Weight lifting in training?

[White Lightning]

I like this question because I need the same answer. My trainer says I should just be concerned with my boxing exercise and not weight training because it is going to slow me down. I actually feel better when I lift first and then go through my boxing regiment.

[Youngblood]

I am not sure I understand the question exactly. Are you referring to doing weights, period, or doing them when you are at the gym for boxing?

I think you will find most of us are either doing weights, and or body weights along with our cardio. I don't believe they slow you down, but in fact can help increase strength and compliment speed, and especially when done properly. The secret I think, is in the doing it properly. If one is doing only low rep high weight to fail constantly, then you will end up building mass. And mass will slow you down. So higher rep. with lower weight is how I do it. But I do do some lower rep also. And I mix in a lot of body weight exercises (there's a great thread in here with a lot of body weight stuff...i'll link it after I hit post when I can find it.)

http://www.saddoboxing.com/boxingfor...xcercises.html

But if you mean when at the boxing gym itself, then personally I wouldn't. I don't generally do much of any workout related stuff when there, so I can maximize my time working on technique and sparring.

I also want to be strong on those days and make sure my body is functioning as good as possible. So maybe in the morning I might do a cardio workout, and maybe a light body weight exercise routine...but moreover...I save the hard workouts on gaining strength and endurance, for days when off from the actual boxing gym.

[Chris Nagel]

A well designed weight training program for boxing is not going to make you slow and tense.

[Rocky Balboa]

^^^ x2 I am much faster with weight training now that I do it properly. You must recognize there are several types of strength:

1. Maximal (1-5 reps): this strength will make you throw hard punches

2. Explosive (1-5 reps): this is a lighter load lifted explosively. If you just do maximal strength you might get slower but if you do explosive workouts you will get faster (Now that I can do a behind-the-back clap push-up rather than regular clapping push-ups, my handspeed is noticeably faster)

3. Repetitive (20+ reps): this will let you throw with power longer. Again this might make you slower if you don't work on explosive strength.

I used to tran just maximal and repetitive then wondered why I seemed a little slower than usual (not much). I incorperated explosive strength workouts and my speed (and punching power) shot through the roof. Explosive Strength is all about being strong quickly. A punch isn't going to take 2 seconds like a weighted dip will. It will take a fraction of a second like a back-clap push-up.

As youngblood said, I wouldnt lift at the boxing gym (you could after training your technique, you want to be 100% when boxing).

look at these websites, Ross Enamait is a boxing trainer and his strength and conditioning workouts are exceptional and geared towards boxing: RossTraining - Bridging The Gap Between Ordinary and Extraordinary and Your Top Source For Free Boxing Training Advice



Edit/ps. dont work in the 8-15 rep range. This is where mass is developed, stay away from it.

[wesrman]

Edit/ps. dont work in the 8-15 rep range. This is where mass is developed, stay away from it.

This is a little misleading. You gain mass by eating more calories than you burn regardless of rep range.

FWIW i understand what Rocky was trying to say and he has a point that you dont want to train like a bodybuilder unless you want to add muscle, but you can gain just as much mass by lifting in the 1-5 rep range as you can in the 8-10 rep range if you eat more calories than you burn. Diet and conditioning training are key.

[Rocky Balboa]

Yup, I should clarify. Eating more is key to gaining mass BUT the mentioned rep range also aids in gaining mass via encouraging sarcoplasmic hypertrophy (muscle "liquid" growth) which results in more weight.

[Von Milash]

I think the basic key is to keep your movements full body and as explosive as possible. this is the antithesis of bodybuilding, where things are done slowly and in isolation. I also thik you want to choose movements that are as close to mimicking the basic punching motions as possible so as to incorporate the same muscle groups.

[wesrman]

A well designed weight training program for boxing is not going to make you slow and tense.

QFT.

Bruce Lee lifted weights and it didnt slow him down one bit.

[blegit]

A lot of coaches try to persuade against mixing lifting weights with boxing. I think they are just old fashion and/or ignorant. I lifted weights on and off throughout my career and could tell when I was at my best was when I lifted weights. I always felt strong when I was lifting and my handspeed was at least the same. Always do stretches and read up on it to customize your workouts for boxing. Weightlifting is now a part of a high percentage of boxers. You would do yourself justice if you got with the program. Do not let your opponent have an advantage. I actually was lifting quite hard during my training before my last Golden Gloves and the weekend before I won the state bench press championships and broke the record. I won Golden Gloves also. For awhile I was the only weightlifter in my gym but now most of us lift weights. Constantly gauge your weight and I wouldn't recommend taking anything more than a multivitamin and maybe a light protein shake in place of meals if you are cutting weight. Leave creatine and the other mass making supplements alone.

[Howlin Mad Missy]

I think the fear of weights comes from bodybuilding. Lots of routines in magazines are focused on building mass. BB is a sport of asthetics.

- Good post Rocky.

I think power moves, low reps/high weight (even bodyweight) will compliment training. The problem becomes fitting all this work in your schedule whilst getting enough recovery.

There's plenty of info on plyometrics....& these exercises did/do exist in 'old' routines. Sprinting is explosive, so are burpees, so is throwing a medicine ball. It's just it all came under the heading of conditioning.

I would stay away from high rep/low weight for endurance simply because that is what you are doing when you box/spar/hit the bag/pads. I don't think you'd need an extra workout focused on that.

[Scrap]

Spoke of this before, Feel is misunderstood. There are now ways to implement, touch Plyos in certain positions can give Turbo mechcanics to the Body its the way forward.

[Rocky Balboa]

Thanks guys

I think the fear of weights comes from bodybuilding.

Definitely, when the mention of weightlifting comes up, people immediately think of bodybuilding. Look at the mid-class Olympic weight-lifters. Some pretty small guys yet they are beastly strong. They lift huge weights yet are thin (often), and very fast and explosive. They, like us boxers, don't want mass (except heavyweights) as that would push them up in the weight class where there are naturally stronger guys. 8-15 rep range is where bodybuilders work and where we want to stay out.

I think power moves, low reps/high weight (even bodyweight) will compliment training.

I actually do only bodyweight. You can do low reps/high weight easily with bodyweight. One-arm push-ups, one-leg squats/pistols, handstand push-ups, even one-arm chin-ups and one-arm dips. There is no limit to bodyweight exercises.

The problem becomes fitting all this work in your schedule whilst getting enough recovery.

This is a big issue. There is a solution though: Active recovery. Through active recovery I can be 100% the next day, fresh and ready to workout again without worrying about over training.

Active Recovery - active means of aiding your body to recover, both the muscular and the nervous system.

One of the best ways is constant bath/shower. Turn it on hot for 10-30 seconds then to cold for same amount of time. Do this 5-10 times after a workout. You will be surprised how much it will help you in recovering.

Another thing (one that can't be overlooked) is building your workout capacity. Slowly add more things, closer together so that your body adjusts to quicker recovery.

Bodybuilding recommends hitting till you can't lift no more. There are exhaustion principles so that at the end of the workout, the bodybuilder is bench pressing 50 pounds for 10 reps when he can bench a 350 lb max. He is burnt totally out. He will only do his chest next week.

We boxers CAN'T do that. We need to be fresh to practice our skills in the ring. Weightlifting is supposed to aid our "game" (for lack of better word) not harm it. So at the end of our workouts (NO failure, NO burnout) we can use active restoration so that we are 100% next day ready to spar, work the bags, pads, etc.

I have touched on active restoration but here are two good links:
http://www.athleticscoaching.ca/User...20Stronger.pdf

http://www.athleticscoaching.ca/User...20Capacity.pdf

Now when to hit the weights is another matter. And that really depends on your schedule; just don't do it before skill training, EVER!