Body Shots

Head-hunting is a habit, not a strategy — tonight the punches go downstairs, where fights are quietly won.

Boxing
Mixed club class
60 min
Works for 8–18, paired by size
1 coach
Effort 4/5
Boxing gym floor
body shots
hooks
pads
bag work
club night

The MatPlans curriculum teamBJJ black belts & coaches · 12+ yrs on the mat

Kit: Gloves and wraps for all, one pair of focus pads per pair (a body belt or body shield is a bonus, not a requirement), heavy bags if you have them, timer or bell. All body work lands on pads, shields or bags — never on an unprotected partner.

Warm-up10 min

Trunk First

Setup: Wraps on, loose swarm. Body punching is trunk rotation under a level change, so the warm-up is hips, obliques and knees before it is anything else.

How it works: Mobility ladder on the move: hip circles, slow trunk rotations with arms folded, side bends, then ten slow squats sinking into the exact depth tonight's punches live at. Then two shadow rounds: round one normal boxing at half speed; round two every second combination dips — bend the knees, throw the same 1-2 at rib height, rise home. Thirty seconds between. The dip should already look like a punch by the end of the warm-up.

Rounds: 2 × 2 min shadow, 30s rest, mobility before

What to say

“Bend the knees to change floors — the head stays stacked over the hips, never tipped over the toes.”
“Same guard downstairs — dipping with dropping hands is a bad trade.”
“Feel the obliques switch on in round two — they are tonight's engine room.”

Easier

Squats to comfortable depth only; round two dips on your call, not every second combination.

Harder

Round two: every combination goes downstairs, and the last twenty seconds hold the low level throughout.

Drill14 min

Technical — Straight to the Body, Hook to the Body

Setup: Semi-circle. Demo the two shots of the night side-on: the rear straight to the body — a cross that changes floors — and the lead hook to the body, boxing's oldest fight-ender. Show the level change twice as slowly as feels natural.

How it works: Build the rear straight to the body first: dip at the knees, turn the hip, drive the rear hand to where the ribs meet the elbow — then home tall. Ten slow, ten half speed, ten honest. Then the lead hook to the body: dip outside, weight onto the lead leg, and the hook digs in and slightly up under the imaginary elbow. Same ladder of reps. Chain them behind the jab all week's habits demand: 1-2 to the body, and jab-dip-lead hook downstairs. Circle and correct — the fault of the night is bowing at the waist, and the fix is always the knees.

The technique, step by step

Jab upstairs to hold their eyes high.
Dip: knees bend, torso tilts slightly off line, guard intact.
Rear straight drives to rib height, hip turning through, rear heel lifting.
Or: weight loads the lead leg and the lead hook digs in and up under the elbow line.
Rise home to stance on the drag, hands back before the eyes come up.

Key details

The dip and the punch are one motion — dip-then-punch is two invitations to counter.
Body shots are thrown through the target, not at it — pick a spot a fist deep.

Common mistakes

Bowing at the waist with straight legs — the head dives forward and the punch turns into a push.
Dropping the free hand while digging — the answer to a body shot is usually thrown at your head.

What to say

“Change floors with your legs, not your spine — sit into the shot like taking a low chair.”
“The body hook digs slightly upward — under the fence, not over it.”
“Exhale hard on every body shot — you are teaching the punch and the breath together.”
“Head stays off the centre line when you dip — a level change on the centre line queues you up for a knee-high uppercut.”

Easier

Rear straight to the body only tonight; the hook waits until the dip is a habit.

Harder

Add the classic lift: body hook, then the same hand upstairs — downstairs opens the door, upstairs walks through.

Drill14 min

Pads — Digging Downstairs

Setup: Pairs, pads out. Holder school for body work: one pad flat against the ribs, elbow tight to the side, braced for a dig — and if you have body belts, rotate them through the pairs. Remind the room plainly: every body shot lands on a pad or shield, nothing lands on a partner.

How it works: Six rounds of two minutes, swap each round. Rounds 1–2: singles — rear straight to the body pad on the call, then lead hooks to the body pad, quality digs. Rounds 3–4: the sentences — 1-2-body, and jab-body hook-hook upstairs to the pad. Rounds 5–6: holder mixes calls upstairs and downstairs freely; the boxer's level changes have to be real by now — knees, not nods. Circle the pairs; put your eyes on legs and exhales.

Common mistakes

Slapping the body pad with a loose wrist — tight fist, straight wrist, dig with the first two knuckles.
Reaching down with the arm instead of travelling down with the legs — if the shoulders tip past the toes, start the rep again.

Rounds: 6 × 2 min, swap each round, 30s rest

What to say

“Dig through the pad a fist deep — body shots are rude or they are nothing.”
“Knees change the floor between every call — I want to see thighs working by round four.”
“Holders, brace the body pad with the elbow glued in — a loose pad steals the thud and teaches nothing.”
“Guard home before you rise — down, dig, guard, up, in that order.”

Easier

Rounds 1–2 material all night; holder calls slow and singles only.

Harder

Rounds 5–6: after each combination the holder sweeps a slow pad level at head height — roll under it before resetting.

The rest of this lesson is free — along with 3 more this week.

MatPlans curriculum team

Free on MatPlans — new lessons weekly.