The Boxing Gym is the workshop of the fighter. The boxing gym is the crucible of creativity, discipline, strength, skill and toughness.
I have created this video and article in response to a number of requests I’ve had over the years, requests to go into a little detail about the gym in which I coach.
This gym is a boxing gym. It’s not a general purpose gym, it is specifically designed to be the right environment to develop fighters.
It is my hope that you might be able to identify some elements here that you could maybe use in your home gym, or apply in the gym that you attend or run or even just to satisfy your curiosity 🙂
Here is the video and as always your comments and questions are most welcome below.
Cheers
Fran
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Hi Fran,
Thanks for all your videos. I have a space about 9′ by 9′ which I wanted to utilise for boxing home training. There is a wall (mirrors), and I have laid an Oak floor.
I am trying to decide upon what the most important bits of kit to have (as space is limited) e.g. should I go heavy bag or maize bag or double ended bag (or a combination of two of these). My next question is what type of heavy bag (curved / straight) and what type of double ended (single / Mexican)
Thanks
Robert
Thanks Robert.
Sounds like you have the makings of a cool space.
For me it would be an angled (curved) heavy bag and the double end bag. I would go with the single double end bag simply because I’ve no experience of the double type. That mix would be great.
Hi Fran,
Many thanks for the advice
Robert
Hi Fran.
Your gym is almost identical to the gym that I go to.
Thanks for all for all your help.
Chris.
That’s great Chris. It’s my absolute pleasure, many thanks for your comment.
Hi, I go to Boxing Fitness classes in Northwich Cheshire, not far south of you. I’m aged 68, and inevitably not as fit as other members. Without expecting a miracle, do you have any hints on improving stamina? I’m okay with Weight Training, but I’m not so good at Sprints.
Hey Frank
Longer, slower runs are good for your aerobic fitness, shorter sprints are good for your recovery. Believe it or not long, fast walks are good and also mix up the rounds. A trick I use to build up stamina is to complete a 15 minute bag round at a stead pace (4×3 plus work through the 1 minute rests).
Hope this helps, keep giving those youngsters the run around!
Great, I’ve made a note of that. After keeping it up for 3 years I’m literally twice as fit as I was. Maybe two-thirds the stamina of the average club member now.
Great gym fran, great to see two rings up, what size groups do you usually have in there?, do you split your seniors and kids or do you all train together on the same nights and how often are you open? , ha ha lots of questions, hope you are well?
Hi Mate
I’m good as I hope are you. We have a ‘baby class’ (kids 8 to 10 who are not carded to box) for one hour. Then we have the class for all of the carded boxers of all ages and groups. We split them into age and weight groups for sparring activities only. We like the younguns to work around the older boxers to pick up tips and attitude.
Hope this answers your question?
yes mate , thanks
Check your in box Michael 🙂
Thanks Fran, like it all, excellent, could work out there ‘nae bother’. But my trick question would be, I see you have ‘wot a will call’ pulley weights on some of your apparatus. Do you actually use them for ‘punching from the shoulders’. Being an old timer I grew up using these things. Ie, punching out fast – jabs, crosses, straights, long upper cuts. Multi repetition, 7.5kg, 20 x 3, per movement, and free standing. This works the whole torso, trigger muscles, and balance. I am the only person I ever see doing this, these days. And I reckon I can punch pretty hard and fast. Cheers Opinion Fran, and may you have an amazin year. Alexander.
You have a great year to Alexander my friend.
Yes we do use the pulley for that purpose, occasionally. Hand weights are much more prevalent in their use.
Appreciate your contribution, thank you.
Good stuff, Coach. I’ve been thinking about getting a Century ‘Bob’ freestanding bag too. I may just do it now, for the reasons you stated.
Here’s a tip for filming with handheld smart phone cameras I learned from my wife — Turn the camera on the horizontal plane when filming and you will get a landscape picture as opposed to a portrait style pic as seen in the above vid.
Cheers.
Thanks Paul, and thank your lovely wife – I will apply that bit of learning next time 🙂
That looks like a really nice place to work Fran. I didn’t see any double end bags though or speedbags. Speedbags are supposed to be really good in dealing with the flinch reflex in boxers, any thoughts on this? Thanks
yes Bob. We have a double-end bag that we hang when we need it. Don’t leave it out because guys often don’t know how to use it and regularly snap the fixings. The speed ball is just too noisy – we’ve not had one for many years…like the relative peace and quiet 🙂
cheers Fran. Double-End Bags are great. When I first started using them the ball used to smack me in the head alot! Now, it doesn’t which must be some sort of proof as to how useful they are.
Thanks for the tour, Fran. The gym looks great. Don’t be too hard on yourself about the head!
Your array of bags got me thinking. I recently saw someone with a double-end bag oriented horizontally. Is there any specific benefit installing it that way?
Hey Jason
Thanks, the ‘head thing’ makes me feel accepted 🙂
Never thought about that horizontal ball thing. You would gain on uppercuts but lose on hooks. Also more difficult to actually ‘hang’ if you get me.
Thanks for the reply, Fran. I was taught to practise uppercuts up the band on the DE bag and that tends to keep them nice and vertical.
I found the vid in question – Gennady Golovkin hitting various bags from about 08:37: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p0yeU0ihp8A