'I had the best jab in the business. My trainer used to put one-pound weights in my hands when I done my roadwork. I’d do three, four miles and I just kept that left jab pumping with that weight in my hand. Today my left shoulder is bigger than my right shoulder. I had a lot of power, if I didn’t knock you out I’d bust you open within 15 rounds.' - Bob Foster Has anyone tried anything similar since then? Usually the only time we see guys with one shoulder bigger than the other is when they jack off too much, but in Fosters case he was essentially doing strength training and carido simultaneously. It demonstrates 2 things: -a small weight can have great results if used over an extended period of time. -a strong powerful shoulder can make your punches stronger.
I bet it would build up the serratus anterior/boxers muscle, that is helpful for generating power. But also the effect of a small pound weight would plateau at some point during training I imagine. Come to think of it something like rowing a canoe or kayak would be pretty good cardio strength training. Today I found out I have been strength training and cardio simultaneously for years.
Boxing always leads to muscle imbalances. Nobody throws their back hand more than they extend their lead and after even just a few months, having one lat, tricep and front delt bigger than the other is pretty common. But then again these imbalances can also correct themselves if you then stop using them. And Foster wasn't doing strength training. He was doing endurance training. Nobody set a PR by moving a one pound dumbbells around. Foster's jab and hook were a product of him being extremely talented and having a style based on using them. Sure, the weights probably did a little, but he'd have still been a freak without them. You're not gonna turn an average Joe into Bob Foster by having them run with weights. I'd have thought those two points were obvious.
So the boxer himself mentions how the dumbbell made his shoulder stronger and attributes that to the strength of his jab and hook, and you claim all that hard work only helped a little bit and it was just his raw natural talent that made him a great fighter?
Yes. Obviously he wouldn't have been great if he worked hard. But you don't get a left hook or a jab as good as Bob Foster's by running with 1lb dumbbells. Just because Foster himself incorrectly thought otherwise doesn't mean much. Roy Jones got offended when he was called talented because he put his success down to his hard work. Doesn't mean he wasn't the most talented fighter of his era.
I am not saying Foster wasn't very talented. Nor was I suggesting any random guy on the street could be as successful of a boxer as Foster or hit as hard just by running with dumbbells. What I am saying is that you are completely dismissing the benefit of his training and you aren't in any position to do so.
Skills and technique. And in that technique he learned to use his biggest asset. Leverage better than most if not all Lt.heavys in history. Foster probably couldn't do 225 for 10 reps. But he could and did knock out fully grown men who were skilled to with one shot better than most fighters in history. Superior height , reach, technique , and skill equated to devastating power. Running with a weight in his lead hand probably had very little to do with the devastation he inflicted on most opponents.
