Boxing may not be the first choice of parents when thinking about sports for their children. But surprisingly, Boxing can teach kids a lot of valuable virtues, including sportsmanship, resilience, and hardworking.

So, what is the best way to teach your child boxing? There are some notes for parents to take down:

1. When should we start kid boxing?

Basically, the right age for a boxing beginner is 8 years old. Of course, parents can familiarize children with boxing before that, but this is the best and safest age to do this sport.

Remember that some kid boxing clubs have an age restriction, if you want to take your children to the club, you should check out the rules first.

2. Should girls learn boxing?

Boxing is often associated with boys, and girl boxers are often considered “ungirly”. However, this is just a prejudice.

Girls can, and totally capable of, learning boxing. In fact, boxing can be advantageous for all genders.

Boxing will train their physical ability and get them into good shape. Besides, girls will have a chance to learn self-defense and strengthen their mentality.

3. Why boxing?

The answer is simple: either your kids love it, or you (and maybe them) see the mental and physical benefits of boxing.

About mentality, boxing can help children to gain confidence and focus. Through training, kids will learn to self-discipline and determination too.

Besides, it is quite common for boxing to be a way to control anger. Kids can be frustrated and angry due to minor reasons, so this is a healthy way for them to vent their negative feeling. Gradually, they will finally learn how to control aggression.

The physical benefits of boxing are quite obvious – you can see the muscular boxers everywhere. But you don’t need to be super muscular to be a boxer!

Just like other sports, kids’ boxing will help them engage in active activities. They will have a chance to train their bodies and develop their stamina and health.

4. What should kids do at first?

To begin learning boxing, there are requirements to be met. Parents should teach them about body training and examine their natural ability.

It is best to increase kids’ athletics by exercises such as skipping, pad working, running, pushing up, shadow boxing and so on. Children will also need to learn how to control body movement with footwork exercise.

An important but often neglected lesson for young boxing beginners is safety. Children should be told clearly what is allowed and banned on the stage, as well as the general safety instructions of this sport.

5. It’s time to go shopping

Now your kids need some pieces of equipment to go for boxing. Starting with clothes, comfortable gym clothes are the most suitable ones. They should be form-fitted and not baggy.

Next is boxing equipment, for example, gloves, gum shields, hand wraps, boots, and head guards. For the kids, parents should carefully choose the equipment with the right size to ensure safety.

If parents have the intention to let kids join the boxing club, it is likely that some of the equipment will be provided. However, if they have their own set, it would be more convenient for home practice and more fitted to their build.

6. Now let’s go find a kid boxing club

If parents are not well versed in boxing, finding a club for your kids will be a good idea. Besides, professional coaches will be helpful.

A trick of choosing the clubs is the one with your kids’ friends or a lot of trainees at the same age. This would keep your children motivated and outgoing.

However, the quality of the clubs should be the priority criteria, including staff, service, and equipment. A suitable training schedule is another thing parents should pay attention to.

7. Safety first

It is relatively easy to get injured in boxing if the protective gear is not proper. Make sure that your kids are always safe by using fitted protective gear. Do not let them go on stage without it.

Furthermore, you should check the quality of the facility in the boxing club. Everything must meet the standard, and the coaches should have knowledge about emergent situations.

Parents and coaches should also tell child boxers about safety regulations in boxing, and insist that they follow them. Explain to them that doing so will help them avoid getting hurt.

Another point is boxing is for health and fun, not for the bully. Ask your kids not to use boxing to hurt innocent people. Only resort to boxing moves to defend themselves when endangered.

8. Some of the basic moves

There are a lot of moves in boxing that children can choose to learn at first. They are basic and simple, which is good for beginners.

Let’s start with punching. Throwing punches can be seen a lot in boxing-related media.

But you don’t throw punches straight – there are various types of punching. Parents or coaches can teach children several ones like cross, hook, jab, and uppercut.

By learning to punch, kids will acquire proper control over the body and get the fastest and most effective way of throwing punches. Punches can help kids escape from a bully or dangerous situations sometimes.

Boxing is not all about attacking – it is also about defending. Parents should teach kids that “You can not win or advance in boxing with punches alone, you must learn defense too”.

The defense typically come into two types, blocking and dodging. It is easier to block the hit with the glove, but not anyone is capable of doing so.

Dodging will need some skill and footwork, but it is better. Less chance of getting hit, and require less physical ability.

Even better, you can teach them to combine punches and dodge. This can be a good way to counter-attack.

Children can not learn boxing without good footwork. They need to know how to co-ordinate their body parts efficiently.

Kids need to learn how to move hands and feet when punching and evading. Distribution of weight on each foot and balance are other things should be taught in kid boxing.

Footwork will help children not only in boxing but also in other sports and activities in life. Also, it will be beneficial for their bodies.

For beginners, especially kids, starting boxing means physical training. Since they have little to none chance to train their bodies, boxing requires them to get strengthened.

Moreover, boxing is undisputably a sport that needs physical ability. If your kids have little endurance and strength, they will have certain disadvantages in boxing.

Physical training in kid boxing comes into many types. Kids can do skipping, jumping, sparring or jogging. Most of the cardio exercises can be considered as physical training.

To improve cardiovascular fitness, some exercises like squatting, pushing up and crunching can be used too. Parents can get the workout online or consult the coach. But remember to keep the workout suitable for your kids’ ability.

9. Youtube can help

It is not strange to learn from Youtube and other media platforms anymore. Parents can resort to it to see how to effectively teach your kid boxing, and get some tips to make things even easier.

Kids, on the other hand, can watch youth boxing tournaments. These videos will be exciting and encouraging for them. Moreover, they can learn some new moves and techniques from watching.

Visual learning also lets children revise what they have learned and correct the wrong moves. And parents can demonstrate the techniques better with models from the videos.

It is fun watching together too. Parents and children can cheer for the young boxers and have high-quality time with each other. Bonding through similar interests is nothing new.

10. Let’s keep the fire in your kids

Some children can get discouraged and lost their initial motive quickly, especially in hard sports like boxing. So, the parent should teach them patience and not giving up.

To achieve this, you must keep track of what your kids are doing. Try to stay connected with his or her trainers, and ask if there is anything you can help with.

Also, try to communicate more with your kids. Listening to their stories and talks and encourage them to keep on boxing. Conversation matters, and it can fuel their desire.

If there is any boxing-related event that your child wants to take part in, wholeheartedly encourage them to do so. They will learn a lot by competing and participating in real-life boxing.

However, in case your kids take part in a kid tournament, parents should mentally prepare them beforehand. Make clear that they understand what is important: it is not becoming the champion, but getting the experience.

There is no limit to what a child can learn, so parents should give them as many chances as possible to let them experience.

Boxing is a great sport for children. Parents, apart from teaching, can also join this sport to have a great time together with your kids and stay fit.