In the session
Before you start: the warm-up that matters
Five minutes that decide whether the session is any good — and whether you finish it uninjured.
3 min read
The short version
- Five minutes: skip, arm circles, hip circles, slow shadowbox, half-speed shadowbox.
- Move through range — don't hold long stretches. Those leave you weaker for the next hour.
- You're warm when your first hard punch doesn't surprise your shoulder.
Move, don't stretch
Long static stretches before training make you looser and temporarily weaker — the opposite of what you want before throwing punches. Save them for after.
What you want is heat and range: joints moving through the shapes the session will ask for, heart rate climbing, shoulders and hips awake.
Five minutes, in order
- One minute: skip, jog on the spot, or fast feet. Just get warm.
- One minute: arm circles and shoulder rolls, forward and back.
- One minute: hip circles, leg swings, deep squat holds.
- One minute: slow shadowboxing — full range, no power.
- One minute: shadowboxing at half speed, adding snap.
The tell
You are warm when you have broken a light sweat and your first hard punch does not feel like a surprise to your shoulder. If it does, you needed two more minutes.