Let sleeping muscles lay

So it’s Tuesday. It’s the first time since Saturday that I’ve woke up not feeling the residual effects of my first boxing session.

I now know there are muscles in my shoulders and upper back that were previously undiscovered. I know this because on Sunday morning they screamed at me, “We’ve been sleeping here for 40 years, you old goat… now is the time you choose to call on us? Really?”

Yes, in the pursuant of getting fit I’d decided to enlist the services of the mighty @colossus39 as my boxing coach to help get me out of my comfort zone and into fighting shape.

No Insta-Boxer

I knew boxing training was going to be hard and training with @colossus39 didn't disappoint. If I’m being truthful, when I committed to doing this “Fighting With Marv” series, part of me thought I’d be spending half the session setting up the photo and video shoots and the other half striking boxing poses. That would look great on Steemit

I mean look at this "I'm off to 'play' boxing" shot;

My smiling little bambi face. Like a lamb being lead to it’s slaughter!

Man-up on elliptical machine

So I get to the gym and @colossus39 puts me through my paces right away.

First step the Elliptical machine. Now I’ve always seen the Elliptical machine as being a glorified baby walker. For a man like me; used to running and cycling hoping on a machine that moving my legs and arms was going to be easy. Besides whenever I've been at my local gym, bar one guy I've only ever seen women use that machine. Like most guys I overlooked it. If I was astute, I'd have noticed that that one guy in the gym that does use the Elliptical is a boxer…. That should have been my clue!

Breathe and (don’t) Stop

Anyway, I get on the machine and start loosening up. “Easy.” I thought. I could literally go for days on the Elliptical machine. Then @colossus39 tells me to press go and set the resistance to level 6. "Maintain 80 rpm and focus on my breathing." He said casually.

I struggle to gain a rhythm. Every time I look down, my rpms are in the mid-70rpm range. When I pick up the pace it zooms to over 90rpm, @colossus39 tells me “Not too fast.” I get to around 80rpm and try to relax. I look down, I’m in the mid-70rpm range again. And the cycle continues. “Don’t forget your breathing. Find a rhythm.”

My brain is hurting with all the things to focus on, moving my arms and legs in unison, keeping a rhythm, maintaining a pace… breathing. Then I notice, I’m breathing hard. I'm struggling to catch my breath. I looked at the time. Only two minutes had elapsed! Fuck I’m unfit. My arms were tensing “Stay loose.” Said @colossus39. I relxed; my tempo drops. I sped up, my legs burned… and so it went on!

I struggled my way through 5 minutes and to my relief @colossus39 called time.

I was knackered.

You want proof? Here a pic.

Not so glamorous.

Are we done yet?

So after completely exhausting myself on the elliptical trainer @colossus39 piped up,

“That’s good. Catch your second wind. When you watch boxing you’ll notice that boxers always come out sweating. You never want to get into the ring without having caught your second wind.”

“My second wind!” I thought with my insides burning, busy looking behind me, scrambling to find my first wind!

Skipping is not just for the playground…

Next up, jump rope. I never jumped roped in my youth. When I was young it was called skipping. As a young boy in the inner city to be caught skipping would be to be caught slipping.

Now I know boxers skip. And they make it look cool. @colossus39 made it look cool when he demonstrated it to me. Effortlessly bounding from one foot to the over. I thought he was going to go all Mike Tyson and double skip; cross rope and all kind of jazz.

But he keep it civil.

Needless to say, I took to skipping like a camel to water. It couldn’t have been pretty to watch. Me lugging my seventeen stone frame up and down. I caught my feet on the rope. I caught the back of my head. I had to have three changes of skipping rope. What I’m sure was supposed to be five minutes of interval skipping turned into 30 seconds of quasi-skipping and 4 minutes 30 seconds of ‘what-the-fuck-is-that-guy-trying-to-do!’

Multi-task king

The rest of the session didn’t get any easier. It wasn’t as physically challenging as the warm-up but mentally it was tougher than I imagined. I learned very quickly that boxing requires a supreme ability to multi-task. Being a linear thinker; I could see I was going to struggle with many of the concepts.

For example

Loose arms; tight fist

First @colossus39 demonstrates how to clinch my fist properly. Which to be fair; I remember being taught as a kid. However trying to clinch your fist (as hard as you can) in a glove; while keeping your arm nice and relaxed… not so simple.

The stance and the 'big man' jab

So at this point the reality of what kind of boxer I would be set in. I had visions of being an exciting fighter. Maybe a hands-down; shoulder rolling boxer, 'Sugar Ray' type. Or a bobbing and weaving hook throwing Haglar/ Tyson type.

Well by the time @colossus39 had me set in my correct stance; I looked less Ray Leonard and more well Wladimir Klitschko. And my jab? Decidedly Wladimir Klitschko… pawing out my jab like a fencing stick. I’d seen Lennox execute the "big man" jab to perfection. Then it dawned on me. If I ever got in the ring I’d be fighting heavyweights, get caught once and you’re likely going to sleep! No-one likes being forced to go to bed! So no hands down style for me... yet.

Distance management

Then we were onto distance management. Whilst I was trying to perfect my side-on stance; @colossus39 was teaching the finer points of distance management. The subtle shifting of seamlessly shifting your weight to put you in range when you want to punch and take you out of range when you need to defend. Whilst I knew what he was saying was important; I could tell it would take me a while to understand the nuances.

Unnatural stance

As the session went on and we started to hit the pads, @colossus39 made adjustments to my stance. Once I had it locked, it felt unnaturally wide. Boxers in the ring make it look so effortless and fluid; however the thought of me having to skip in and out of range with such a wide base made me feel all of my years. There is a reason why this is a young man’s sport!

Foot positioning

So I’m hitting the pads. @colosuss39 shows me all the basic punches. The jab. The cross. The hook. The Uppercut. I’m doing a number of drills. However what sticks with me is the footwork. He tells me about where to place my front foot if I want to get my power punch off and likewise where it should be to prevent your opponent getting theirs off on you. Thinking about positioning as you drill is no mean feat,

System overload!

So I’m drilling and I’m thinking about feet position. I’m also trying to keep up with the combos in the drill. Then I’m trying back sure I don’t over-extend on my punches and letting them flow from the hips and legs. Oh, not forgetting to get my hands back in position. Then there’s the fatigue, my arms are aching… I’m trying to forget that.

Then it dawns on me. I’m only hitting the pads. I’m not moving around the ring. I’m not being hit back. I’m not having to content with pain; being buzzed as well as being fatigued. This boxing game is no joke.

Just one session in and I have a new found respect for those that box for a living. For me, training is a great way to get fit… but fighting must be a HELL-of-a-way to earn a living!