When starting out in boxing, there is one golden question you ask yourself first...
"What boxing gloves should I get?"
There is no one-size glove that fits all, different gloves are made for different purposes.
The type and size of gloves affect the choice you'll make.
To get the correct type of boxing gloves, you need to consider the function and the size.
You’ll need a boxing glove for various tasks like; sparring, bags, and competition.
For these different functions, different types of boxing gloves.
As a boxer, hand wraps are not enough.
Boxing gloves are here to protect not just your opponent, but yourself as well. Check out our article on why boxers wear gloves to find out more.
It would be best if you had boxing gloves to spar, hit the bags, and swagger into the actual fight.
There are several types of boxing gloves.
Usually, boxing gloves are based on specific criteria.
These criteria are size, purpose, material, and the fastening at the cuff.
Follow the steps in this article, and you will be able to find what the best boxing gloves for beginners are.
The answer is not so simple, in order to answer the question "what boxing gloves should I get", you need to first answer the following questions:
If you're not too sure how to answer these questions yet, keep reading on and to find out more.
To choose the best gloves for beginners, you need to be precise about what you want to do with them.
In this section, we'll discuss the type of boxing gloves based on purpose.
Without any further ado, let's delve right into it.
A boxing bag can be a heavy bag that is tough or a light bag that's easy.
To improve speed and accuracy, you need ‘light and easy.’
Whether the bag is a heavy bag or light, smaller boxing gloves will do.
The only exception would be if you're tweaking the training.
For instance, if you decide that you want to train for power while hitting the bags, you should use bigger boxing gloves.
If you're doing bag work with a heavy bag, the impact on your hand is more.
The bigger boxing gloves will protect against wrist or knuckle injuries.
Bag gloves are around 8oz to 10oz in weight.
A good sparring experience should simulate an actual match but with extra padding for hand protection.
This form of protection comes with a sparring glove. You don't want to harm whoever you'll be training with.
You don't want to injure yourself either.
The bigger the boxing gloves for sparring, the better the protection.
Also, because of the almost competitive nature of sparring, lace to the cuffs would be great.
A sparring glove must have thumbs attached.
The thumbs are safe when thumbs are attached to a bigger compartment of the boxing gloves.
We rounded up the 12 best boxing gloves for sparring and reviewed each one. If you need sparring gloves, check out our article!
As the name suggests, the hybrid gloves are beasts.
With hybrid training gloves, you can combine any boxing event.
You can spar and train the bags with it.
The hybrid training gloves give you an all-around performance.
So it can be an excellent bargain for you to get one of them. Hybrid gloves are one of the best boxing gloves for beginners.
The hybrid training gloves are like performance meets hand protection.
When a boxing glove is described to give protection, it will reduce the impact of your strikes and protect your knuckles and wrists.
Since it's considerably light, it would also allow you to move quickly - improving speed - and help build punch strength with heavy bags.
The hybrid training gloves are made using latex foam and have thumbs attached to protect the thumbs.
Whether you're training, sparing, or punching bags, the hybrid gloves are good to go.
Competitions require you to be at your best, be able to deliver your punches fast, and protect your hand.
If you have a match, don't mix things up — get a competition glove.
Some people prefer to call them boxing fight gloves or fight gloves. You don't want your performance to be affected negatively.
Hence, competition gloves are small.
Because the competition gloves do not have as much padding as bigger gloves, you should wear hand wraps.
To choose the best boxing gloves for beginners, you must measure your hands.
You need to know your weight and the circumference of your punching hand.
The tape should go just below the knuckles to take this measurement.
With the circumference of your hand, you can easily choose whether your boxing gloves should be small, medium, large, or extra-large.
Your weight determines the amount of padding that's stuffed into your boxing gloves.
Also, you can use a boxing glove size chart to determine the best boxing gloves for beginners.
Depending on the function you want in your boxing gloves, a chart can help you pick the perfect fit.
Let's talk about the glove sizes we have and what their best uses are.
For competitions, the 8oz size boxing gloves are your best bet.
They are more suited to punching bags and the actual fighting.
You will want to improve your speed, which is necessary for competitive matches.
But heavier 10oz or 12oz boxing gloves are suitable for competitions and bags too.
Like the 8oz boxing gloves, the 10oz and 12oz boxing gloves are commonly used on bags and in tournaments.
If you're heavier or have a bigger hand circumference than fits the 8oz boxing gloves, then these might do.
While sparring, the 14oz and 16oz gloves are the best bets.
With padding enough to dull the effect of punches, you and your opponent can spar safely.
The only downside concerning these gloves is that they will significantly reduce your speed.
Do you like the sharp sound of the Velcro against your wrist or the silent tightening of the lace boxing gloves?
Regardless, different scenarios can make either of these gloves more suitable for you.
If you don't have anyone to help fix your pair of boxing gloves, the Velcro type is the best for you. It's easy to take it off on your own.
On the other hand, competitions are best suited for laced boxing gloves because you'll want a secure hold of your hands as you throw jabs and bounce around.
Usually, choosing between leather or vinyl boxing gloves is all about how deep is your pocket — how much can you afford?
Leather gloves have a better quality compared to vinyl gloves.
Hence, leather gloves are more expensive.
You can get boxing gloves of all sizes and for all purposes with either leather or vinyl gloves.
The only difference is the material of the shell and quality.
Generally, a 12oz size boxing glove and under are preferable bag gloves.
In contrast, 14oz will do sparring, training, and bags too.
So you have to make up your mind about the purpose your pair of gloves would serve.
If you want to be economical, the 14oz is an all-rounder and a good choice.
You can use both pairs of boxing gloves for the same things; sparring, and training but not on bags.
Punching bags require speed and accuracy.
So, choosing between these two sizes of boxing gloves might come down to personal preference, weight, or hand circumference.
Also, boxers that want to build their muscles like to go for 14oz boxing gloves up.
Eventually, many boxers develop their own boxing glove tastes for different activities — sparring, bags, and competition.
However, a beginner might be better sticking with a pair of gloves that they can use for multiple activities.
16 oz boxing gloves are recommended because they protect your hands and can be used for many different activites.
Your boxing glove size are dependant mainly on your hand size, weight class and type of training you will be doing.
Remember, not all boxing gloves are made the same. It's best to always check the sizing chart that's distributed from the company that made the boxing gloves.
A general example would be this size chart:
By now, you should know what it takes to get yourself the best boxing gloves.
You've considered the purpose of your glove, the size of your hands, and your personal preference.
Boxing gloves are not one size fits all. Gloves come in various types, designs, and sizes.
You might prefer to use a 12 oz for sparing despite the recommend 16 oz in your weight department.
But that's not an offense.
If you know how to use it to get your desired results, that's fine.
Take, for instance, a fighter like retired Joe Bazooka.
If you're a fan of his, you'll know that he likes to spar with a light pair of gloves.
He believes it allows him the speed and power he needs to prepare adequately for competitions.
Although that doesn't totally match what we have here about the functions of the gloves...
This basic understanding of the types and the right size of gloves will help you make some tweaks, just like Bazooka.
I'm an Amateur Boxer who fell in love with the sweet science after it had saved me from rock bottom. Elite Striking Gear is my attempt to document my Boxing journey by providing helpful boxing guides to excel your skills and expose the "secrets" you would only learn by attending various gyms.
