12oz Boxing Gloves vs 16oz'rs

Vince Vitatoe

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I recently just purchased two pair of 12 oz boxing gloves. It was a great deal; two sets of everlast headgear and two sets of Proforce 12 oz boxing gloves for only $40 (gotta love ebay).

I was wondering as far as training and sparring goes how much of a difference there is between 12oz gloves and 16oz (or even 14ozs). I realize there is more padding but do you guys think 12oz gloves are still sufficient for lots of sparring? Any personal stories or opinions?


Any advice would be appreciated.


Wand
 
IMO 12oz are better for fighting as opposed to sparring. Not just because of padding difference but they're considerably light as opposed to the 16, which makes the 16's more optimal for training as they'll benefit arm conditioning better. But that's just me.
 
16s are great for training. 12s tend to result in too many unwanted injuries in training.
 
deadlyshaolin said:
16s are great for training. 12s tend to result in too many unwanted injuries in training.

Definitely spar with 16oz gloves. Like the above poster... there is too much risk for injury. Also, your partner will likely be using 16oz gloves, and you will have an unfair hand speed advantage.
 
I do everything in the gym (excpet mma of course) with 16's. They make you work a lot harder in terms of weight, accuracy and finding openings with such big gloves is hard in sparring, makes you think. Plus when you take them off and slap on the 10/12's in a fight your hands feel effortless to throw.
 
Why would you buy 12's? The promoter almost always supplies gloves if you are actually fighting. Always train with 16's when sparring. You will not make any friends if you come to sparring class and are the only guy with 12 oz gloves.
 
I understand that 16oz gloves would be optimal, but like I said I got a really good deal on these. They are for private use, which means only me and my training partners would be using them, so the playing ground would be even. For $40 dollars I got two sets of ProForce 12ozrs and two sets of nice Everlast headgear. Do you think the headgear can cut down on the injuries you guys are referring to as being prevalent with the 12oz gloves?
 
I get pissed when people jump in and spar with 12 ounce gloves. If its for messing around with your friends in the backyard go for it, no big deal.
 
I think 12oz is okay for sparring if you have good control and aren't trying to knock each other out. Plus better conditioning for you body. I've been to a gym in Thailand where they spar lightly with 8-12oz etc which seemed to promote better technique, accuracy and control.

In saying that I usually spar with 16oz (my gym policy is min 16oz for sparring) and when you cover up it's easier to catch all the punches on the big gloves, but when you jump in the ring you won't have so much to hide behind which could make your defense seem better than it actually is.
 
i've found that the 16ers work best for training, not only because of the padding difference but also the weight. if you train with the 16s and then use your mma gloves (anywhere between 4 and 7 from what i've used) your hand speed will be that split second faster then from the 12s to your mma gloves
 
ccl2087 said:
i've found that the 16ers work best for training, not only because of the padding difference but also the weight. if you train with the 16s and then use your mma gloves (anywhere between 4 and 7 from what i've used) your hand speed will be that split second faster then from the 12s to your mma gloves


I heard that your speed doesn't always increase from punching with weights (heavier gloves) that just punching fast / shadow boxing was a better way to increase speed plus training the neural system. could be wrong though. I know it feels faster when you put on the smaller gloves.
 
if you tried sparring with 12oz in our gym the 50% rule would quickly become the 75% rule and you would soon know about it.
 
sidechoke66 said:
if you tried sparring with 12oz in our gym the 50% rule would quickly become the 75% rule and you would soon know about it.

Why? lack of control?
 
shok9 said:
Why? lack of control?

more likely it's just natural. i always find that when i go light with some ppl, we start off really slow and just naturally progress and end up going pretty hard on each other.
 
shok9 said:
Why? lack of control?


Its the old thing of " Oh you hit me a little harder that last shot so I'm gonna hit you harder back" and things just escalate from there. Happens real quick and ends in a slug feast.
 
shok9 said:
I heard that your speed doesn't always increase from punching with weights (heavier gloves) that just punching fast / shadow boxing was a better way to increase speed plus training the neural system. could be wrong though. I know it feels faster when you put on the smaller gloves.


The hand speed thing is debateable. I personally think the shadow boxing improves hand speed more than the heavier gloves. But that just an a personal opinion. But having the heavier gloves does help build you endurance. If you can last a whole session wearing 16's and still keep your form. If you ever drop down to 12 you will not have to worry about your arms getting tired and droppping your hands.
 
lack of control??

50% in 12oz compared to 50% in 16oz is a big differnece pal.just use 16's you will get used to taking more shots and not freezing up when hit.with 12's you will have to pull back alot more
 
sidechoke66 said:
lack of control??

50% in 12oz compared to 50% in 16oz is a big differnece pal.just use 16's you will get used to taking more shots and not freezing up when hit.with 12's you will have to pull back alot more


Like I said, in my gym the policy is 16oz min which I dont mind. But when I trained in thailand they didn't mind whatever, most ppl just used what they hit the bags with 10's or 12's etc.... which was new to me but seemed like a good idea to promote control and technique.
Also depends on who your sparring - some ppl you know if you hit them too hard your gonna get KTFO no matter what size gloves you got on pal.
 
Well, you should note that not all gloves are made equal.

Some 12oz gloves offer superior padding to many 14oz gloves. It's just the weight and doesn't say anything about the quality of the materials.

In general, I like sparring with 12oz gloves, because it makes me work on my defense more. I can't just cover up and hide behind the huge 16oz gloves.

Though, if you spar with 12oz gloves, you have to watch your contact. It's better for experienced guys. You can't just go brawling with them, or the potential for injury is too high.
 
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