Is Boxing A Good Way To Train For Football?
In the last decade, fitness classes have boomed. The likes of Zumba, Pilates and Yoga have become crucial parts of a footballers training regime, and while they might be nicely named, it is still an old classic that can always be found in a training ground gym.
Boxing has been carried out in fitness centres for as long as they’ve been opened, and even though not all of us want to take big hits in the ring, the training that comes with this combat sport is a great way to kick you into shape for football.
So here we go, ding, ding!
Boxing Benefits
Fighting Fit
Wherever you look these days, celebs are showing off their flat stomachs and toned arms, telling us to keep fit and follow their fad diets. Doing your cardio is key for any football players fitness levels, but surely there’s something more fun than jumping on a treadmill on clocking up the miles on the pavements?
Of course, there is, and that’s where boxing can help. Cardio is all about working your heart and lungs so that they’re challenged enough to help make the physiological change that in time will help to increase your fitness.
Boxing is a great way of raising that heart rate during a workout. Everything from skipping, punching any maybe even kicking, are sure to give you the sweat-on you need to really help when it comes to cardiovascular health.
Pack A Punch
You’ve probably not thought of it like this before, but all that punching, hopping and skipping needs a serious amount of strength. A professional heavy bag can weigh over 100 pounds on its own.
Whatever boxing workout you might do, your upper body, lower body and even your core are all working as you punch into the mits or bag. That’s before you even throw in some of the other exercises you might complete in a boxing class, like squats, planks and push-ups.
Eye Of The Tiger
We’ve all heard the song on the famous boxing film ‘Rocky‘, but on a more serious note, boxing is a great way to improve your hand-eye coordination.
Motor skills help us to do everyday things, and people with a good hand-eye coordination tend to have faster reflexes and reaction times. Something which is particularly important for goalkeepers, but can be good for our general health when ageing eyes mean driving and other finer tasks become a lot more difficult than they use to be.
Boxing can help hone hand-eye coordination. Whether you’re working away on the bag or even punching into the mits, you must be able to see the target, react to the target, and hit the target, all while the target is moving and changing position. It’s tough, but with practice, your hand-eye coordination improves substantially.
Heavyweight Stress Buster
A footballers life has become increasingly busier with the demands of 21st-century life, and so do our stress levels, as they rocket through the roof from our hectic fixture schedules.
Exercise is a great way of relieving that, and nothing beats boxing for a good de-stress. For one, during a boxing workout, you tend to work to high-intensity levels with shorter rest sessions, which means you’re focused on recovering as quickly as possible and not about your day at work or how bad the commute home was today.
Secondly, there is something satisfying about taking your stress out on a punching bag, and seen as it has very little feelings, you can go ahead and hit it as hard as you like. Just don’t plan on knocking it out, the first rule of the punch bag is that it will always come back for more.
Boxing and Football Betting
As well as both boxing and football coming together in the training department, they also create just as much interest when it comes to betting on them, and if you are wondering how to bet on soccer, then here is a quick summary.
Online sports bookmakers mean you can now place your bet in seconds through their mobile website or app. With practically all the major European leagues covered, you can bet on a range of different markets such as match result, correct score and first goalscorer.
If your bet wins, you'll be paid out in cash, with the amount depending on the odds of your selection. For example, if you place a £10 bet on a 2/1 winner, you will win £20 plus your £10 stake.
