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In a fit of post-Christmas fitness, I've joined a gym (I'd been planning to anyway, but I'm lumping it in with New Year Self-Improvement so I've got an excuse when I give it up in February...)
Anyway, my local gym is an amateur boxing club - that just happens to do a regular fitness class. It's a lot more 'sweaty realism' than 'Well-lit, mirrored boxercise to high tempo tunes'. There's one CD on constant replay and it's run by an ex-boxer.
Anyway, there's a mix of aerobic exercise (running, floor stuff etc) and punchbag stuff, with occasional light sparring. There's a selection of quite grungy old boxing/bag gloves to borrow, but many are splitting, or worn, or just plain gross 🙂 There are proper gloves to borrow, but I'm after whatever's going to be best for a bit of hitting bags and stuff.
I'd like to get some gloves to take along and use, but being a complete noob, I don't want to be the boxing equivalent of a first time mountain biker on a £50 supermarket bike in the Peaks, or on a £4K bike in the Peaslake car park.
Anyone have any suggestions? There seems to be a large price range, along with many weights, quality and so on...
Depends, are you wanting to be a big hitter?
I have these ones for bag work:
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...means I can also poke people in the eye.
these might be a bid advanced for you...
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Those are definitely my colour, brakes 😉
May I suggest asking the question on Boxingtrackworld? FYI Chipps, this is a bike forum....
😉
Reading the thread title, I thought the OP had been caught perusing the pr0n... 😆
Reading the thread title, I thought the OP had been caught perusing the pr0n...
How?
But Kryton, we know that all the people on Boxingtrackworld come here anyway when they want some real advice. 🙂
Although one sensible answer in ten is probably to be expected...
Ask the ex-boxer who runs the place. You won't be the first keen beginner he's had turn up and he'll know what suits. He'll also advise you on hand wraps and how to do them!
You want proper sparring/training gloves by a proper brand like Grant or Rival, stay away from Everlast they are toy garbage, and yep don't forget wraps. How big you are/how much you weigh will dictate what weight gloves to go for but unless you're sparrowweight 16oz will suit most.
If you are only hitting the bag the ones Jamie has are fine, if you are going to get in the ring, you will need more padding, get some advice in the gym......
And watch out for that tall blonde girl from Morrisons.
She's well hard............. 🙂
If you are only hitting the bag the ones Jamie has are fine, if you are going to get in the ring, you will need more padding, get some advice in the gym.....
I disagree, for the sake of the person you're hitting you need good padding, but for the sake of your hands when hitting a hard heavy bag you also want as good padding as possible, so get one pair of gloves perfect for everything. If the coach is any good he wouldn't let you spar with inadequately padded gloves.
As Markie said
Speak with Cass (owner)
He will sort you out
14 or 16 oz gloves, leather, Velcro fastening for quick changes...job done.
Bags, pads and sparring
Double post...
Am in the market for some new gloves aswell, are the bags heavy? I've got a heavy bag hanging in the garage full of old clothes. Having to look at better gloves to stop knukles acheing (yes i have wraps on). If its light most glove should be fine. Like above ask the ex boxer running the class. Better than a load of keyboard warriors, myself included.
Oh, and wear wraps.
If you are only hitting the bag the ones Jamie has are fine, if you are going to get in the ring, you will need more padding, get some advice in the gym
THIS
if it hurts your knuckles punching a bag wearing gloves never ever hit anyone without gloves
If it is proper boxing for an hour then I have no idea as I do martial arts rather than just punching for hours.
If it is a few mins out of 20 mins then the above are fine
Try also hitting wood to toughen your hands - Probably not just yet for that one 😉
Nice big Hitter joke Drac
Just make sure you take the cowboy hat off before you put the gloves on, you ain't Micky Rourke 😉
Try also hitting wood to toughen your hands - Probably not just yet for that one
Don't hit wood...it's boxing not Rex Kwon Do. 😛
Easy. Good wraps first and foremost, and learn to wrap your hands properly. Then get some lonsdale gloves from sports direct for £10 or so, 12oz if you're normal 14 if you've big hands 16 if you're bigfoot.
These gloves will be cheap and nasty, you wont care about them, but you'll learn what you like and they will be perfectly adequate. Boxing clubs (IME) are the complete opposite of mountain biking, the more gear you have the less respect you get. Decent kit is for fights only.
Most of the "good" boxers I trained with had cheap, crap, falling apart gloves for bag work and sparring, tatty trackies, old, holey t-shirt and maybe a hoody whilst warming up. For fights it was nice kit and leather gloves with laces.
if you're just hitting a bag/sparring then cheap gloves are fine. If in doubt, get what everybody else has!
I knew there'd be some experts in there somewhere. Oh and a star for Drac's big hitter joke too 😉
Cheers all.
Don't forget to chase chickens and do a lot of running up and down steps outside....
I started with a pair of £20 Lonsdale gloves just because the club gloves were well minging! At least now it's my own minging, recently got some Twins gloves, leather and come in nice colours were about £56, won't ever need anything better, using 14oz
PJ
Don't ask here, ask someone in the boxing club. They'll point you in the right direction and you might get a discount buying through your club, even if its just training gloves.
Lonsdale T4 gloves are my choice.
As said before, get proper wraps. I ****ed both wrists during a sparring session when I'd forgot them!!
leather 14lbs ones,no cheap crappy plastic ones
think Sugar ray is good or here http://www.boxinggloves.co.uk/
[i]leather 14lbs[/i]
14lbs ??
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😀 😉
So let me get this absolutely clear:
The editor of the UKs most repected Mountain Biking magazine (thought i'd get a bit of fawning in early, just in case you don't like me for the next bit....) is having to join a gym to "get fit" WTF! Seriously? Er, have you considered, you know, maybe just riding a bike a bit more?? 😉
Have you heard of cross training?
Just bagwork or sparing also?
As mentioned above I'd go for cheap £20 jobs 14/16oz, the heavier they are the better the workout 🙂
steveoath - MemberAs said before, get proper wraps. I ****ed both wrists during a sparring session when I'd forgot them!!
Nothing to do with wraps. Everything to do with your punching technique if you really did injure both wrists whilst sparring.
Only time I have seem somebody injure their wrist whilst punching is by wildly slapping the heavy bag ... and I mean full on Freddie Flintoff slapping style 😳
Wraps keep the hands tight, usually stop a little skin being grazed by the new guy hitting the bag wrong ... they not really designed to help the limp wristed types from injuring their weak little wrists.
Gloves though.
If its circuit training with bags involved. Then the lonsdale fingerless mitts are good because they can quickly be taken off to grab weights without the potch of having to unwrap anything.
For sparring - Pro Box do good nice fitting gloves.
Bag work - I prefered lonsdale gloves. The padding stays on the knuckle longer than most.
Chipps, please please please can i be your sparring partner? 😀
Let me know your gym, will travel. (I'll bring my nice soft 16oz gloves).
Sorry to revive this but... Chipps, how did you get on at the boxing club? I'm looking into joining my local one - which is very much an "old pros, sweat on the floor" type place - and want to be sure of what I'm getting into and if I'll actually get on with it