Start of a training camp…
The noise was sharp. It penetrated my ears like a sharp jab splitting the guard. Cruising down the Vegas strip in the Lamborghini was quickly fading. I was waking up. The noise, my alarm, telling me that once again its time to get up, its time to get dressed, its time to hit the roads. Camp is back in session.
I am now back in full training for what will be my second outing of the year and professional contest number 15. I will be competing on Saturday April 28 at the famous and historic York Hall in Bethnal Green. Being from east London myself, York Hall has always held a special place in my heart and I’ve loved every time I have got to compete there. There is something about the balcony seats being just above the ring that gives you an almost Roman amphitheatre feeling. The energy and atmosphere in there is electric and I look forward to once again stepping into the auditorium.
I am happy with the people and team that I have around me now. Everyone is pulling in the same direction and striving to get me in a title winning position. Its one thing to compete for a title but its another one entirely to be brought along at the right measure to win one. I feel I have the right people in place and we are all working towards this goal now.
The first initial weeks of training involves what I like to call the “donkey work.” This is the intro to the upcoming grind. Long runs, long sessions, lots of rounds on the bag, lots of groundwork. This is where you build your base fitness and conditioning, this gives you the platform to be able to go forward and up the intensity as the weeks go on. Its not about pushing at a high intensity right now, its just about building that rock-solid foundation. I love this type of training and have no problem performing it. I keep to this kind of training year-round, whether I have a fight scheduled or not. This is where my “Embrace the Grind” mantra comes in. I am always at perhaps 70% capacity all the time, so it doesn’t take me long to ramp up the intensity to get ready to compete. This allows me not only to be able to take fights at shorter notice should an opportunity arise, but it also allows for injury prevention and ultimately longevity. Many great fighters of yesteryear lived by the philosophy “if you stay ready, you never have to get ready” and I am a big believer in that. Nothing is new under the sun; the blueprints have been laid out. The smartest people will look not only for inspiration from people that have been before them and done things they wish to do, but they will also look at what enabled them to do it and what things they can take and implement for themselves.
So that’s where I am at right now. Long days, long sessions, hard work but as a certain fistic icon famously said: “All work is easy work.” Or if that pugilist doesn’t float your boat a more beloved one said: “Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion.”
