10 Essential Pieces Of Gear Every Boxer Needs

If you are a beginner, boxing training all the time, or even want to take up boxing as your primary sport. There are 10 essential pieces of gear and equipment I think every boxer should have and consider.

All of these are practical and also essential if you are going to be taking the sport seriously in the long term.

This post is aimed mostly at beginners, but if I’m being honest these will all become essential as you start to develop and prolong your time in the sport of boxing.

On that note, let’s get right into it!

1. Quality Boxing Gloves

Now, this is a mistake a lot of beginners make when coming into the sport. They always end up buying a cheap pair of gloves that deteriorate quickly because they don’t look after them or the quality of the glove itself is just not great!

If you are going to be taking the sport seriously for the long term. I highly recommend you get yourself two pairs of gloves one for bag work training (heavy bag, mitt work, etc) and sparring.

By having two pairs of gloves and being able to alternate between the two depending on your training. They will last a lot longer for the most part!

Check out my two popular boxing gloves guides below to help you out on where to start.

2. Hand wraps

This is another piece of gear that can get overlooked by most beginners at first and that is, of course, hand wraps.

Hand wraps are really important as they help secure your knuckles, hand, and wrist. This is so it doesn’t go over on itself when you are hitting the heavy bag or are in sparring.

My favorite hand wraps I like to use are from BOXRAW here, but there are also plenty of options you can check out on Amazon here too.

3. Jump Rope

It doesn’t matter what boxing gym you go to, everyone will jump rope at some point. So it makes sense to get yourself a pair to start. If you are wondering why boxers actually jump rope there are actually some very good reasons, these include:

Helping footwork
Improving coordination
Gives and improves rhythm
Improve cardio and stamina

If you want to learn how to jump rope for boxing, check out my articles below.

I also recommend you check out the Crossrope program here, which is a great way to learn how to jump rope quickly. You can also check out my in-depth review of Crossrope here for more detail.

4. Mouthguard

If you plan on sparring or competing in boxing, it is essential that you get yourself a decent mouthguard for maximum protection and comfort.

Not only that, your coach will not let you spar at all and referees will definitely not allow you to compete without one.

Check out my article on top mouthguards here or I recommend you look at Impact mouthguards website which has a great selection.

5. Head guard

This is another item you will definitely need if you plan on sparring consistently. I really can’t stress this enough as it will make you feel more comfortable, and confident, and most importantly protect your head while sparring with your opponent. (To an extent)

There are a few different types of head guards that you will have to consider. These include:

Open face
Cheek head guard
Bar/Grill head guards

I recommend you check out my top 10 head guard options here to get you started and will also give you information on why you need one.

6. Groin guard

Another overlooked piece of gear is the groin guard, and this obviously protects your down below! If you haven’t worn one before they can feel quite awkward at first to move around with it.

There are many different types of groin guards that you can get. I personally like to use ones with extra ab and side protection. However, I know some people that feel limited in their movement and prefer less padding. If you are a beginner, I’d always go with the extra protection if you’re not sure.

Check out my top 10 groin guard options here or see options on Amazon here.

7. Dumbbells / Egg weights

Now some people will say these aren’t essential, but I really believe having light dumbbells or egg weights can really help benefit while training.

If you are training from home or have a limited budget, these can be really useful to use instead. Especially for shadowboxing or even going out running carrying extra weights.

This will help develop strength in your shoulders due to the gravity pull down. These will also help with your resistance, muscle endurance, and hand speed over time! You will see a lot of the top boxing professionals using these when shadow boxing.

Check out egg weights on Amazon here or the handled dumbbells here.

8. Boxing Shoes

When you first start boxing training, one of the first things that are overlooked by many beginners is a pair of good-quality boxing shoes. The reason why they are important is that most are designed in a way to help with the unique types of movements you will be making in your training.

Boxing shoes are also great at giving you better balance and grip as you move around the ring or in training. They will also give great stability to your ankle to make sure you stay on the balls of your feet as you develop your footwork. Not only that, wearing a good pair of boxing shoes can definitely help give some people that little bit of swag and confidence which can only help you mentally!

I recommend you check out my boxing shoe guide here or my reviews on my favorites which include Everlast Elite boxing boots or Adidas Box Hog 3 boxing shoes.

9. Punching Bag

Now that you have the majority of your gear, the next best thing is to get a solid punch bag.

This is so you can start practicing your punching combinations and also work on your conditioning more effectively. Once you start to practice on this more consistently you will start to see big improvements in your strength, stamina, and overall technique.

Hitting a punching bag is very much aerobic exercise where you are using the majority of your body while training on it meaning you will get a full-body workout. This isn’t just essential for any boxer to get better physically, but will also help training variation.

I recommend you check out the following articles if you need some punch bag equipment options to consider:

10. Reflex / Double-end Bag

The final item of this list is to help your defense and reflexes whilst training. The issue around the standard punch bag is that they don’t hit you back or make you react!

The more you do reflex exercises the better you will become. By having good reflexes, you will simply become a better fighter, especially if you are looking to improve your counter-punching of defensive movements.

If you are competing or sparring, having good reflexes will obviously help you against your opponent. Training reflexes will give you a better reaction to what punches they throw at you. This in turn could help you from being hit or hurt even.

The main pieces of boxing equipment that can be used to help develop this area are double-ended bags, reflex ‘cobra’ bags or reaction bar bags. Each works in slightly different ways, but they will all help with reflexes and defensive movements which are essential to any boxer. Check out my article below to help give you some equipment ideas:

Final thoughts

If you are able to get all 10 of these items of gear, it will help you drastically protect yourself and improve and develop your overall training as a boxer.

These items are all things you can buy over time and you don’t have to buy the punching equipment if you are already going to the gym.

Not everyone will be positioned to get all these at once. But it is essential to get this gear in my opinion if you plan on taking the sport seriously in the long term.

Make sure to check out all my boxing and fitness gear reviews here or why not check out my home boxing gym article below for more ideas?

Thanks for reading!

Jamie - Boxing Life

I'm a boxing analyst, amateur boxer, and blogger looking to pass on my boxing experiences and passion to anyone looking to learn or find out more about the sport of boxing. Whether that be gear reviews, fighter analysis, news, training tips, or my own personal journey, I'll be covering it on 'Boxing Life'.