Boxing Training: Why PT Clients Love a Bit of Biff

I had done a little bit of boxing training before I fought my first competitive bout…

THWACK!

Thwack, THWACK, THWACK!

Thud!

As I came to, and back from the darkness, I realised that competing in the boxing ring is not for me.

Helped off the canvas and hobbling back to my corner it became clear. Boxing training is fun, it’s enjoyable and it’s something I’ll do again and again. Being punched in the face… not so much.

That day, after my first and only defeat, in what was my first and only foray within the squared circle, I retired from boxing. Wounded yes, but not completely discouraged.

However, some of the boxing fundamentals I had learned through my boxing training were to become a regular feature in my Personal Training sessions for many years to come.

A fan favourite of sorts, my clients loved to include boxing drills and pad work in their sessions. Likewise, I loved finding ways to deliver a boxing flavour to their workouts. With just a few basic punches, I could create endless workout options and tailor the intensity to suit anyone.

Why clients love boxing training

I’d often debrief with my clients about what they liked or disliked after a session and before they headed off for the day. Not once did they tell me they didn’t like the boxing part. In fact, the majority of the time it was the boxing training they enjoyed the most.

When I’d press further, they’d say things like:

• It was fun
• It really helped me destress
• I got a good sweat up
• I could feel it working
• It went so fast
• I’ve never done anything like that before
• It was interactive
• I got in the zone

Invariably, implementing boxing training into a Personal Training session provides experiences that are rewarding and emotionally pleasing.

You’ll notice my clients refer to how boxing makes them feel. It provides a sense of escapism. They get away from the troubles of their day, relieve a bit of stress, and enjoy some time for themselves.

Now if I am doing my job correctly, the session is physically effective too.

In our Personal Training courses, we refer to these elements collectively as the three E’s of session delivery.

Three E’s of session delivery

The three E’s of session delivery highlight three psychological cravings a client has when engaging in a bout of physical activity.

When all three elements are present, the client will have a positive experience with their training. However, if one or more of these elements are missing – client enjoyment suffers, and they will have less positive feelings about the session.

As I alluded to earlier, the three E’s allow a session to be:

1. Emotionally pleasing
2. Experientially rewarding
3. Effective

We can visualise the three E’s with the following diagram.

If we consider this in relation to a Personal Training session, we can see that there is some overlap between each of the three elements. Importantly, that tiny wee overlap in the middle we could consider the session sweet spot.

In this case, the overlap is quite small. There’s enough going on here that a client might be having a little bit of fun (emotionally pleasing), they probably aren’t bored (experientially rewarding) and the activity will be providing some physical benefit to the client (effective).

The session is probably ok, but it’s not great.

We see this quite often with new trainers. Frequently an inexperienced trainer becomes so hyper-focused on the “effective” element – sets, reps, and intensity – that they lose sight of catering to their client’s other psychological needs.

I was the same as a rookie gym instructor. I’d really hone in on exercise technique, counting to 12 and making sure we found the right weight to reach failure each set. I must’ve come across as a real stick in the mud. In fact, I’m sure some of my early clients would’ve had some amazing results if I hadn’t bored them to death with a clinically effective yet emotionally absent session delivery approach. 😜

What I learnt to do, and what I think more PTs need to remember to do, is use the three E’s to encourage a more rounded approach to session delivery.

Using the three E’s to maximum effect

Here’s a revised way to look at the three E’s diagram.

In this case you can see there is much more crossover in the middle.

A PT session like this addresses all of the client session needs in abundance. Subsequently, each element is given considerable significance to create a more effective, more rewarding and more pleasing experience for the client.

This is the hallmark of a more experienced, client-focused Personal Trainer. These sorts of trainers are able to do this over and over again to provide immense value to their clients. They provide PT sessions their clients love and will pay to come back to again and again.

Boxing and the three E’s

Boxing training is a match made in heaven for the three E’s of Personal Training session delivery. Each of the three elements can be seamlessly incorporated into a client training session.

Effective boxing training

The benefits of boxing training are well documented [1 – 5]. Both physical and psychological health improvements are attributed to the inclusion of boxing training as part of a physical activity programme.

Typically boxing training provides the following physical and psychological benefits:

With such a broad range of upsides to boxing training, you’ll be hard pressed to find a client who doesn’t reap multiple positive effects from a well-structured boxing training session

Boxing training that is emotionally pleasing

For something to be emotionally pleasing, it needs to make us feel happy.

Consider one of your darkest days. Perhaps you’re under the pump at work, got home late only to be snapped at by your significant other. As you hurriedly throw together what can only be described as slop, you burn your hand on the element and spill your glass of water on the way to the table.

By the way, you definitely won’t have the time or energy for the gym today either.

Wouldn’t you want to punch the *!@#*^ outta something!

For a client, one that’s having “just one of those days”, providing the opportunity to let it all out on a set of focus mitts and unleash that pent-up fury is such an amazing way to destress. No matter what they may have had going on prior to that session, a well-intentioned boxing session where they let off some steam is unlikely to send them home feeling any worse, right?

So, if a good pad session can have that effect on someone in a bad mood, imagine how great someone in a good mood will feel after the same sort of workout!

The reality is that most of the time, clients attend their PT sessions in a fairly neutral mood. Not overly distraught, but not jumping for joy either. However, and I’ll refer back to the client comments from earlier in this article –  after a boxing training session my clients certainly left the gym with a smile on their dial – emotionally pleased.

Experientially rewarding boxing training

If a training session is going to be experientially rewarding, then the whole vibe of the session needs to be positive. Moreover, the client needs to like what is going on.

This means doing more than just holding the pads for a client.

An experientially rewarding session will be impacted by the way a client is communicated with, how they are made to feel, how the environment matches their preferences, whether they are getting what they want in the way they want it and so much more.

Remember my example earlier when I was the technique police and chief counting officer? Yeah, those sessions were not experientially rewarding for my clients. Sure, they got some good exercise tips and they’d feel the burn. But once they had their technique sorted, what was I really adding to their sessions that they couldn’t have been doing on their own?

The answer is probably nothing.

Fortunately, I did have a secret weapon up my sleeve. I knew how to teach clients how to punch.

Just to be clear. None of my clients had ambitions of becoming boxers, nor was that something I wanted for them. Usually, my clients were looking to tone up, lose weight and get fit. And as boxing is a great way to do this, it’s an option we’d often employ.

My golden rule

I had a golden rule when working with clients – especially when doing cardio. That rule was never PT in the cardio room.

I still see it sometimes to this day and it grinds my gears – but in my opinion, a Personal Trainer should not be charging for a session where they are effectively a button pusher on a machine.

Unless a PT is inducting a client on how to safely use the cardio equipment for when they train on their own, or possibly doing a short HIIT bike session of 10mins where the client needs to be challenged and supported without having to think. Then, I guess it’s ok in those situations.

So let’s just say, there is almost no reason to include cardio machines as part of a Personal Training session. Maybe it’s a gold-plated rule – but you see the sentiment I’m sure. That is, provide value in your PT sessions. Give your clients an experience they cannot get by training on their own.

And this is why boxing is once again ideal.

Getting laced up

Boxing allows trainers to create an exercise experience that goes above and beyond what a client can ever get from pounding away on the treadmill for 30mins.

Just the mere act of wrapping their hands and putting the gloves on sets a scene and builds anticipation.

Once the client has the 3 fundamental punches down (jab, cross, hook) they are ready to go on an incredible journey of training only limited by imagination. Throw in the uppercut for good measure and the workout options become pretty endless.

THWACK, THWACK, THWACK on a pad is much more satisfying than a thwack to the face. 🤕

Even the sound of the glove hitting the mitt adds to the experience. The louder the THWACK, the harder you know the client is working. The harder they are working, the more they seem to enjoy it!

It’s a fully interactive experience. A call and response type activity.

“One, two, one, two” – code for jab, cross, jab, cross – is met with a flurry of those exact punches.

The trainer sets the bar, and low and behold the client is almost always there. Eager to greet them with the corresponding combo of punches.

Even when they don’t quite get it right – like getting their hooks and crosses mixed up – a gentle nod and smile to each other is all that’s needed to reset and we are off again. There’s a personal connection being made. There’s undeniable enjoyment from both the client and trainer. The experience is rewarding and provides the client with something they cannot get by training on their own.

The knockout punch

Client engagement through personal training is an art. There are many ways to apply the three E’s to create engaging, enjoyable and effective training sessions. Furthermore, they don’t all have to revolve around boxing. But whether you are an exercise enthusiast looking for another enjoyable exercise avenue, or a Personal Trainer looking for ways to keep clients engaged and coming back for more, including some boxing training is a great place to start.

In summary, here are my key take away points from this article:

1. Boxing training can be for anyone – you don’t need to risk getting hurt to enjoy the benefits.
2. Learning a few basic punches and combinations is enough to design and deliver engaging boxing training sessions.
3. Boxing is a match made in heaven for the 3 E’s of session delivery.
4. The benefits of boxing training are well documented and can have positive effects to physical and psychological wellbeing.
5. Boxing training is emotionally pleasing and invariably leaves people feeling happier post session.
6. Boxing training provides a unique and engaging training experience for clients and PTs alike.

Finally, because boxing is so beneficial, we include an elective ‘Boxing Fundamentals’ course in our Personal Trainer programme. Delivered by Commonwealth Games medalist Shane Cameron, it enables trainers and clients alike to reap the multiple benefits of boxing training.

References

[1] Blonstein, J. L. (1974). The benefits of amateur boxing. British Journal of Sports Medicine, 8(4), 207.

[2] Bozdarov, J., Jones, B. D., Daskalakis, Z. J., & Husain, M. I. (2022). Boxing as an Intervention in Mental Health: A Scoping Review. American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine, 15598276221124095.

[3] Combs, S. A., Diehl, M. D., Staples, W. H., Conn, L., Davis, K., Lewis, N., & Schaneman, K. (2011). Boxing training for patients with Parkinson disease: a case series. Physical therapy, 91(1), 132-142.

[4] Harvard Health. (2015, October 17). Punch up your exercise routine with fitness boxing. Retrieved September 16, 2022, from https://www.health.harvard.edu/exercise-and-fitness/punch-up-your-exercise-routine-with-fitness-boxing

[5] Perkins, P., Hahn, A., Lucas, R., & Keegan, R. (2014). The Boxing Conundrum: Is there a place for a new variant of the sport. Journal of Research in Humanities and Social Science, 2(9), 9-25.