Powerlifters tend to avoid group fitness Powerlifting lessons from boxing class like the plague. This aversion may stem from a preference to steer clear of anything resembling cardio or the inherent solitary nature of powerlifting—a sport we often prefer to keep individual.

Rarely do powerlifters find themselves in a class setting. However, if you’ve ever joined a boxing class, you’ll quickly realize that the lessons learned in the ring can significantly contribute to increased power on the lifting platform.

Table of Contents:

• Why Boxing Class?
• High-Quality Form Before Intensity
• Better Stamina Means Better Performance
• Unlocking Your Ankles Is Key
• Keep Your Hands Up
• Transmit Force Through Your Core
• It’s Never Just Your Arms
• Breathe Through Your Body
• Overview
• References

Why Boxing Class? (Powerlifting lessons from boxing class)

It takes a certain kind of bravery to step onto a lifting platform, but it takes a whole different brand of courage to wrap up your hands and head into a boxing class. With Powerlifting lessons from boxing class, you know what to do and you know what to expect, and once you know your cues and have your form locked in, it’s pretty much all in your head.

In boxing class, though, you’ve got a lot more active variables: what the instructor is going to pick for you all to focus on that day, who else is in the class with you, even how you vibe with what kind of jams the instructor is going to blast. But despite — or maybe because of — their differences, a powerlifter can learn a whole lot from boxing class.

Training One: High-Quality Form Before Intensity

If you have an instructor or coach that’s worth their proverbial salt, they’re going to emphasize form with you before they even let you strap on your gloves and hit a darn thing. They’re going to make sure that your wrists are stable, your elbows are tucked, your shoulders are relaxed, and that all the power is coming from your lower body. They’ll do all that, again and again and again, until you get it right consistently.

This can be super frustrating, and I get it. It looks much cooler to suit up and start pounding away at your target (there really is nothing quite like the sound of a crisp punch landing on the bag). And sure, it looks much cooler to slap a couple plates on either side of the bar and sink down into a knee-caved half squat…oh, wait. It doesn’t.

Because we might feel cooler with more weight on the bar, but if boxing teaches us anything, it’s that proper form looks much cooler than what you think your sport should look like. You’ll get there, whether it’s boxing, lifting, or both. But for now, and for always, keep checking in with your body to make sure your form is on point. Your much-less-likely-to-get-injured body will thank you.

Training Two: Better Stamina Means Better Performance

There’s a reason so many boxing classes will start with a few solid rounds of jumping rope: you need to build endurance, and a lot of it, to be anything close to a decent boxer. And yes, you lovely powerlifters who are concerned that anything resembling endurance will eat into your muscles — boxers are often absolutely jacked, and super strong. Their jump roping doesn’t kill that, and as long as you’re programming it right, it won’t kill yours.

Not to say that you have to jump rope, of course. But it’s important to make sure you’re getting at least some conditioning and endurance work in your lifting program. Because the more stamina you develop in your off-hours, the easier you’ll be able to bust out of the hole at the bottom of a heavy squat.

Training Three: Unlocking Your Ankles Is Key (Powerlifting lessons from boxing class)

I’ve seen far too many lifters try to squat with wobbly ankles, for a whole assortment of reasons. Inappropriate lifting shoes; lack of ankle flexibility; lack of ankle stability; trying to lift from a stance that doesn’t fit their body type. But in boxing class, you’ll learn to control your ankles, and — just as importantly — you’ll learn, in an intuitive way, how connected your ankles are to your hips and therefore, your torso and shoulders.

If your ankles are locked up, your hips will be locked up, and it will throw your whole kinetic chain off.
That’s why, in boxing class, you should be learning to rotate your foot (“unlock your ankle”) to initiate the hip power that goes into a solid cross. And while you won’t need to do this kind of rotation on the platform, the practice will help you develop a much more advanced kinesthetic awareness that will definitely translate into stronger lifts. Unsure of how leg drive can help stabilize your bench press?

Learning the ways that your upper and lower body are connected through such simple things as foot position will help integrate your entire kinetic chain and make for smarter, more intuitive lifts.

Training Four: Keep Your Hands Up

Okay, this one slants more metaphorical. You don’t literally have to keep your hands up while you’re training as a powerlifter — in boxing class, keeping your hands up will protect you from both your sparring partner and the potential ridicule of your coach. But in powerlifting (hopefully) not one is going to whack you with anything if your hands aren’t protecting your face. That said, it’s an important lesson to learn: because in boxing, you keep your hands up even when you only have an imaginary opponent.

Why? Because you’re building physical stamina, and because you’re building mental toughness. Physical stamina, because trust me, all your muscles will be screaming for you to drop your hands after a few solid rounds of taking it all out on the heavy bag. And mental toughness, because when your muscles are screaming that much, and when you’re already spending so much mental energy focusing on form…well, you’ll need it.

1. On the lifting platform, the demand for physical stamina and mental toughness is paramount.

2. As the meet progresses, reaching the third squat, the body begins to experience the cumulative exhaustion of the day.

3. While adrenaline provides a temporary boost, its effectiveness has limitations.

4. Beyond adrenaline, success hinges on trust in the strength cultivated through rigorous training.

5. The right frame of mind becomes instrumental in sustaining peak performance throughout the lifting session.

6. Navigating the challenges of a meet requires a balance of physical and mental resilience.

7. Building and maintaining mental fortitude is a continuous process for consistently lifting at one’s best.

Mental toughness — keeping your hands up — is exactly what you’re going to need when you’ve missed a lift and need to shake it off before crushing your next one.

Training Five: Transmit Force Through Your Core

In powerlifting, you’ve got to constantly focus on bracing your core to properly transmit force from your points of contact with the ground or bench to the bar. And you have to be as efficient about this force transfer as possible. In order to do that, you need to be super synced into the ways that your core serves as a force transmitter so that no energy leaks and all the force your muscles are producing actually go into the moving the bar.

Happily, boxing class will teach you all about this force transfer. Because in order to throw a proper punch, your core needs to be transmitting force from your lower body and hips into each punch. And, when you’re dodging and blocking properly, all that comes from your core, too. There’s a reason your obliques will probably be sore after boxing class, and that reason will clue you into the ways that your entire core should always be activated in your lifts, too.

Training Six: It’s Never Just Your Arms (Powerlifting lessons from boxing class)

When you deadlift, you’re not yanking the bar up from the ground with your arms (even thinking about it makes my biceps panic). Similarly — you’ll learn in boxing class — movements aren’t always what they look like. Because sure, the part of the body the average person will watch when someone right hooks someone else is the hands, the arms. But the force transfer, as discussed above, is not at all about your arms.

When you’re rotating into your punches the right way, the force will be coming from your lower body, from your hips — not from your arms. Sure, your arms need to be strong, but boxing class will teach you, super effectively, that your entire body is heavily involved in everything, even and perhaps especially in the movements that look like they’re all upper body.

Training Seven: Breathe Through Your Body

Knowing when to exhale is a cornerstone of both boxing and lifting. And while you might be super familiar with your breathing cues as a powerlifter, the breathing cues in boxing are sure to challenge you in a way that you might not have experienced in a while. Boxing’s quicker movements — and higher repetitions of these movements — are bound to leave most powerlifters gasping for breath.

The act of gasping during intense moments in boxing is beneficial. This involuntary response prompts individuals to pause and reconsider their breathing strategy. Through this process, there is a deliberate effort to develop the necessary lung capacity. The ultimate goal is to sustain the body’s activity, fostering an improved connection between the mind and the body’s breathing requirements. Strengthening this mind-body connection is particularly advantageous for powerlifters. Enhanced awareness of breathing needs contributes to better control and execution of lifts in powerlifting. The lessons learned from boxing can be directly applied to powerlifting, enriching the overall training experience.

1. In scenarios such as pre-meet anxiety or preparing for a heavy deadlift, the control over breathing is crucial.

2. The disciplined breathing techniques acquired in boxing training prove valuable in powerlifting.

3. The learned control and discipline in breath-work directly translate into smarter breathing strategies for lifting.

4. This enhanced control over breath contributes to improved performance and technique during lifts.

5. The incorporation of disciplined breath work in powerlifting is a key factor in elevating strength and lifting capacity.

6. The carryover effect from boxing to powerlifting showcases the versatility of these breathing skills in various physical activities.

7. Ultimately, the mastery of breath control aids in lifting heavier weights and achieving greater success in powerlifting endeavors.

Get Punching To Improve Your Lifting

Mental grit, pure technique, physical stamina, force transmission, and breathwork are all hallmarks of great powerlifters. Similarly, these qualities also define great boxers who excel in the ring. Boxing classes offer fresh and innovative approaches to develop these attributes. Engaging in boxing training provides unique opportunities to reconnect with your body. This is especially valuable when you’re away from the familiar environment of a powerlifting platform. Through boxing, individuals can enhance their mental resilience and focus. The emphasis on proper technique in boxing translates to improved form and efficiency in powerlifting.

The endurance built in boxing can contribute to better performance in heavy lifts. Learning force transmission in boxing enhances the understanding of core engagement crucial in Powerlifting lessons from boxing class. Breathwork, emphasized in both sports, strengthens the mind-body connection, benefiting powerlifters in their lifts.

Diving into a boxing class, even if it’s just once, can give your body the jolt — and the extra connection to itself — that you need to get back to your lifting fresh, ready, and that much more equipped to lift with both power and efficiency.

Editor’s note: This article is an op-ed. The views expressed herein and in the video are the author’s and don’t necessarily reflect the views of BarBend. Claims, assertions, opinions, and quotes have been sourced exclusively by the author.

Overview

In the dynamic intersection of powerlifting and boxing, where seemingly disparate disciplines converge, a wealth of lessons unfolds. The powerlifter’s typical sanctuary, the solitary lifting platform, may seem worlds apart from the energetic chaos of a boxing class. However, the fusion of these realms offers a transformative experience for those willing to explore beyond the familiar.

This journey introduces powerlifters to a spectrum of lessons: the paramount importance of form, the symbiotic relationship between stamina and performance, the intricate connection between ankles and power, the metaphorical significance of keeping one’s guard up, the central role of the core in force transmission, the holistic engagement of the body beyond the arms, and the disciplined art of breathing.

Powerlifters delving into the world of boxing classes find not only physical benefits but a profound reacquaintance with their bodies. This newfound kinesthetic awareness, acquired outside the realm of barbells, rejuvenates the approach to lifting. Armed with mental grit, technical precision, and a deeper connection to their bodies, powerlifters emerge ready to tackle the lifting platform with enhanced strength, efficiency, and a renewed passion for the iron game.

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9. Featured image @Unsplash, freepik, pexels (com)

10. Featured stream @youtube, pexels (com)