I Won My 4th Boxing Fight
26th July 2025, I won my boxing match. This is my second official win !
I am so proud of myself because I worked really hard for this fight. It took me 12month of getting ready. This is how I always been progressing in boxing. Working hard is needed of course but it needs strategy. Anyone can win boxing match.
If you are looking to progress in boxing and maybe want to participate in boxing match, here are my ways of progressing with strategies. I hope you implement these.
Credit pic : @hafizspencer (IG HANDLE of photographer)
5 Deliberate Practice
STRENGTH & WEAKNESS
If your boxing coach ever mention to you about what you need to work on, you do that. If they keep repeating the same common mistake like :
watch out for feet when moving lateral, don’t let them cross over then that is the one you want to be practicing first. I will keep everything else second. For example my coach says keep my core and hip in over and over again. That is why I keep that the main thing to work on first every time. I will do it outside boxing gym too. This way you will be consistent and able to correct bad habit quickly.
Your strength maybe you are a pressure fighter than work on that style. Or you are better with hands down or moving lateral and angles, then keep it and keep working on your strength. Eventually these strengths are what make your style.
SPARRING
There are two kinds of sparring session. Technical sparring and also hard sparring. Both are necessary in my opinion. For beginner, go for technical sparring twice a week. Some gyms do have this in their class lesson. When you get partner up with someone, that is the time to test yourself that mimicks a real fight. Again, use feedback from your partner.
I recommend to have hard sparring once a week. Why? It will be exactly like a real fight. For my first fight, I rarely do hard sparring when I get in the ring, the first round was a slight shocked to me. Learn my lesson hard and I make sure I get 1 hard sparring once every week now. It is the only to keep myself sharp. P.s Ask your coach to find you someone who can help you out. This person should be helping you out without trying to beat you up.
RUNNING
Boxing is stamina. Power, speed, agility comes from your legs not your arms. Running is one big part of my training because running really helps my lungs to keep going even when my mind can’t push further. While I run, that is also the time I visualize how I want to fight or what I do if my opponent certain way.
FUEL
Food is something you need to perform. Sometimes you might be feeling tired during training because you did eat the right food. Regardless if you are using boxing to lose weight. I recommend carbohydrate for example rice, potatoes, banana, dates or even white bread if it is 1 hour or less before training. You might be thinking why carbs before training? I have a whole post about this.
RECORDING – FEEDBACK
I have been recording my own training in class, sparring session since the first day of boxing class. This really helps me to see what I am lacking of and if i have improvement. Which part makes me cringe and which one I got it right. This way bad habit doesn’t stick too long.
You have to learn how to watch out for your own bad habit and pair this with your coach feedback. This way you can progress by leaps and bound before a fight.
MOBILITY
This is not only about stretching. Mobility is combination of strength and flexibility in a joint’s full range of motion. For example :
Flexibility: you can drop into a split passively
Mobility: you can drop into a deep squat with control and stability.
It’s what allows you to move efficiently, safely, and with power.
Mobility is everything that lets you move fluidly, fast, and without restriction inside the ring. Here is what you can do other than making it more available. Example of mobility for some body part:
For Hips (power + weaving)
- Hip Circles (90/90 transitions)
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- Sit on the floor with both knees bent at 90°.
- Rotate hips side-to-side, switching from left to right.
- Builds rotational control for weaving/rolling
For Shoulders (punch speed + guard fluidity)
- Scapular Push-ups
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- In push-up position, keep arms straight, pinch shoulder blades together, then push apart.
- Strengthens shoulder mobility for snapping punches.
- Band Pull-Apart (light resistance band)
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- Hold band at chest height, pull apart, squeeze shoulder blades.
- Opens up chest and balances boxing’s forward posture.
RECOVERY
I am so focused on this part of my training before anything else. I have notice when I don’t sleep enough or well I can’t seem to stay sharp while training. My reaction is way slower. I have this title i call myself “professional sleeper” hahaha. I would focus on my bedtime and deep sleep. You can go for massages, sauna, cold plunge but the best recovery is sleep. For women we do need 8-9hours. I usually function best at 7.5hr but when it comes to twice a day training, I need 8 hours. It might be different for you.
SUMMARY
Try out 1 deliberate practice for 2 weeks before adding on something else. Go ahead and test it all of these above and let me know how you did and what you add on and share it here with me.
Heeey, Congrats on your 4th win! The detail about adjusting your footwork in the second round after studying your opponent’s patterns shows great in-fight adaptability. That moment when you switched stances to create a new angle for your left hook was particularly clever.
Some fighters might overlook how much mental energy goes into making those micro-adjustments round by round while staying composed offensively.
You mentioned working on countering taller opponents – what specific drills helped you close distance more effectively for this fight? And how did you balance maintaining pressure while conserving energy for later rounds?
Thank you! It is a lot of mental energy and not just punching. Boxing is a lot of ring IQ that is needed, not only switch on but planning, setting up, studying your opponent habits. To close distance when I face a taller fighter, I use head movement and jabs to come in range. Breathing is my main focus while punching and while the shots coming in, I can’t tense, this gets me in trouble because I can’t think and look while getting hit. I realise when I breathe it allows my mind to still think to look for her opening spots.
Your journey to a second official win, especially after a year of strategic training, really highlights the mental grit behind boxing, not just physical preparation. I’m curious: what specific aspects of strategy did you focus on over those 12 months? Was it refining combinations, pacing, defense, or perhaps mental conditioning? Also, how did your mindset evolve between the first three fights and this fourth one? Did any unexpected challenges emerge during training or the match that shifted your approach? I’d love to hear more about the moments that made you feel “in the zone” versus those where you had to reset mid-bout. Your story inspires not just respect for the hard work, but curiosity about how each fight shapes the next; is there a particular lesson from fight four that you plan to carry forward into training for fight five?
These are the specific I had to learn : rhythm, finding distance, defense and staying switch on during the round. The first three fight I was just pressuring (coming in forward) with little to no defense, like punch and “i am okay getting punch”. This fourth one, I work on defense and offense at the same time even though I was still coming forward most of the time. There was not a lot of unexpected challenges emerge during training except that one time I thought I was not good enough. Only to get feedback from my head coach, there is progress but it was slower than I thought. Well I was in the zone in second round, first round honestly I had to reset right about halfway through. This fight thought me to work a lot on my footwork and just implement what I been practising during training. The work has already been done and just do it.
Congrats on the July 26 win—that’s huge. Quick question on your “hard sparring once a week” rule: how do you manage the risk and recovery side, especially for head shots? Do you build in deload weeks or swap in body-only rounds when you’re feeling beat up, or is it strictly full contact every week? I’ve heard mixed advice from coaches on frequency, so I’m curious what’s actually worked for you without dulling reaction time or racking up injuries.
If I am getting a lot of head shot, it is a sign I have to move my head more or usually high guard is the “simplest way of doing it or I would slip or weave. One of the few ways I de load is just take a longer time to rest or I will skip sparring session , work on mobility if I am feeling beat up. Only if I can get a good sparring partner that is willing to take body shots and avoid head shot then that is a good thing! For examples, I ask some male coaches to wear body protector so I can work on body shot. Here is a rule of thumb, you know your body not your coach. Try different frequency. Also whether if female or male matters too. I consider my cycle phase. Some phase I can’t barely move so some defense I would just use hand block, high guard, etc. I rarely have injuries but when I have one, I see my chiropractor first to review and get it treated then if necessary I would get acupuncture.
Your post is incredibly motivating—congratulations on your fourth fight win! Reading about your journey makes it clear why strategy and consistent hard work truly pay off in the ring. I really appreciate how practical your advice is, from focusing on one key correction at a time from your coach, to balancing technical sparring with the reality check of hard sparring sessions. I also like how you emphasized the importance of cardio and visualization, tracking progress through recording, and even adding mobility work to boost power and agility. Prioritizing recovery with quality sleep is such an underrated point too, and it really rounds out the full picture of training like a champion. What I’m curious about is—what’s one practice or mindset shift that made the biggest difference in your preparation? And how do you personally stay mentally sharp during those stretches between fights?
Thank you ! Mindset shift would probably be who am I watching, learning and practising with. Be aware of who is giving me feedback and if I should consider take it in. The saying “you are the average of 5 people you hang out with” is true. I personally stay sharp because I have watch fights and saw superior skills of some boxers and do want to develop those skills. “Act like it” is the main affirmation in my head.
Congratulations on winning your second match. You must be super proud of yourself.
Like any sport, it takes tremendous self discipline and hard work to get to a level where you can actually do well. Some are lucky as they have natural talent, but most of us have to work at it to improve.
You have given some great advice here, from sparring to running to strengthening your muscles. Most people don’t realize that for any sport they need to cross train to be the best athlete that they possible can.
How long does it take for a boxer to train and be ready for his first fight?
Thank you Michel! I am proud of myself which rarely I am but I soaked in on this one. Yes I agree, most of us have to work for it. Cross training is crucial. Gone are the days athlete train only their specific sports. For a boxer to train and really get ready for a fight is at least more than 6months.