How to Throw a Hook

Key points

• There are two hooks: the lead hook (3) with your lead hand and the rear hook (4) with your rear hand.
• Lift your elbow to the height of your fist, and keep the arc short.
• The turn of your hip and foot moves the punch, not a swing of the arm.
• Guardia adds both hooks in week 2 of its beginner plan: 3 rounds of 2 minutes.

What is a hook in boxing?

A hook is a punch that comes from the side in a short arc, with your arm bent. A straight goes down the middle; a hook comes around it. In the boxing numbers the lead hook is 3 and the rear hook is 4.

Both hooks get their force from the turn of your hip and foot, not from a swing of the arm. Beginners usually learn the lead hook first, right after the 1-2.

How to throw a lead hook (3)

1. Stand in your guard: lead foot forward, knees soft, both fists on your chin, weight even on both feet.
2. Lift your lead elbow until it is level with your fist. Your arm makes about a right angle, and your forearm points across your body.
3. Turn your lead hip and shoulder toward the target, and pivot on the ball of your lead foot so the heel turns out.
4. Keep the arc short. Stop the fist in front of the middle of your body; do not swing it past.
5. Keep your rear fist on your chin. Turn back into your stance and bring the lead fist home.

The coach's cue in Guardia: "Elbow up, in a short arc."

How to throw a rear hook (4)

1. Start in your guard, both fists on your chin.
2. Turn your back hip and shoulder toward the target. Lift your back heel and turn on the ball of the foot, as you do for the cross.
3. As you turn, lift your rear elbow to the height of your fist. The arm stays bent at about a right angle.
4. Stop the fist in front of you. Your lead fist stays on your chin the whole time.
5. Turn back into your stance and bring the rear fist back to your chin.

The coach's cue: "Elbow up, as your back hip turns." The rear hook starts farther away, so it is easier to throw too wide. Keep it as tight as the lead hook.

Common hook mistakes

Orthodox and southpaw

For a southpaw, everything is mirrored: right foot forward, the lead hook with the right hand, and the rear hook with the left.

Variations

• Hook to the body. Bend your knees to drop your height, then hook at the ribs. Keep your back straight and the other hand on your chin.
• Cross and lead hook (2-3). The cross turns your hips toward your lead side, and the lead hook turns them back. See how to throw a cross.
• Jab, cross, lead hook (1-2-3). A classic first three-punch combo, and part of Guardia's week 2.

A 2-minute hook drill at home

Set the boxing round timer to one round of 2:00. Face a mirror or your phone, and change the drill every 30 seconds:

1. Lead hooks, slow. Elbow up, short arc, front foot pivots.
2. Rear hooks, slow. Back heel lifts as the hip turns.
3. Cross and lead hook, 2-3, at an easy pace.
4. Jab, cross, lead hook, 1-2-3. Both hands back to your chin before the next one.

How Guardia sees your hooks

Stand 2 to 3 meters from the phone and face it. Guardia follows your whole body and names each hook live, as you throw it. You pick your stance in the app, so it knows your lead hand and can tell a 3 from a 4.

It names a hook the same at any height, so when the coach calls a body hook, your hook counts.

Safety before you throw a hook

• New to exercise, or have a heart, joint, or other health condition? Check with a doctor first. The free PAR-Q+ questionnaire tells you whether you should.
• Warm up for 5 to 10 minutes: easy steps, arm circles, slow shadow boxing. A warm-up helps you move better and may lower injury risk.
• Clear 2 to 3 meters of floor in front of you. That is also the space the app's camera needs.
• Wrap your hands and wear gloves on a bag. In Great Britain's elite team, the hand was injured more than any other part of the body. Shadow boxing needs no gloves.
• Stop if you feel chest pain, dizziness, unusual shortness of breath, joint pain that does not settle, or numbness or swelling in a hand.

Hook questions

What is the difference between a lead hook and a rear hook?

The hand and the hip. The lead hook (3) uses your lead hand and lead hip, and it is short and fast. The rear hook (4) uses your rear hand and turns your back hip and foot, like a cross.

Is a left hook the same as a lead hook?

For an orthodox boxer, yes: the left hand is the lead hand, so the left hook is punch 3. For a southpaw, a left hook is the rear hook, punch 4.

Should my palm face down or in when I throw a hook?

Both are taught. Some coaches turn the palm to the floor, others keep it facing you with the thumb up. Whichever you use, keep your wrist straight and your elbow at the height of your fist.

What number is a hook in boxing?

It has two numbers. The lead hook is 3 and the rear hook is 4, because odd numbers are lead-hand punches and even numbers are rear-hand punches.

Sources

1. Fradkin, Gabbe, and Cameron, 2006. Does warming up prevent injury in sport? The evidence from randomised controlled trials?. Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport.
2. Loosemore and others, 2015. Boxing injury epidemiology in the Great Britain team: a 5-year surveillance study of medically diagnosed injury incidence and outcome. British Journal of Sports Medicine.
3. PAR-Q+ Collaboration. The Physical Activity Readiness Questionnaire for Everyone (PAR-Q+). eparmedx.com.