The Sternum Shot

[Rhys79]

When I get hit flush right below the sturnum at the right moment I still get taken aback some. Is there any exercise recomended stricly for this area.?

[fraidycat]

When I get hit flush right below the sturnum at the right moment I still get taken aback some. Is there any exercise recomended stricly for this area.?

You have to learn to see that punch coming and get an elbow in front of it. Or better than that, sidestep. An uppercut to that area -- called the solar plexus -- is a fight-ender. Not much you can do; just don't get hit there.

[West24]

arch your shoulders and stay curved and you wont be able to get hit there as easily and if you do get hit in your solar plex it isnt as paintful as if you were up straight. when your curved it tightens the area up and it wont be as painful etc when hit there.

[fraidycat]

arch your shoulders and stay curved and you wont be able to get hit there as easily and if you do get hit in your solar plex it isnt as paintful as if you were up straight. when your curved it tightens the area up and it wont be as painful etc when hit there.

I am going to disagree with this. This will make a hit to the solar plexus easier to take, but if you get into this habit, a feint to the solar plexus will leave your head sticking out and someone will knock it right off your shoulders. Keep your weight on your back foot and get those elbows in there.

[Tassie_Boy]

I'm goin with fraidycat on this one, learn to get the elbows down there. My first fight i copped a rip right in the solar plexus it def made me slugish for the rest of that round.

[West24]

what are you talking about im not talking about staying in a bent over position. have you not seen many fighters do it, especially oscar. your shoulders are curved up and ur back slightly bent. you not only help to prevent the pain of the body punches, but you now give your opponent less area to hit and your elbows cover more space.

[fraidycat]

what are you talking about im not talking about staying in a bent over position. have you not seen many fighters do it, especially oscar. your shoulders are curved up and ur back slightly bent. you not only help to prevent the pain of the body punches, but you now give your opponent less area to hit and your elbows cover more space.

Oscar's reflexes are godlike. Further, I'm not talking about staying bent-over. Arching your back leans your head into the kill-zone. It puts you off-balance and shortens the gap, reducing the time you have to react. If you train yourself to react to a body shot by hunching up, a smart boxer will feint to the body and then knock your head through the far wall. This is a hundred times more true in the am's with headgear; your opponent's hook arcs out of your vision and it can change direction once it's out of sight. An elbow-fake that looks like a hook to the body but is actually a shovelhook to the head -- one of my favorite punches, BTW -- will leave you on your back with X's for eyes if you anticipate and lean in.

The guy in black in my avy is doing exactly what you're recommending. I'm the other guy, BTW.

What you're saying makes the punch hurt less, yes. But it is not, IMO, smart boxing. Individual results may vary but I stand by what I wrote. Maybe there's a way to make it work that I'm unaware of, but I wouldn't advise your solution, especially to a noob, because I wouldn't do it, myself.

[West24]

maybe your not understanding the way im explaining it or something because many fighters do it. im not talking about only when the shot comes, im talking about staying in that position the whole fight. shoulders slightly up bent forward and back slightly curved.

[fraidycat]

maybe your not understanding the way im explaining it or something because many fighters do it. im not talking about only when the shot comes, im talking about staying in that position the whole fight. shoulders slightly up bent forward and back slightly curved.

I guess I was misunderstanding you. However, I was taught to never box the way you're describing. My coach busted my ass for a year to get me out of curving my back; we train from the rear foot, power from the floor, back straight. Way easier to defend, change direction, and control the distance. You lose some of the power in the arms standing straight b/c you can't bring the delts and upper arms into play as much, but you learn to push off the floor and crack the whip at the end of the punch to make up for it.

We weave by bending the knees or bending at the waist, and slip by twisting the feet or tightening the obliques so that the body bends at the waist. But the hips stay square and the back stays straight. We never lean, ever. At least, we try not to. I've seen guys fighting in the stance you're describing and I figure they must really trust their reflexes.

[West24]

i dont always like yo fight in that style, but sometimes i think it is beneficial. i find it very good when your against the ropes. i think you really almost have to do it when against the ropes. do you not do it then either?