Discover the right way to exercise…

Hi, my name is Jimmy Cuneo! Here’s a little bit about me… Having trained and coached martial arts for over 30 years, I am extremely passionate about training and teaching my clients. I firmly believe that all of the wonderful benefits and outcomes from training in the martial arts start with the trainer and the environment. After all, you can have all the knowledge in the world and the best system to teach, but if people don’t enjoy the training or get the results they want, then you won’t come back. I believe that desire and enjoyment trump discipline nearly every time, and my goal is to create a fun, challenging, positive training environment so that my clients can’t help but want to come back again and again. I do this by providing training that meets your specific needs and goals, challenges you physically and mentally, and by setting an environment that is FUN and free from negative stress above all else. In short, I know that my clients are a lot like me, so by creating the kind of training environment that I myself want to be in, I know that I’m also setting up the best environment for my clients to thrive. I’ve come to these conclusions about training from my experiences learning a variety of martial arts with a variety of world-class instructors over the past 40+ years. Before we delve into how YOU should be training, let’s first look at what you shouldn’t be doing…

Basic Focus Mitt Drills for Skills Recently I wrote an article on basic focus mitt training, where I explained some principles and tips on proper focus mitt training for Athletes as well as mitt-holders. In this article, I share the actual drills used in virtually all competent boxing gyms around the world today. Its important that you know these because they are all tried, proven, and effective. Better yet, its important to know what it is that make a focus mitt drill effective.

Although its tempting to invent your own drills, and I always advocate exploring possibilities and finding what works for you, its important to have a few guidelines. The first thing is to train good habits. The second is to improve reflexes, not memory.

1. Jab Dri l l This should be the most basic drill. The feeder and fighter move around the ring getting loose. Using their legs and start popping off jabs. This drill is ONLY for practicing the jabs. It’s great for beginners to get used to throwing boxing’s most important punch and strengthening their weaker arm (since the stronger arm should be in back).

1. Verbal call-out

• Call out *JAB!* and flash him the mitt, or call out *DOUBLE-JAB!* • Call out *JAB TO THE BODY!* and hold the mitt low. (TIP: in case it feels weird to hold the mitt low, I have the palm of the mitt facing inwards and he’s jabbing the back of my hand.) • Call out *JAB TO THE HEAD, THEN BODY!*

2. Flash Mitts

• You don’t say anything, you simply flash him the mitt and he’s supposed to hit it as soon as possible. • You can do the same thing but this time you only flash the mitt for a quick moment and then take it away. This way, he has to stay close and ready at all times. • You can flash one mitt and then as soon as he hits it, you flash him the other mitt.

3. Defense then counter

• You call out a defense maneuver then give him the counter-jab opportunity. (EX: call out *SLIP, THEN JAB*, *SLIP & JAB TO THE BODY* or *BLOCK & JAB*) • There can also be moments where you throw a punch at him without calling it out. Make sure he’s being ready to defend at all times. • Then throw a punch at him and immediately afterwards flash him a counter-jab opportunity.

4. Everything together now (verbal, auto, and defense)

• You call out *JAB!*, then throw a counter at him after he punches, then quickly flash him a counter-jab opportunity. • You call out a jab to the head or body, then give him another jab opportunity, then throw a counter at him at the end to test his defense. • You can call out a jab, then after he hits it, you step around him and flash him another opportunity.

5. Combination punching dri l ls (TECHNIQUE....slow is smooth and smooth is fast)

This is where beginners start to have fun and get a little careless. The most important thing is to stay ready and relaxed at all times. Practice good punching technique and try not to load up on every shot. Power comes from relaxed effortless release, not because you shove all your might through every punch. Also important to bring your punches back to the cover position instead of pushing them through.

When calling out combinations, I call out numbers since its faster than yelling, “JAB, RIGHT CROSS, LEFT HOOK, RIGHT CROSS!” Please refer to my punching numbering system to understand my numbering system and also to see more combinations.

Number system

1 jab

2 right cross

3 left hook

4 right hook or overhand right

5 left shovel hook (liver shot)

6 right shovel hook (spleen)

7 left uppercut to chin

8 right uppercut to chin

B denotes body

1. Jab-based (start with the jab)

• 1-1 • 1-2 • 1-1-2 • 1-2-1-2 • 1-2-1-2-3 • 1-2-3 • 1-2-3-2 • 1-2-3b-2 • 1-2-5-2 • 1-6-3-2 • 1-6-1-2 • 1-6-5b-2

2. Power-starter (start with a power-punch)

• 2-3-2 • 2-5-2 • 3-2-1-2 • 3-6-3-2 • 6-3-2 • 5-6-1-2 • 6-3-2-1-2

3. Speed & Endurance (throw as fast as possible)

• 1-2-1-2-1-2 • 6b-5b-6b-5b-6b-5-2 • 5b-6b-5b-6b-1-2 (aim low and start picking up the punches until they finish at the head) • A tip for these…I just say, *GO!* and the fighters know to throw 5-6 punches and end with a cross to the head. If I hold the mitts up high, they know to punch up top, if I hold the mitts down, they know it’s uppercuts to the body.

INVITATION You're Invited to a FREE "Workout Planning" Session with

Hoover Fitness Expert Jimmy Cuneo...

This coming Wednesday 5:00pm at Eden Ridge Circle, Hoover

• Give your current gym routine a complete makeover and start a brand new program that you design yourself

• Experience how different drills and exercises do different things to your body

• You’ll leave the session with a brand new workout routine, a big smile on your face, and the confidence to know that all the hard work you put into training yourself in future will not be wasted

RSVP

https://www.bamagym.com/free-workout-planning-session/

When Jimmy Cuneo was in his pre adolescence age he was a bullied fat kit headed for trouble always looking for a better way to look and feel better. It was at the Westbury Police Atheletic League on Long Island, where he first established a passion for the sport of boxing, and for fitness in general. After he joined the Police Athletic Club in his early teens, Jimmy started training daily at the Gym. Later on Jimmy Joined the Army and continued his Boxing training and later became enthralled with Martial Arts. Jimmy has been coaching since his twenties. He wants to help everyday people and athletes, of all levels, improve their game.

"There’s a right way and a wrong way to exercise. Get it wrong and you are simply wasting your time at the gym" -Jimmy Cuneo