Ring leader: Why boxing is good for the body and mind

This is the sound of an unfit middle aged woman – me – battering a punchbag in a boxing gym to pounding dance music and shouts of encouragement from the trainer. There are eight of us working together, male and female, predominantly twentysomething fitness bunnies, all taking turns in short sharp intervals to bash punchbags, do pull ups, press ups, free weights, squat lunges, bicep curls, planks, skipping. It’s fast, furious, sweaty, enlivening. But is it therapy?

The short answer is yes. The punchbag is definitely the best bit, the one that takes the most focus and concentration. It’s not just mindless thumping – there is all kinds of co-ordination, footwork, and counting involved. Actual ducking and diving, for which I display all the grace and agility of a buffalo trying to climb out of a water hole. I don’t care. It’s tremendously exhilarating – so much so that after one trial class I sign up for a month’s unlimited. I mean, who doesn’t love thumping inanimate objects? And when do we ever get the opportunity to legitimately smash stuff with our fists, without landing ourselves in a cell, padded or otherwise?

Obviously, there is no blood involved – let’s leave that to the pay per view millionaires in Las Vegas, or the guys in Fight Club. This does not detract from the visceral satisfaction of glove hitting bag, over and over; instead of a custodial sentence, you come away with aching shoulders, stiff legs, and upper arms that feel like concrete. Oh, and hands that smell like sweaty socks from being encased in shared boxing gloves. Nothing that a hot yoga practice or a hot bath won’t melt away, leaving you with a sense of calm elation that stays all day. Endorphin heaven.

Beyond professionals like Katie Taylor, Kellie Harrington, Nicola Adams and others, the popularity of boxing continues its galloping momentum amongst women as well as men. Actors Jennifer Aniston, Jennifer Garner, models Gigi Hadid and Karlie Kloss, singer Ellie Goulding, plus assorted Kardashians – they all swear by it. Goulding says it has helped her enormously with her anxiety.

Frank Bruno, the professional boxer who came close to permanent institutionalisation after several serious bipolar crises post-retirement, has said that boxing was, paradoxically, a life saver. As has Prince Harry, who shared via his mental health initiative Heads Up that it provided him with a safety valve when coping with the death of his mother and the stress of growing up in public. In an interview, he said, “During those years I took up boxing, because everyone was saying boxing is good for you and it’s a really good way of letting out aggression. And that really saved me because I was on the verge of punching someone; so being able to punch someone who had pads was certainly easier.”

“I absolutely love it,” says Kathryn Thomas, the broadcaster who set up Pure Results bootcamps.“It’s cathartic, stress relieving, fantastic for fitness and for my head. I did a six week kick boxing course nine years ago and never looked back. Women love boxing – 80% of our bootcamp clients say boxercise is their favourite class. It’s such an adrenaline rush – it’s powerful and uplifting. And it’s totally inclusive and attainable, anyone of any age can do it, providing they don’t have existing injuries. We have people coming who are aged from 16 to 70. It’s a fantastic confidence booster for women.

“Boxing is one of the main reasons I set up my company.” Because boxing involves both brain and brawn, professional boxers liken it to a game of chess played with the body. It requires speed, accuracy, rhythm and footwork. It is tactical. Outside the professional sphere, boxing can be used in the treatment of conditions and situations as diverse as autism and Parkinson’s disease to couple therapy and anger management; it’s long been prescribed as a cathartic, inclusive way of channelling male rage in a contained environment. Think Rocky, or Raging Bull. Think wayward teenage boys finding focus and a sense of belonging. It is the ultimate in anger management. But is it enough on its own?

“Sport is always good, and boxing is a particularly brilliant way of expelling energy,” says Andy Fitzpatrick, a counsellor at Access Counselling.

But as an anger management technique, it won’t work purely on its own, because it doesn’t tackle the underlying situation of whatever is making the person angry in the first place. It would work very well on anger issues in conjunction with counselling or other talking therapies. We would always advocate sport as a way of releasing pent up emotions.

Getting in touch with your inner fire is particularly refreshing for women, given how we are conditioned from birth ­— still — to smile and be nice. That aggression is a male thing. That we don’t want to risk our pretty faces, our delicate bosoms. Obviously, nobody wants their nose flattened – unless maybe you are a professional fighter being paid for such risks – but stepping through latent reluctance around punching bags and pads is liberating, especially if you’ve grown up being told that girls’ sport begins and ends with netball and gymnastics.

Until 2012, boxing was a men only Olympic sport, despite the history of women’s boxing dating back to the 18th century. Even today, when female celebrities are reported to be enthusiasts, the caveat is that they are using the punchbag as a way of getting over a man. Both Jennifers Aniston and Garner – regular boxers – allegedly got into it after breaking up with husbands. Really? Or do they just enjoy it for itself?

Kathryn Thomas says that boxing empowers women, and boosts their overall confidence. Victoria Beckham was filmed boxing in Kenya earlier this year, as part of Sports Relief’s #BoxGirls initiative. The programme, #BoxGirls, began when Nairobi school girls requested training so that they learn to defend themselves in unsafe places. Knowing how to land a punch does not make you more aggressive; it makes you safer. It also works on hand-eye co-ordination, cardio vascular fitness, muscle building and fat burning.

“Boxercise has always been really popular with women,” says a spokesperson from Boxercise, a UK based organisation which trains instructors, and provides links to boxing fitness instructors world wide. “Particularly since the 2012 Olympics, when women’s boxing came into the spotlight much more.”

As well as combating aggression – because you feel so calm and centred afterwards – it can be useful for depression (alongside other treatments) as its focus requires you to be absolutely in the moment, rather than ruminating about the past or future. In that respect, boxing is entirely zen. It also creates a profound sense of satisfaction and achievement, particularly if you have never punched anything in your life, and discover that not only do you enjoy it, but have the ability to become good at it. Bingo wings? Bosh!

For older people with hip or knee mobility issues, cardiovascular fitness can be maintained without impacting too much on joints; in this respect, it’s better than running. It’s also excellent for combating loneliness, as it’s not something you can do on your own; you are either in a class doing reps and intervals, or sparring. And boxing gyms tend to be friendly, unpretentious places, keen on inclusion. In fact, I am enjoying it so much I may invest in a pair of gloves; having hands that smell like the bottom of a gym bag is boxing’s only downside.

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