Full Competitive Sparring Session

Mobilisation (5 minutes)

• Neck rolls: 10 each direction
• Shoulder circles: 10 forward, 10 back
• Thoracic rotation: 10 each side
• Hip circles: 10 each direction
• Bodyweight squats: 10 reps
• Light jogging on the spot: 30 seconds
• Shadow boxing footwork: 30 seconds each direction

Warm-Up Drills (10 minutes)

Technical shadow boxing (5 mins)

3 x 1.5-minute rounds. Full technique. Build the intensity with each round. By round 3, members should be working at 80% speed with full combinations and defence.

"You are warming up for hard sparring. By the time this shadow boxing is done, you should be ready to fight."

Pad work sharpener (5 mins)

Pairs. 2-minute round: fast combinations on pads. Jab-cross-hook-cross, move, jab-hook-cross, move. Full speed, sharp technique. This is the final preparation before gloves go on. Swap for 2 minutes.

Main Session (38 minutes)

Pre-Sparring Check (3 mins)

This is not a safety briefing for beginners. These members know how to spar. This is a competitive check:

"Today is hard sparring. Competition pace. You should be pushing each other. That said, the rules still apply: if someone is hurt, you stop. If the coach steps in, you stop. If your partner says enough, you respect it immediately."

Check gear: gloves tight, headguards fitted properly, gumshields in, wraps secure.

Pair by weight and competition readiness. If two members are preparing for the same show, pair them early. Members who are further from competition can still spar hard but should be matched appropriately.

Sparring - 4 x 4-Minute Rounds (28 mins)

4 rounds of 4-minute sparring. 1 minute rest between rounds. This replicates the timing of a senior amateur bout (3 x 3 minutes) with an additional round for training benefit.

The coach's role during rounds:

Do not intervene unless there is a safety issue. This is not a teaching session. The members are past the teaching stage. They are applying what they know under pressure. Let them problem-solve in real time.

While watching, take notes on each fighter. Use a notepad or phone. Quick observations:

• "Fighter A: drops guard after the hook. Got caught twice with the counter cross."
• "Fighter B: footwork disappeared in the second minute. Stood flat and traded."
• "Fighter C: excellent jab control, but did not throw the cross when the opening was there."

These notes become individual feedback after the session.

Between round 1 and 2 (1 min):

Go to each pair. Give one brief instruction to each fighter. Simulate a corner:

• "You are getting hit with the jab because your guard is too low. Bring it up."
• "Your opponent keeps circling left. Cut them off. Step to the right."
• "You won that round. Same pace. Do not change what is working."

This corner practice is as valuable as the sparring itself. Competitive members need to hear and execute instructions under pressure between rounds.

Between round 2 and 3:

Switch partners if possible. A new opponent forces adaptation. The techniques that worked against Fighter A may not work against Fighter C.

Coaching between rounds: same format. One instruction per fighter. Keep it concise.

Between round 3 and 4:

Final round. "Last round. This is where fights are won. The fighter who can still execute technique in round 4 is the one who wins."

Round 4:

The hardest round. Members are tired. This is where character shows. Watch for: fighters who coast because they are tired (not acceptable for competitive prep), fighters who increase power because they are frustrated (dangerous), and fighters who maintain pace and technique (the goal).

Post-Sparring Individual Feedback (7 mins)

Each member gets 1-2 minutes of individual feedback from the coach. This is private, not in front of the group.

Use the notes taken during sparring. Structure the feedback:

1. One specific thing they did well. "Your counter-punching in round 2 was excellent. You timed the slip-cross three times."
2. One specific thing to improve. "Your guard drops after the third punch in every combination. By round 3, your opponent was timing it."
3. One instruction for next time. "Next sparring session, focus on keeping the guard up between combinations. That is your homework."

This feedback is gold for competitive members. They cannot see themselves during sparring. Your observations are their only external perspective outside of competition.

Conditioning Finish (5 minutes)

Very light. Members have just completed 16 minutes of hard sparring plus warm-up intensity.

• 2 x 1.5-minute rounds on the heavy bag. Light pace. Active recovery. Work through combinations at 50% to keep the blood flowing.
• 30-second plank
• 30-second stretch on the spot

Cool Down and Reflection (3 minutes)

Neck stretch: 15 seconds each side (extra time for neck after hard sparring). Shoulder stretch: 15 seconds each. Hip flexor stretch: 15 seconds each. Deep breathing: 30 seconds.

No grand speech. These members know what they are doing. Simple: "Good work today. Take your feedback on board. See you next session."

Coaching Notes

• This session is for advanced members who are competing or preparing to compete. It is not for recreational sparrers. The intensity is significantly higher than any other sparring session in the programme.
• The coach's restraint is essential. Do not interrupt rounds to coach technique. Let members fight. The lessons they learn from getting hit are more powerful than any instruction you can give during the round.
• The exception: safety. If a member is hurt, concussed, or in danger, stop the round immediately. A cut above the eye, a member who is dazed, or a significant power mismatch that has become dangerous are all reasons to intervene.
• Keep detailed notes on every member across multiple sessions. Over time, you will see patterns: recurring mistakes, areas of improvement, stylistic tendencies. This longitudinal data is what makes your coaching valuable.
• If a member is preparing for a specific opponent, adjust the pairing. Match them with someone who fights similarly to their upcoming opponent. Tall and rangy? Pair them with the tallest member. Pressure fighter? Pair them with the most aggressive.
• 4-minute rounds are longer than competition rounds (3 minutes at amateur level). The extra minute builds the stamina and mental toughness needed to finish strong in competition.
• After this session, recommend 48 hours of rest before the next hard training session. Hard sparring is demanding on the body and brain. Recovery is part of the preparation.
• This session should be run no more than once per week, ideally twice per month. More frequent hard sparring increases injury risk without proportional skill benefit.