Boxing is perhaps one of the most dangerous sports in the world. Its injury rate is extremely high, and so are the enjoyment and benefits it provides its trainees. However, various alternatives exist for those unwilling to risk themselves.
You still see people enrolling in boxing classes, even though it provides great danger. Nonetheless, there are various boxing alternatives you can start doing today and still enjoy similar benefits, such as increased confidence and self-esteem.
This article will present 9 different alternatives to the beautiful art: that is boxing. Now, I’ll divide them into 2 groups: sports without as much risk and martial arts.
All martial arts provide high risk except for specific ones, such as Qigong and Tai Chi. As a result, there’s no real alternative to combat sports if you want to learn to fight.
But you can still enjoy the physical and mental benefits of boxing by choosing a harmless sport, such as the ones I’ll list in this article.
Before diving in, follow the link to learn more about the best gifts for boxers and yourself.
Enough introduction; let’s dive into the list!
Rock climbing
| Sport | Injury rate |
|---|---|
| Rock climbing | 4.2 injuries per 1000 climbing hours |
The first sport we’ll discuss is rock climbing, which is, as you can imagine, not as dangerous as combat sports and other martial arts. However, for this section, I’ll also refer to boulder climbing, which can also be challenging and fun.
Rock climbing is a sport that burns a lot of calories, making it provide similar physical benefits as boxing. Hence, it’ll help you lose body fat, strengthen muscles, and improve your endurance and aerobic shape.
You can burn up to 900 calories in rock climbing, a highly desirable number for those wanting to lose body fat and get ripped. For your information, for the same body weight and intensity, boxing will burn up to 800 calories, which is also a high number.
A part of boxing is the mental challenge. You’ll be scared the first time you’ll spar, compete, and fight with someone. You’ll find a similar fear in rock climbing. Thus, your character will grow from stepping out of your comfort zone and doing something difficult.
Fencing
| Sport | Injury rate |
|---|---|
| Fencing | 2.5% |
The second boxing alternative we’ll discuss is fencing. Although the primary goal of fencing is to hit your opponent with a sword, it’s not as dangerous as it seems.
Someone might look at fencing and think: “Well, there’s a high risk of injury in fencing because you have two trained folks trying to hit each other with a sword.”
However, that’s not the case.
Fencing is nearly as harmful as table tennis, making it extremely low risk. It has an injury rate of about 2.5%.
So, fencing is a harmless alternative to boxing because it’s a combat sport that’ll teach you basic footwork movements you can apply to real life, but without the risk.
Fencing is also beautiful to 3rd party viewers, as it’s delicate and seems enjoyable simultaneously. You’ll improve your physical shape while learning a new sport, which is always a delight.
I highly recommend you watch the video about fencing. It shows a great example of its rapid pace and complicated nature. Do give it a watch.
BJJ
| Sport | Injury rate |
|---|---|
| BJJ | 6-month injury incidence rate of 59.2 |
The next sport, with higher risk since it’s a martial art, is Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, or BJJ.
BJJ is a martial art that teaches ground grappling. It’s one of the most effective fighting styles globally because it teaches you how to submit an opponent in seconds.
It’s also a worldwide sport, making it attractive for people who want to train with others.
While boxing teaches you how to punch and BJJ teaches you how to grapple, both achieve the same goal; submitting an opponent. As such, they’re similar in that their grand purpose is to teach people how to fight.
Likewise, both boxing and BJJ burn plenty of calories, thus, drastically improving your physical shape.
Tennis
| Sport | Injury rate |
|---|---|
| Tennis | 0.6-1.7 injuries per 1000 hours |
Next up, we have a widespread sport: tennis. You probably live under a rock if you’ve never heard of tennis. So, for those of you who have seen it but can’t seem to understand what’s going on, here’s what you’ll learn in tennis.
Tennis is a harmless boxing alternative about striking a ball to the opponent’s side. It’ll burn more calories than you think and provide you with a full-body workout. Tennis also has a mental side, requiring you to stay calm and vigilant under pressure.
If you want to notice similar benefits to boxing while avoiding injuries, tennis is a suitable and excellent choice.
Running
| Sport | Injury rate |
|---|---|
| Running | 50% for a year of consistent running |
Before we discuss what running provides, I want to note that it’s one of the exercises I always do. I know what you’ll experience after a long-distance run, and I want you to experience these feelings and benefits as I do.
Running and boxing provide the same primary benefits; here they are:
- Better physical shape
- Less stress and aggression levels
- It gives your mind a deep cleaning
- Being mindful
- Improving your endurance
- Burning calories
- Improving your mental health and confidence
Although running has some risks, it’s not nearly as dangerous as boxing. I hope that by now you understand that every sport has various risks attached to it.
However, I can confidently say that boxing is, by far, the most dangerous sport you can do on this list. So, if you want to improve yourself mentally and physically without injuring yourself, consider running.
If you want to learn how fast and how much professional boxers run, follow the two links.
Dancing
| Sport | Injury rate |
|---|---|
| Dancing | 86% of the athletes sustained one or more injuries within one academic year. |
I know what you may think: “How can dancing possibly be similar to boxing?” Well, let me surprise you with some statistics.
You can burn up to 800 calories by dancing per hour, the same as boxing. That’s why you’ll gain similar physical benefits with both sports.
Likewise, it provides an outlet for you to enjoy yourself and be mindful, the same as boxing.
The primary difference is that dancing doesn’t teach how to fight. Boxing’s purpose is to teach others self-defense and make them solid fighters. However, dancing is different. Its purpose is an expression of the inner self.
Judo
| Sport | Injury rate |
|---|---|
| Judo | between 12.3% and 30% |
Judo is another martial art whose purpose is the same as boxing. Both martial arts exist to teach people how to fight.
If you’re familiar with why martial arts even exist, it’s to teach others how to fight. Most martial arts have risen in hard times, filled with combat and wars. Take karate as an example; the people of Okinawa wanted to learn self-defense, so they would be able to defend themselves in the current war they had.
That’s why they constructed karate.
Judo provides similar benefits as boxing and thus is a great alternative. That said, its injury rate is also high, as shown in the video above.
Wrestling
| Sport | Injury rate |
|---|---|
| Wrestling | 2-30 reported injuries every 100 matches |
Wrestling is a fantastic martial art that teaches grappling, the same as judo and BJJ. Thus, it can be an excellent alternative to boxing, as it teaches self-defense.
Likewise, boxing, wrestling, and boxing provide their trainees with better physical and mental shapes, as they ensure their trainees step out of their comfort zones.
But wrestling’s injury rate is also pretty high, standing at 2-30 reported injuries every 100 matches. So the number may exceed the 30s because it’s reported injuries.
And still, wrestling is one of the best martial arts in the world. If you know how to wrestle, you can beat almost anyone in a 1 on 1 fight.
Tai chi
| Sport | Injury rate |
|---|---|
| Tai chi | Close to 0% |
The last harmless boxing alternative we’ll discuss is Tai chi. As you can see, its injury rate is lower than all other sports on this list.
But there’s something you should know before you sign up for the next Tai chi class.
While Tai chi is a martial art, it won’t teach you how to fight. Likewise, it won’t improve your physical shape nearly as much as all the other sports on this list, or boxing.
As a result, there isn’t much it provides other than a calmer, more conscious mind.
However, if you’re interested in being more peaceful and mindful, Tai chi is perfect for you. Likewise, it’s ideal for you if you want to improve your flexibility,
The only common injury in Tai chi is knee injuries, which aren’t as common. So, you’ll be safe if you decide to do Tai chi consistently.
Final words
If you’re looking for a harmless boxing alternative, I highly recommend you do the following:
- Tennis
- Tai chi
- Dancing
- Running
- Fencing
- Rock climbing
If, however, you’re looking to become a solid fighter, but you don’t want to have as much injury risk as boxing has, here’s what you should do instead:
- Wrestling
- BJJ
- Judo
All these sports are excellent alternatives to boxing. All of them will provide you with exercise and keep you active and going. As a result, I have no doubts you’ll enjoy every one of these sports.
And, if you have to, you can try each to see which you like best.
If you enjoyed reading this article, you’d also enjoy reading about boxing vs. running, which is a better workout?