A strong base is the key to being a great boxer and a powerful athlete. Whether you’ve just started boxing or you’ve been working out for years, your base is the most important thing you can train. Often, even experienced athletes need to rework their basics in order to ensure they maintain optimal performance.

If you’re interested in learning what your base is and how to improve it, read on for information on how aerobic training helps condition you to be a better athlete.

An Important Fable

You may have heard the story of the wise man and the foolish man who built their houses on different foundations. While the wise man built his house on rock, the foolish man built his house on sand. Even though the foolish man’s house stood tall and beautiful, during a flood, his house washed away because its foundation was soft. The wise man’s house, although it may not have been as stunning, stood strong because its foundation was hard.

This fable exposes the truth about how important foundations actually are. You could have the most beautiful house around, but if it’s built on nothing but sand, it’s quickly swept away. Even with the best looking body and top-notch gear, if you haven’t learned how to condition for boxing, you, too, will get swept away in your first fight.

General and Specific Conditioning

There are two ways to build up your foundation as an athlete: through general and specific conditioning. While general conditioning affects your work capacity and general fitness, specific conditioning is tailored to mimic the demands put on your body during competition or sports activities.

Energy Systems in Specific Conditioning

There are three energy systems that work together during conditioning workouts: alactic anaerobic, lactic anaerobic, and aerobic training.

In alactic training, you spend up to 20 minutes exercising at high intensity, for lactic anaerobic training, you spend 20 to 90 minutes at moderate to high intensity, and for aerobic training, you spend up to to 2 hours at moderate to low intensity.

In boxing, you want to use all three of these exercise styles to build up your general and specific conditioning base.

• Alactic Anaerobic Training: Sprint for 15 seconds and rest for 1 to 2 minutes. Repeat at least four times on a track or soft surface.
• Lactic Anaerobic Training: Jump rope for 90 seconds at high intensity and rest for 45 seconds. Repeat at least six times.
• Aerobic Training: Row or jog for 30 minutes to an hour.

When used together, alactic anaerobic, lactic anaerobic, and aerobic training are some of the best tools you have to learn how to condition your body for boxing. Build up your base today when you visit Gloveworx for a powerful BOOM or Signature session.