:thumbup Climber
Thanks for the words of wisdom!
I boxed last night and our small group of speak easy violence decided to spar after months of ring rust. Hitting pads I gassed out and was like “This is horrible” and I got a gnarly side ache and felt like puking.
Oh, yeah, I remember this.
Then the guys decided to get in the ring and trade. I was like “not me” until the group said “Dion, you and George should go at it...” George is my coach.
It was very cool. We traded and the things I’ve been drilling over and over in my garage landed. I have some things to tweak, but I didn’t lose my speed nor my fight IQ and I attribute that to the double end bag and slip bag. It seemed that the both of us - as coaches - you could see we both were being very cognizant of tactics rather than brawn. Probably one of the most beautiful sparring matches I’ve had for that part of it. I haven’t been punched in the head in awhile and it was very “awakening”.
We have a very tall fighter who has greater range than any of us; his style is a “sniper style” where he fires punches downward. During a sparring match months ago, I hit him with a body shot that sat him down. I got to corner my friend and he was sparring that dude, so I knew what worked. Unfortunately, my man threw out his shoulder and the fight ended early. That was super fun. I can see myself doing more corner man stuff, and when my students start competing as things start to open up, I will be ready.
Boxing is a big love of mine, and I’ve only really been boxing for a couple of years, although I’ve done striking all my life. The idea of using your brain tactically while trying to stay alive and exerting massive physical output is a beautiful endeavor. Boxing is truly a “thinking” person’s sport. There is a vast difference between doing “cardio boxing” and fighting an opponent, and that’s the part I enjoy.