Sparring is soooo much more fun..........

[GrizzleBoy]

WHEN EVERYONE ISNT TRYING TO KILL EACH OTHER!!!!!

My gym only opened properly this september cos they relocated so ive got a lot of people on my level of experience to train and spar with since we started basically the same time.

Up until today the sparring has been terrible (on my part and the others) because of the big george forman, wide swinging, trying to cause brain damage punches we were throwing. This always lead to one person getting hit hard, then the other person retalliated harder and it all just went downhill from there every time.

That all changed today. Everyone (apart from one guy who proceeded to bust my lip *cries) was so calm and really focused on technique and it was so much better.

I actually felt like i was learning and so did everyone else. I really hope this kind of sparring continues because it was really so much fun.

I can definately say ive never enjoyed boxing so much till today.

Its like i have a big smiley face painted on my brain

...............or maybe i just got hit too much lol.

[floydfan]

In a month you will feel the complete opposite,light sparring is fun to learn but theres nothing better then simulating a real fight with someone in your weightclass and skill level.

[GrizzleBoy]

Dont get me wrong we were going at it hard enough just using our heads more intsead of making everything a messy brawl.

But one step at a time man. Hopefully when that time comes all the light sparring and technique work will keep everyone looking nicer and more professional instead of just winging punches trying to tear each other apart.

Isnt sparring supposed to be to learn though and not go all out in the first place?

[lyrical]

I think both types of sparring are important, Light sparring for getting comfortable with footwork, range etc then you need heavy sparring to prepare you for your fights. Otherwise you will be overwhelmed by the pressure in the opening round

[me2007]

the only bad thing about people waling away is when one fighter wants a skills based light spar and the other wants a full on 100% spar. Agree before hand and stick to it.

The sessions at my old gym used to spiral out of control. I`ve been wailed on a couple of times and been dazed. Mainly because the trainer said we should do a light spar and the ****er starts throwing haymakers from the off, plus he was 50lbs heavier.

[DA1CATAS]

I think both types of sparring are important, Light sparring for getting comfortable with footwork, range etc then you need heavy sparring to prepare you for your fights. Otherwise you will be overwhelmed by the pressure in the opening round

Good statement... But I like the crazy guys more often... or the skilled crazy guys... The pressure in the AM's should be the most pressure you ever feel. even if you go PRO.

your never gonna fight a pernell whitaker...which would actually be the only offset to my style... as of right now.

PRESSURE FROM ME:As a range finding stick if you were comparing yourself to me.


During shadow boxing I average 130+ punches.
Sparring I average 80-87 punches a round. (3 mins)
On PADS I average about 100 a round. (only keep that up 3-4 rounds though)

[DoctorKillJoy]

Good statement... But I like the crazy guys more often... or the skilled crazy guys... The pressure in the AM's should be the most pressure you ever feel. even if you go PRO.

your never gonna fight a pernell whitaker...which would actually be the only offset to my style... as of right now.

PRESSURE FROM ME:As a range finding stick if you were comparing yourself to me.


During shadow boxing I average 130+ punches.
Sparring I average 80-87 punches a round. (3 mins)
On PADS I average about 100 a round. (only keep that up 3-4 rounds though)

Do you have your trainer or someone keep count or do you estimate? I've been curious about tracking that but its hard to count without getting distracted.

[DA1CATAS]

Do you have your trainer or someone keep count or do you estimate? I've been curious about tracking that but its hard to count without getting distracted.

i record wit my camera....

Embarrassingly before i started counting i averaged about 50-60 punches in sparring....

Not enough punching.. way too much unneeded movement.

[GrizzleBoy]

the only bad thing about people waling away is when one fighter wants a skills based light spar and the other wants a full on 100% spar. Agree before hand and stick to it.

The sessions at my old gym used to spiral out of control. I`ve been wailed on a couple of times and been dazed. Mainly because the trainer said we should do a light spar and the ****er starts throwing haymakers from the off, plus he was 50lbs heavier.

The second paragraph of what you said is what im talking about.

Remember we've all practically just started so the coach tells us to just have a light spar but people just went out with big hooks trying to kill each other. Most of the time we just brawled without really thinking about what were doing in the ring which really isnt the right thing to do if youre just starting out i dont think.

If youre just thinking about how youre going to throw the next shot harder than the last one with no sense of boxing technique we might aswell have just put some sparring gear on in the street and gone at it till one of us was unconscious but that isnt what boxing is about.

The last sparring session we had we actually stopped to think about what we were doing and looked like boxers which is what the coach wanted to see from us. Actually using the techniques weve been learning for the past 2 months. We were still getting each other with big punches but they came from using boxing technique rather than just swinging and hoping.

I have no problem with heavy sparring but if technique flies out the window then whats the point?

(note to everyone my coach has difficutly with choosing the right words with regards to quan****** and levels of aggression (brain damage lol)

e.g few=100 therefore a few pressups = 100 pressups
light sparring = him hanging over the ropes shouting "FAKKIN 'IT IM YOO LAYZY ****TT" )

[rj_ct]

i think you should go hard in sparring. you're cheating yourself and the guy across the ring from you if you half-ass it.

that said, the point is not to give the guy a bloody nose or knock him out. you want to work on technique. even though i'm not going in there to hurt someone, i'm still trying to land good, hard shots. i'm just trying to put all the things i've learned from drills together during sparring. it's not about winning or losing, it's about practicing what you've learned.

like someone said, big punches are legit as long as they come from good technique.

what are your guys thoughts if you wobble someone in sparring? i back off all together, but that's not really simulating a fight. i'm thinking i should keep throwing light slaps just to not give the guy a break, but not to hurt him.