Out Of The Box

The traditional form of boxing has been adapted into “aqua boxing” by the fitness community. Now, no one’s throwing punches at each other, and with the advent of boutique gyms, the new workout certainly shows no signs of slowing down.

- Rachel Ong

In a dimly lit room with the constant flashing of strobe lights, music pulsates while a series of punches are aimed at teardrop-shaped punching bags in quick succession. Even when an inebriated and dishevelled male lets out a cathartic scream, you hear nothing but the bass pounding. There is no way you can take a selfie unless blurry burst shots are your thing. Any spoils from the session would only be visible when the lights come on, after burning 400 calories for 40 minutes.

You would be forgiven for thinking that you have just stepped into a club. Instead, welcome to the latest fitness hype hitting town – aqua boxing. It is a form of non-contact boxing where you punch at, you guessed it, bags of water in lieu of the conventional heavy-duty ones filled with sand. These training bags offer more resistance and are easier on the joints, which makes the workout ideal for strength training. Due to the ease of contact in its teardrop shape, aqua boxing is great for fitness enthusiasts and professional boxers to try out a variety of punches, including a solid jab-cross-right hook combination. Participants aiming a barrage of beatings at the durable bag do not need to fear it ripping or tearing. Putting water into training bags for boxing adds levity to the routine and removes the stuffiness of boxing. It also mimics a human body (after all, 70 percent of the human body is water) so aqua boxing could be a great outlet to vent some anger after a stressful day. The classes enhance the experience with music, so one can shuffle and move according to the galvanising beats from hip-hop and house to electronic dance. Higher cardio potency is also introduced with HIIT (high-intensity interval training) routines.