Boxing?

My trainer has me boxing once a week.  Truthfully, I love it.  I'm not saying that I'm very good at it, but it is something that I look forward to.  But how does boxing fit into training for a half-marathon and marathon?  My trainer told me the following:

• It will improve your health. Your heart will pump blood more with efficiency.
• You will gain self confidence as you develop your fighting skill.
• This is a very good form of self-defense.
• It will make your arms and legs stronger. You can move quicker and think better.
• It will release the anger inside you. As the internal pressure is discharged from your heart, you will sense a feeling of lightness, something that you will always appreciate each time you hit the punching bag.
• It will give you emotional balance and internal strength. You will feel more at ease and highly self motivated.
• Stress is also being release and so you will experience a genuine peace of mind.
• You will loose weight in this process. As you throw those punches and move around  you are burning the excess fat from your body.

Plus, you can't run every day and be injury free --- unless you are far more talented than I am.  Cross-training is very important for that reason.  By the end of a boxing session, I am drenched in sweat, my arms and legs are burning, and I am exhausted.  And, it is kind of fun wearing the gloves.

Yes, maybe it is a bit much (especially at 5:30 a.m.) for my trainer to be singing songs from the various "Rocky" movies as she is holding the heavy punching bag, but it gets me through the work out. How it really helps my running, though, is that I get rid of stress through boxing.  So, when I hit the treadmill or road I feel a lot more free.  I'm thinking about the run, my stride, breathing, the music, etc. instead of the bad ruling, motion that was filed without support or legal standing, crazy schedule, etc.  That makes more of a difference than you realize.