Benefits of Kickboxing
Kickboxing is one of the most practiced contact sports and an all-time favorite. It’s the perfect combination of martial arts and cardiovascular exercise, which means that you can get a great full-body workout.
Kickboxing movements and routines challenge all muscle groups, making it an ideal sport for people aiming to get fit. Plus, this sport combines cardio and strength training, so it allows you to tone muscles while burning fat.
Joining a class is not only an excellent way to stay in shape and learn how to defend yourself but also a great way to meet new people and make friends. Kickboxing is one of those sports that attract young and middle-aged people alike. That’s why classes tend to be a great place to meet completely different people while sharing a common interest.
What are the benefits of kickboxing?
This discipline is a very good way to shake your training up and try something new. In fact, it brings with it so many different advantages that you should definitely try it, at least once. Take a look at the benefits of kickboxing!
1. Kickboxing produces stronger muscles
This is the ideal sport to strengthen, tone, and elongate the muscles of your body. The movements, which are basically hitting and kicking routines, allow your body to develop strength and resistance.
Unlike many other exercising routines, kickboxing emphasizes powerful and fast movements. In any case, aside from the usual martial art movements, you’re also doing squats, push-ups, planks, running, jumping ropes and much more.
2. Improves coordination
Each series of blows and kicks leads you to coordinate movements between your arms and legs, which stimulates motor coordination. This full-body exercise allows you to strengthen your abs, improve reflexes and coordination skills. Talk about multitasking, eh?
3. Learn how to defend yourself with kickboxing
Kickboxing is not only a gym sport to strengthen your mind and body but also has a very practical use. This sport provides a self-defense skillset, as it’s a very versatile martial art.
This discipline teaches you basic concepts and builds from that, making it great for beginners. The techniques used in kickboxing focus on hitting with your hands and feet.
Of course, we’re not advocating violence in any way. Truth is that thanks to kickboxing, people learn to defend themselves against assault and can use their skills in undesirable situations. In turn, this contributes to increasing levels of self-confidence as athletes become stronger.
4. Burning calories
Kickboxing is an exercise that demands a lot of energy, ensuring fat burn. In fact, the intensity of kickboxing means that you’ll see improvements and results quickly. This is why it’s a great way to lose weight in a rather short amount of time.
But it isn’t only about losing weight. Kickboxing reduces your body fat at the same time as toning your muscles, so you’ll find yourself sporting a new silhouette in no time.
It’s great cardiovascular training, and it improves blood circulation through the body. Definitely, one of the most important benefits of kickboxing is that it can help you lose weight and also speed up your metabolism. This is why your body will continue to burn calories once you have finished the workout.
You might also enjoy: Cardio or Weightlifting for Burning Fat?
5. Use kickboxing to reduce stress
Life can be quite stressful, and daily events can cause a lot of anxiety and even depression. As you know, sports are a natural way to induce your brain to relieve stress.
Kickboxing allows feelings of happiness and relaxation to take over your mind, as it releases a high amount of oxytocin. If you try it, at the end of each class you’ll feel much better than when you entered!
Remember, the benefits of kickboxing over your mind and body are many, and you’ll keep finding them the more you practice. Therefore, it’s a great choice for a full-body, fun workout.
However, be aware that warming up and stretching is something you can never skip if you practice this sport. The fast movements and complex routines can cause injuries if you don’t keep the movements clean.
Warming up allows your cardiovascular system to start pumping blood and your muscles to get ready for training. Stretching improves flexibility and relieves muscle tension after training. Are you ready to start practicing kickboxing?
All cited sources were thoroughly reviewed by our team to ensure their quality, reliability, currency, and validity. The bibliography of this article was considered reliable and of academic or scientific accuracy.
- Buse, G. J., & Santana, J. C. (2008). Conditioning strategies for competitive kickboxing. Strength and Conditioning Journal, 30(4), 42–48. https://doi.org/10.1519/SSC.0b013e31817f19cd
- Romaine, L. J., Davis, S. E., Casebolt, K., & Harrison, K. A. (2003). Incidence of injury in kickboxing participation. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 17(3), 580–586. https://doi.org/10.1519/1533-4287(2003)017<0580:IOIIKP>2.0.CO;2
- Schick, M. G., Brown, L. E., & Schick, E. E. (2012, February). Strength and conditioning considerations for female mixed martial artists. Strength and Conditioning Journal. https://doi.org/10.1519/SSC.0b013e31824443e2
