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Dear Members, Clients and Friends,
Boxing for fitness is so popular because it provides the best workout and challenges you both mentally and physically. Boxing not only helps to strengthen and tone your muscles, but it's also a great stress release. Best of all, being high intensity in nature, it burns tons of calories and can be your best friend in weight loss.

Top 10 Benefits to Boxing

1. Fat Burning


Boxing can easily burn as much as 500 calories per session. Boxing however, has an additional benefit thanks to the fact that it is high intensity training. You see, when performing high intensity training, you not only burn heaps of calories during the session, but for hours after the training session has ended. Typical cardio activities do not have this post training calorie burning effect. Hence, boxing is your best friend when it comes to losing weight.

2. Increased Muscle Tone

A typical boxer's physique is toned and defined without a lot of bulk and that's why it's perfect if you really want to tone up. This is because punching is a fast repetitive action that produces toned taut muscles, in contrast to the slow, controlled, very heavy movements involved in body-building or weight lifting that produce size or bulk.

3. Build Strong Bones and Ligaments

Resistance training strengthens your bones and reduces the progression of osteoporosis. In boxing, focus pads and punching bags provide resistance as does your own bodyweight when you perform pushups, pull ups, lunges, burpees and various other exercises. Your joints, tendons and ligaments will also get stronger in response to working against resistance.
Using your bodyweight as can also help you maintain or increase your lean muscle mass which is absolutely critical to keeping your metabolic rate burning at maximum capacity. This is of utmost importance if you are trying to lose body fat.

4. Increased Cardiovascular Fitness

Boxing is a full body movement so when you throw punches a huge number of your body's muscles are contracting at the same time. This makes your heart and lungs work overtime to pump blood containing oxygen all around your body. Boxing will test your cardiovascular system to the max, forcing your body to adapt by making your heart and lungs better at delivering oxygen. This means that you can train at a higher intensity, giving an even greater fat burning effect.   

5. Improved Muscular Endurance


Boxing requires your muscles to contract repeatedly causing the muscles involved to fatigue. With training, your muscles can keep contracting for longer durations without getting tired, allowing you to train harder for longer and ultimately burn more calories.

6. Improved Core Stability

Anything that causes your body to become unstable requires your core muscles to work harder to keep you balanced. Boxing requires lots of fast rotational movements and these core muscles will develop to allow you to punch hard without losing your balance

7. Improved Strength and Power

Boxing is the ultimate full body workout. Correctly thrown punches use your legs, hips, glutes, core, obliques, back, shoulders, chest and arms. Punching against resistance causes all of these muscles to contract with more force and speed, developing further your strength and power.  

8. Stress Relief


Sure, boxing is a fantastic physical activity that can help you get in shape, but it has psychological benefits too. Hitting stuff can make you feel really good! Take out the stresses of your normal life in a safe, controlled environment. It will leave you calm and relaxed and ready to tackle whatever curveball life throws at you next!

9. Improved Co-ordination and Body Awareness 
  Moving lots of parts at the same time requires a good connection between your brain and your body. With patience and practice, focus and discipline can transfer over to other sports and activities.

10. Improved Confidence and Self-Esteem 
  Mastering the techniques involved in boxing often make people feel pretty good! The better your technique, the more force you can put into your punch. The noise you hear when you land a strong, accurate punch right on the sweet spot of the focus pad is so satisfying!

Tips Courtesy of Kaizen Active

If you have never tried this very satisfying workout Alta and Sam are offering 15 min complimentary demos for you to try. Call (503) 287-0655 to get scheduled.
Events and Program
  • Boot Camps Co-ed and Dudes Only options. Bring your buddies and train hard.
  •  SASS - Senior Agility, Strength & Stamina. Small Group Senior Training.
  • Senior Pilates Team Training - Reformer, Wunda Chair and Spring Tower.
  • New small group trainings, including core, flexibility, HIIT, boxing, Pilates, and more!
  • Summer Teen/Student Fitness Membership $80 for 2 months /  $100 for 3 months (ages 10-16 must accompanied by an adult) available now thru September 1st, 2016.
Client of the Month
Chris Clothier
June/July 2016
   
One of my first exposures to athletic activity was in my early teen years when I swam competitively for a local swim club over three summers. In my final year when I turned 16, I was told I should quit because I was now too old for a girl to be competitive in swimming! At that time in history, it was rare to find athletic outlets for girls/women and we had no sports (outside of gym class) for girls even in junior or senior high school. I stopped being very active at that point - until I turned 30 and ran my first "fun run" in Denver. I ran for the next 25 years and then turned to cycling when my knees could no longer take the pounding of the concrete. During those years, I ran two marathons and was a member of a gym off and on, participating in some classes as well as working out on my own. I often became bored with the routine and would drop out for periods of time.
 
A few years ago, cycling became my passion and my touchstone. I rode daily for fun and to commute everywhere. So in December 2015, at age 67, when I fractured my right arm at the shoulder and tore my rotator cuff in a cycling/streetcar track accident, I was lost. I have been injured before, but this time I was unable to do anything except walk for three months - it was brutal. I couldn't ride my bike or even drive. When I was able to start moving a little, I realized that I needed to do something drastic!
 
Northwest Women's Fitness is only a couple blocks from my apartment and I knew that I needed to go somewhere close or I would find reasons not to go. When I walked in, I found a whole new world!   Everyone was very friendly and everyone was working out really hard! They also have an "expresso bike" with cycling animation that gave me the feeling that I was actually riding - it was what I needed to feel back on the bike! I had a "groupon" that allowed me to work out for six weeks and encouraged me to read the "Six Weeks Results Manual". What an eye opener! I thought that since I had been physically active for most of my adult life, that I knew it all! How wrong I was. I learned so much from the manual and realized that the philosophy of the gym was quite amazing.
 
Within a week, a wellness challenge started at the gym, so I signed up, even though I knew that there would be things I couldn't do. It changed my life in ways I couldn't have foreseen, encouraged me to eat better (which I needed), and helped me commit to going to the gym as much as I could.
 
I met with a personal trainer, Carol, who took my measurements, and I weighed in. At the end of the challenge, after six weeks of focused workouts (with Carol's training sessions and guidance), much better eating, and having fun getting to know others at the gym, I was hooked on Northwest Women's Fitness and joined as a member. In the six week challenge, with the encouragement of Carol and the team, I lost ten pounds, became much stronger all over, and found that some muscle imbalances (that I didn't know I had) were beginning to balance out.
 
With Carol's continued encouragement and training, I continue getting stronger. She changes my routine regularly to keep me from getting bored and to push me to get stronger and try more challenging exercises. She has also been in contact with my physical therapist to make sure we are doing what is best for my overall healing. It is amazing! In the past I would have just done the same routine for years, but with the change-up I notice the difference and am more balanced than ever before.
 
I continue healing and am finally riding again! I now realize how important it is for me to stay balanced and strong while riding (and in life!). I am delighted in how much I have changed in the past few months, and am excited about taking my new awareness of my body to a new level on my bike. I have also found that I am more patient with my body as I try to adjust to a new level of wellness, balance and strength. I have some goals for the summer and hope to complete a "century" ride (100 miles). However, I am also aware that I want to complete it by using my body in its best form. That means I will continue to eat well, be active and continue to strength train with Carol's guidance. I look forward to continuing to stay strong and healthy with the help from Northwest Women's Fitness Club and everyone there!
  
Chris Clothier