Why shadowbox?

[gregimotis]

At my gym, we start class with two rounds of shadowboxing - besides a good warm-up I'm not convinced I get much out of it.

Should I be shadow-boxing more, or practicing particular techniques, or what?

I was hoping some of you guys could convince me shadow-boxing isn't just a waste of valuable time I could be spending on pad-work or sparring.


I've been training three-four days/week for a couple years and my Khru had trouble taking this question very seriously when I asked him.

A humble thanks in advance.

[dbok1]

If you have been training for years then why ask such a weird question such as that. Shadowboxing is part of what we do. Would you ask the same question to a boxer?

Yes it is a great way to warm up, break a sweat, and practice your technique, it loosen up's the limbs gets the body ready for the movements and should mentally prepare yourself for training.

Why don't you pretented that you are fighting someone next time you shadowbox, move around like you are in the ring, work on combinations, visualize what your gonna do and do it.

I still have to say that this questions is very wierd to ask if you indeed practice in muay thai.

[hybone]

Let me tell you why you should shadowbox and it is not a waste of time. In an actual boxing/kickboxing match, you are not going to hit all your strikes and targets. When you swing and miss, you can be out of balance. Shadowboxing helps in the sense that you can work on your balance and positioning. Shadowboxing with an imaginary opponent can train you to keep your balance and still be in good position to strike again when you miss.

Start practice shadowboxing hard with an imaginary opponent, and when you spar again, you'll know what I mean.

[retired]

hybone, im with you all the way on this one.
there's nothing like getting in the ring and throwing some heavy punches and missing & opening yourself up or jarring something.

you see the bag & pad's act only as the perfect opponent where he stands in exactlly the right place & position for you to hit him but in reality everybody knows that it's not like that in real life and your opponent moves around and hits back, how many people have gone to throw a technique only to find your opponent is to close and it's caused you to lose power in your kick etc...

some student's had a telling off in the gym the other day because we were throwing a technique like:
R cross, L hook, R knee then L switch kick (all big bomb techniques) but the pad man was stepping back after each hit to help the attacker not get tied up & too close to the pads so he cant kick (because of not practicing), but this is the main reason the switch kick was developed because we dont always have the perfect position & by switching we are bringing the kicking leg back away from the opponent to make room for the technique & by shadowboxing we get used to throwing techniques that dont always connect how we would like or miss altogether.

as well as shadowboxing try practicing throwing techniques from varying distances.

sorry for waffling on

[Ice]

Form follows function...

Hello gregimotis,

In addition to being a good warm-up and visualization exercise, shadow boxing enables you to work on the form of your techniques - without proper form you're just wasting your energy [and time]. I've heard stories of people at the Thailand camps doing nothing but shadow boxing for months before they progress to the heavy bag or Thai pads for this reason.

Shadow boxing allows you to learn the proper body mechanics of a given Muay Thai technique without stressing the body improperly - the techniques are so powerful that you can incur a stress related injury quite easily with sloppy technique and 'youthful' vigor.

One of the first things Ajarn Chai had the seminar participants do here in Juneau, was shadow box to assess our technical proficiency/level.

Just my [ignorant Level 1] two cents - I hope that helps,

W2

[fugetsu]

the key to it all...

Shadow boxing should be used to train yourself in all the things that you learn in class and in the ring.
Good form is the basis for any movement, so if you want to develop good form, drill it while shadow boxing.
After kicking the pads, take what weak points the trainer illustrated (by punching and knocking you silly) and work on them while shadow boxing--example, after a right elbow strike, the trainer throws a low kick to the lead leg-now this is a cheap shot, but now I shadow box practicing elbow strikes and then shin blocks followed by kicks or knees.
If you work on the bag but have problems with distance, balance, power, or what have you, sharpen up your movements by perfecting technique while shadow boxing.
Also, after getting knocked around the ring while sparring, shore up your weak points working on them while shadow boxing.
If you want to be able to low kick or knee after throwing or countering an attack, drill it into your movements by shadow boxing it.
In the end, literally, work-outs should start with shadow boxing and should end with shadow boxing. It is the glue that binds your Muay Thai together.
Alex

[gregimotis]

How much shadowboxing do you guys recommend then? I do one round boxing and one round Thai boxing to start class. Maybe I could do more before class or something... Also, I haven't been doing any specific drills as I think are being suggested here.

Thing is it's a little embarrassing to ask about this when the answers seem so self evident to everyone else.

So, thanks for the help.