correct head movement?

[aries]

I'm not sure I'm following you. Could you expand?

I don't know about the lower back bending forward. Is that even possible? Isn't the lumbar part of the spine kind of fixed? The movement happens where the lower back joins with the sacrum and the thoracic spine. Of course there is some give and Gatto seems to me to be maxed in that department since his lower back pushes back (kyphosis) and not in a normal inwards curve (lordosis).

If you mean that a boxer should hunch I disagree. I think the hunching comes from not being balanced in ones approach to fighting.

Yes you are right about the lower back as humans are designed to get back flexion and extension mainly from their thoracic spine it's just in most people they are ridiculously stiff in that region (due mostly to the disease of sitting). So when they attempt to flex their back they make up for it by flexing their lumbar spine which leads to lower back problems and herniated disks down the line. Add to that stiff hips that don't have enough flexion and it only compounds the issues. However, Gatti doesn't appear to have excessive amounts of lower back flexion in that image.

 

[Sinister]

^And the entire burden of the weight of his torso isn't being moved BY the lumbar spine. It's being tilted by the movement of the pelvic bowl, i.e. "letting the hips do the work."

 

[Samuel Reynoso]

I'm not sure I'm following you. Could you expand?

I don't know about the lower back bending forward. Is that even possible? Isn't the lumbar part of the spine kind of fixed? The movement happens where the lower back joins with the sacrum and the thoracic spine. Of course there is some give and Gatto seems to me to be maxed in that department since his lower back pushes back (kyphosis) and not in a normal inwards curve (lordosis).

If you mean that a boxer should hunch I disagree. I think the hunching comes from not being balanced in ones approach to fighting.

I'm talking about the rib cage and thoracic spine. The muscles over the lower ribs help keep the bottom of the thoracic spine kyphotic. You wouldn't want the vertebrae of the floating ribs acting like an extra long lower back. That would actually be more likely to cause hunching at the top of the T spine to make up the difference.

Also, regarding the picture of Gatti; you have to remember that you can't see the thoracic spine from the side. The spine is recessed into the rib cage. From the side, the small of the back is the shape of the spine, but the mid and upper back is the shape of the rib cage, and muscle.

 

[Brando]

Sometimes it's useful to bend a bit more at the waist because it can get your upper body closer without you having to close range with your feet. Good head movement and defense in general isn't just about moving AWAY from your opponent - it's a give and take, a baiting process. I might lean in with my upper body to bait a punch and have space to counter because I didn't march my feet/hips right up close to get into his space. This whole discussion of perfect posture is too rigid; not what, but how, why, and when that's important.