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Punch Instructors Course Handout

One Day Instructor Training Workshop

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Today’s journey

10:00 – Welcome and introductions

10:15 – Master Class

11:15 – Break

11:30 – Technique Overview Part one

• General Boxing Safety

• Straights

• Hooks

• Uppercuts

• Defence

12:30 – Lunch

13:15 – Technique overview Part Two

• Recap earlier strikes

14:00 – Class structure overview

14:15 – Punch conditioning

14:45 – Boxing combinations

15:15 – Coaching workshop

15:45 – Break and Preparation time

16:00 – Teaching assessments

16:45 – Feedback and wrap-up

17:00 - Close

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What is Punch?

Punch is a fitness based boxing workout that incorporates the best boxing moves, great

conditioning moves and motivational music to create a powerful workout than churns

through calories and leaves you fighting fit!

Each of the 3 minute rounds focuses on a different strike, making the workout progressive

and gradually more intense. It is an interval training workout mean that participants will get

fitter faster and continue to burn calories for some hours after the workout.

Aims and Objectives

Regardless of teaching experience or boxing ability prior to the course, this course will give

you the skills required to teach successful classes.

By the end of this one day course you will be able to correctly demonstrate all of the strikes

used in Punch. You will be able to successfully coach these moves to your class participants.

You will also be able to effectively plan and teach conditioning rounds within the class. You

will demonstrate these new skills during the assessment process at the end of the day and

will be measured against the Virgin Active Punch Standard.

Pass or Fail?

At the end of the day you will either be passed to teach, or a recommendation will be made

for you to return and repeat the module at a later date, or to work closely with your GEM

(provided they have passed the module) until they feel you are ready to teach on your own.

Before we start….

What would you like to achieve from today’s training?

How do you want to use your new skills when you return to your club?

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Punch! Boxing technique overview

It is vital that when taking part in a Punch class, technique is the primary focus for your

participants. Below we will cover all of the strikes used in Punch, including coaching points

for boxers and for pad holders to ensure everyone has a safe, effective fitness boxing

workout!

General Boxing Safety

As Punch is a fitness boxing workout, there is a tendency to forget about safety, however,

this should always be of prime consideration as the potential for injury is great. The most

common injuries in fitness boxing occur to the hands, wrists, elbows and shoulders. We can

help to avoid these injuries by taking some simple steps:

Make a fist by wrapping the thumb around the index

finger and closing the hand tightly, do not let the

thumb stick out or tuck it under your fingers or you

could end up with a nasty thumb break/dislocation.

Always ensure that you punch with the index

knuckle (1st

) and middle (2nd

) knuckle, you must not

strike with the 4th

knuckle (pinkie knuckle) as this is

the weakest part of the hand and could result in a

broken knuckle.

Try to keep the wrist strong at the point of impact as

flexing the wrist could result in wrist injury and

ensure that you don’t over-extend the elbow or

shoulder joint as this could potentially damage ligaments and tendons. The use of hand

wraps under the boxing gloves will help to protect the bones in the hands and wrists.

(Provided they are wrapped properly!)

Remember that it will take time for all of the nerves, muscles and tendons in the hands and

wrists to adapt to striking an object so coach beginners to concentrate on technique first

and build up punch power and speed over a number of weeks.

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Pad Holder Safety

There are also some safety points to be remembered when holding the focus pads,

remember that it is just as easy to be injured holding the pads as it is to be injured whilst

hitting them. Take the following steps to ensure safety of class participants:

Locking of elbows could potentially jar elbow or shoulder joint if you receive a heavy strike,

so prevent this by always keeping a slight bend in the arm and tension in the upper

back/shoulders at the point of impact to ‘brace’, this will take the ‘edge’ off of the strike –

DO NOT push the pad into ANY strike, this will compromise the boxers technique and

potentially damage their shoulder/elbow joints. On the flip side of this, failing to tense at

the point of impact could also result in the boxer over extending and potentially injuring

their elbow or shoulders, this will also place a great deal of strain on the ligaments and

tendons in the pad holder’s shoulders.

Straights (Jabs & Crosses) Hooks Uppercuts

• Avoid leaning away from the boxer as this could result in causing an injury to the

boxer from hyperextension of the elbow, and knock you off balance.

• Do not hold the pads directly in front of your face! During contact with the pads you

may end of with a nasty surprise!

(Leaning away) (Hands too close to your face)

Coach your participants to keep the focus pads at a reasonable distance from the face/body

to avoid getting hit, whilst ensuring that they are giving the boxer a realistic target to strike.

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Striking

Although Punch is a fitness boxing class and not technical pad work, we ARE still hitting

pads, so when throwing punches coach your participants to think about hitting into and

through the pads with purpose, rather than stopping at the surface of the pad and landing

the strike with no real power.

Straight Punches

Straight punches are exactly that. They travel straight from your guard, to the target, in the

most direct route possible. These punches can be categorised into the jab and the cross:

Jab:

• Your jab comes from your lead (front) hand and is normally

the weaker of your two arms/punches.

• It travels in a straight line from your guard, to the target

(focus pad), and back along the same line to your guard position.

• On its way you will need to rotate your fist (thumb turns

inwards) to generate that snap in your punches. This will ensure it

is a punch and NOT just a push.

• When throwing your jab, keep your elbow in and rotate

your torso and lead shoulder towards your target to generate

power, rather than lifting your elbow away from your side and

simply straightening your arm.

Cross:

• Similar to your jab due to the fact it travels in a straight

line.

• Your Cross will be the stronger of your two straight

punches and come from the rear hand.

• As your Hip is loaded before you throw this punch you can

generate a lot more force, speed and power than your jab.

• Same technique as the jab, but focus more on really

rotating your torso and throwing your rear hip towards your target

to get authenticity in this punch.

• Your fist should end up with knuckles flat upon impact,

wrist straight and in-line with your forearm, thumb horizontal to

the ground and palm facing down.

• Return to the guard as quickly as possible.

• Pads for both strikes should be head height, and narrower than shoulder width apart

to give a realistic target. Pads should be facing the boxer and pad holder should have

a slight bend in their elbow to keep full control of pad position, keeping tension in

the muscles of the arms, shoulders and upper back will also help keep full pad

control.

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Hooks

As a general rule of thumb in Punch, we throw hooks between chest and shoulder height to

ensure realistic targets. Hooks are circular punches that use rotation to generate power and

speed. We use the ‘push’ hook as opposed to the ‘snap’ hook as this is safer for our

participants to throw correctly and reduces the risk of hand/thumb/wrist injuries

• Hooks can be thrown from the front, or the rear arm. The

only difference in technique is that from the rear hand, the torso

and hip must rotate more.

• Start in your boxing guard.

• The strike should be initiated from the floor by lifting the

heel, the hip should then rotate towards the target, the arm and

torso then rotate as one to generate the power in the strike

• Try to land this strike with the thumb on top and pinkie

closest to the floor (push hook) with a 90° elbow bend.

• Return to the guard as fast as possible.

• Pads should be somewhere between chest to shoulder height to mimic realistic

targets.

• Pad holder should keep their elbows in and pads facing each other, tension in the

upper back and lats will help to keep the pads in position as the boxer strikes them.

Uppercuts

Uppercuts can be thrown from many positions and can be landed to many parts of the body

and head. In Punch, we only throw uppercuts from boxing guard and to a target of the

boxers chin height.

• Uppercuts can be thrown from the front, or the rear arm.

The only difference in technique is that from the rear hand, more

hip and shoulder rotation is required.

• From boxing guard, drop the shoulder of the hand you are

about to punch with and bend your knees a little

• Slightly pull your shoulder back to ‘load’ the hip and

generate more power, keep your elbow close to your body

• Strike by firstly pushing your hip and shoulder forward and

straightening your leg (not locking out)

• Keeping your elbow at around 45° and your palm facing

your chest, drive your hand up into the pad

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• Return to guard as quickly as possible

• Think about twisting up and into the punch like a

corkscrew

• Pads should be held at the boxers chin height,

closely together (almost touching each other) and facing

down towards the floor.

• Keep the elbows lower than the pads and keep

tension in the lats and shoulders to maintain pad

control.

Defensive moves

Obviously in Punch there is no contact involved, however that does not mean that we

should not practice defensive drills to keep us sharp and train hand eye co-ordination. There

are lots of defensives move in boxing but the ones that we will use in Punch are the slip, the

bob, the weave and the parry.

The Slip

The slip is primarily used to avoid a jab to the head; it involves a quick

shift in bodyweight to quickly evade the strike.

As your opponent throws a jab towards you, bend your knees a little,

twist at your waist and lean slightly to the inside/outside of the

punch, ensuring that your guard stays high, chin tucked in. imagine

performing an oblique crunch as this will help you to perform the

move correctly. If done effectively, your opponents strike should land

past your head and over your shoulder. Pad holders should simply

extend their arm as if throwing a jab to give the boxer a realistic

object to move away from.

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The Bob

The bob is primarily used to avoid either the jab or the hook; it

involves you quickly dropping under your opponents strike to avoid a

strike to the head.

As your opponent throws their strike, quickly bend your knees; shift

your body weight slightly forward and down to ‘duck’ under the

incoming strike. Imagine performing a squat as this will help you to

perform the move correctly. Ensure that you keep your chin tucked in

and your guard high to protect your head. If done effectively, your

opponents strike should land over the top of your head. Pad holders should simply extend

their arm towards the boxer’s nose as if throwing a jab, or circle the pad towards the

boxer’s ear as if throwing a hook to give them a realistic object to move away from.

The Weave

The weave is primarily used to evade a wide flailing punch such as the

hook, it involves moving the body around and under your opponents

strike, and it is a defensive move but can leave you in a perfect

position to counter punch. It is basically an extension of the bob with

a lateral movement to set up a counter punch opportunity.

As your opponent throws their strike, let’s say the hook for example,

soften your knees a little, lean away from the incoming strike and

‘duck’ under it, coming back up to your guard position on the other

side of their strike, as a result your opponents strike should land way over and outside your

shoulder. Imagine trying to paint an ‘o’ with your nose as you move, this will help to ensure

you are performing the movement correctly. Keep the chin tucked throughout with the

guard up and ensure that you keep your eyes on the incoming strike. If performed correctly,

you should finish in the perfect position to throw a counter punch such as the hook,

straight, body shot, etc. Pad holders should throw a wide, flailing hook towards the ear of

the boxer to give a realistic punch to avoid.

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The Parry

The parry is primarily used to block an opponent’s strike and set up a counter punch

opportunity. It involves you stopping an incoming shot with your glove/arm and leaving your

opponent open to a counter punch.

As your opponent throws their strike, you simply use your glove to parry it out of the way

(usually towards the floor, but this can vary depending on the punch thrown) thus leaving

their guard compromised and open to a counter punch. Pad holders should throw their arm

towards the boxer (simulating any given strike) in order to give the boxer a realistic strike to

parry.

Notes on Strikes & Defence;

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Class Structure

Punch is a boxing workout that uses a variety of strikes and conditioning exercises within

the pre-set class structure given below. When teaching Punch, this format should be used at

all times to ensure consistency in our clubs.

Section of Class Strikes/Exercises used in class section

Round 1 Straights and Hooks - Partner A

Round 2 Straights and Hooks - Partner B

Round 3 Conditioning Round 1

Round 4 Defence + Straights/Hooks - Partner A

Round 5 Defence + Straights/Hooks - Partner B

Round 6 Conditioning Round 2

Round 7 Uppercuts + Defence/Straights/Hooks - Partner A

Round 8 Uppercuts + Defence/Straights/Hooks - Partner B

Round 9 Conditioning Round 3

Round 10 Uppercuts/Defence/Straights/Hooks - Partner A

Round 11 Uppercuts/Defence/Straights/Hooks - Partner B

Round 12 Conditioning Round 4

Must be progressive. Includes mobility, f lexiblity and pulse raising components

and is specif ic to the class format (i.e. Boxing orientated)Warm Up

Include pulse low ering exercise, either maintenance or progressive stretches

of the main muscle groups used in classCool Down

The Strikes in BOLD should be the round ‘highlight’ and the focus should be on coaching

these moves in that particular round. However it is important to include the strikes from the

previous rounds to build more interesting combinations and a progressively harder workout

as the class goes on.

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Punch Conditioning

So as we know, conditioning is a HUGE part of overall general fitness, but it is even more

critical to be well conditioned in Boxing, therefore, we devote around a ¼ of the class to

conditioning exercises to improve our general fitness levels. The exercises used in the

conditioning rounds should:

• Incorporate upper, lower body and core

• Be challenging enough for experienced class members whilst simple enough for

beginners to perform an option of the exercise

• Be related to martial arts or the muscles/movements used in martial arts in some

way

• Allow your class participants to work in pairs or teams to encourage greater

interaction in class.

• Should promote some healthy competition within your group of participants

• Be FUN!

• Should require minimal equipment so as not to upset the flow of the class

Conditioning Round Structure

The conditioning rounds can be structured in many different ways, you can group many

exercises together throughout the 3 minutes, or you could change the exercise every

minute. The easiest way to structure these rounds is to pick a single exercise for the 1st half

of the round (1 min 30sec) that your participants both perform together, or one at a time

for a prescribed number of repetitions, taking turns. Then choose another exercise for the

last half of the round (1 min 30 sec), again, they can perform this together or one at a time,

depending on the exercise.

Example Exercises

Below are some example exercises that you could use in the conditioning rounds in your

Punch classes, the possibilities are endless, but here are a few classic exercises to get you

started:

• Squats with Dumbbells/medicine ball/weight plate/Barbell

• Push ups

• Plank with rotation

• Mountain Climber

• Russian Twist

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• WBI (Whole Body Integration) Exercises

• Lunge with rotation (weighted if progressed)

• Burpees

• Tombstones

• Partner games

Use the template below to plot out your 4 conditioning rounds;

Round Exercise Equipment Progressions Regressions

Conditioning

Round 1

Conditioning

Round 2

Conditioning

Round 3

Conditioning

Round 4

Conditioning Round Practice session

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Combinations

After learning how to perform each strike, your participants are going to want to know how

to put a series of punches together (A combination), there are thousands and thousands of

combinations possible with the main strikes used in Punch, so your participants should

always be trying new ways of putting strikes together. Throwing combinations is what will

add real authenticity to the workout

When advising on what combinations to throw, it is important to remember the following:

We should be able to, theoretically, throw hundreds of punches in succession without losing

balance. The reason being is that every single punch, when thrown properly, should leave

you in a position where you can and will be able to throw another punch. For example,

when you throw a left jab you should automatically be in a position to throw a right cross.

When you finish with the right hand, you should be in a position to throw a left hook, etc. If

you throw a right hand, or any other punch, and you are off balance and NOT in a position

to throw another punch afterwards then you did not throw that punch effectively.

A very simple way to build effective combinations is to always throw left, right, left, right,

left, right, etc.

For Example: Left Jab

Right Cross

Left Hook

Right Uppercut

Left Hook

Right Cross

This is the easiest way to build combinations because after each punch, you are in a loaded

position for the next punch, making the combination flow and making it easier to generate

more power and speed.

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Example 1 Example 2 Example 3 Example 4 Example 5

Combination Builder

Fill in the worksheet above with examples of 5 different combinations. Try and build at

least one, 10 punch combination, keeping in mind the principles from the previous page.

*Remember you have 20 seconds to demonstrate and coach you combination to the class

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Coaching

Being able to effectively coach the strikes used in Punch will be the reason that your classes

are packed week after week.

The ability to verbally and visually coach each strike is vitally important to you the success of

your class. You only have a short amount of time to set-up and give 5 -10 initial cues for

each strike, so it is vital that you say the right things, in the right way and give clear visual

demonstrations.

Coaching session

Name of strike:

For example, to set-up the Uppercuts round, you might want to say something along the

lines of the following, giving an appropriate demonstration simultaneously:

• Uppercuts are a vertical punch

• When throwing this punch, keep a 45degree bend in your elbow and your palm

facing your chest

• Drop your shoulder to load the punch and draw the punching shoulder back slightly

• Bend your knees a little

• As you stand up, throw your hip and shoulder forward and keep the elbow at 45

degrees

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• Strike through the pad with a strong wrist in a vertical direction

• Pad holders should keep pads at your boxers chin height, elbows in and pads facing

down with a slight angle.

• Tense lats, upper back and arms to absorb impact of punch

Music

Virgin Active will provide the music that you must use in your Punch classes. It has been

produced solely for use within Virgin Active Health Clubs and with the Punch programme.

This is available from Fitmixpro in download format, which will need to be burnt onto a CD.

There are regular music updates available for Punch, helping to keep your classes fresh and

help continually motivate your members. On returning to your club, speak to your Group

Exercise Manager who will be able to provide you with a code to download the latest mix.

What Now?

Ensure that you spend time preparing the conditioning rounds for your class in order to

always make it fresh, exciting and varied for your class participants. Ensure that you spend

time where possible, before and after class developing relationships with your participants,

focusing on getting to know the less familiar members of your class.

Ask for feedback from your peers and class participants to ensure that you are consistently

creating a fun, motivating experience.

Finally, enjoy teaching Punch, being an ambassador for the programme and selling the

benefits of Punch classes to your members.