Kickboxing is a beautiful style that incorporates powerful kicks and punches. It’s an umbrella term for many different types of combat arts, but it mainly focuses on stand-up fighting with no groundwork involved.
Kickboxing provides a great workout with many positive benefits, but it also has negative consequences. Some of the pros of kickboxing include reducing stress levels, boosting confidence and coordination, and giving you an energy boost. In contrast, its cons include high injury rates and excessive exercise frequency.
In this post, you will find out some of the best perks and drawbacks to kickboxing. Additionally, there’s a lot more information about it, so read on to learn more.
What are the Main Pros and Cons of Kickboxing
The Pros of Kickboxing
1. Reduced Stress Levels
Sometimes we need to release our anger in a physical form. Anger can build up and become toxic if left unchecked, so why not do something creative- like taking up kickboxing?
It releases endorphins which make you feel good about yourself as well. When you feel good, naturally, your stress levels decrease.
2. Boosts Confidence and Self-esteem
Kickboxing training helps build self-confidence and develops a more positive outlook on life. In kickboxing, instructors emphasize building confidence in students because it’s an integral part of the sport.
3. Weight Loss
If you’re looking to lose weight, kickboxing might be the perfect workout for you. It provides an aerobic session that burns calories, but it also helps people with more muscle mass than their bodies typically contain. Kickboxers also have lower percentages of body fat.
The calories you burn in a kickboxing workout depend on the type and length of your class. For example, 135 pounds burns 350 – 450 calories in 50 minutes of kickboxing while doing curls with an estimated 150-pound weight at bodyweight. The exact number will also vary depending on whether hitting a punching bag or not.
Related article: Boxing for weight loss – what is the benefits?
4. Increased Coordination
You’ll be making some fantastic moves in a kickboxing class that will push your coordination skills. You could stand on one leg as you kick the other up into the air, swing a hook across your body, or maybe shuffle side-to-side while punching an imaginary speed bag. All these will improve balance and flexibility.
5. Better Sleep
Kickboxing is the perfect solution for a tired mind and body. It’s true that getting regular exercise, like kickboxing exercises, will make you fall asleep faster with better quality sleep over time.
A lack of sleep can increase your risk for diseases such as cancer, heart disease, and mood swings. Getting enough rest improves physical wellbeing with increased energy levels while improving cognitive abilities. This may include thinking clearly -which is essential in this day and age where everything seems so fast-paced.
6. Ameliorates Mental Health
When done regularly, kickboxing can help make you feel better no matter how bad you feel. The kickboxing exercises are linked to improved mental health and positive feelings because they increase endorphins which produce changes in the brain that allow for stress reduction or even alleviation of symptoms associated with depression and anxiety disorders.
7. Better Posture
Kickboxing is not just a great fitness routine for those who sit at desks all day. It’s also an excellent way to tone and strengthen your abs, often neglected during traditional workouts because you need stability to execute each move carefully.
Your abdominal wall gets targeted because it needs to support your balance and execute each move with care for accuracy; this improves posture.
8. Energy Boost
Kickboxing is an exhilarating high-energy cardio routine that will give your body and mind a boost as you breathe hard while sweating out toxins. It’s the perfect way to get back on track after working up some sweat for it all to be worth it. This whole process will improve the energy level in your body.
9. Perfect Cross-Training Workout
Kickboxing is an excellent workout for those looking to mix things up from their routine. You can add weights by wearing wrist or ankle bands, as well as lightweight gloves if you want extra resistance.
Just two sessions per week will give any person new motivation to break out of that boring fitness rut they may be falling into without fail every time.
Related: See our recommended gloves for kickboxing
The Cons of Kickboxing
Kickboxing workouts can be exciting, but they also come with risks. Participants need to take care because the chance of injury is not zero, and there could be any number from different causes such as:
- The use of improper form
- Excessive intensity or speed
- Too fast kickboxing class music (above 140 beats per minute)
- Significant exercise frequency- can be more than four times per week.
Kickboxing is an excellent form of exercise, but it can be challenging a tough learning curve for some individuals who prefer self-driven workouts.
The classes are more organized and have instructors who lead others around them, so you can’t work out on your terms as some other forms do. For instance, running or biking allows for greater independence in training sessions, leaving you to do what you desire.
Related: The hidden benefits from shadow boxing
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Kickboxing Good for You?
Kickboxing is a great way to get your body in shape, but don’t forget about your health. It’s good for the heart and joints as well. You’ll be working with heavy bags or gloves on hand-to-hand combat moves that can increase coordination too. You just need to check with your doctor before starting learning this sport.
Is Kickboxing a Good Exercise?
Kickboxing is a high-energy workout that can burn between 350 and 450 calories. Your heart rate increases while you are working out, which means that cardiovascular conditioning takes place in the process of throwing or sparring, with kicks being thrown into the air or onto pads.
Conclusion
Kickboxing is a great way to stay in shape, but it’s not for everyone. If you want an intense workout that will help you learn self-defense tactics simultaneously, then kickboxing may be worth trying out.
It can also be helpful if you have any mental health conditions like depression or anxiety and need something more than just regular cardio workouts. But before quitting your other exercises entirely, make sure to talk with your doctor first about how this new activity might affect your existing regimen and what kind of risks kickboxing poses for those with certain conditions.
