Boxing provides you with a total body workout, which is just one of the reasons the sport has become increasingly popular over the years (even for those who don't want to get into the ring).

The reason boxing is so popular is that aside from giving you a great cardio workout, it helps improve endurance, agility, strength, and even speed—so you get a balanced full-body workout as well as a cardiovascular one. It's also fantastic for the core and can help you realize your goals of getting a six pack much faster than you thought.

Another plus is how quickly you burn calories when boxing. "It is both an aerobic and an anaerobic workout," Antonio Valverde, a boxing instructor and owner of Elite City Fitness, told Shape magazine.

Boxing incorporates High-Intensity Interval Training, which typically sees a spike in the heart rate, followed by a short rest period to allow the heart rate to normalize, and these short bursts are incredibly efficient in fat burning. You can reportedly expect to burn around 13 calories per minute, meaning that for an average 30-minute session you could have burned between 200 and 400 calories. This is fantastic if your goal is to lose weight.

In comparison with other exercises, like low-impact aerobics or lifting weights, you burn a lot more when boxing, and burn around the same amount of calories if you were doing activities like jogging or rowing.

Boxing can improve your mental state because you need to be alert at all times to remember your techniques and combinations, and this is a great form of mental exercise, FitFluential reports.

In addition to all the physical benefits, boxing has an emotional benefit, too. Why? Because it helps to alleviate stress, which is done by punching a heavy bag or mitt—a healthy alternative to punching someone in the face.

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