Is boxing the best sport to combat obesity?

By: Psychologist Diana Sosa, member of the World Boxing Council Medical Committee

Obesity is a chronic degenerative condition that in the last decade has reached alarming numbers. According to the World Health Organization, 13% of the world’s adult population (11% of men and 15% of women) are obese. Mexico ranks 2nd in Adult Obesity and 1st in Childhood Obesity.

Obesity is also accompanied by various others concomitant health disorders, such as diabetes, hypertension, and also mental diagnoses such as anxiety and depression.

All health personnel, working with a multifactorial approach, will recommend, in addition to medical and nutritional treatment, physical activity for at least 30 minutes a day to start losing weight in a healthy and supervised way.

It is very important that the trainers in boxing gyms be aware and updated on this issue, since it is VERY likely that at some point, people get there in order to lose weight and their weight management is completely different to that of a non-obese person.

However, the bases in boxing are the same and it is scientifically proven that boxing is one of the best sports to acquire good physical condition and therefore maintain an adequate weight.

For 30 minutes of boxing, approximately 400 calories are burned. However, a typical boxing workout duration can be of 1 hour (or sometimes 2), plus it is a sport where cardio and strength are combined at the same time (by constantly hitting the bags) and coordination, agility and agility are improved.

Likewise, boxing helps release endorphins, acting as a natural painkiller, while adrenaline is released in each of the blows landed. That is why it is one of the most effective and recommended sports to relieve states of high stress, prevent anxiety and physically and mentally activate people who are going through a period of depression.

There have been cases of people coming to the gym to lose weight, getting hooked on boxing and subsequently becoming champions. There also some cases of boxers or other athletes who due to adverse life circumstances have gained extremely weight and they are recommended to practice boxing t to lose weight and reach the right weight.

Wherever you look at it, boxing is one of the best solutions to combat obesity and all that it implies.