Infants Boxing Session (5-9 Years)

Mobilisation (5 minutes)

Keep it moving. Children this age cannot stand still. Frame mobilisation as a game, not a stretch.

Animal movement warm-up:

• Bear crawls: from one wall to the other (about 8 metres)
• Crab walks: back to the start
• Frog jumps: to the halfway point
• Bunny hops: back to the start
• Inchworms: 5 reps on the spot

"Who can do the best bear crawl? Hands flat, bums up, go!" Keep energy high. Praise effort loudly. "Brilliant crab walk. You are fast."

Warm-Up Drills (8 minutes)

Traffic light footwork game (4 mins)

All children spread out in the gym in boxing stance (teach this quickly: one foot forward, one back, hands up like you are holding a phone to each ear).

Coach calls colours:
- "Green!" - step-and-slide forward
- "Red!" - freeze in stance
- "Yellow!" - step-and-slide backwards slowly
- "Blue!" - step-and-slide left
- "Orange!" - step-and-slide right

Anyone who moves on red does 3 star jumps. Speed up the calls. Children love this because it feels like a game, but it teaches boxing footwork without them realising.

Freeze dance boxing (4 mins)

Music on. Children shadow box freely, moving around the gym. When the music stops, everyone freezes in guard position. Coach checks: hands up, chin down, feet in stance. Anyone not in position does a silly forfeit (spin around 3 times, do a funny walk across the gym).

This teaches guard position through repetition disguised as play.

Main Session (35 minutes)

Block 1: Learning the Jab (8 mins)

Demonstration (2 mins)

Quick demo. Do not over-explain. Children learn by copying, not by listening to instructions.

Keep it to three words: "Hands up. Punch out. Snap back." Demonstrate 3 times. "Now you do it."

Follow the coach (3 mins)

Coach faces the group. "Copy me." Throw a jab. Everyone throws a jab. Throw two jabs. Everyone throws two. Add the guard check: "Hands up! Are your hands up? Good."

Count out loud together. "One! Two! Three!" Make it loud and energetic.

Bag punching station (3 mins)

Line up at the heavy bags. Each child throws 10 jabs, then goes to the back of the line. Coach gives one piece of praise to each child as they punch. "Great snap. Nice and straight. Good hands."

Do not correct too much at this age. Encouragement is more important than perfection. If a child's technique is wildly wrong (hitting with an open hand, for example), gently show them once and move on.

Block 2: Pads with Coach (10 mins)

Set up a rotation. While the coach works pads one-on-one with each child, the rest do station work:

Station 1: Bag punching - throw 10 jabs, rest, repeat
Station 2: Cone footwork - step-and-slide around 4 cones in a square
Station 3: Balance challenge - stand on one foot in guard position, see who can hold longest

Coach works pads with each child for about 1 minute. The combination is simple: jab, jab. Then jab-jab-jab if they are coping. Hold the pads low enough for their height. Give big reactions when they hit the pad cleanly. "Yes! That was a proper jab!"

If a child is struggling, simplify to: "Just hit this pad as hard as you can." One target, one punch. Build from there.

Block 3: Team Relay (10 mins)

Relay 1: Boxing footwork relay (5 mins)

Split into 2-3 teams. Set cones 8 metres apart. Each child must step-and-slide from cone A to cone B in boxing stance, throw 3 punches at the air, then run back and tag the next person.

Teams that lose do 5 star jumps. Run it 3 times so every child goes at least twice.

Relay 2: Punch and run (5 mins)

Same teams. This time: run to the bag, throw 5 punches as fast as possible, run back, tag the next person. Coach counts each child's punches out loud. "One-two-three-four-five, go go go!"

The competitive element keeps focus. Cheer every child by name.

Block 4: Fun Finish Drill (7 mins)

Punch the numbers game

Coach holds one pad and calls out a number of punches. "Three!" The child throws 3 punches. "Five!" Five punches. "One!" One punch. If the child throws the wrong number, they do a silly walk back to the line.

Progression: add a colour pad (if coloured pads available) or add "high" and "low" calls. "Three high!" means 3 punches to the pad held at head height. "Two low!" means 2 punches to the pad held at waist height.

This teaches children to listen, count, and respond - all while punching.

Conditioning Finish (5 minutes)

Frame it as a competition, not conditioning.

The floor is lava:

Children must move around the gym using only boxing footwork (step-and-slide). If the coach catches anyone running, walking normally, or crossing their feet, they are "out" and must do 5 sit-ups before re-joining.

Last child standing wins. Run it twice. Keep the pace high and the energy loud.

Cool Down and Reflection (3 minutes)

Very brief stretch. Children this age have limited patience for static stretching.

• Touch toes: 5 seconds
• Arms above head, stretch tall: 5 seconds
• Shake it all out: 10 seconds of silly shaking

Ask: "What was the best bit today?" Let 2-3 children answer. Whatever they say, respond positively. "Brilliant. You worked really hard today. High fives on the way out."

Line up, high five the coach on the way out. This small ritual matters. Every child leaves feeling acknowledged.

Coaching Notes

• Fun is the only goal for this age group. If a child is having fun, they will come back. If they come back, they will learn technique over time. Do not sacrifice enjoyment for technical perfection at age 5-9.
• Keep drill blocks to 3 minutes maximum. After 3 minutes, children this age lose focus. Switch activities before attention wanders.
• Never single a child out negatively in front of the group. All corrections should be positive framing: "Try it like this" not "You are doing it wrong."
• If a child is upset, disruptive, or overwhelmed, give them a special job: "Can you be my helper and count the punches for everyone?" Responsibility usually resets behaviour.
• Watch for children who are not joining in. Pair them with the most confident child, not with another quiet one. Confidence is contagious.
• Parents often watch infants sessions. Be aware that your energy and patience are being observed. How you treat their child is how they judge the gym.
• Some children will want to hit each other. Redirect immediately but without anger: "We only punch bags and pads, never each other. When you are older, there is sparring, but that is for the big group."
• Keep a bottle of water visible and remind them to drink between blocks. Children forget to hydrate.
• If the group energy drops, insert a 30-second star jump burst or a quick game of "who can be the loudest" to reset.