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(This is cross-posted at BlogHer.)

When I told a friend at work that I was planning to give boxing a try, his reaction was, “Zan! Oh, no! In a boxing ring?” I assured him the class I was taking would be far from dangerous — it was a group class with individual punching bags, so there would be no big, mean fists aimed at my face. My roommate, Jen, had recently joined L.A. Boxing and seemed to be enjoying herself, so I agreed to tag along with her to take a class.

When I took the krav maga class, I didn’t have anything on my hands. Zip. Nada. They were completely bare (which is how I ended up ripping off the skin from several knuckles), and it took several weeks before they healed.

I found out after the fact that I should have worn hand wraps to protect them from the constant thudding, but having my knuckles destroyed was a big reason why I never went back to take another class. (Not one person at the facility I went to brought up the option of hand wraps, which seemed like an irresponsible way to handle a newbie like myself.)

I must admit, I was very happy that the folks at L.A. Boxing were serious about taking good care of my hands. They let me borrow a pair of boxing gloves, and they made sure to point out that they don’t recommend using the gloves without wrapping up your hands first. Luckily my roommate had an extra set of hand wraps for me to use (which are basically loooonngg strips of material that you wrap around your hand and wrist and in-between your fingers).

We started the class by warming up with 20 minutes of cardio before we even put on our boxing gloves. The instructor told us we shouldn’t stop moving for the entire 20 minutes — and we didn’t. There were a lot of jumping jacks involved, and hopping around with different foot-shuffling combinations. (Apparently the amount of cardio before boxing depends on the instructor, because Jen said she’s been in classes where they boxed the entire time instead of focusing on regular cardio first.)

After we were good and sweaty, it was time to punch the life out of our bags. That was the fun part! I hadn’t had the best day leading up to the class, so I was looking forward to having a physical release for some of the aggression I was feeling. The instructor would demonstrate a combination of punches and we’d do those moves over and over until a buzzer went off. Rounds of boxing were interspersed with dropping on the floor to do pushups — and I have to admit, my arms were pretty much shot by that point. I could only do a few pushups before my arms would give out and I’d collapse on the floor.

My only complaint was that it was difficult to hear the instructor. The music was loud (which was nice; it’s good to have a pumping beat when you’re trying to beat the crap out of something), but he didn’t have a microphone or anything to amplify his voice. Most of the time I’d just watch what he was doing and try to copy it, since I didn’t have the faintest idea what he was yelling. It wasn’t a big deal, though — when I couldn’t hear what kind of combination he was asking us to do, I’d just beat the crap out of my punching bag. (Left-left-left…right-right!! Jab-jab-uppercut! You get the idea.)

It was a really good workout and I was wiped out by the time we left. I wouldn’t mind going back — they offer kickboxing, too, which would be interesting to try — but they don’t have the option to pay per-class, and I’m already in a contract at another gym. (Not having the ability to pay per-class was a complaint I had about krav maga, too.)

I didn’t experience any soreness after the class (when you start something new, especially if it’s so physically demanding, it’s typical to be sore for a few days). I work out with weights already, and all the hopping around wasn’t so bad because my legs and calves are pretty strong — but soreness is definitely something to be prepared for if you’re not used to this type of workout and decide you want to try this class.

(Note: L.A. Boxing — at least the location in Alexandria, Va — offers a one-time free class to anyone interested in giving them a try. You just have to call in advance to let them know you’re coming, and arrive about 15 minutes before the class starts to fill out a information sheet and sign a waiver. They let you borrow the gloves, but you either have to bring your own hand wraps or buy a pair from them for about $10. Or, hey — you could always choose to not wear anything under your gloves and risk tearing up your knuckles! Lots of options!)

Have you ever tried boxing? What’s your opinion?

Related Reading:

Catty wrote about how sore she was after her first boxing class.

I run, I do pump class, I’m pretty damn sure I can almost crack a nut with my quads ~ my legs are strong. or so I had thought. I was expecting my arms, my chest, my back to ache in the repercussion to my very first boxing class but they were actually fine. my legs, however, what a different story. i have never, and I’m not exaggerating, felt such pain in my legs.. ever.

Lisa Creech Bledsoe asks, “How many ice packs does one need [to get in boxing shape]?”

I would like to pretend otherwise, but after my first boxing class I hurt so badly I could not sleep soundly for about five nights in succession. I would wake up in tears just trying to roll over in bed. I did that thing where you hook some part of your body that isn’t in severe pain (foot? elbow? fingers?) over the edge of the mattress and try to haul the rest of your body into a less agonizing position before falling back into an exhausted half-sleep.

One of the Fit-Bottomed Girls took a class at an L.A. Boxing location in California.

The room was filled with rows of boxing bags, and I was excited to uppercut the stuffing out of one of them. The class was just the right size at about 10 participants: enough people to not feel alone, but not so many that we were bumping into each other. The instructor, Mike, put me at ease immediately, mostly because he didn’t look like Rocky or have black eyes.

Sex and the Art of Boxing: Gina Anderson took a boxing class and was pleasantly surprised to discover that she was turned-on by the experience.

About 15 people — mostly men, that is, mostly hard-shouldered, thick-thighed, eight-packed men — huffed and puffed in a circle around the studio. Running and punching, punching and huffing, huffing and puffing. And blowing my house down.

Real Women’s Fitness: Why boxing is so good for women’s fitness

[T]his is why boxing is so good for fitness. It is full body. When you step into a boxing gym you will be made to do all kinds of exercises — pushups, sit ups, bag work, speed ball work, sparring, jogging, weights, skipping, etc. They have fitness down to a very fine art and they know how to get the best out of you.

Washington Post: Therapy With the Gloves On (boxing as a stress-reliever and mood-elevator)

Democrat and Chronicle: Boxing takes fitness to a new level

MSNBC: Boxing offers full-body workout in and out of the ring, but take precautions

New York Times: For Couples, a Matter of Give and Take. (This article is from 2007, but it’s an interesting look at couples who do co-ed boxing.)