Core · Bodyweight
Boxing Left Hook
How to do the boxing left hook, the muscles it works, and the mistakes to avoid. Pulled straight from the Kovo app's exercise library.
- Equipment
- Bodyweight
- Difficulty
- Intermediate
- Logged as
- Reps
- Movement
- Rotation
- Mechanic
- Compound
How to do it
Stand in a boxing stance with your hands up. Rotate your lead hip and pivot your front foot to swing your left arm in a tight horizontal arc, elbow bent at about 90 degrees, then snap back to guard.
- 1Feel the power start at your hips and pivot foot, then travel up through
- 2your torso into the punch
- 3Keep your elbow level with your fist and your core braced through the rotation
- 4Snap the hook out and pull it straight back to guard
Common mistakes
- Don't wind up or telegraph the punch with a big backswing
- Avoid dropping your other hand away from your chin
- Don't swing purely with your arm; let your hips and rotation drive it
Muscles worked
The boxing left hook mainly works the obliques, with the mid chest, front delts, triceps, upper chest, upper abs, lower abs, quads, glutes, side delts, and internal rotators assisting.
- ObliquesPrimary
- Mid ChestSupport
- Front DeltsSupport
- TricepsSupport
- Upper ChestSupport
- Upper AbsSupport
- Lower AbsSupport
- QuadsSupport
- GlutesSupport
- Side DeltsSupport
- Internal RotatorsSupport
- BicepsMinor
- ForearmsMinor
- LatsMinor
- Lower BackMinor
- Upper TrapsMinor
- Mid TrapsMinor
- HamstringsMinor
- CalvesMinor
- Rear DeltsMinor
Kovo programs the boxing left hook 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.