Avoiding overtraining—should be your top-priority when starting to train in boxing. Most novice trainees, who start their new fighting journey, end up training too much because it’s exciting at first. However, that only causes fatigue in the long-term. So, how often should you do boxing?
As a general rule, training up to 4 times a week will help you avoid overtraining. However, training on consecutive days, such as Monday followed by Tuesday—may cause said symptoms to begin. As such, the optimized number of boxing sessions per week is 3: on non-consecutive days.
Training the same muscle groups day after day—is unwise. That’s because you must let your muscles enough time to recover. If you don’t, your body may end up permanently damaged. Of course, in the short-term, it’ll be much more fatigued and unprepared for physical exercise.
I’ve had the honor to experience such symptoms when at the beginning of my martial arts journey. At first, I went through a 14 months Krav Maga course. In it, I was eager to train and learn more and more, as it was enjoyable to do so.
However, my eagerness has led me to overtrain my right biceps. As a result, until now, three years later, I still sometimes feel the symptoms of my overtrained self.
As you understand, my goal with this article is to aid you in avoiding overtraining symptoms while optimizing your progression. After all, you’re boxing for the sake of your purpose. So, progressing toward it—is the #1 priority.
Before diving in, if you want to read interesting boxing facts, be sure to follow the link to an article of mine.
How many times a week should I do boxing
The first section will discuss optimizing your training routine, so you’ll be able to progress as fast as possible. That said, we want to avoid overtraining at the same time. Let’s examine how many times a week you should do boxing.
Per week, 3 boxing sessions on non-consecutive days—is the optimized number. However, you can train anywhere from 1-4 times a week. It’s crucial you give your body enough rest, as the growth happens when you recover from the last intense session. Likewise, it won’t allow you to experience symptoms of overtraining.
Training on non-consecutive days—is critical for your progression. If your training session looks like this:
- Sunday – Boxing
- Monday – Boxing
- Tuesday – Boxing
You won’t be able to progress as much, as your body won’t have enough time to recover. Although martial arts isn’t resistance training, so it doesn’t cause as many micro tears in your muscles, it can still be harmful to your body.
Here are some symptoms of severe overtraining, so you’ll want to avoid it as much as possible:
- Prolonged general fatigue.
- Increase in tension, depression, anger, or confusion.
- Inability to relax.
- Poor-quality sleep.
- Lack of energy, decreased motivation, moodiness.
- Not feeling joy from things that were once enjoyable
Now you understand why my purpose with this article is to ensure you don’t let your excitement rule over you. Moreover, if you train too frequently or for extended periods, you’re less likely to stick with boxing in the long-term, as everything in life gets tiresome at some point.
Will boxing 3 times per week get me in shape?
As I’ve previously mentioned, training too often may cause overtraining. That’s because your body won’t have enough time to recover properly. Likewise, we saw that 3 times per week on non-consecutive days—is the optimized number per week.
Boxing for 3 times per week will get you in shape, if you let your body enough time to recover. Usually, a day off from training is enough to ensure your muscles are prepared for the next intense workout. Of course, even training once a week will eventually lead to progression, results, and benefits.
If you believe you’re experiencing the symptoms of overtraining, here’s what you should do, according to Sheffield Hallam University:
If you think you might be suffering from the overtraining syndrome, the best and most important recovery tool is to manage your training. Take a break from challenging exercise and let your body heal and repair itself.
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But, why let your muscles get into such a state in the first place.
Training for three times per week is fine, as long as you let your body at least a day off between workouts. By doing so, you ensure you don’t let your body enter an overtraining phase, where your muscles will experience harmful consequences in the long-term.
There is, indeed, a thin line between working too hard and too little. As a result, to ensure you’re on the positive side, let your body rest. If you don’t know, your muscles grow in recovery, not in training.
And, most importantly, listen to your body. If it tells you to stop training, then do as it says. Once you understand when your muscles are too fatigued to continue training, you’ll be at a much better spot.
Is boxing every day healthy?
To ensure you progress, you must let your body at least a day off between training sessions to recover properly. As such, participating in intensive training day after day—is unwise.
Boxing every day isn’t nearly as effective as training for three times per week because you won’t let your muscles and body enough time to recover. As a result, it won’t recover properly, developing symptoms of overtraining, which can be harmful both in the short-term and long-term.
Do you think elite boxers train the same muscles every day? They know that if they don’t let their body recover, they also will not grow and progress.
A common misconception is to think that training more will lead to more results. Unfortunately, that’s simply not the case. If you want to see the most results, shove in your training sessions in between rest days. That way, you’ll ensure your body recovers properly.
Here’s a weekly training program you can follow to ensure you progress as much as possible.
The rest days in between the training sessions—will ensure your muscle won’t have any micro-tears as soon as you begin the following workout. As a result, you’ll optimize your progression—while avoiding overtraining at all cost.
Of course, in the training routine above, Sunday is a rest day, as you have a training session on Monday. But, you can play around with it to suit your schedule to the training sessions. Additionally, you can train once or twice a week, that’ll be totally fine!
I’ve trained once a week for most of my martial arts career, as I also had other doings. And still, I’ve managed to progress even when training just once a week.
If you want to learn more about why boxing is good for anger-management, ensure to follow the link to an article of mine on the topic.
How long should I box for per session?
To see the most progression from your boxing journey, you must know for how long to box for. If you train in a qualified martial arts gym, trust them to make the tough choices; you just follow. Nevertheless, if you work out by yourself, such information is vital.
Every boxing session should last 90 minutes, on average. However, the number may range anywhere from 40-120 minutes. If you train in a boxing gym, follow their workout plan, as they most likely know what they’re doing. However, if you train alone, ensure you workout for long enough to see results.
But again, training every day or for too long—may cause severe symptoms of overtraining. As such, when you prepare yourself for the next session, ensure you have a plan a professional approved, so you know you’re on the right track.
But, a solid rule of thumb is to train for an hour straight on non-consecutive days. If you decide to go for 30 minutes, you still can’t train the day after, as your muscles won’t yet be recovered.
Final words
Boxing is one of the best martial arts you can do to ensure you learn how to fight aggressively. Moreover, it’s a suitable platform to develop your mental and physical selves. Its benefits are truly astounding.
In my life, I’ve trained anywhere from once a week to every day. In my personal experience, training every day hasn’t led me to more results. What it did do is cause overtraining symptoms. For me, I primarily experienced fatigue in my biceps; to this day, I still do.
My purpose with this article was to ensure you don’t experience symptoms of overtraining. Such fatigue can guarantee you’ll stay away from the ring for plenty of time. So, be sure to avoid it as much as possible by optimizing your training routine.
If you enjoyed reading this article, you’ll also enjoy reading about the pros and cons of boxing. Knowing them will ensure you know what you’re getting into.