Shadowboxing Drills: Boxing Combos to Call Out

Shadowboxing is the most portable training there is: no bag, no gloves, no partner, just space to move. The catch is that it is easy to drift, throwing the same lazy one-two while your mind wanders. A caller keeps you honest. It picks combinations at random and calls them out, so you are always reacting to something.

The drills here are pure boxing: hands, feints and head movement only, no kicks or knees. That makes them perfect for warming up, for finishing a session, or for training on a day when you have nothing but a patch of floor. Work on footwork as much as hands. Move after every combination and change levels.

Keep your combinations sharp. Snap the jab and bring it straight back to your cheek, rotate your whole body into the cross and hook rather than arming them, and after the last punch of a combo, slip or roll and step off line before you reset.

String the drills into rounds with the boxing workouts below. Shadowboxing rewards volume and rhythm, so set a comfortable gap between calls and aim to keep moving the entire round. It is free and works on your phone.