University sports boxing: Healthy body, healthy mind!

FAU doctoral student Sally Arnhardt has an unusual hobby: boxing. Boxing is still tainted with a poor reputation. Unfairly so, as it offers a number of health benefits.

The air is stuffy, it smells of sweat and damp leather gloves. Unusual sounds can be heard: shoes tapping and the rhythmic beating of ropes on the floor of the gym, the sound of people exhaling with a hiss, and something bumping with a thud. Loud calls, instructions like “skip for 10 minutes,” “put on your hand wraps and get ready for sparring”, “put more emphasis on the left-right combinations”. If you continue, you end up in a special biotope: a boxing gym. Here, people come to strengthen their body and their mind. They learn breathing techniques specially tailored to boxing, they learn to punch and to move. To win a competition, to test their own boundaries or just because they enjoy the exercise.

You can venture into the fascinating world of boxing at Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU), where members of the university boxing club regularly meet to train. Sally Arnhardt is one of the boxers you can meet in the gym at the Department of Sport Science and Sport in the Gebbertstraße in Erlangen. She studied molecular medicine at FAU and is currently completing a doctoral degree in neuroscience at Uniklinikum Erlangen.

A physical and mental challenge

Boxing is the perfect sport for 31 year old Sally. “On the one hand, boxing is excellent training for your body, it is an ideal full body workout,” she says. Boxing is challenging on a number of physical levels: for stamina, strength, speed and coordination. There are innumerable exercises to do: sit-ups, push-ups, squats, dumbbell training, skipping, running, practicing at the punching bag, and practicing combinations of punches on striking pads. And then there are the practice fights, known as sparring, where you can put what you have learned into practice. It is not without reason that boxing is considered one of the most intensive forms of training.

“On the other hand, boxing also trains your mind, your mental strength,” Sally explains For her, boxing is 20 percent physical exertion and 80 percent mental exertion, a mental workout. You not only have to force your body to its limits again and again, you also have to learn to cope with pain at training and still stay focused and keep pushing on, even when you’re out of breath. At the same time, adapting to your opponent, recognizing the gaps in their defense and pursuing your own strategy are the true challenges.

Keep calm and carry on

“I really think that this sport can change your life if you pursue it with passion. For me, boxing even reflects life in general to a certain extent,” says Sally. “There are always challenges and times in life where a fighting spirit is called for. Whether privately, at work or at uni.” Sparring can quickly lead to situations which can feel rather overwhelming. You have to learn how to cope with physical stress. At the same time, and perhaps even more importantly, you have to keep a grip on your emotions. These may range from slight panic or anxiety to anger, triggered by a feeling of helplessness, the overwhelming new experience of being subjected to extreme physical exertion or frustration. “In the first instance, that is entirely normal, but unfortunately that doesn’t help in boxing,” she explains. “You need to learn to stay focused and calm, to just keep going.” For her, the biggest challenge is to face up to these emotions and sort them accordingly.  “Like many great boxers have already said, and like anyone who has ever been in the boxing ring can confirm: your greatest and most dangerous opponent is yourself. You have to learn to control your fears.”

However, in spite of all the physical and mental exertion, you are not alone, even if boxing is not a team sport. “You have to face up to your opponents and the tough training yourself, but your training partners and coaches are still all there for you. This feeling of solidarity in the group helps you go up and beyond what you thought you were capable of, even when the going gets really tough,” explains Sally, her eyes shining.

Poor reputation unjustified?

In spite of all the proven positive aspects, boxing still has a poor reputation, but usually unfairly so. “It is not only that, as a woman, a lot of people give me strange looks when I say that I box,” she explains. People also automatically think that you have a high potential for aggression. “This is a prejudice I don’t encounter if I say that I go jogging or go to the gym.” At the end of the day, it depends entirely on the club and the coaches as well as the culture that is encouraged there, whether the fighters are trained to be fair athletes or aggressive thugs.

“A lot of people naturally think that it is a contradiction that I am a neuroscientist and yet run the risk of getting punched in the head while boxing,” says Sally. However, she explains that she is not training for competitions, where both the preparation and the fights are of quite a different caliber. “If you pursue boxing as a hobby, the risk is low,” she assures us. “The risk of being injured remains minimal if you stick to short, controlled sparring matches and use suitable protective equipment.” She recommends boxing for almost everyone. However, training ought to be adjusted according to the person’s age and physical fitness. Children and adolescents can use it to channel their energy in a positive way, and older adults can use it to keep their mind and body fit and well. Studies have shown, for example, the boxing training can help alleviate symptoms in Parkinson’s disease. “You can choose to box just as a way of keeping fit, or go to boxing training without aiming to compete,” says Sally.

She does not intend to compete at the current time, although she is tempted by the intensive training it would require. Sally currently trains three times a week. She is also part of the team of coaches led by Richard Obler. She particularly enjoys coaching. “Richard is responsible for the team of coaches, and he has taught us so much. We all have slightly different strengths, and that definitely improves the training, making it more varied.”

When she is asked who her personal favorite is in boxing, Sally doesn’t hesitate to reply: Regina Halmich. Halmich became well-known through her show boxing matches against the Germany celebrity Stefan Raab, but she was already one of the best female boxers there are, and was entered into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2022. “It is unbelievable how well Regina Halmich fought. Winning 54 out of 56 matches is a great achievement,” says Sally. “That apart, she has done so much for promoting women’s boxing and raising the purse to an appropriate level.” But who is the person she admires most? Sally’s answer is short and sweet: “My mum”.

Further information:

University sports
guido.koestermeyer@fau.de