Boxercise

As a sport Boxing can be brutal and bloody and many fighters over the years have died as the result of a freak punch, bones are broken and in the long term long after a boxer retires brain damage can occur due to the blows to the head the fighter has taken over the course of his career.

In my younger days I took up boxing and I loved every minute of my short time in the sport, you see I only ever had 2 fights and I lost them both, not because I was bad at the sport but because I have a nose that if you hit it with a feather it would break, both my fights were stopped due to this problem and I was advised by a doctor not to fight again.

Although I couldn't fight I did stay at the gym for a while and trained every day, I was at the fittest level of my life, I had the six pack, the muscles and I could keep up with the best of them on the athletics track, boxing training increased my speed my stamina and my reflexes, At one point I could run 100 meters in under 12 seconds, I also learned how to control my weight.

I gave up too soon though even though I loved the training I became disheartened because I wasn't allowed to fight.

These days boxercise is all the rage and I can understand why, it is a fantastic way to take control of your body, the weight will fall off and it is physically challenging,

It combines use of both aerobic and anaerobic energy systems with the systematic recruitment of both fast and slow twitch muscle fibres in a manner that not only ensures a diverse workout, but also enhances sports specific senses, including hand-eye co-ordination, balance and timing.

Boxercise is also a great stress buster as you can release you aggression on the punch bags.

It is inexpensive and you don't need much in the way of equipment and the best thing about it is that even though you are doing the same exercises as a professional boxer you do not have to become a human punch bag.

You will need a pair of trainers, leggings or shorts and a light, loose top. If training in a boxing club, you may be tempted to invest in a pair of boxing shoes, Gloves, punchbags, weights, skipping ropes and other equipment are usually supplied at the gyms but if you wish to go it alone there are many DVD's and video's on the market to help you with your regime.