The sport of Western boxing has had many fans since the early days of the 19th century in America. Even when organized public fighting matches were still considered a crime punishable by jail time and a fine, they drew crowds of spectators. But again, who doesn’t love a good fight?

The fight back then looked very different to the current fight. Over the years, more science and research has been done on human movement and fitness. The upright, low-handed stances that make it easy to identify early boxing have changed over the years.

In the 21st century, fighters appear more fluid, more aggressive, and in a crouched stance. Legs bent, body weight forward on toes. Unlike the fighters of yesteryear, today a fighter uses his hands and shoulders to hide and protect that path that leads directly to the “kisser” or “button”.

The main weapons of the fighters remain their hands, while they also use many strategies to hold, push, and lean on strategies to wear down their opponent. With those weapons, there is usually an arsenal of 8 specific hits that a good fighter will develop. Of these eight punches there is an incredible variety of “combinations” that you can throw while trying to get past the opponent’s defenses in the opposite corner.

This list is a brief description of those 8 boxing punches:

1. “The Jab”. This punch is thrown from the lead hand. It is fast, sometimes powerful, and is used to “keep your opponent away from you”, or to judge his distance while preparing a power strike.
2. “The cross”. This hit is from the rear hand and is a direct power hit. It is usually used as a counterattack when your opponent throws a punch from the opposite side.
3. “The hook to the jaw”. This punch comes from the front hand from the side while keeping the elbow bent. The objective is to surround the defense and connect with the side of the opponent’s face. The hook has a lot of knocking power.
4. “Rear hand hook”. As in the previous one, because this blow comes from behind, it is generally used as a counterattack when your opponent has “left open”. The target can be both the head and the body.
5. “Drive the hook to the body”. Again, from the leading hand “hooking” the body. The target is mainly the ribs or the kidney. This particular blow is so devastating that, upon successful landing, it has ended many, many fights with the opponent still conscious.
6. “The punch above the head.” This punch is also a power punch. It comes from the back hand. It is similar to the cross, however it has a slight arcing motion. The purpose of this blow is to pass the opponents aiming at the opponent’s face. Imagine the shape of a baseball pitcher and you have the basic concept.
7. “Uppercut of the main hand”. The uppercut is used while the fighters are close. The objective of this blow is to go under and behind the defense and land on the chin or the “solar plexus” of the opponent. The first is a knockout punch, while the second is a “knock you out” punch that sets up the knockout punch.
8. “Uppercut of the rear hand”. Very similar to the previous one. Just as effective, but slightly less powerful. This is because the back leg is not in a position to generate as much upward force as the front leg.

This 8-punch list is what most boxers use as arsenal against their opponent. Anyone can wear them and you don’t have to be a boxer per se. Consistent practice is a great upper-body workout that has many benefits. One of the most important is building muscle and burning calories at the same time.