Core · Bodyweight
Boxing Duck and Uppercut
How to do the boxing duck and uppercut, the muscles it works, and the mistakes to avoid. Pulled straight from the Kovo app's exercise library.
- Equipment
- Bodyweight
- Difficulty
- Beginner
- Logged as
- time
- Movement
- Rotation
- Mechanic
- Compound
How to do it
Stand in a boxing stance with knees soft and fists guarding your chin. Bend your knees and shift sideways to duck under an imaginary punch, then drive up and rotate your hips to throw an uppercut with the rear hand. Reset to your stance and alternate sides for the work period.
- 1Power coming from your legs and hip rotation, not just the arm
- 2Core bracing to connect the duck and the punch
- 3Light, springy footwork as you reset between reps
Common mistakes
- Standing tall during the duck instead of bending the knees
- Throwing the uppercut with the arm only and no hip drive
- Dropping your guard hand while you punch
Muscles worked
The boxing duck and uppercut mainly works the obliques, with the upper abs, lower abs, quads, glutes, front delts, lower back, hamstrings, calves, and hip flexors assisting.
- ObliquesPrimary
- Upper AbsSupport
- Lower AbsSupport
- QuadsSupport
- GlutesSupport
- Front DeltsSupport
- Lower BackSupport
- HamstringsSupport
- CalvesSupport
- Hip FlexorsSupport
- BicepsMinor
- TricepsMinor
- ForearmsMinor
- Upper ChestMinor
- Mid ChestMinor
- LatsMinor
- Upper TrapsMinor
- Mid TrapsMinor
- Side DeltsMinor
- Rear DeltsMinor
- External RotatorsMinor
- Internal RotatorsMinor
- AdductorsMinor
- Tibialis AnteriorMinor
Kovo programs the boxing duck and uppercut for you and tracks it every session.
We build your whole program, drop the right lifts into each workout, and adjust your weights as you get stronger. Free on iOS and Android.
More abs & core exercises
- How to do the ab wheel rollout
- How to do the ankle tap plank
- How to do the ankle taps
- How to do the resistance band dead bugs
- How to do the resistance band pallof press
- How to do the rollout
Last reviewed June 2026.