keys to a good defense

Learning to manage distance is the key to defense, as well as offense.

 

Understanding angles and ANTICIPATION are the keys to defense. By anticipation, I mean understanding what punch is coming by tendencies, shoulder position or foot placement and REACTING(foot/head movement, glove position). Defense takes a while to get under control.

 

dont try to duck and weave under all the punches, block most of them and as you progress in skill, start lowering your hands and stick your chin out. 8)

 

Without even ever seeing you spar it's probably safe to assume that you are dropping your hands. That's number one, and everyone does it wrong at the beginning.

Once you have your hands up properly you will block alot of punches even if you don't see them coming and are better able to react to the ones you do see.

 

technique and experience. the coach has to tell you in the moment what you are doing wrong and how to improve it.

 

I drill the "3 r's" into my fighters - range, recognition and repetition... give it time, diligent training and the defense will come.

 

Defense is hard to learn. Really hard, because to learn it right you need punches being thrown at you, and if you screw it up you get hit. Work on catching jabs and sidestepping rights. Get comfortable in your shell--you should be able to stand there with your hands up and elbows tucked without panicking or getting hurt. Then you can work on slipping and weaving under punches, but you first need to be able to see them coming, and that's why the shell is important. If you can sit there calmly and watch the other guy punching you, it improves your 'ring vision' (kinda like court vision in basketball--the game goes much faster and is more confusing when you're a beginner. As you go on, it seems to slow down.)

Eventually with a lot of practice, repetitions, and sparring, you'll be able to see punches better. That's the key to defense, seeing the punches. Once you can do that, you'll be able to avoid them. The bad news is you're going to eat quite a few before you get there, but that's half the fun isn't it?

Edit:
Also, the biggest problem might be the fact that you're getting hurt. This will change as you spar more, you'll get used to getting hit and you'll be able to anticipate it a split second before it happens. You'll instinctively move away from or inside of the punch, and it won't hurt near as bad. Also, even the clean shots won't bother you too much unless they land on the button. Hopefully the next stage is where you don't get hit at all, but I'm not sure because I'm pretty far from that stage myself

The good news is it goes away with experience, and even if you do suck at defense like I do, the punches won't hurt you as much once you get used to fighting. It's still important to work on though, because a punch doesn't have to hurt you to score...so you could be the toughest mother****er out there and still lose horribly if you don't defend yourself.

For now, concentrate on jamming your elbows into your sides and squeezing your hands against your temples. Hard. When you see punches coming down the middle, just close your hands a bit. When they come from the side, try to bob slightly away from the punch to lessen the impact. If it's a body shot straight down the middle, deflect it with one of your elbows. If it's a punch to the side of your body, just do a half-crunch to that side and take it on the elbow. If the punches are coming too fast to anticipate, just bob side to side while crunching side to side. The only thing you really have to look out for is an uppercut, and most of them should either miss due to your movement or hit your gloves which are pressed TIGHTLY to your head. You should be able to do this indefinitely against guys who aren't light-years better than you. THEN focus on getting out of the shell and either countering or smothering, because if you sit there taking punches like that in a fight, you run the risk of getting an 8-count. But for now, just get to the point where you can be calm and keep your eyes open while you're being punched. You can even get someone to work on this with you by throwing at you while you cover up or lay on the ropes. Or you can throw a few of these into your sparring rounds.

 

I eat punches all the time, and let me tell you, it's the most fun I've had while in the gym. :nut

 

Keeping the hands up is the most important... and when it comes to slipping punches, you need to remember five things...

01 slip to the side of the punch just enough so that it brushes your ear

02 slip under the punch by bending the kness so it goes just over the shoulder

03 slide with the punch so if it does connect, your head is moving in the same direction away from the punch

04 never pull back from a punch unless you want to get knocked out one day

05 never duck forward under a punch unless you want to get knocked out again

The first three need to be done in ONE motion. It makes you slip the punch in three different directions. Horizontally, vertically, and distance-wise. If done right, you can use the same movement while blocking or parrying shots and it will set up your counter punch.

So say, when you slip a right hand, you are essentially shifting to the right while dipping the knees and tilting the upper body by raising the front shoulder while dipping the back shoulder which pulls your head back a bit.

In other words, you are shifting your head to a spot over your back knee. And it must be done at the very last moment before the punch lands. Don't start making the move as soon as you see the punch coming. Dodge it at the very end so the opponent can't re-adjust to the target.

Another thing to keep in mind is that if you have head movement already going, it is easier to slip punches because you're in a rhythm and also because your opponent will be less accurate since he's aiming at where your head WAS.

 

Don't be repetitive, or an opponent with half a brain will open you up