This three-minute boxing warmup will torch your arms

November 10, 2017 10:42 AM

George Foreman III shows us how to master the speedbag.

Boxers have some of the most chiseled bodies in all of sports, and its no surprise when you take a look at what they do prepare for a match.

The intense training regimens they follow help them stay agile in each round and go for that TKO.

George Foreman III, a professional boxer and co-founder of boxing gym Everybody Fights in New York City (and yes, son of the George Foreman) takes us through a key warmup drill for boxers: the speedbag.

When mastering the speedbag, there are three beat patterns used in training: seven beat, five beat, and three beat. When you hit the bag, it bounces back and forth on the platform seven times, five times, and three times, respectively for each pattern. The three beat, Foreman says, is what everyone wants to do.

Once you've mastered the seven beat, five beat, and three beat using your open palm, you're ready to move on to a closed fisted punch. "Make a fist, raise the elbow up, and work with one hand," Foreman says. "Then you work on mastering the other hand. Then you put them together."

With both punching hands mastered on the three beat speedbag, work towards hitting the bag in the three beat pattern twice with your right hand, then twice with your left hand. Eventually, you will work up alternating three beats two with two on your right hand and two on your left hand nonstop for three minutes.

For a warmup that will get your heart racing, Foreman recommends hitting the speedbag nonstop for three minutes, resting for one minute, and doing another three-minute round. When you're ready to challenge yourself even further, try going nonstop for seven minutes.

After a tough workout, try the figure four stretch. It targets the hips, lower back, and glutes.