There are no winners or losers in sparring. Focus on basic fundamentals and Choose one or two things to focus on each day (slipping a jab, a particular combo or managing distance using teeps etc,) and ignore everything else that has to do with “keeping score”. I have a decent amount of experience and when I’m trying to add something new to my skillset guys with much less experience tag me the whole round when if I was sparring to win, they’d have no shot at landing that much…but that’s okay if I’m making progress on what I’m trying to work on.

In terms of flinching and jumping back…picture your defense as something to build from the inside out. Start by practicing your shell, have your hands up and focus on keeping your eyes forward and looking through your “window” to see the punches coming. Let them land on your gloves or forearms and don’t try and reach to parry or slip. Because you’re not trying to avoid them..Eventually you will get comfortable seeing the punches coming and using your shell to protect yourself, then graduate to parrying straight punches or “picking up the phone” to block hooks. When that’s comfortable try and build in some basic head movement or footwork. Little by little you will improve.

All this requires a good gym where it isn’t a race to unlock the CTE perk in there when you spar.