Heya, are there any drills I can (solo) to improve my bobbing n weaving as well as instinctual blocks/counters? I'm thinking along the lines of anything boxing/kickboxing related - I got fairly owned today in sparring. Any tips and assistance would be appreciated, for real. Thanks ;)

Wrong forum. Post it in strikestan.

Yeah, soon a mod will move this, hopefully.

But to answer your post, we did drills with strikes, ducking, then hook upper cuts and it seemed to help. It is good to have a coach who knows how to drill with pads, but if not just putting together combos and shadow boxing will help you get flowing movements better.

move your head after every punch if you can. thats what i try to do, would work better if i wasnt a dorky white guy and had some rhythm but thems the breaks.

the way you move is going to be very different in kickboxing than it is in boxing unless you are doing ***** ass american rules kickboxing. weaving is generally a no no in kickboxing and you want to keep your slipping a bit more straight up so you dont slip into a kick or knee

ever since we installed a sound system in our gym my skipping has improved so much. not often a white boy gets to shake his tail feather but i can hide my goofy two steps with my skipping. its ace!

The most important thing is just to do more sparring. Drill on focus pads with someone swinging hooks, by all means, but you risk getting into a rythm or pre-empting the attack cause you know its comming. The most important thing is just to spar.

Spar at low intensity first, at about 70% speed, and gradually build up. And yeah, as was said previously, keep your head moving.

Also, a mistake I kept making and didnt realize for quite some time is that when you bob and weave, keep your eyes on your opponent the whole time.

Hope thats of some assistance, though there are many more qualified than me to offer help.

sorry about the wrong forum, I just went off the list on the left hand side of the screen.


But to answer your post, we did drills with strikes, ducking, then hook upper cuts and it seemed to help. It is good to have a coach who knows how to drill with pads, but if not just putting together combos and shadow boxing will help you get flowing movements better.

Aye, it seems to helps a bit - but unfortunately as another poster mentioned I pre-empted the hooks and strikes. I'd force myself to wait until he actually swung, but even then it felt a little easy. Doing more of these would definitely help though, I've only drilled bob/weaves in my combo pad drills 6 or 7 times thus far.


the way you move is going to be very different in kickboxing than it is in boxing unless you are doing ***** ass american rules kickboxing. weaving is generally a no no in kickboxing and you want to keep your slipping a bit more straight up so you dont slip into a kick or knee

good point - I'm not training for a particular event yet, but generally speakin I'm lookin to train MMA rules - or, as few as possible if that makes sense.


Put some good tunes in the mp3 player and get in the mirror. Do a little bit of Paula Abdul for your front to backl, a little Talking Heads for side to side, and some James Brown mixed in there for the up and down. Yup. And what Alex said. Move your noggin after, and I try to do it before and during too. Music really helps.

I like that ;)


Also, a mistake I kept making and didnt realize for quite some time is that when you bob and weave, keep your eyes on your opponent the whole time.

What part of your opponent do you keep your eyes on? I've been told to look at the chest, or to "look past" the opponent.

gracias, and much appreciated :)

Wrong forum. Post it in strikestan.

Don't encourage him to make another post, we'll move it shortly.
And the Report button actually works.

I can only comment on boxing aspects of this, talk to Alex, Kidspatula, or Annatrocity for kickboxing training. There are other good kickboxers on this forum, but those three are generally the most friendly.

If you're solo and have some empty space, take your handwraps and find a location where you can tie them off on both ends. Then, tie them off on both ends and velcro them together in the middle, trying to keep the wraps even just below shoulder level. It'll sag in the middle, but work with it. You can tie off whatever you want for this drill so long as you can see it.

Now, practice weaving underneath it while throwing a punch to the body the direction your body momentum is going. E.g. if are moving to the left, throw the rear uppercut. Going to the right, throw the left hook. This will help you when you are infighting. When weaving, try to keep your body erect. In boxing, you can lean forward at the waist, but I discourage this because it makes it harder to see incoming punches and it generally diminishes the force of your counterpunches.

As a tip, you actually don't want to completely clear the wraps, you want the bottom of your head to lightly skim the top of the rope when rope. The tigher you are when weaving or slipping, the less distance you have to travel to counterpunch. If you drop too low, you won't be able to land a counterpunch before the person defends.

As mentioned by other posters, practice moving your head in any drill you do. If your punching the bag, don't 'pose' on it. Keep moving your head. If you have a friend who will drill with you, tell him to practice only throwing jabs at you while you move your head out of the way. Don't punch him back, just work your defense. Don't get into a rhythm, break it up and make sure you see the punches coming at you.

You can also purchase a slip bag/maize bag to practice solo, along with double-end bag drills. Again, slip the attacks as closely as possible.

As for where to look, people vary on where they like looking. General concensus says that looking at the chest/shoulder region is best. You can look at the eyes of the opponent or the hands, but if you do, you are very likely to get feinted and drawn into punches.

Along the lines of sparring drills (don't want to hijack the thread but I figure my question might fit here). Are there any drills that will help one to close distance effectively and quickly. While sparring I tend to double or triple up on my jabs and step in behind them. This has had some mixed results as I've gotten tagged a number of times when I'm about to start throwing a hook. Of course I understand that I'm going to get hit but there have to be a number of ways to move in besides just jabs and feints (only I can't think of any). Any help would be appreciated.

phuquedup,

I watch the center of the chest just below the chin.

If other fighters you train with move their heads more and better than you, then watching their eyes will give you alot of false signals. Every jerk of the head is not worth chasing after or running from.

Likewise, the hands. You take krav maga, so I hope nobody is waving little blue and red flags everytime you touch each other. Don't hang out all day eating them, but punches thrown with just the arms aren't worth worrying about overly.

A real punch, kick, elbow or knee, hell even a good head butt, and definately a shoot is going have some torso behind it. So watch the torso for a better signal to noise ratio.

As you you get more experienced, calmer, cooler, your tunnel vision will widen and you'll see more, so you'll catch eyes, hands, etc. in your peripheral vision.

Also you can start to catch breathing cues watching the chest.

I'm a noob to, so I hope I don't get slammed. I take krav to so I just wanted to give you my 2 cents. check my input with your instructor, I'm willing to bet we're with different associations. If you're willing to believe me over him; it's time to shop for a new school.

If you're solo and have some empty space, take your handwraps and find a location where you can tie them off on both ends. Then, tie them off on both ends and velcro them together in the middle, trying to keep the wraps even just below shoulder level. It'll sag in the middle, but work with it. You can tie off whatever you want for this drill so long as you can see it.



As a tip, you actually don't want to completely clear the wraps, you want the bottom of your head to lightly skim the top of the rope when rope. The tigher you are when weaving or slipping, the less distance you have to travel to counterpunch. If you drop too low, you won't be able to land a counterpunch before the person defends.

NoMan,
thanks amigo, I really like that drill. My head motion has been getting a little better since I made the first post and I'm a lil looser in the flow. Definitely going to incorporate the tied off line in my shadowboxing.

Also thinking of investing in a double end bag. Was originally aiming for one of those training bags with human shape, but I think a double end might be more beneficial in terms of my biggest weakness.


Likewise, the hands. You take krav maga, so I hope nobody is waving little blue and red flags everytime you touch each other. Don't hang out all day eating them, but punches thrown with just the arms aren't worth worrying about overly.

hehe, nah we spar. I haven't sparred 'full' contact yet, and to be honest my head gets whipped back enough in 50-70% contact, so I don't think I'm loosing out by not goin all out.


A real punch, kick, elbow or knee, hell even a good head butt, and definately a shoot is going have some torso behind it. So watch the torso for a better signal to noise ratio.

Yeah, watching the torso without focusing intently on any particular point seems to work the best so far. I've also felt that I feel more comfortable once we incorporate kicks into the mix, probably has something to do with the distance.

No one mentioned the old school slip bag for solo work? http://store.titleboxing.com/everlast-slip-ball.html

any small heavy object on a rope would work too. decent DIY vid here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FdN-B2KweIc

what do you find the most effective - a traditional slip bag or a double end?
is it mostly a matter of personal taste? Far as I can tell they're designed for more or less the same purpose.

PirateJon - thats a nice video, thanks.

what do you find the most effective - a traditional slip bag or a double end?
is it mostly a matter of personal taste? Far as I can tell they're designed for more or less the same purpose.

PirateJon - thats a nice video, thanks.

The other name for a slip bag is a maize bag, I did mention it.


You can also purchase a slip bag/maize bag to practice solo, along with double-end bag drills. Again, slip the attacks as closely as possible.

Which is better is kinda a hard question to answer. I use the maize bag whenever I need a break for a round to regain my breath. Slipping a maize bag isn't too strenuous. It's a hell of a lot cheaper than getting a good double-end bag as well. If you're home setting up a double-end bag, you'll need a mount for the ceiling and floor, in addition to the bag itself.

The bag that I like best for slipping is this one:

http://www.ringside.com/DETAIL.ASPX?ID=25130

Here's the deal on this:

1.) This type of bag is very strong and will require bag gloves to hit. The bladder, (bag inside that holds air), is not likely to get popped. Of course, this is a problem you'll run into more with a speed bag than a double-end bag, but bladder replacement is not fun.

2.) It's heavier and is more of a workout than the regular ones:

http://www.ringside.com/DETAIL.ASPX?ID=25058

3.) It really hurts if you get nailed in the face by this.

Don't get the small ones if you're planning on working on slipping, you won't be able to hit them enough to get much going.

Additionally, the reason I like the double-end bag is that it's easier to adjust drills when doing solo work. E.g. if you are getting to good at it, stand closer to the bag when hitting it. With a slip bag, you have to close your eyes and hold the bag and let it loose. You'll anticipate it. So, if you are saving money and aren't sure about the distance to slip, get the maize bag. If you have more money and space, and understand your distance pretty well, get the double-end bag.

Coach's notes: Take your hands with you when you move the head, don't punch the bag without using correct form, (many people go to crap when they punch double-end bags), vary your punch speed to keep the slips from becoming something you're just doing without watching the bag.

I know this sounds stupid, but check out the Taekwondo Pad drills, and footwork drills, they do alot for agility, and being light on your feet, just be sure to keep your hands up.
Try this site http://www.coachhanlee.com/