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How To Throw A Left Hook Correctly

How To Throw A Left Hook

The left hook (or lead hook) is a brutal power punch and is a key component to any focus mitt drills or heavy bag workouts you add into your regime.
Why throw padwork into your regime? It's great for building cardio and conditioning.

Once you've got your jab and straight right down pat it's time to master the left hook - you must learn these two punches first to grasp hip rotation.

Read and utilize the technique below and record yourself perform your left hook, although it may feel right it's not until you review your tape that you pick up on many of the little mistakes I'll discuss below.

Before We Delve Straight Into The Mechanics Of The Left Hook..

You Must Stay Loose

Your muscle mass can work for you or it can work against you when it comes to boxing, particularly in sparring.

Staying tense and stiff in your movements will cause you to fatigue extremely quick, even if you're throwing minimal punches!

On the other hand if you relax and focus on staying loose and free-flowing in your movement your muscles will remain relaxed to an extent, allowing you to implement your fast footwork and explosive attacks without fear of running out of gas.

See also
4 Focus Mitt Drills For Power And Speed

You Can't Afford To Neglect Lower Body Mobility

Boxing is a game of footwork, with constant movement in and out, pivots, slips, rolls and cutting off of the ring you need to ensure your lower body flexibility and mobility are sufficient.

If your calves, quads and hamstrings are overly tight you'll find your movement extremely limiting.

At the same time, if your hip flexors are overly tight from working an office job and neglecting your mobility work you'll likely find your power is lacking too.

Your power comes through the hip rotation as you extend your arm, not through your arm itself.

Loose hips = better rotation. Better rotation = increased power.

Left Hook Technique

    Begin with your gloves tucked in front of your face, elbows pointing down.
  • Drive through your hips as you twist them to the right while pivoting on your front (left) foot.
  • Your left glove should not drop down at all, in one fluid horizontal motion your left glove should fire from your chin to the side of your opponents chin as you maintain a slight bend in your elbow.
  • Strike the mitt or heavy bag with either your knuckles parallel to the floor or horizontal to the floor (personal preference)
  • As soon as your left hook connects with the focus mitt, opponent or heavy bag bring it back in front of your face and return to your elbows tucked in position.

See also
5 Boxing Combos For Beginners

Common Mistakes When Throwing The Left Hook

Failing To Pivot On Your Left Foot

As you rotate your hips to the right while firing the hook with your left hand you must pivot on your front foot in order to maintain your balance and channel your power into your left hook.

A wild left hook thrown from the arm without any hip rotation or front foot pivot will not only lack the power that a solid left hook is notorious for, but you're also likely going to end off balance - particularly if you miss the pad or mitt.

Winding Up Your Hook

Your left hand should go straight from your chin to either the opponents chin or your heavy bag/mitts...

Your punches should not be telegraphed (aka. your adversary should not see them coming). The #1 way to telegraph a lead hook is to move your glove out to the side to wind it up - this clearly shows what you're about to do and will likely result in you eating a counter punch (a right hand over the top for example).

The need to wind up a hook to gain more power is also a result of incorrect punching technique too, as above you must pivot on your lead leg as you rotate your hips to draw power into your hook - you will NEVER be able to match the power your whole body can generate by winding up your arm to throw an arm based punch.

See also
Double Jab Right Hook Boxing Combination


Dropping Your Right Hand While Throwing The Hook

While one glove is extending to punch the other should always be resting against the side of your cheek, protecting your chin.
It's often not until you review footage of yourself hitting your jab, cross and left hook that you discover your opposite hand is dipping down while you're throwing the punch.

Boxing with your hands down is a bad habit (and hard to get out of!) so by ensuring your opposite hand is glued to your cheek from day 1 will save you having to eradicate this bad habit.

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What's Your Take On Throwing Left Hooks? Let Me Know Below!

Scott J.
Scott J.https://ignorelimits.com
I’m SJ. I’m a fitness enthusiast and published author. I transformed my body from a skinny fat 135lbs with 18% body fat to a solid 192lbs at 8% body fat. I became qualified in a field I was passionate about. I founded several online businesses that allow me to pursue ideas and projects in my life that I am passionate about without having to constantly worry about money. I published several eBooks explaining the training and dieting techniques I used to achieve the body I have today. I learnt a plethora of new information on dieting and fitness by reading and applying what I read, to find out what does work and what doesn’t work, because as I’m sure you’ve noticed the health and fitness industry is full of non-sense claims and BS. I found out what was true and what worked for me and applied that knowledge. And you bet I had fun during the whole process.

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