Mastering the bob and weave

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Marbig

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Hey all,
I have been having problems bobbing and weaving as of late. My back keeps on bending and, although its not constantly shifting throughout the entire movement (I know I am meant to use my legs to change elevation), my body is leaning forwards. This means my weaves are slow and I keep on losing balance. To fix this myself, I have already revisited Sinister's 'Tile Exercise' thread and have been doing the exercise for a fortnight now. In the gym, my coach has taken me through combinations involving the weave as well but so far there has been little success.

So my question is: Is there anything I can actually do in the ring while sparring which will help me? For example, to remind boxers to keep their chins down, our coach often put sticky-notes pads between their chest and chin while sparring. Is there an equivalent to that for bob and weave?

Another semi-related question I would like to ask is that, having seen both in practice and in Sinister's thread, people who actually manage to evade punches with the bob and weave actually move to the OPPOSITE direction first. Is this moving neccessary for every weave though (say I need to weave to the right then to the left in quick succession)?

Finally, as a general guideline, how low should I be looking to drop down? The motion of the bob and weave being a parabola, what will the vertex be? I realize everyone is of different heights but am just looking for an approximate indication.

Thank you in advance and any other input about the bob and weave is most welcome too!

P.S. HAPPY NEW YEAR! I wish everyone all the best inside and outside of the ring/cage in 2013! :)
 
Is this moving neccessary for every weave though (say I need to weave to the right then to the left in quick succession)?

Dont think its neccessary, just a drop in elevation from the knees will be enuff to make a hook miss, in any direction...
 
Sometimes there is something structural that makes the bob and weave harder, like are you talk or does no one in your gym throw big hooks?
 
SummerStriker said:
Sometimes there is something structural that makes the bob and weave harder, like are you talk or does no one in your gym throw big hooks?
Click to expand...

No, I am only 5'5.

There are all kinds of people at my gym and, since we're talking about a balancing/posture issue, I think its more to do with me than with them...
 
That old bald guy couldn't bob and weave his way out of a wet paper bag.
 
Maybe this can be helpful.

Your feet should be flat on the ground and your backfoot should be supporting no less than half your bodyweight. Then, You pivot the rear foot counter clockwise up onto its ball. As you do this your rear knee will turn inward and bend as your hips drop. The weaving of your torso from right to left should coincide with the pivot of your rearfoot.
To get back to your right, you weave your upperbody back towards your right. At the same time rotate your rearfoot from its ball clockwise, Dropping its heel back onto the ground.
Generally guys who bob and weave box flatfooted. Think tyson, frazier, marciano, locce. If you are being taught to box mainly on your toes you could find implementing B&W problematic.
 
pheonix5 said:
Here's a decent vid.

Click to expand...


Yeah, thats what my bob and weave looks like now in that I am ever so slightly leaning forwards. I am on the balls of my feet and it makes me wobble if I don't take a step as I bob and weave.

Am I doing it wrong?
 
I have a different definition of "bob and weave" than most people do. They consider bobbing the forward-bent, up and down motion of the upper-body. I'm not sure why because if we associate the term with the peek-a-boo system, then the bobbing motion would more equate to the side-to-side bending Tyson used to do.

A "weave" I've never really understood, I always called circular motion of the upper-body rolling. But if you want to take ducking and rolling, and call it bobbing and weaving, okay. For ducking it's simple, most people duck incorrectly in a way that causes a lean. If you want to duck (and be able to come up for a punch with balance), you bend your knees and make sure they point away from each other when you do. They should also remain over your feet. So your feet will point the same directions as your knees during the motion. This will prevent knee injuries. That's a duck, or a "bob" if you equate a bob to being a straight up and down motion.

A weave (or "roll" if you're making them the same)...well, in the Tile Exercise thread Lucas demonstrates in his video how to do that correctly. Put those two together and you should have it.
 
Sinister said:
I have a different definition of "bob and weave" than most people do. They consider bobbing the forward-bent, up and down motion of the upper-body. I'm not sure why because if we associate the term with the peek-a-boo system, then the bobbing motion would more equate to the side-to-side bending Tyson used to do.

A "weave" I've never really understood, I always called circular motion of the upper-body rolling. But if you want to take ducking and rolling, and call it bobbing and weaving, okay. For ducking it's simple, most people duck incorrectly in a way that causes a lean. If you want to duck (and be able to come up for a punch with balance), you bend your knees and make sure they point away from each other when you do. They should also remain over your feet. So your feet will point the same directions as your knees during the motion. This will prevent knee injuries. That's a duck, or a "bob" if you equate a bob to being a straight up and down motion.

A weave (or "roll" if you're making them the same)...well, in the Tile Exercise thread Lucas demonstrates in his video how to do that correctly. Put those two together and you should have it.
Click to expand...

Thanks for your response.

So would you consider the side-to-side bending of the body that Tyson does the real bob and weaving?

Also, in regards to what Lucas does, I notice he only ever dips down a little and the movement is very minimal (not exaggerated in the slightest). Is that enough to avoid a hook to the head though or would lowering oneself more better the chances of not getting hit?
 
Marbig said:
Thanks for your response.

So would you consider the side-to-side bending of the body that Tyson does the real bob and weaving?

Also, in regards to what Lucas does, I notice he only ever dips down a little and the movement is very minimal (not exaggerated in the slightest). Is that enough to avoid a hook to the head though or would lowering oneself more better the chances of not getting hit?
Click to expand...

Yes.

And yes, you only need to make the punch miss, not miss by a lot. If I can even get you to just BARELY miss, that's better for me because I'll not have to give up as much of my positioning to accomplish it. Which means I can counter you more efficiently.

sourdiesel209 said:
Isnt it like a mini squat?
Click to expand...

Not a regular squat, a specific one.
 
Sinister said:
Yes.
Click to expand...

Pardon me if I get this wrong- but I have heard a lot of criticism on the way Tyson avoids punches. I mean, isn't the side-to-side thing he does mostly reliant on his back and involves a massiave amount of energy?

Or am I missing part of the technique?

Sinister said:
And yes, you only need to make the punch miss, not miss by a lot. If I can even get you to just BARELY miss, that's better for me because I'll not have to give up as much of my positioning to accomplish it. Which means I can counter you more efficiently.
Click to expand...

Ah, I see. That makes a lot of sense.

Are there any special drills (apart from the slip line and mitts) to work on the bob and weave for?
 
Sinister said:
Not a regular squat, a specific one.
Click to expand...

yeah because Ive been taught you should be able to do a sort of squat (just lowering by bending the knees and keeping the back straight) out of your boxing stance.. comfortable and balanced, so your ready to duck/roll or whatever... if you get unbalanced by doing the squat means your stance is wrong..

maybe your talking about a different squat tho...
 
Still on this subject of ducks, bob and weave... Today I was playing with a rope like this:

0.jpg


without a pad holder, just goin forward and backward tryin to slip, duck and roll while moving, but something wasn't feelin right

Could you give me some tips on how to optimize this drill? Thanks
 
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