The Advantages of Boxing over Street Fighting?

I can tell you that learning boxing has helped me alot with confidence. I started at 24, its never too late. Just keep in mind the average person doesn't train in some sort of combat art so you will have an advantage.

Just came back from the gym. I start thursday. :boxing:

I really appreciate all the responses. Helped out tremendously. I'll probably start off boxing, and from there move onto a martial arts, and so forth and so on.

Everybody will recommend the Martial Art that they've studied, as most all martial arts will have something useful to teach you. That being said, I think you should join a boxing gym for the following reasons: 1. You said you liked Boxing. Chances are you'll work harder in your training if you respect it from the get-go 2. You're young. Martial Arts that place an emphasis on striking require great amounts of energy. A young man's body can adapt to this more easily. 18 years old at 145lbs, sounds like you're in shape. 3. Boxing has a strong Emphasis on sparring. A lot of martial arts will drill in repetitive single, or two-man sets that are mostly unrealistic. In sparring, any situation can arise within the limits of the sport (in this case, most anything with a fist). A swimmer doesn't prepare by practicing on land. A swimmer swims, a fighter fights. Boxing understands this. Also... 4. ... You'll learn to take a hit and find that it's not that scary. In sparring, you'll get him and you'll also dish it out. Over time, you'll see that being in a fight and getting hit is not that big of a deal. You'll definitely feel as though you're in control of the situation, however chaotic it can seem. One thing you have to keep in mind though. Boxing requires a lot of WORK!!! You're young though. You have all the time in the world. Believe that. Other arts that have a similar philosophy that I would easily recommend: Muay-Thai Savate Jeet Kune Do (Jun-Fan Kickboxing)

I've always been a fan of boxing, and though I've sorely wanted to, I've never had the opportunity to train in the disciplines of boxing. I grew up in Kansas City, MO, one of the worst cities in the nation in terms of recorded violent crimes. As such, I stayed in areas plagued with violence, whether it be gang or otherwise. Though I've never been "weak", or a "bitch", I've never learned how to properly defend myself. With that said, I'm now 18, and I've since commuted to Dallas. I'm an African American male, about 5'7, 145 lbs. I've found a local gym, and I'm interested in taking classes. My question is, are taking classes actually worth it? Will learning the art of boxing be an effective way of not only getting in shape, but teaching me how to properly defend myself? Also, am I too old to get into boxing now, and or should I pursue another discipline, along the lines of a martial art? And as the title says, what are the advantages of knowing how to box when in a street fight. Any feedback would be appreciated. Here's a link to the gym. http://www.barneyandmegym.com/ Jiu jitsu and Aikido to me are the most realistic forms of training for street fights if you are looking for self defense tactics. I've trained with these styles for 16 years. I'm 32, but I have never had to use it. But the training methods test you against realistic unorthodox street attacks.

Lol you been snapping peoples necks Shady? No, i've actually never trained in jiu-jitsu. I just have the common sense to know the difference between what's projected on the media, and reality. Jiu-jitsu as a form of self defense, contrary to popular opinion. does not come anywhere close to homo dry humping like projected in the media and through sports. Tae kwon do(the most kick reliant martial art in the world) in its purest form does not come anywhere close to the high flying, ineffective, acrobatic bullshit they project for themselves in order to draw little kids into classes. Boxing, contrary to popular belief in nsb is almost like being in a completely different world without gloves or handwraps on, and your own athletic ability to draw punching power actually works against you on the streets because while you're more likely to knock a single opponent out cold completely, you're more likely to break your hand or wrist from your own punching power. Now if you're a boxer and you rely solely on your hands....in a brawl with multiple people.....you'd be screwed once you've injured your hand or wrist.

First to clarify, this isn't what i said, this is something a 3rd degree black belt had said to me during a conversation we had. When he first said this to me, i had a very similar reaction as you did, but then i realised what he was trying to say. He won't fight someone unless its a life or death situation, and if its a life or death situation he's going to use his gun. Was he Asian?

WOW youd rather use your gun rather that have a fight? bit extreem dont you think? You must really like jail food! First to clarify, this isn't what i said, this is something a 3rd degree black belt had said to me during a conversation we had. When he first said this to me, i had a very similar reaction as you did, but then i realised what he was trying to say. He won't fight someone unless its a life or death situation, and if its a life or death situation he's going to use his gun.

And to all the meatheads who think jiu-jitsu would be ineffective in a streetfight because you would get kicked in the face while trying to hug it out on concrete is an idiot. I hope you all have enough common sense to know that he jiu-jitsu seen in mma is modified for sport and fair play. Jiu-jitsu as a form of self defense has been around and been proven effective for thousands of years through countless wars and battles. It will not have you rolling around on the ground or trying to tap anyone out at all. Jiu jitsu in it's purest form is meant to disarm an attacker from his weapon then break his limbs or snap his neck so that you can rejoin your army with as little time and energy consumed as possible. it's not meant to hug someone until they tap out. Lol you been snapping peoples necks Shady?

And to all the meatheads who think jiu-jitsu would be ineffective in a streetfight because you would get kicked in the face while trying to hug it out on concrete is an idiot. I hope you all have enough common sense to know that he jiu-jitsu seen in mma is modified for sport and fair play. Jiu-jitsu as a form of self defense has been around and been proven effective for thousands of years through countless wars and battles. It will not have you rolling around on the ground or trying to tap anyone out at all. Jiu jitsu in it's purest form is meant to disarm an attacker from his weapon then break his limbs or snap his neck so that you can rejoin your army with as little time and energy consumed as possible. it's not meant to hug someone until they tap out.

Speaking from a lot of experience I would like to add my two cents. If you really break it down, these are the facts as I see them of street fighting. A street fight will rarely last more than a two minutes 90% of people will gas within the first minute Most people throw haymakers, wide looping hooks High kick do not work in fights unless you are a highly skilled muay tai fighter, it just doesn’t happen Most people will throw one or maybe two punches at a time Most people can only throw a punch with one hand Most people do not consider defence when fighting therefore are vulnerable to punches Most people have never been hit, therefore have very little punch resistance Many guys will try to hockey fight, grab your shirt with one hand and swing with the other. You should always stay on your feet, never bend over or go down to the ground to strike an opponent your putting yourself at a disadvantage. Most people are afraid of fighting Most people that do not know how to punch will be off balance and fall down rather easily Advantages boxing will give you. Your fighting endurance will be much greater therefore you will be able to fight for longer You will be able to throw straight powerful punches in between your opponents haymaker hooks Your hands will be high, therefore making your defence much better than your opponent Your punch resistance will be much greater from sparring all the time Time will slow down and you will be able to react and counter to your opponents moves Your backwards and forwards movements will give you the agility to keep punching while moving You can quickly strike and knock down an opponent moving onto the next one if necessary because you will throw punches in bunches You will throw combo’s therefore confusing your opponent and striking with greater accuracy If an opponent grabs your shirt he will only have one hand to throw with and you will not grab his shirt and throw with both hands (do the math) You can punch equally hard and good with both hands Your anticipation of your opponents moves is much higher You can control your emotions and everything becomes instinctual like in sparing You will be physically strong You will have excellent balance You can take on big or small guys I think the videos posted above provide proof for my points. Look at the last video, the attacker’s keep coming forward, the boxer using his movement is backing up and countering, knocking down one guy at time, and ends up taking out five guys, those guys were so tired and off balance they kept falling on their own in some cases. So in my opinion if you want to be able handle yourself on the street in realistic situations, boxing is hands down the best art form you can learn. And always remember, if it’s about to go down and you think your opponent might throw a shot, then be first to the punch, don’t even give the other guy a chance to land the lucky shot. Thanks for the input, all of this truly is enlightening. Btw, are their any more videos around? That stuff was hilarious.

Speaking from a lot of experience I would like to add my two cents. If you really break it down, these are the facts as I see them of street fighting. A street fight will rarely last more than a two minutes 90% of people will gas within the first minute Most people throw haymakers, wide looping hooks High kick do not work in fights unless you are a highly skilled muay tai fighter, it just doesn’t happen Most people will throw one or maybe two punches at a time Most people can only throw a punch with one hand Most people do not consider defence when fighting therefore are vulnerable to punches Most people have never been hit, therefore have very little punch resistance Many guys will try to hockey fight, grab your shirt with one hand and swing with the other. You should always stay on your feet, never bend over or go down to the ground to strike an opponent your putting yourself at a disadvantage. Most people are afraid of fighting Most people that do not know how to punch will be off balance and fall down rather easily Advantages boxing will give you. Your fighting endurance will be much greater therefore you will be able to fight for longer You will be able to throw straight powerful punches in between your opponents haymaker hooks Your hands will be high, therefore making your defence much better than your opponent Your punch resistance will be much greater from sparring all the time Time will slow down and you will be able to react and counter to your opponents moves Your backwards and forwards movements will give you the agility to keep punching while moving You can quickly strike and knock down an opponent moving onto the next one if necessary because you will throw punches in bunches You will throw combo’s therefore confusing your opponent and striking with greater accuracy If an opponent grabs your shirt he will only have one hand to throw with and you will not grab his shirt and throw with both hands (do the math) You can punch equally hard and good with both hands Your anticipation of your opponents moves is much higher You can control your emotions and everything becomes instinctual like in sparing You will be physically strong You will have excellent balance You can take on big or small guys I think the videos posted above provide proof for my points. Look at the last video, the attacker’s keep coming forward, the boxer using his movement is backing up and countering, knocking down one guy at time, and ends up taking out five guys, those guys were so tired and off balance they kept falling on their own in some cases. So in my opinion if you want to be able handle yourself on the street in realistic situations, boxing is hands down the best art form you can learn. And always remember, if it’s about to go down and you think your opponent might throw a shot, then be first to the punch, don’t even give the other guy a chance to land the lucky shot.

I'll have to disagree with this post. While I respect your opinion, I've been around guns enough to know that they have no place in any confrontation. I've seen too many people die because of them. Anyhow, how does one make time for Karate, Judo, Wrestling, and boxing? one at a time buddy. one at a time. i boxed as a kid growing up, wrestled and did martial arts for most of my teenage years and now im back to boxing and wrestling.

You should take up boxing if you love boxing. It will get u in tremendous shape, and will definitely help at defending yourself. I think it's the most effective thing in a street fight. Taking a guy to the ground is pretty lol to me. You would be rolling on concrete or cement, so even if you were up against a jiu jitsu guy, his first instinct would probably be to throw down first as well. And we all know it only takes one good shot. But honestly, do boxing because you love it, then you will really get the most out of it. Boxing is not streetfighting, it is a science and an art.

Any mechanism of self defence is going to be good in a situation where you're against someone without the proper discipline. Karate, Boxing, Wrestling, Judo, are all better incorperated together, but seperately each one should supply you adaquite self defense. If you're in any sort of real danger, the "buy a gun" answer isn't entirely a bad idea, just make sure like any of the above forms of self defense you know when/how to use it. A karate instructor i met once said something very interesting to me once, "if a fight is serious enough that i need to fight, i'm going to use my gun. Nearly all fights are avoidable, often when i'm at the bar and someone finds out i'm a third degree black belt, they want to prove themselves against me, my responce is "I don't want to fight you, you're the champ, you'd kick my ass" and I walk away, if i'm going to fight, i'm going to use my gun, it has to be that bad of a situation for me to fight." I asked him why bother with martial arts then, 2 reasons, "To act rationaly in extreme situations, and in case i don't have my gun" I'll have to disagree with this post. While I respect your opinion, I've been around guns enough to know that they have no place in any confrontation. I've seen too many people die because of them. Anyhow, how does one make time for Karate, Judo, Wrestling, and boxing?

Any mechanism of self defence is going to be good in a situation where you're against someone without the proper discipline. Karate, Boxing, Wrestling, Judo, are all better incorperated together, but seperately each one should supply you adaquite self defense. If you're in any sort of real danger, the "buy a gun" answer isn't entirely a bad idea, just make sure like any of the above forms of self defense you know when/how to use it. A karate instructor i met once said something very interesting to me once, "if a fight is serious enough that i need to fight, i'm going to use my gun. Nearly all fights are avoidable, often when i'm at the bar and someone finds out i'm a third degree black belt, they want to prove themselves against me, my responce is "I don't want to fight you, you're the champ, you'd kick my ass" and I walk away, if i'm going to fight, i'm going to use my gun, it has to be that bad of a situation for me to fight." I asked him why bother with martial arts then, 2 reasons, "To act rationaly in extreme situations, and in case i don't have my gun" WOW youd rather use your gun rather that have a fight? bit extreem dont you think? You must really like jail food!

I really appreciate all of the responses. It's nice to have boxing discussions without all the mess some of the other discussions NSB are filled with. Ill second that for sure ;)

Any mechanism of self defence is going to be good in a situation where you're against someone without the proper discipline. Karate, Boxing, Wrestling, Judo, are all better incorperated together, but seperately each one should supply you adaquite self defense. If you're in any sort of real danger, the "buy a gun" answer isn't entirely a bad idea, just make sure like any of the above forms of self defense you know when/how to use it. A karate instructor i met once said something very interesting to me once, "if a fight is serious enough that i need to fight, i'm going to use my gun. Nearly all fights are avoidable, often when i'm at the bar and someone finds out i'm a third degree black belt, they want to prove themselves against me, my responce is "I don't want to fight you, you're the champ, you'd kick my ass" and I walk away, if i'm going to fight, i'm going to use my gun, it has to be that bad of a situation for me to fight." I asked him why bother with martial arts then, 2 reasons, "To act rationaly in extreme situations, and in case i don't have my gun"

benefits of boxing training= you become a better boxer benefits of training in street fighting= learning how to throw fireballs and jumping uppercuts as well as the ability to hover while kicking multiple times. advantage---> street fighting. I got a good laugh out of this post. Well played.

benefits of boxing training= you become a better boxer benefits of training in street fighting= learning how to throw fireballs and jumping uppercuts as well as the ability to hover while kicking multiple times. advantage---> street fighting.