The hook (not the same thread)

[SamuraiGuy]

Well that guy below stole my thread title lol, but I have a different question about it and did not feel like hi jacking his thread.

Here it goes, when throwing the hook I have no problem with pivoting/hip rotation and all that good stuff... my question is do I... "throw" the hand out there, like as if I was jsut arm punching, (but with all the pivoting and that), or do I just hold the hand basically steady and solid and let er hit.

Hopefully you guys get what im saying...

[Punjabi]

you jus go with ur body as ur pivoting. Make sure ur hands are horzontal when throwin the hooks cuz slaps arent acceptable. they illegal. but yea u jus go with the whole pivot and body movement. MAke sure u also bend ur knees as that is where all the power comes from

[SamuraiGuy]

Yeah I try to keep my elbow parallel to the ground when throwing hooks, so as to avoid the slapping..

[TerryV]

Here is something you can try, I do this with some of my kids and this was one of the ways I learned how to throw a hook. (But you really need one on one attention to learn a hook) Do the following for about 2 to 3 rounds then throw the hook with the fist. Start off on the bag throwing "lead left, right hand, then for the hook throw your elbow like you would your fist but keep your fist tight to your upper body and your elbow high and drive through the bag with the elbow" then move and come back with "right hand, left elbow again followed by right hand" Keep mixing it up.

Don’t forget to drive the elbow, (NO I am not teaching you to be dirty, it teaches you to pivot and drive through) after doing this for 2 to 3 rounds then start doing it will the fist but THINK elbow and driving it through.

The best text in the world really does not get the point across about how to throw a hook. Hope this helps and good luck.
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If you need more detail on the pivot take a look at Mikes comment from that other post. He summons it up pretty good.
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Start by throwing your hooks and uppercuts as close range punches only. A lot of problems come when people try to throw the hook or uppercut in long range. They end up swinging instead of punching. Step by step, the basics are:

1. Pivot your waist so that the opposing shoulder is nearly in line with the opposing knee. In other words, if you're throwing a rear uppercut, you need to turn your waist so that your lead shoulder is in line with the rear knee. Don't lean to the side - just bend and twist.

2. Bend your knees and pivot the foot on the "non-firing" side toward the side the punch will be coming from. At this start position, you look like you're massively telegraphing the blow. Don't worry. That's part of the training method.

3. Keep your hands in the ready position. Don't "chamber" the shot. It won;t add enough power to make up for the hole it leaves in your defense.

4. As you start to throw the punch, send your weight back onto the "non-firing" foot. That's the side opposite whichever side your punch is coming from. Ie, the lead if you're throwing a rear punch, or the rear if you're throwing your lead. This should be explosive, not deliberate.

5. Begin turning the waist and shoulders back into the punch at the same time in a fluid, coordinated movement. The idea is to reverse your original situation throughout the delivery of the punch. If the rear shoulder was turned over the lead knee, you should make it so that the lead shoulder moves over the rear knee by the end of the punching motion. This involves a smooth, coordinated "unscrewing" of the torso, waist, and shoulders.

6. As your waist turns into the punch and your weight shifts, you should drive with the punching side leg in the direction of your body's twisting motion. The leg has to be the engine. It has to propel the body weight, so if you don't bend the knees correctly, your punch will become an arm motion instead of a proper attack.

7. Now your arm gets involved. Drop the shoulder slightly and let the forearm fall to a 90 degree angle. If this is a hook you're throwing, the forearm will be parallel to the floor. If you're throwing it at the body, get lower with your legs, not by leting your arm reach downward. If it's an uppercut, everything is the same as far as the mechanics we already talked about, except that your forearm is now perpendicular to the floor instead of parallel. For the uppercut, you will propel your arm directly up the centerline, screwing your shoulder into the blow and letting the arm fall back down the centerline to the ready position as a recovery. For the hook, it should fire directly into the target from the side, without any "curve" or grazing effect.

8. Finally, recover from the punch by quickly reversing all the body mechanics we just looked at so that you end up in the start position all over again. This will pull your head out of the line of fire, and as you gain experience, will aid in maintaining some hip action for follow up shots in combinations.

Initially, your hooks and uppercuts should look pretty exaggerated. Don't be afraid to wind them up and over-emphasize the body mechanics required while you're learning. You'll be amazed at how often you can wind them up to the same ridiculoud degree and get away with it in real matches because the body movements of other punches, evasions, and footwork will disguise those "telegraphs." In the end, this will require patient attention to detail, devotion to getting it right, and an absolute lust for success. You have to really want to get hese attacks right, and pay more attention to them than anything else, just like DJ said. Every session, start with these attacks in your warm up, and add two or three extra rounds on the bags with them at the end. I also like to spend three rounds (9mins) visualizing punches and combinations in my head right before I go to sleep. Often times, it sort of "pre-programs" me to dream about them all night. When you visualize an action, you reinforce the exact same neural pathways involved in the real action, so it's almost just like doing it for real. Every little bit helps.

And by the way, I also highly recommend Title's boxing tapes/DVDs. They're better quality than Ringside's, and they contain some really good material. By far the best training tape value for any art out there.

Hope this helped some. Let me know if you need clarification.

Mike