Hi there, I'm Mike Gales for Everlast Nutrition. In this video, we're going
to take a look at how to slip punches in boxing for beginners. Well I guess the
first question should be what is a slip? I guess you could think of it as
slipping your head out of the path of straight punches so that you don't get
it hit directly in the face. I think that the best way to visualize this, is to
think that there is a kill zone. Within that zone, the straight
punches such as the jab and the cross will do the most amount of damage.
That is because it is there that they're going to have the most leverage. What we're
looking to do with the slip, is to time it so that your head is out of that kill
zone as the straight punches are being thrown towards your face. That will
hopefully save you from being hit. Now that you generally know what a slip is,
let's come over the easiest way to do it. Okay first things first. For you
beginners, you don't want to be standing all square facing your opponent like this.
As you're going to be a much easier target to hit because your lateral
mobility is going to be limited. Next this is extremely important, you don't
want to slip punches using your neck. In fact you're going to notice in just a
moment that my neck does not move at all. To do this correctly assume a proper
boxing stance. Have your lead leg and lead shoulder pointed towards your
opponent. If you're not sure how to do that I'll include that in the
description in the link below. The most basic movement that we're going to use
to slip punches will be done by bending at the leg and at the waist. By doing
that you're going to use your core to move your head out of the path of
incoming punches. Here just a few things to keep in mind. First I
already mentioned it but you want to bend at the legs and at the waist. You
don't want to use your neck. Next you're going to want to keep your hands and your
shoulders up as high as possible. You're going to focus on making sure
that your head is safely out of that kill zone. You also don't want to be
leaning too far forward while you're slipping punches either. That will
put you closer to the punches and limit your reaction time. Also you're going
to have zero leverage to deliver any counter shot after you slip.
In the beginning let's do nothing fancy. You're just going to maintain a proper boxing
stance and focus on bending at the legs and at the waist.
Another little tip is that you definitely want to get out of
that kill zone but you don't want to over exaggerate your slip like this.
That's definitely going to increase the time that you're going to need to
counter. Also repeating this exaggerated movement over
over again it's going to tire you out for nothing. Once again the important
point is moving your neck like this is useless because you're still going to
get hit. Even if you move your head using your core, you still need to make sure
that it gets outside of that kill zone. Or else once again you're going to get Hit.
If you can just try not to over exaggerate the movement, I think one of
the main things to note here should be that slipping punches is all about
timing. Your reaction time is obviously going to be greatly improved
if you can actually see the punches coming clearly. So where is it you should
be looking? I mentioned this before in a blocking video that if you look directly
at the punches, it's very similar to it if you were looking directly at the
lines on paved road. They seem to be moving very very fast. Yet when you look
far ahead and you use your peripheral vision to see those very same lines, they
seem to be moving a lot slower. Even though your car is still moving at the
exact same speed. Instead of looking directly at the punches themselves, keep
your eyes fixed on the upper chest of your opponent. Use your peripheral
vision and you're going to see everything clearly. Once again
the slips are all about timing and it's a lot easy to time them if you can
actually clearly see them coming. Let's take a look at specifically
slipping the jab. For the purposes of this video I'm going to assume that your
opponent is not a southpaw. My opponent here is throwing his jab and remember
that I want to slip my head out of that kill zone. I'm going to recommend
that the best option for beginner is to slip to the outside of the jab by
bending your rear leg and your waist. That way your core moves your head outside
of that kill zone.
There's no doubt that you could slip the jab to the inside but I would not
suggest that for beginners. As your head is still going to be within the kill
zone of a cross that may be following his jab. It is true that you could
slip to the inside like this but like I said I wouldn't really recommend this to
a beginner. There definitely is a risk. For you first-timers I would
suggest that you keep your hands up as high as you can. There's no doubt
that your hands are going to move a bit due to momentum but keep them up as high
as you can. Then slip his jab to the outside. One last point. You can still do
this but I would definitely recommend beginners not slip punches as they go
straight backwards. As you're still going in range for a hard cross. It may seem
counterintuitive but it's a much safer option to actually slip the jab as you
move towards your opponent and to the outside. Next let's take a look at
slipping the cross specifically. Here is my opponent throws a cross. Remember
that my main objective it to slip my head away from that punch.
I recommend that you do that by bending at the lead leg and at the waist. Moving
your head outside of that kill zone. Similarly to the jab, the best option for
beginners will be the slip to the outside of the kill zone of that punch.
Remember that your hands are probably going to move down a bit with
your momentum but try to keep them up as high as you can. It is true that
you always have the option of slipping to the inside but then you also have the
risk of getting hit with his left hand. Just like when slipping the jab, if
you're going to move your feet then once again I would not recommend that beginners
slip the cross as they back up in a straight line. They should slip
the cross moving forward towards their opponent and to the outside. Whichever punch you
slip, it must be done at the right range. Repeating slipping motions from a great
distance for nothing, while your opponent just stands there and watches you, is
going to be a complete waste of time. Eventually you're going to tire and he is going
to time you. Then he's going to catch you with a hard punch. Also if you try to
slip punches at extremely close quarters, that takes great reflexes which a
beginner may not have. For beginners, the best time to
perform this slip is going to be when you're just outside of arms length.
That leads us to a good question. Why would you want to slip punches anyway?
Why not just block them? If your opponent misses his intended target then
there's going to be a moment of opportunity where he's going to be open
and probably off-balance. This is where you can turn a defensive maneuver
into offense. Timing his punches and slipping them will give you the ability
to land some nice clean counter punches. I would only use the slip to avoid
straight punches. To avoid the hooks, I would use a bob and weave.
If you're curious about how to do that, I'll leave a link in the description below.
Now that you have a vague idea of how to slip punches, here are a few drills to
practice. I would first practice by yourself and get used to making small
steps forward in your boxing stance. Practice slipping the jab to the
outside. Then I would practice slipping crosses to the outside. I think that
you're going to find it much easier to slip punches if you develop your own
rhythm of movement like I'm doing here. That's a slight weight transfer from
foot to foot. Then when I'm ready, I'll slip. That seems to be a much more
natural movement than trying to slip from a completely static position.
Once you get used to slipping the jab and the cross, try two slips together.
Both of which we're going to slip to the outside.
If you have a partner then you can have them throw a jab towards you.
You want that jab to be somewhat realistic. It is thrown straight towards you but
they shouldn't be trying to break your face. Remember that you guys are supposed
to be partners. This way you can get used to practicing slipping to the
outside. Then use your partner to practice slipping the cross to the outside.
You could throw in the jab and the cross.
Finally, once you get more comfortable with the slips you can put
in some movement to create some offensive possibilities. This has been
Mike Gales for Everlast Nutrition. If you like these videos and please
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