Skip to main content

Should You Train with Focus Mitts?

I recently spoke with a long-time boxing trainer and former pro who told me he never uses mitts when he trains boxers.  He said his trainer never used them to train him.  I use mitts a lot.  This trainer gave me some serious food for thought.  He said the problem is that you tend to create a routine when you use the mitts.  The boxer gets accustomed to reacting a certain way to certain punches.  Of course, in the ring, there is no set routine.  You have to adapt to whatever your opponent is doing.

The best boxer of all-time Sugar Ray Robinson never used mitts.  I never saw Angelo Dundee use then with Muhammad Ali.  Obviously, you can become a great fighter without training with focus mitts.

All of my boxers know when I throw a jab and lead hook they are supposed to catch the jab and bob and weave under the hook and then throw a 2-3-2-1-1-1.  This looks great for their Instagram … but when I think about it … it is a pre-arranged routine … like a martial arts kata or form.  I am going to continue to use the mitts when I train fighters.  However, in the future, I will make sure to mix it up more when I use the mitts and not overly rely on set routines.  Like Bruce Lee famously said, "Be water my friend."   




Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Grandmaster Ulysses "Pop" Winn Jr

My first martial arts instructor Grandmaster Ulysses "Pop" Winn passed away on May 9, 2024. He was a 10th degree black belt in Nisei Goju Ryu. Thank you Sensei for being a mentor and positive role model to me when I was growing up. Until we meet again in heaven.

The Day I Became A Ronin

  Miyamoto Mushashi In feudal Japan, there were two types of warriors: Samurai and Ronin.  Samurai were loyal to a particular Master, while Ronin answered to no one.  One of the most famous Ronin in history was Miyamoto Mushashi who lived in the 16th and 17th centuries.  He wrote the masterpiece of swordsmanship known as the "Book of Five Rings." In more recent times, Bruce Lee could be considered a Ronin.  He famously broke from the teachings of his Master Yip Man to create his own unique martial art of Jeet Kune Do.  His conversion from Samurai to Ronin was prompted by his difficulty in winning a fight against fellow martial artist Wong Jack Man. Lee discovered that sticking dogmatically to the Wing Chun techniques taught by his Master limited his growth as a martial artist.   I had a similar epiphany.  One day I attended a martial arts class and I was asked by my instructor to demonstrate effective defenses against a straight right or cros...

What is Filipino Boxing?

Filipino Boxing means different things to different people.  For example, some consider Filipino Boxing as strictly a striking art, while others include grappling in their expression of the art.  The art also goes by many names.  It is also referred to as Dirty Boxing, Panantukan, Suntukan, Pangamot, etc.  At its essence, Filipino Boxing is an empty-hand self-defense system whose techniques are derived from the use of weapons, such as sticks and knives, in Filipino Martial Arts ("FMA"). My understanding of Filipino Boxing comes primarily from training under numerous well-regarded FMA instructors.  I have also gained an appreciation of the art from spending countless hours studying books and videos on the discipline.  I have also been fortunate to be able to experiment and explore the use of Filipino Boxing techniques with my training partners and students. My personal expression of Filipino Boxing is a combination of traditional Western Boxing, limb des...