1. No, it’s not a young man’s sport. It’s not even a young person’s sport. This sport is for the ones who want it, who are willing to work their asses off to advance in it, and who are able to take the hits and dish out a few of their own. Boxing belongs to you. You … [Read more...]
Sparring Lesson: Use ANYthing You Have
Our gym currently has not one, but two coaches with injuries. Both injuries mean they can’t use their power right, at all. Not even a little bit. Interestingly, on sparring night both of them were in the ring with only one glove. Sinclair can’t even get a glove on his right, it’s … [Read more...]
What Makes Sparring with New Boxers Really Good, or Really Awful
Thursday night is sparring night in our gym. Not everyone gets to spar; only the boxers who have been showing up regularly, putting in hard work, listening to the coach, and proving that they want to move up are invited into the ring. But all that doesn’t guarantee a good sparring performance. … [Read more...]
Widening the Doors for Fighting Women: Interview with Sylvie von Duuglas-Ittu
Sylvie von Duuglas-Ittu’s fight power just keeps growing. And I don’t simply mean in the Muay Thai ring, although that’s true too, since she’s had 35 fights (hurry, that number’s about to change) and she’s aiming for a hundred. Most recently I’ve been … [Read more...]
10 Frequently Asked Questions About Boxing After 40
Is it safe to box in your forties? Are you likely to be injured? Should you even consider boxing if you have small children at home? That’s me, still boxing at 47. I started boxing at 42, I have a husband and three kids at home, and looking back, I’m slightly amazed that I never … [Read more...]
The Hairball to Joy Ratio in Competitive Boxing
I’m still in that slightly blurry stage of tired where I don’t seem to have much to say about losing my fight in Atlanta this week. Actually, I have plenty to say (it’s what I do, no?), but very little of it is about the fight itself. I think part of that is the fact … [Read more...]
The “Screw It” Moment of Training for a Fight
If you had asked me last Friday “How’s training for your fight going? How are you feeling?” you might have heard me growl and scowl and say I didn’t give a damn anymore. I was wholly, mortally sick. Of. It. Done. Screw it, I’m outta here. So I made the … [Read more...]
What to Do When You Get Hit HARD in Sparring
Most of the time in boxing sparring, you're not working with your full power, because if you were, you'd have a pretty short shelf life. Save that shit for the fight, you know? But because nearly everyone spars with people waaay outside their weight category, you're likely to get hit really hard now … [Read more...]
Atlanta Fight Night 6: A Black Tie, Black Eye Affair
This is not your average amateur boxing fight night. This is no drafty, poorly lit gym or warehouse with 50 metal folding chairs and questionable plumbing. Atlanta Corporate Fight Night is a top-of-the-line luxury boxing event, and it may be the only one of its kind so far in the USA. On January … [Read more...]
X-Ring Boxing Workout (OR, Non-Boxing Training is NOTHING Like Boxing Training)
Since my gym is connected to at-risk students, it's closed over the holidays. Which simply means I train in a horrible, cheap-ass purple and yellow joint (because it's $10/month), or in the park. All of which was fine, or so I thought, for the 3 weeks I was doing it. And believe me, I was NOT … [Read more...]