I learned to box, tone up and get tough

Dominique McMullan learns to roll with the punches and tries out the newest fitness craze - boxing


There is something innately appealing about the idea of being able to box. Just putting on the gloves makes you feel more powerful and tough. Movie reels run in your head and before you know it you’re ready to live your very own real life Rocky cliché. At Underdog Boxing Studio, that is pretty much where the Hollywood bit ends. If you are going to sign up to learn to box here, prepare to get sweaty, work harder and get pushed further than you probably ever have in your life.

What makes it worth all that hard work? The benefits of boxing are many. The first obvious one being that this is a sport that will make you strong. There is no better feeling than knowing you can throw a powerful jab if you need to, or so I would imagine.

For overall fitness, boxing is also hard to beat. The trick is that it’s both aerobic and anaerobic exercise. This means that as well as increasing your endurance, muscle mass and metabolism (like for example a HIIT workout does), boxing also burns calories and is great for cardiovascular health. I’m not joking when I say it burns calories either, you can burn between 500 to 700 calories in just one session.

Boxing is also great for coordination, and many of the best boxers are great dancers, according to Victor, one of the trainers at Underdog. It's also a great stress reliever; picturing that person who rubbed you up the wrong way while giving the '1,2' to a punch bag, just can't be topped as a method for unwinding. So where do you sign up? underdogboxing.ie