Almost everyone in the fitness industry is concerned with lean body mass. More muscle and less fat? Yes, please! Depending on your end goals, the path to lean mass may differ. This article will explore some training techniques meant to trim fat and build muscle particularly needed in the boxing ring.
First, what makes training for boxing so different? Unlike many sports, boxing is mainly anaerobic. Instead of training with long aerobic endurance, focus should be on powerful interval training. Alternative to a couple of long sessions of weight training a week, boxers should plan on shorter training sessions multiple times a week.
Besides frequency, here are some other important factors that can amp up your functional lean mass:
Rep Plan: Mix it up
It’s easy to get in a rep funk doing the same number of reps with gradual weight increase every time you go to the gym. But if you want your jab to pack more heat, try mixing up your sessions. Set up a training block where you do fewer reps with more weight- preparing your body for the high intensity bursts in the ring. Then after a few weeks, do lower weights with longer duration meant to stimulate muscle protein synthesis more than high-load work. A study in 2010 suggests that if you want more production of new muscle proteins, this low-load/high endurance method is the one for you. When the study says lower volume, it doesn’t mean knock a few pounds off your typical load. The data collected during the study supports lowering volume to 30% of your max.
Muscle Repair: Sleep
Needing adequate sleep for muscle repair is a well-known fact. In all actuality, not getting enough sleep hinders protein synthesis pathways and can actually make you lose muscle mass. Not only is quantity of sleep important, but also quality. During your deepest sleep, the body produces growth hormones and revitalizes muscle cells. Plus, who want to groggily drag themselves out of bed to hit the gym. Sleep rejuvenates the entire body, helping you be on your best game.
Nutrition: Protein, Protein, Protein
Muscle is mainly made up of protein and water so doesn’t it make sense that if you are breaking down muscles in training that you need to consume more protein to build them back up. But how much protein should you eat? Typically .8 g/kg/day but during weight training the suggested amount grows between 1.2 and 1.7 g/kg/day. Be sure to get protein in your system about 30 minutes before exercising and again right after. Also, eating protein directly before bed improves muscle protein synthesis, aiding in muscle recovery.
Between rep plan switches, sleep, and nutrition you’ll be on the path to greater functional lean mass. Now go “Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee.”
Sources:
Low-Load High Volume Resistance Exercise Stimulates Muscle Protein Synthesis More Than High-Load Low Volume Resistance Exercise in Young Men. http://www.plosone.org/article/fetchObject.action?uri=info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0012033&representation=PDF
Sleep and muscle recovery: endocrinological and molecular basis for a new and promising hypothesis.http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21550729
Macronutrient Considerations for the Sport of Bodybuilding. http://www.sportsnutritionworkshop.com/files/14.spnt.pdf
Protein ingestion before sleep improves postexercise overnight recovery. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22330017
Kevin Jones is a freelance writer, researcher and fitness instructor/consultant. He had helped hundreds of people find ways to become more fit and healthy through a balanced life focusing on an individualized approach to their nutrition and fitness. In addition, Kevin has written extensively in the fitness and health industries, including writing for companies such as ICON Fitness for both the NordicTrack and ProForm brands. Connect with Kevin online; LinkedIn – Twitter
