Choosing your first boxing gloves: 12, 14 or 16 oz
Glove weight, closure and padding explained, with what our coaches suggest for bag work, pads and sparring.
What happens at Friday sparring
Who can spar, how rounds are matched and why nobody is trying to win.
Sparring is where boxing starts to make sense. It is also where people get hurt if it is run badly, so we keep strict rules.
You can spar after at least three months of regular boxing classes and a coach’s sign-off. Before your first night, you do two sessions of technical sparring, where one person attacks and the other only defends, at half speed.
On Friday, coaches pair people by weight, height and experience. Rounds are two minutes with one minute of rest, and most members do three or four. A coach stands in the ring for every round and stops it if the pace climbs or someone loses their guard.
The aim is to practise, not to win. Work at about half power, keep your guard up, and say so if you want to slow down. Headgear, a mouthguard and 16 oz gloves are compulsory, and no one spars with a headache or after a knock in the past week.
After the last round, everyone cools down together, and coaches give each pair one thing to work on before next Friday.
