FightCamp review: Learn from the pros and box and kick box your way into shape

I've put a lot of research into finding the best connected fitness equipment available on the market today and FightCamp is one of my favorites overall. FightCamp is a boxing and kick boxing program designed for total body fitness. It blends body punches, defensive moves, plyometric sprints, and body-weight exercises to build ever-changing combinations that will keep your mind engaged and your body guessing. You'll train with some of the top boxers in the business and there are hundreds of different workouts, drills, and tutorials to choose from. You'll get real-time performance stats as you work out and can compete against yourself or see how you stack up against others on the FightCamp leaderboards. I'd recommend this program to individuals and families who absolutely love boxing and kick boxing.

FightCamp Review: What I like

FightCamp Personal comes with all of the necessary equipment you'll need to box and kick box like a pro. You'll receive an extra-large, heavy, durable workout mat that measures eight feet by four feet, and a circular mat designed to keep your punching bag firmly in place. You'll get the FightCamp free-standing bag and base, and you'll receive FightCamp quick wraps, premium boxing gloves (in a size of your choice), and punch trackers so you can monitor and record all of your performance stats.

After you get your gear, you'll want to charge your FightCamp punch trackers right away. While they're charging, download the FightCamp app (available for iOS only) and create a user profile. Once your punch trackers are fully charged, just tap them to wake them up and connect them to your profile in the FightCamp app. One should flash red and one should flash blue. The red flashing punch tracker goes in the right-handed, red quick wrap, and the blue flashing punch tracker goes in the left-handed, blue quick wrap.

FightCamp found and paired with my punch trackers right away. I didn't have any pairing issues and the good news is you should only have to pair them once. These punch trackers are how you track and record all of your performance metrics. You'll want to make sure they're connected to the app and you should use them every time you do a FightCamp workout so you can ensure you're getting the most out of every session.

From there, go into the app and click the three little dots that say more at the bottom of the screen. Under support, you'll see a lightning bolt symbol that says Getting Started next to it. Click that to go through a FightCamp intro workout so you can familiarize yourself with basic moves. Click the Understanding the Live Screen video so you understand what all of the live screen metrics mean during your workouts. Watch Using the Punch Trackers to see how to activate, charge, connect, and put your trackers to sleep.

I highly recommend watching all three of the Getting Started video tutorials or you're going to feel very lost. Especially, if you're brand new to boxing. Also, I want to note that they do not send you a paper user manual with the equipment, just a quick start guide. The full FightCamp user manual can be found on the website or in the app in the same more section as the aforementioned tutorial videos. Once you've got the tutorials under your belt, you're ready to start boxing.

FightCamp offers hundreds of different boxing and kick boxing workouts, drills, and tutorials to choose from. Workouts are categorized into three levels: open (all levels), intermediate, and advanced. If you're brand new to boxing (like me), FightCamp recommends you start your journey with The Prospect Path. This series of workouts and tutorials will teach you boxing techniques and skills, while also challenging you physically. If you're an experienced boxer, you should start with FightCamp's Contender Path, which is a series of workouts designed to challenge even the most experienced boxers.

I'm brand new to boxing so I'm on The Prospect Path and let me tell you, the workout is no joke. It is a true full body workout and it can get intense, so be prepared to sweat. I like to do quick 15 to 20-minute, four round sessions. I'm still working my way up towards longer, eight round workouts. The instructors I've trained with have all been great and they each have their own unique voice and style. The music is also awesome. I'm big on great tunes as they are the primary, motivating force driving my workouts.

You can select which genre of music you want to listen to prior to jumping into a workout, which is an excellent feature. FightCamp's music stations include electronic/dance, rock, top 40, 2000's pop, pop remixes, throwback hip-hop (my personal favorite), today's hip-hop, 80's hip-hop, and house beats. This way, you can pick the vibe before you work out and it's guaranteed that you're going to love the playlist.

What makes FightCamp a top contender in the connected fitness game is the punch tracker technology it utilizes. Your punch trackers are how you track and record all of your performance metrics, so you'll absolutely want to use them every time you do a workout. The app actually won't let you proceed with a workout if you're trackers aren't connected. I highly recommend connecting the FightCamp app to your Apple TV or to your TV with an HDMI adaptor so you can watch class on a big screen. It is virtually impossible to follow along on a tiny iPhone screen.

I use screen mirroring to connect the FightCamp app with my Apple TV and it works well. Once you choose a workout, you'll see several different real-time metrics displayed on-screen. In the upper left-hand corner, you'll see a timer that represents how much time is left in the round, interval, or rest. Below that, you'll see your current round, and how many rounds are left in the workout. The upper right-hand corner of the screen shows your punch goal. Your punch goal represents the minimum punch count your trainer wants you to throw in the round.

You'll also see your punch count. That keeps track of how many punches you have thrown during the workout. Next to that is your punch rate, or how many punches you're able to throw in a minute. You'll also see your punch output. This score represents how much effort you are putting into your punching intervals. When you choose a specific workout you also choose a workout mode, i.e. you choose who you are competing against.

You can choose to compete against the FightCamp average where you benchmark yourself against the average FightCamp user's performance. You can choose to compete against an opponent where you compete privately against another player's past workout performance. You can compete against yourself where you try to beat your previous high score for that specific workout. Or you can go solo, where it's just you and your awesomeness. Each workout has a leaderboard where you can see how you stack up against other FightCamp users. If you're a fan of friendly competition and motivation, you will love looking at the leaderboards.

FightCamp review: What I don't like

FightCamp was very difficult for me to set up. First of all, it's huge. It has a very large footprint (four feet by eight feet), so be prepared to set aside some substantial space for all of this equipment. Second of all, the base must be filled with 230 to 250 pounds of sand or water. In one of the getting started tutorials, the trainer mentions how easy it is to move and store the bag. It's not. It is extremely heavy and very difficult to move once full.

I did not have a bunch of sand on hand to fill the base with, so I went the water route. We don't have a hose or hose hookup at our house, so I had to fill it via my kitchen sink which was not an easy task. It also took an extraordinarily long time. Once the base was full, I had to have my husband help me move it with a dolly to the center of our living room where I wanted it. You must set it up where you can easily view a TV screen as it's a piece of connected fitness equipment.

It took an exceptional amount of elbow grease on both of our parts to fill and move it. Additionally, once it's full, you have to flip four flaps on the bag itself over the lip of the base and attach it firmly with Velcro straps. This was not easy either. The whole process took over an hour from start to finish.

FightCamp only works with iOS — sorry Android users. It's also modality specific to boxing and kick boxing alone. Many other connected fitness systems include multiple exercise modalities for cross-training purposes. FightCamp only offers boxing and kick boxing workouts. You'll want to make sure you really love the workout before purchasing this equipment as it is expensive and modality specific.

The competition

FitXR

FitXR is a boxing and dancing fitness game designed for Oculus Quest. It's obviously different than FightCamp because it's meant for virtual reality, but the boxing workout itself is very similar. You're boxing your way into shape with both. FitXR is a must if you love boxing, VR, and you have an Oculus. It's also much less expensive than FightCamp. However, if you're looking for a real-life training experience, FightCamp can't be beat.

Liteboxer

Liteboxer is another at-home connected boxing fitness system. It has a slightly smaller footprint, and the setup is different. Instead of punching a bag, you're punching a shield that lights up. The goal is to punch the flashing lights on the shield to the beat. You'll get real-time stats and track progress on a performance dashboard. Liteboxer uses your phone or tablet to measure power, track calories, and display your point totals while building strength and endurance. FightCamp is less expensive and delivers a more true-to-life training experience.

FightCamp review: Should you buy

You love boxing and kick boxing

FightCamp offers hundreds of boxing and kick boxing workouts, drills, and tutorials, but is modality specific.

You love friendly competition and community

FightCamp uses punch tracker technology and leaderboards so you can see how you stack up against the growing FightCamp community.

You have an iOS device

FightCamp is only compatible with iOS.

You don't have a lot of space

FightCamp has a very large footprint. It needs an eight by four-foot space in view of a TV.

You don't like boxing or kick boxing

FightCamp only offers boxing and kick boxing workouts.

You're an Android user

FightCamp works with iOS devices only.

FightCamp is a great connected fitness program if you love boxing and kick boxing. It comes with all of the durable, high-quality gear necessary to set up your own training ring at home. The instructors are top notch and the music is on point. There are hundreds of workouts to choose from and the punch tracker technology takes this system to the next level. Keep in mind that FightCamp is only compatible with iOS and that this program is modality specific to boxing and kick boxing alone. Make sure that you have a solid eight by four-foot space in view of a television or iOS compatible device to set everything up.