Transitioning from American Karate/Kickboxing to Boxing!

[Prototype]

I have trained 2 years 2-3 times a week American Kickboxing type style. Meaning I have drilled boxing punches but never been taught any foot and head movement, or boxing combinations. TKD Kickboxing more specifically.

I have mostly learned by doing in sparring and it has been semi contact, above the waist kickboxing.

Do you guys think I will get blown away in Boxing and really suck as a beginner or is 2 years in TKD kickboxing somewhat of a head start

Any tips in advance? Thanks.

[Wado Heretic]

I have trained 2 years 2-3 times a week American Kickboxing type style. Meaning I have drilled boxing punches but never been taught any foot and head movement, or boxing combinations. TKD Kickboxing more specifically.

I have mostly learned by doing in sparring and it has been semi contact, above the waist kickboxing.

Do you guys think I will get blown away in Boxing and really suck as a beginner or is 2 years in TKD kickboxing somewhat of a head start

Any tips in advance? Thanks.

Well; I can only offer a few tips:

1. Keep jabbing; offence will be your best defence as you have not learnt how to bob and weave.

2. In boxing it is always feet first, followed by the hands. Beware leading yourself with your hands.

3. Start with a tight guard; the Peek-a-Boo style. It might feel unnatural coming from a kick-boxing background, but you will need a strong guard without the evasion skills.

4. Keep your elbows in; in kick-boxing or free-fighting you want a looser and more relaxed guard to absorb kicks, or work the clinch range. In boxing you want the elbows in to guard against body blows.

Saying all that, however, I do not think you will be thrown into sparring so soon as to need any of that advice. I would hope they would give you at least a few weeks to learn the ropes before setting you up against someone.

Your experience should at least make you familiar with the issues of adrenaline, and also given you hand speed and power. So you will easily be in advance of an absolute beginner; my only concern is that you have no head movement knowledge beside what you have learnt through sparring. Otherwise, good luck, and hope you enjoy it.

[Prototype]

I have trained 2 years 2-3 times a week American Kickboxing type style. Meaning I have drilled boxing punches but never been taught any foot and head movement, or boxing combinations. TKD Kickboxing more specifically.

I have mostly learned by doing in sparring and it has been semi contact, above the waist kickboxing.

Do you guys think I will get blown away in Boxing and really suck as a beginner or is 2 years in TKD kickboxing somewhat of a head start

Any tips in advance? Thanks.

Well; I can only offer a few tips:

1. Keep jabbing; offence will be your best defence as you have not learnt how to bob and weave.

2. In boxing it is always feet first, followed by the hands. Beware leading yourself with your hands.

3. Start with a tight guard; the Peek-a-Boo style. It might feel unnatural coming from a kick-boxing background, but you will need a strong guard without the evasion skills.

4. Keep your elbows in; in kick-boxing or free-fighting you want a looser and more relaxed guard to absorb kicks, or work the clinch range. In boxing you want the elbows in to guard against body blows.

Saying all that, however, I do not think you will be thrown into sparring so soon as to need any of that advice. I would hope they would give you at least a few weeks to learn the ropes before setting you up against someone.

Your experience should at least make you familiar with the issues of adrenaline, and also given you hand speed and power. So you will easily be in advance of an absolute beginner; my only concern is that you have no head movement knowledge beside what you have learnt through sparring. Otherwise, good luck, and hope you enjoy it.

Thanks. My only defensive strategy in kickboxing has been leaning away from punches, and, of course, putting my hands up, but I lack creativity due to our sparring format which did not allow combinations more than 2 straight punches in a row. My handspeed is quite high due to fast muscle fiber and I have a decent Jab, at least compared to the kickboxing guys. Really hard to say how good my reflexes are against a boxer!

Edited January 7, 2017 by Prototype

[Prototype]

How long does it take on average to develop into a decent boxer if I have potential? By decent I mean that I can at least hang with pretty good guys.

[TJ-Jitsu]

Define "pretty good guys."

[Wado Heretic]

Depends on you, the gym you go to, and the gyms in your area. The people in your area might be very competitive, and so the average level of "good" boxers might be very high. Other places, the good boxers are definitely big fish in small ponds.

Generally speaking; 6-8 weeks, if we are being optimistic, is a pretty rough average for most people to get to grips and be able to step up and spar for a couple of rounds. That is for people who start out with a relatively good level of fitness.

In terms of getting "it"; finding one's style, and becoming competent at, and competitive with, said style. I have seen people hit their stride in as little as 3-6 months, or take as long as two years, and then of-course there are the people who never find "it".

I would add the caveat that I am not a boxer; I am a karateka first who did kick-boxing. I did take up boxing for a while when I first decided to transition from continuous no/light-contact, and Bogu, competition to full-contact; specifically American Kick-Boxing. I did about eight weeks of boxing training, twice a week, up to my first kick-boxing bout because I realised I really knew nothing about using my hands effectively in boxing gloves. It was not until after a month of training that I found I was boxing effectively, and the tips I provided are the ones I took advantage of to help with the process.

[Prototype]

It was not until after a month of training that I found I was boxing effectively, and the tips I provided are the ones I took advantage of to help with the process.

I have taken all your advice in mind and will start tommorow. Are there people who stay in boxings gym for years and train it as a martial art or is it too tough on you in the long run?

I want it both ways, to be trained as a fighter but not recieve too much damage in the process, hopefully by being good at it. I will never compete.

[bushido_man96]

I think you can Box for as long as you want to. The most important thing is to monitor the sparring so that you aren't taking too much to the head. I'm not sure how much the average gym will spar, but I'm guessing the bulk of your training time will be spent drilling and working the bags, with some focused sparring thrown in. I think it would be a ton of fun, and you should enjoy it.

[Prototype]

I think you can Box for as long as you want to. The most important thing is to monitor the sparring so that you aren't taking too much to the head. I'm not sure how much the average gym will spar, but I'm guessing the bulk of your training time will be spent drilling and working the bags, with some focused sparring thrown in. I think it would be a ton of fun, and you should enjoy it.

Yeah but the heart and soul of boxing is sparring. If you don't spar, you don't know boxing.

[TJ-Jitsu]

I think you can Box for as long as you want to. The most important thing is to monitor the sparring so that you aren't taking too much to the head. I'm not sure how much the average gym will spar, but I'm guessing the bulk of your training time will be spent drilling and working the bags, with some focused sparring thrown in. I think it would be a ton of fun, and you should enjoy it.

Yeah but the heart and soul of boxing is sparring. If you don't spar, you don't know boxing.