most basic kind of defense, and is also very effective. this is what i would reccomend you do in the beggining. it is simply stopping your opponents show by placing your glove in the way of it. if they throw a jab to your face, you should stop it with your right glove dead infront of your head.
it is important that you stop the punch as close to your head as possible, this way their hand is as far away from their body/head as possible and you can hit them back.

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b) parry it. this is much the same as blocking, but you start to use their movement against them. i dont know if you have ever done karate, or soemthing like that, but the blocks come from the side and knock the punch out the way.
it is the same with a parry. when somone throws a punch at you, you use your glove to knock it off in a direction, physically pushing their arm out the way. this knocks your opponent off balance, and provides oppertunities for you to hit them back.

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c) Move. this is a huge generalisation. moving involves footwork and body/head movement.

footwork. as your opponent throws a punch, simply hop away from them. if theu throw a punch forward, move backwards, but keep in your boxing stance.

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when you move in boxing, one leg always follows the other, in short little shuffle movements.
if your moving forwards, you move the front foot forward a couple of inches. once it is safely on the floor, move your back foot forward a couple of inches.
if you go backwards, move your back foot a couple of inches, then your front.
these movements should be swift so you are not caught off balance.

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body movement is the hardest of all the defenses. it takes more timing, and could potentially put you in danger which is why you need to know the other defences first, and need to pick the spots carefully.
this involves ducking under punches as they are thrown, leaning back as they are thrown, and leaning from side to side.
anything that allows you to skip the punch is good.
you must remember that if you are leaning you are a stationary target, so you need to lean then hit back, and quick.

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thats about the quicket run through of defense possible imagionable. im gonna give you a couple of kep points to remember:

- start with the block, dont try anything too fancy
- always keep your hands up, no matter how tired/confident you are. your hands need to be guarding your head. there are many boxers i know who have been KO'd cause they thought their opponent couldnt hit them from that distance
- simplest way tp not be hit is to move away from the punch
-if you use body movement, you are off balance and a sitting duck, get away from those punches!
-defense is far more important than offence and should be practiced alot. it also creates oppertunities for offense as we will see below.
-the idea of offense is not only to not be hit, but to create openings for you to hit your opponent back. when you parrt and move your opponent will be offbalance and often defencless, ready for you to strike back.

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Time for the bit you have been waiting for, offense.

within the sport of boxing there are many ways to win.

KO - knockout you hit your opponent so hard they fall too the floor and are unable to get back up within a time limit, either because they are unconcious, or because they dont have the energy.

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TKO - technical knockout. this includes knocking somone down 3 times within 1 round, cutting your opponent so badly the referee has to stop it, beating your opponent so badly the referee has to stop it, or the fighters corner (the group of people who help him) throwing in the towel (stopping the fight for the health of their fighter).

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UD/SD - unanimous/split decision. this is where the judges score the fight on points, by the number of good punches scored by each fighter. each fighter starts a round with 10 points. if one fighter lands more points than the other, a point is taken from the worse fighter, to make the score 10 - 9.
if lots of punches are landed from/ a knockdown produced from 1 fighter, then 2 points are taken away from the worse fighter, making the score 10 - 8.
if the opponent is knocked down twice, or knocked out the score for that round is 10 - 7. this is the best score achiavable.
points are also deducted from fighters for illegal moves. if you clinch too much, strike with the wrong part of the body, or so anythign against the rules points are often taken off.
UD is where all the judges agree with the outcome of the fight, SD is where ome think one way, and the others another way.

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DQ - if one fighter persistantly fouls, then he will be disqualified, as mike tyson was when he bit evander holyfield ear.