Slow is smooth. Smooth is fast (Boxing private lesson) - improving footwork

14.08.2025

This afternoon my client entered the seventh hour of his course. This was a private boxing lesson. After the last lesson's work on the left hook, my client was concerned that he was too slow. We looked at the basis of this problem, and worked on improving his footwork.

Speed is subjective when it comes to footwork. You can appear to be very plodding, but can be very good at cutting off the ring and walking down an opponent. Usually quick footwork, the sort of Hermes-like movement we associate with the likes of Willie Pep, Sugar Ray Leonard, and Vasiliy Lomachenko, is more down to timing, working artifice, and being clear about where you want to be in a fight. Above all, I contend, range sensitivity is king. Even during his amateur days, Muhammad stood out and ran literal rings around his opposition through his practical application of range awareness.

To put these ideas into practice, I had my client go back to foot-stepping games and shoulder tagging games. We then moved into attack and counter-attack games, emphasizing the importance of being in the right place at the right time. This was slowed down, and the pace gradually increased in order to meet the growing demands of his process. Along the way, I corrected such behaviors as turning the head when changing direction and being too stiff in the upper body. We also picked up on small issues with his gait. While I argue that everyone needs to find their own way when it comes to any movement or technique—the only parameters being defined by whether or not it works under pressure—I still had him pick up his feet and work to eliminate unnecessary steps.

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