Confusion???

[Beasting102]

When boxing, shouldn’t you always stand with one leg behind the other? What does shoulder width mean? Shoulder width in what angle squared? I kept hearing my coach yell at me shoulder width, but he did not explain clearly what he meant by that. He also recommended my feet straight into my opponent instead of at an angle. Is this correct? I used the 45 degree angle, but he says to turn my feet into the opponent

[Redd Foxx]

If he can't explain to you what he means, and he thinks your feet should be directly pointed at the opponent with no angle, it's time to find a new gym.

[Beasting102]

If he can't explain to you what he means, and he thinks your feet should be directly pointed at the opponent with no angle, it's time to find a new gym.

I was thinking the same. I knew I wasn’t crazy or wrong

[Rockin']

What he's talking about when referring to your shoulders is do not stand in front of the guy at a 180' angle. Don't 'square up'' to him. Rather, turn your shoulders to a 60' angle. 45' is good, but if you really want to give your opponent the least area to punch you will work it at 60'. …….Rockin'

[Lucky86]

He may also mean you are leaning your shoulders past your knees when you punch or reaching for a punch. When you throw the 1-2 are you leaned forward after or do you bring your feet with you?

[Beasting102]

He may also mean you are leaning your shoulders past your knees when you punch or reaching for a punch. When you throw the 1-2 are you leaned forward after or do you bring your feet with you?

My feet Are with me. I think he was trying to say that I’m too sideways or something, not sure on anything he said

[OctoberRed]

If he can't explain to you what he means, and he thinks your feet should be directly pointed at the opponent with no angle, it's time to find a new gym.

Agreed.

[Redd Foxx]

My feet Are with me. I think he was trying to say that I’m too sideways or something, not sure on anything he said

The main thing that concerns me is that he couldn't make it clear to you. He should take 5 seconds to walk over and physically help you find the right stance. That's all it takes and it's what coaches do. It's unconscionable to let a boxing pupil go on with uncorrected form because the consequence when he gets in the ring is serious. It would be like not showing a race car driver the correct way to accelerate into a turn. It's not something you should be learning the hard way.

It's up to you to decide if it was failure on your part to ask for clarification or if this is a guy who is just calling out instructions to a large room full of people (which is essentially just fitness boxing).

[#1Assassin]

If he can't explain to you what he means, and he thinks your feet should be directly pointed at the opponent with no angle, it's time to find a new gym.

100% agree.

the biggest mistake of my life was sticking for years with a terrible coach. and this sounds like exactly the kind of crap he would do.

a coach needs to be able to explain himself, especially something so easy to explain. he sounds like someone with no real understanding of the sport just repeating catch phrases.

both the toe thing and shoulder width stance thing is stuff that get thrown around in every gym. also, the foot thing is wrong. peoples feet naturally point in different directions. to some, the feet should be forwards, to others they should not.

[Lucky86]

He could also mean that when you move around your are bringing your feet too close together. I was taught that you should have your feet at least as wide as your shoulders if not more.

But like everyone else said it should be much simpler in person to explain this. If you are paying to box your coach should
Be happy to explain what he means.