Boxing is undoubtedly a popular sport and can be a lucrative career path for a small percentage of people.
It’s also quite fun and exciting to watch. These days, we get to enjoy incredible fighters like Canelo Alvarez, Gennady Golovkin, Anthony Joshua, and Tyson Fury bless the ring with their presence.
But what about self-defense? If you’re interested in signing up for boxing to improve your self-defense abilities, would it help you? Let’s find out.
Boxing For Self-Defense?
At first glance, boxing might seem like one of the simplest martial arts out there:
Land punches and avoid getting hit.
This certainly makes up a big part of boxing, but the art is much more nuanced than most people imagine. You have to master footwork, learn how to maintain distance, know when to attack, and more. You also need to become a master of blocking and avoiding punches, learning how to get out of a tight spot, and, of course, land effective strikes.
All of this takes years to understand and master. The difference between a good boxer and a great one is often night and day.
The great news is, all of this means that boxing is a fantastic sport for teaching practical self-defense. Thanks to the variety of defensive and offensive maneuvers, footwork tricks, strikes, and combinations, proficient boxers will always have a chance to defend themselves.
And the best part? You don’t need to be a professional boxer to learn effective self-defense. So long as you know the basics, you will do great.
Three Reasons Why Boxing Is Good For Self-Defense
1. You learn how to throw a variety of strikes
The four primary strikes in boxing are your jab, cross, hook, and uppercut. Each has its unique benefits, and boxing teaches you when and how to use them as best as you can. For instance, one situation might call for jabs, where another might call for a powerful hook. Boxing teaches you how to read a situation, keep the opponent at arm’s length, and know when to close the distance and deliver a powerful strike.
2. You learn good self-defense
First, boxing teaches you how to protect your body as you throw a strike. For instance, as you throw a jab, your shoulder goes up to protect your chin, while your free hand is up to guard your face. This is true for every type of punch you would throw.
Second, boxing teaches you how to slip effectively, parry, and block punches. Some of the most elusive boxers can dodge several punches in a row. Prime examples are Floyd Mayweather and Canelo Alvarez.
3. You’re more confident
Repeated exposure to something builds skill and melts anxiety. The more you write, the more confident you become. The more you work a specific job, the less anxious you feel. The more you do public speaking, the less nervous you are to go in front of a crowd.
The same applies to boxing. The more you expose yourself to it, the more confident you become - fighting becomes second nature. Worries and anxieties make way for calmness. You feel more in control of a situation, you don’t make rash decisions, and you get to make better decisions.
Of course, this isn’t to say that you become cocky and feel the need to pick fights. It only means that you’re better equipped to handle yourself, should you need to.
Conclusion
Self-defense is something we should all understand. It’s best never to need it, but we should always be prepared if we find ourselves in an unexpected situation.
If you’re interested in taking the first steps to practical self-defense, come down to Dream Martial Arts and Fitness in Santa Clarita for your first lesson.
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