From grassroots clubs to GB Boxing, Carl Ellis shares how structured coaching, athlete feedback and the Five Pillars framework are helping develop the next generation of boxers.
Boxing development requires more than physical fitness and technical ability. It demands coaches who can communicate effectively, athletes who understand their decisions in the ring, and a structured pathway that supports long-term progress.
In Episode 144 of The Box Gathering podcast, Carl Ellis, Performance Programme Manager for the British Army Boxing Team, discusses his journey through grassroots boxing, his work with GB Boxing and England Boxing, and his approach to developing athletes in a high-performance environment.
With experience spanning club coaching, coach education and international competition, Ellis explains how the Army Boxing programme is building a consistent coaching framework while helping athletes balance their sporting ambitions with their military careers.
From grassroots boxing to GB Boxing
Before joining the Army Boxing programme, Ellis worked as a Club and Community Support Officer for England Boxing, supporting approximately 270 clubs across the Home Counties, Eastern Counties and Midlands.
His responsibilities included helping clubs with age verification, supporting the rollout of The Locker system and visiting gyms to understand the challenges facing coaches and administrators.
Although he enjoyed the role, joining GB Boxing represented a long-term ambition. He now spends around 70% of his time working with Army Boxing and 30% with GB Boxing in Sheffield. He also contributes to the England pathway, working with the senior team and the Under-15s European team.
Alongside these responsibilities, Ellis established Buckingham Boxing Club, which has produced national finalists, Box Cup champions and national development champions. He has since stepped down as head coach, handing responsibility to his friend Gavin Smith to focus on the Army programme.
His career demonstrates how experience at grassroots level can provide a foundation for higher-performance coaching. Understanding the challenges faced by clubs can help coaches appreciate the importance of communication, consistency and development at every stage of the pathway.
The Five Pillars: a shared language for coaches
A central part of Ellis’s work is the Five Pillars project, developed by Amanda Coulson to help grassroots coaches improve their understanding of boxing performance.
The framework uses the acronym BADST:
- Before: What does a boxer do before throwing a punch?
- After: How does a boxer protect themselves after punching?
- Distance: How does a boxer manage the distance between themselves and their opponent?
- Space: How does a boxer manage the space around them?
- Tempo: How does a boxer control the pace and rhythm of a bout?
The framework connects these tactical elements with the three scoring criteria in boxing. Rather than treating techniques as isolated movements, it encourages coaches to consider how decisions contribute to effective performance. One of its main advantages is consistency. When boxers move between clubs, regional squads and national programmes, they may encounter different coaching styles and terminology. A shared framework can reduce confusion and help athletes understand what coaches are asking them to do.
Ellis and Coulson have been delivering the project for approximately three years, with demand growing enough for applications to close early on some occasions. Carl remembers something Ivan Cobb mentioned to him.
“Good coaches go on courses, while great coaches sit around and have conversations.”
A principle shared during the discussion of coach education and the Five Pillars project.
The project is not designed as a replacement for formal qualifications such as Levels 1 and 2. Instead, it gives coaches a supportive environment to discuss ideas, test their understanding and learn from one another. That distinction matters. Coaching education is not only about acquiring knowledge; it is also about learning to apply that knowledge to the athletes in front of you.
Turning theory into practical boxing sessions
The Five Pillars framework becomes useful when coaches can translate it into purposeful training.
During workshops, coaches explore what each pillar means before designing bag work, pad work and technical exercises around it. The emphasis is on practical application rather than making simple concepts unnecessarily complicated.
For example, working on Before might involve stepping to the right before punching or using a feint to create an opening. The After pillar encourages boxers to consider their defensive responsibilities immediately after attacking. Distance, space and tempo can be developed through movement, positioning and control of the bout’s rhythm. Video analysis can then help coaches identify which elements a boxer performs well and which require further attention.
This approach encourages athletes to understand the reasoning behind their training. Instead of completing drills without a clear objective, they can recognise the tactical problem being addressed and apply the lesson during sparring and competition.
Building an athlete-centred performance programme
As Performance Programme Manager, Ellis works alongside Army Head Coach Liam Jones to oversee a full-time training programme running from Monday to Friday.
The weekly schedule combines technical boxing, physical preparation, sparring and individual coaching. Mondays include a briefing, a shakeout session or steady run, followed by technical work centred on the Five Pillars. Tuesdays feature track training, in-house sparring with video analysis and individual coaching sessions.
Wednesdays focus on strength and conditioning before scheduled sports downtime. Thursdays involve external sparring and individual pad sessions, with the programme concluding the working week with another boxing session.
The team has also changed its approach to periodisation. Rather than repeatedly following six-week peaking and tapering blocks, Ellis and Jones maintain a general athletic development phase throughout the year, reserving peaking and tapering for major competitions such as the UK Armed Forces Championships.
The objective is to build consistent development while preparing athletes to perform when it matters most.
Using athlete feedback to manage training
A structured programme still needs to account for how athletes respond to training. To support this, the Army Boxing team introduced an Athlete Management System that allows boxers to record daily feedback about sleep, injuries and how they feel.
The system also tracks session Rate of Perceived Exertion (RPE), giving coaches a way to compare the intended intensity of a session with the demands reported by athletes.
If a session planned at an RPE of six consistently feels like a nine to the boxers, that difference provides a reason to reassess the workload. Monitoring freshness and fatigue can also help the team prepare for major training camps and competitions.
“This gives us real insight into their mindsets, keeping the program coach-led but athlete-centered.”
From the discussion of daily athlete monitoring and training feedback. The distinction is important: coaches remain responsible for the programme, but athletes have a meaningful role in informing decisions. Feedback can reveal problems that may not be obvious from observing a session alone.
The system also encourages accountability through a lead boxer of the week, who reminds teammates to complete their logs. During the podcast, Ellis recognises the potential value of having sparring partners review sessions and record joint feedback. Creating this level of involvement can help athletes feel that their perspectives matter and encourage greater ownership of their development.
Selecting boxers who can learn and adapt
The Army Boxing structure operates in a similar way to the wider England Boxing pathway. Unit boxing provides a local foundation, core boxing operates at a regional level, and the Army Boxing Team represents the programme’s highest level.
Physical fitness, strength and competitiveness are important selection factors. However, Ellis explains that the coaching team also looks for athletes who can absorb information, apply feedback and understand the Five Pillars.
An eight-week development squad operates alongside the elite squad, allowing the team to assess athletes and support their progression. During the year discussed in the episode, seven development boxers were selected to remain in the programme long-term because of how quickly they understood the framework. This highlights an important principle in talent development: physical ability is valuable, but the ability to learn and adapt can be just as important when determining an athlete’s long-term potential.
Developing coaches across the Army
For the Five Pillars framework to have a lasting impact, it needs to extend beyond the immediate performance team.
The Army Boxing programme is introducing free seminars in Aldershot to help unit coaches understand the Army Boxing Team’s framework. The coaching staff also deliver workshops when visiting Army camps and are developing their own qualifications, including Level 3 coaching qualifications. The goal is to establish consistent principles across the Army boxing system so that athletes receive clearer guidance as they progress.
The programme has already seen encouraging competitive results. Following a difficult year at the UK Armed Forces Championships, the team won 10 of 15 bouts on a civilian show and qualified three development boxers for national development finals. These results suggest progress, although the wider ambition is to build a sustainable system rather than rely on isolated performances.
The Army as a career pathway for boxers
The conversation also explores the opportunities military service can provide young athletes.
Ellis believes that some young people misunderstand what joining the Army involves. Beyond military duties, the Army can offer medical and dental care, driving qualifications, trade training and educational opportunities.
For elite athletes, the programme can also support their sporting careers through housing, nutrition and the opportunity to train while receiving a salary. Most boxers at Army Boxing Team level are released from their usual duties to concentrate on boxing full-time. However, they must still meet military career requirements and maintain communication with their units. Regular career update sessions help them balance their sporting progress with their responsibilities as soldiers.
“Our mission is to build good soldiers and elite athletes, guiding them toward home nations, GB Boxing, and the Olympics.”
On combining military development with a pathway towards elite boxing.
For young boxers aged 16 and over who are interested in this route, Ellis encourages them to contact him or Head Coach Liam Jones to learn more about the opportunities available.
Building the next generation of boxers
Looking ahead, Ellis wants the Army Boxing Team to become a major feeder programme for international boxing and coaching over the next decade. The team is also developing a partnership with England Boxing’s Diploma in Sporting Excellence (DiSE) programme to introduce young athletes to an alternative full-time pathway.
His experience illustrates how long-term boxing development depends on more than physical preparation. A shared coaching framework provides clear principles, video analysis helps identify areas for improvement, and athlete feedback gives coaches a better understanding of training demands.
Equally important is investment in the coaches who work with boxers at every level. By connecting grassroots development with high-performance expectations, the Army Boxing programme is working to create a clearer and more consistent route for athletes. The Five Pillars framework brings these ideas together by helping boxers understand the decisions that shape performance in the ring.
Ultimately, developing better boxers means creating an environment where athletes understand what they are working towards, coaches know how to support them, and progress is built through consistent learning.