Tag Archives: Lennox Blackmore

Protecting yourself at all times

6 Replies

Protecting yourself at all times

One of the great mantras of boxing is to protect yourself at all times.  That construct proved pivotal to Clint Eastwood’s “Million Dollar Baby” and as every trainer will tell you, never turn your back on a fighter.

The art of the handwrap — while not as dramatic an idea as getting cold-cocked by Lucia Rijker does give a boxer the protection required to keep their hands reasonably safe from chaffing, cuts and broken bones.

My first trainer, Johnny Grinage used to wrap each of my hands with two handwraps, placing a foam rubber pad over my knuckles with the second wrap.  This was just short of a “professional wrap” with batting and adhesive tape — which he did for me once or twice and I have to admit it felt great.

In those days, he had me training in 18 oz. gloves on heavy, heavy bags.  As Johnny was famous for shouting “I don’t want to see no pitty pat,” this meant that my hands took a lot of punishment – so my protection was to have “mummy wraps” and even then I had a lot of red knuckles at the end of a training session.

When I train now, I use the “Mexican” wraps, extra-long with a little bit of spandex in them.  I wrap them fairly snug, but not too tight — and as I train with 10 oz or 12 oz gloves I only need one on each hand.  When Lennox Blackmore wraps them, he uses a technique that adds a little extra padding to the knuckles, but I find that I am okay without them.    I’ll add that when I do a lot of heavy bag work, I will add a bit of foam to keep the knuckles safe.

There are also handwrap “gloves” on the market filled with foam or gel.  I personally find them to be uncomfortable inside a pair of boxing gloves, but will use them for speed bag work or the double-ended bag.  These types of gloves resemble MMA grappling gloves and are generally filled with some type of gel solution or foam.  The ones I use are made of leather and have thick foam over the knuckles.

Still, nothing beats a professional tape job by a master boxing trainer!

Boxing day

2 Replies

Boxing day

Now that I’ve gone to a once a week training schedule for boxing, I find myself getting really excited by the time Friday comes along.  The daily fitness routine I’ve found that can work with my schedule these days is based around early morning yoga, but it’s the thought of boxing that gets me pumped up and ready to go.

My Saturday morning boxing routine begins with dropping my daughter off for her Aikido practice, after which I take a nice long walk over to  Gleason’s Gym. By the time I get there I’ve logged 2-1/2 miles at a pretty fast pace so I am nice and loose.  About a 1/2 mile out, I start pumping my arms a bit so that by the time I hit the gym I feel ready for one of my two favorites:  three rounds on the double-ended bag or three rounds of shadow boxing using the slip-rope.

For those who don’t usually practice, the slip-rope is real old-school consisting of something as simple as a clothes line tied between two poles or across the ring around 15 feet apart at about chest height. The object is to move forwards and backwards along the line and “slip” under as practice for slipping a punch. The slip-rope is also great for practicing upper cuts under the line — or for simulating jabs to the body and jabs to the head.  By around the third round, I feel loose enough to dance around the slip-rope going forwards, backwards, and circling.  Having the rope at chest height not only helps to “remind” me to slip, but also gives me an approximation of where to place body versus head punches.

Alternatively, I’ll use the double-ended bag for warm-ups starting with a round of lefts and finishing the second two rounds with combinations and a lot of hooks or upper cuts off the jab.

If I can train with Lennox Blackmore, we’ll do three rounds of pad work — with an aim of getting to four rounds by the end of January, five rounds by the end of February and six rounds by the end of March!  Once we’re done with the pads, it’s back to the double-ended bag for three rounds to work on punches and combinations that Lennox and I focused on during the training session on the pads. This helps to solidify moves, especially slipping punches to counter — a Lennox special. After that, it’s on to the speed bag for three rounds and then a whole lotta’ abs!  I’ll add that if Len isn’t around, I might work-out for three rounds on the heavy bag in lieu of pad work, or add in an extra three on the double-ended bag.

By the end I’m exhausted, but happy — and ready for the quick walk back over to pick-up my daughter.  I hope to keep this going for about three months so that by April I’ll be fit enough to get back into the ring for some light sparring.  We’ll see!

Odds and ends about training

4 Replies

Odd and ends about training

Belinda Laracuente


I trained at Gleason’s yesterday.  Due to some time constraints I only had about an hour — but what an hour it was.

First off, thanks to my daily dose of Yoga, my stamina was light-years beyond the week before to the point where Lennox was asking what I’d put in my Wheaties.   Not that I’d ever been one to proselytize (?!?) — but I’ve got to say that Yoga practice, even the Yoga 101 that I do really can make a difference in one’s stamina, core strength and flexibility.

Sonya Lamonakis

The second great thing about yesterday morning was watching the likes of pro-heavyweight fighter Sonya Lamonakis  train.  Sonya, ranked number three in her weight class sparred several hard rounds with Belinda Laracuente another sensational fighter who also works as a trainer at Gleason’s.  As well, I caught sight of Alicia Ashley readying for her upcoming main event bout on January 13th at Brooklyn’s Masonic Hall.

The mention also goes out to all the women I trained with young and old, novice and pro who were working their butts off.

What a great day!

 

Boxing easy

Leave a reply

Boxing easy, Gleason’s Gym, 12/31/2010

Getting the jump on those pesky resolutions

2 Replies

Getting the jump on those pesky resolutions

Yep.  It’s that time of year again — when you need to confront all the coulda’, shoulda’ woulda’s from 2010 to write-up the “list” for 2011.

I will box every day!

In years past, I’ve run the gamut from writing them hung over on New Year’s Day, to thoughtfully considering them for days and weeks before the turn of the year.

To be honest, the New Year’s resolution list is often an afterthought somewhere around the 3rd of January.  By then of course, I’m in a decided catch-up mode which in turn can spiral into a state of New Year’s resolution anxiety if I’m not careful.

This year I’m trying something a little different.  I’ve started my New Year’s resolution two days early — with the goal of doing at least *one* physical thing every day.  Okay, sure, that can be tough, but with a hat tip to Conjuring My Muse, doing one activity — whether it’s one three-minute shadow boxing round in the living room or a full-on two-hour work out at the gym is achievable!  And like doing anything else every day — it’s gets to be a terrific habit.

So to keep true to that New Year’s vow, I threw on my sweats, grabbed my gear (some of it with that new leather smell — thanks, Santa!) and walked down to Gleason’s Gym.  The sweet part was being accompanied by my daughter — and while I must say that the work-out was tough as my latest lay-off has been way too long, I worked out just enough to feel terrific about making the effort. It also helped that she was there to cheer me on, especially when it came to the sit-ups.

I’m heading down to Gleason’s again tomorrow to work out with Lennox Blackmore with the hope that I’ll be able to throw in one or two extra rounds and a whole lot more ab-work.  And though the gym will be closed on New Year’s Day, there’s yoga, fast-walking or dancing to James Brown to keeping me going strong — least ways that’s the plan!

Getting them to the gym early

Leave a reply

Getting them to the gym early

I live in a two-boxer family and if I count the young-one, we’re coming on three boxers.  As the trainers down at Gleason’s are happy to remind us, my daughter was practically born in the gym.  There are many stories told of how she was passed from one lap to another while my husband or I trained.  Her comfort today is telling every time she walks into the gym.  She’s got folks to say hello to,  her trainer, John “Superman” Douglas to fist-bump, and a general feeling of ease as she watches us workout or works out herself.

When it comes to kids in the gym, I always advise parents that there is no place finer to introduce a child not only to the intricacies of the sweet science, but to the rarified world of camaraderie, focus and importantly, people’s dreams.  A boxing gym provides children with a place where they can experience people working very, very hard to achieve complex goals that range from personal fitness to readying for professional bouts.

The boxing gym is also a place where children can learn great physical skills, confidence and a work ethic that will carry them across a lifetime — and this without ever really needing to fight in a bout.  The boxing work out alone with a skilled trainer or in a group class will provide kids with the chance to develop prowess in the boxing repertoire and for those parents who might object to their kids sparring, pad work and shadow boxing can simulate some of the movements of the ring.  Girls especially get a lot out of boxing training — not the least of which is learning how to physically defend themselves.

There’s also something else that happens in a boxing gym: a chance for people from all walks of life to interact and communicate.  In the over-scheduled world of contemporary child rearing, that sort of experience is invaluable as is the “drift” time that happens as you wait your turn.

For more information on children’s boxing programs, parents can contact their local PAL organizations. Many boxing gyms also provide opportunities for training children individually or in groups.  You can also contact Girlboxing and we’ll be happy to pass on what information we have.

Sit-ups

4 Replies

Sit-ups.

So I went back to Gleason’s Gym yesterday and had a fabulous if slow, training session with Lennox Blackmore.  I managed to get through it all without needing to call for an ambulance and acquitted myself reasonably well, except for the sit-ups.

Talk about embarrassing…

Back in the day (all of three years ago), sit-ups became my favorite province.  I’d do my 100 with Lennox, and then start crunches, reverse bench sit-ups, or sitting on the sit-up bench doing 15-minute sit-up sets. Not that I ever developed a six-pack or any thing resembling even the slightest ripple, I did know that somewhere under my ample padding I was solid as a rock!  Plus, I knew that the core strength was there and even if I didn’t see the actual evidence of my work in the form of the aforementioned six-pack, my improved back strength, tighter stance, crisper jabs, hooks and upper-cuts proved it.

Well I’m here to tell the cautionary tale of use it or lose it!

I mean doing those sit-ups yesterday was painful, pitiful and beyond awful. Suffice to say it’s one of the parts to a work-out that can come back quickly, and doesn’t need any sort of fancy gym apparatus to do.

So … this morning, I hauled myself up nice and early, pulled out the pad and started doing crunches.  I took it nice and slow and while watching my favorite British police procedural on Netflix, did about 15 minutes worth.   I still ache – but, something did click, ‘cause while I may not be able to find the time I need to get to the gym, I can carve the time to do some sit-ups.  Well, at any rate, I’m going to try – so that next time I see Lennox I can at least get through the third set without stopping in the middle!

Gym bound!

Leave a reply

Gym bound!

I am determined to get to the boxing gym this afternoon.  I mean really, it’s been weeks, and here I am attempting to keep a blog going on boxing!  Well, okay. So I’ve been busy at work, true.  Busy writing papers for grad school, true.  Busy being a wife and a mom, true.  But, but, but … I say to myself, that is no excuse, sister, get your butt to the gym!   So today, after dropping the prodigal off at her dance class, it’s off to Gleason’s for some serious huffing and puffing as I attempt something resembling a work out.

The plan?  Hmmm. A short run, maybe 15 minutes worth at a slow pace to be followed by three rounds of shadow boxing.  By then I’ll be warmed up and ready for the most embarrassing part, facing my trainer, Lennox Blackmore.  He will be as he always is, the consummate professional with a mushy heart of molten gold — while I shall be mortified by how slow I am, not to mention out of breath by about 30 seconds into the first round!

Oh well.  I’ve been here before and no doubt will be here again.  The point is that I shall haul myself over there to begin anew and after a while feel the absolute thrill of working hard.  Once I get over the initial shock of working out, I really do have to give it my all and find there is nothing so satisfying as feeling my muscles dissolve into the delicious agony of having been worked to death.  Of course there will be tomorrow when I’ve got to work through the obstacle course that is my life lately to get myself back to the gym for a second day, but that is in truth a problem for another day.

PS – Don’t forget to catch the last night of the Women’s International Duel Series bouts tonight live from 9:00 PM to 12:00 AM Eastern Time.  I watched last night and they were terrific.  The link is here.

PPS – Read this GREAT story about women boxers in India who have made extraordinary strides in the recently held Commonwealth Games.  The NY Times has it here.

Also, learn about Mary Kom’s Boxing Academy in the northeastern state of Manipur, India here.


Learning the sweet science

1 Reply

Learning the sweet science.

The first time I boxed was at a local gym in Brooklyn that offered a six-week “boxercise” class as an adjunct to the usual Yoga, Pilates and Aerobics classes.  The sports facility itself was pretty large, so an area was cordoned off towards the back of the basement floor for the new boxing program.  We had a couple of speed bags, heavy bags, and the smallest ring I’ve ever seen, though at the time it loomed very, very large.  There were about ten people in the class, most of whom had seemingly boxed before and after group calisthenics, we all struggled with wrapping our hands as the lone instructor did pad-work with each of us in turn in the ring.

Having never wrapped my hands before I was rather slow and had to put it charitably one of the more interesting concoctions.  By the time it was my turn to enter the ring, the instructor seemed pretty annoyed by the whole process — and of course since I hadn’t thrown a punch since I was 12, I was not exactly a boxing phenom.   That I went back at all was a testament to my true desire, and having suffered through all six weeks, my gumption remained as in tact as my lack of skills.

All of this is a long way of saying there are right and wrong ways to take up the sweet science, and for those who are interested in learning to box, it’s probably a good idea to shop around for a class.  If you’re in Brooklyn and want to box in a real boxer’s gym, I’m very partial to Gleason’s Gym down on Front Street in Dumbo.  The gym’s been there forever and is filled with a wonderful group of trainers including several fabulous women champions who will guide novices through experienced fighters in a regimen of training individually or in a group setting.  The gym has frequent outreach events, and is very welcoming to new comers — at least that’s how I felt when I walked in with my one truly awful boxing class under my belt back in 1996.

That’s not to say that Gleason’s is the only boxing gym in New York City.  There are several great ones including Manhattan’s Church Street Gym, Mendez Boxing, Kingsway Boxing and the Trinity Boxing Club.  There are all Women’s programs in many of the gyms as well.  One can find terrific training for kids too — my daughter has boxed on and off since she was about seven.  It’s not her main martial sport, but she’s gotten a lot out of it, not to mention the fun of having a bunch of boxers for babysitters as I trained.

The main thing is not to feel intimidated — my trainer, Lennox Blackmore is fond of saying that he just wants to “get me where I want to go.”  For any aspiring boxers out there that can mean a chance to tone-up or go all the way to the Golden Gloves, Master’s tournaments or even the Olympics!  As for boxing gear, there is always plenty around for as long as you need it.  So come on down and enjoy.

[See Blogroll for links to Boxing Gyms mentioned above]

 

It just is

Leave a reply

It just is

My “dharma” teacher, a revered Theraveda Buddhist Nun back at Wat Suann Mokkh in Thailand was always fond of saying “it just is.”   The wisdom of most boxing trainers revolves around a similar refrain.  My current trainer, Lennox Blackmore is a master of such statements.     He has two flavors:  “it is what it is” and “wake-up.”

Thus, if one is training in a crowed ring – it is what it is.  Deal with it.  Get clocked sparring?  It is what it is, move on.  Get clocked again?  Wake-up!

As wisdom for the ages and frankly, as I “age,” I’m actually beginning to see where this all makes sense.  Is my kid, husband, family, cat driving me crazy?  Am I too hot, too cold, tired, hungry, over-worked, under-worked, grumpy, manic, obsessive, distracted, happy, sad, and on and on?  It just is.  Did I trip, forget where my glasses, keys, wallet, iphone are?  Wake-up.

It gets to be a world-wind after a while of “it is what it is” and “wake-up,” but somewhere in the midst of it I am beginning to actually hear the “be-here-now” at the center of the “it just is” and “wake-up” poles of being.

If I am here now, I will likely avoid the punch, or hit the speed-bag with perfect precision or never engage in the fight with my husband or daughter and actually remember where my glasses are.  I won’t be overly anything, but I will not trip on the sidewalk, get hit by a car crossing the street against the light or importantly, miss out on all of the tender moments with my family.   Somehow it’s hard to believe that I can personally go through life without the drama of  engaging riotously and waking-up, but having been “clocked” enough times by life’s travails, I’m beginning to see the wisdom of staying awake as a moment-to-moment way to be.