End of Fight Club Week 3...Onto week 4...

We just finished up week three. Working both core and legs took a lot out of me.... It was worth it thou, I lost another pound which gets me closer and closer to being a lean, mean fighting machine.


Last Sunday's workout was killer. We went on a special field trip to Moksha Yoga near confusion corner but, in order to get there, we skipped for 30 minutes straight at the club (I attempted to), jogged to Moksha from the Exchange (with a - 30 windchill), performed yoga (thank you Marc who is an instructor at Moksha and is one of our contenders) for 45m and jogged back. All of the contenders have the determination to get through anything but it's a matter of the fatigue.


Harry made a lot of great points in Sunday's meeting. Fatigue is something that all the contenders should be experiencing. Everything from sleepless nights to muscle soreness is perfectly normal for this kind of training. It's important that we stick to the training plan. Don't burn yourself out as you might get discouraged. 


Well are almost at the fight club halfway mark. Time to kill it. Harry has introduced an award if we embody all the characteristics of what a Pan Am Boxer should be. It's a boxing glove he used during an Olympic trial (which he won). I think all of us want to win one of those gloves.


If you want to see tired watch round 9 of Gatti Vs Ward (arguably one of the greatest rounds in boxing).





- Jim

Holly's Pics

From January 22, 2011:

Anti- Gang Programs Risk Being Cut.

Hi Everyone:

I heard some sad news today. Four anti-gang programs are at risk of being shut down in the city.

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/manitoba/story/2011/01/26/man-gang-programs-at-risk.html

Ervin and I have been advocates for social programs to help steer youth away from gangs. It's going to be rough for some of the youth trying to keep their lives clean over the next little while. This shows why a centre like Pan Am Place is so important.  It does make a difference.

-Jim

Week 3...Core and Legs

I'm sore. Very sore....I guess it is finding that energy to keep pushing through when your mind is telling you to stop. 

To quote legendary boxing trainer Cus D'amato:

" Fear is the greatest obstacle to learning in any area, but particularly in boxing. For example, boxing is something you learn through repetition. You do it over and over and suddenly you've got it. However, in the course of trying to learn, if you get hit and get hurt, this makes you cautious, and when you're cautious you can't repeat it, and when you can't repeat it, its going to delay the learning process. When they come up to the gym and say I want to be a fighter, the first thing I'd do was talk to them about fear. I would always use the same example of the deer crossing an open field and upon approaching the clearing suddenly instinct tells him danger is there, and nature begins the survival process, which involves the body releasing adrenalin into the bloodstream, causing the heart to beat faster and enabling the deer to perform extraordinarily feats of agility and strength. It enables the deer to get out of range of the danger, helps him escape to the safety of the forest across the clearingan example in which fear is your friend.

The thing a kid in the street fears the most is to be called yellow or chicken, and sometimes a kid will do the most stupid, wild, crazy things just to hide how scared he is. I often tell them that while fear is such an obnoxious thing, an embarrassing thing, nevertheless it is your friend, because anytime anyone saves your life perhaps a dozen times a day, no matter what how obnoxious he is, you've got to look upon him as a friend, and this is what fear is. Since nature gave us fear in order to help us survive, we cannot look upon it as an enemy. Just think how many times a day a person would die if he had no fear. He'd walk in front of cars, he'd die a dozen times a day. Fear is a protective mechanism. By talking to the fighters about fear I cut the learning time maybe as much as half, sometimes more, depending on the individual."

Time to ramp it up. Eye of the tiger, baby, eye of the tiger.

- Jim

End of Fight Club Week 2...Legs.

I'm pretty stoked about my progress. By the end of week two, I lost 5 pounds. However, I learned how weak my legs are and how skipping is the hardest thing to do. It's something I'm going to have to work on.

Here is a video I did with Holly before her Thursday night class (it was absolute hell) (Sorry it was a little dark). 

Pan Am Boxing Club - Fight Club 3 - Legs Part 1 from Jim Agapito on Vimeo.

To quote Holly, I'll use the comment she posted on a previous blog:

Ah yes, legs week! One of my favorites because like Freddie says "you gotta have a strong foundation"

Well I think our contenders got a hearty burn in their legs today! I saw lots of legs short circuiting and knees buckling in the gym, including my own!! I actually love when that happens because in an instant you can feel your body failing you and the next moment your up on the bag, moving in and out as your muscles recover quickly and all your past training comes back to help you! (I must admit I had a lot of anger in me today and decided to take it out on the contenders... now I feel better:)

The contenders are all doing great and getting stronger... I'm actually a bit nervous for when we start sparring with them because they aren't going to know their own strength!! Hence the importance legs and moving out of the way! lol.



Fight Club 3 - Pan Am Boxing Club - Legs Part 2 from Jim Agapito on Vimeo.

We are doing well contenders!!! Let's give the trainers a run for their money.


This week is going to be a combination of core and legs. It will be a challenge.


Jim.

Fight Club Week 2...Legs

My legs are burning, my legs are burning, my legs are burning. I don't think I've done that many squats in my life (with way more to come). 


That's all I can say. I'm going to Fight Club (FC) tonight and I look forward to the burn. 


I can say one thing however. Yesterday,  I learned the importance of staying on your toes. I was wasting so much energy being stiff in the legs. I couldn't move and rotate properly. After being conscious of being light on my feet and have a slight knee bend, I noticed my effectiveness. It finally registered (something that all the trainers keep hammering but I was too slow to learn...better late then never).


Here's a video of trainer Freddie Roach talking about footwork:





Jim. 

Holly's Pics

Here are some of Holly's favourite pictures from Fight Club Week 1:

Oh for some add inspiration...

I thought I'd put this up for some added inspiration. I watch this before I train.


Jim

End Of Fight Club Week 1...

So here's me catching up on the first week....

Ervin and I started fight club on January 8th, 2011. Boy oh boy, were we in for a rude awaking. 

Ervin and I started boxing in December to better prepare ourselves for fight club. I thought I was going to puke after the first initial workout (not a Fight Club workout). I have never been tested that physically in my life. Sure, Ervin and I lift weights regularly and jog but, realistically speaking, nothing is like boxing. It certainly kicked the sh*t out of me. 

And then there was fight club. The winner of fight club (which is determined by dramatic body changes) will win a trip to watch  a pro fight.  

In the vane of the legendary band Spinal Tap, it's like turning your amp up to eleven. It's like ramping something up 200%. It's like a chicken running with it's head cut off and just running on and on and on.... It's like me failing to come up with a better simile so I go on and on and on....

For eight weeks, Ervin and I will eat, sleep, sh*t and train boxing. No ifs, ands or buts....we will come out as boxers. 

Our first week consisted of core...I truly learned the meaning of pain.

Plank / Photo By Chris Friesen

For starters, I don't think I've worked this hard in my life. Secondly, I've already dropped 2 pounds since starting. I stopped eating crap and have changed my diet significantly. 

During the first week of fight club my workout consisted of:

Three Fight Club Classes ( = major core intensity. Burn, burn, burn those abs)

Two Regular Classes

Two Road Work Runs (Yes, in - 20 to -30 weather)

Two Circuit Set Workout 

Early Morning Jog (-33 windchill) / Photo By Chris Friesen

Running through snow / Photo By Chris Friesen

My favourite part of week one was the body sparring. Having the ability to move around and throw/receive punches to the body simulates the act of fighting. Trying to recover after having the wind knocked out of you is a challenge. 

Ervin holding the heavy bag for me / Photo By Chris Friesen

Ervin punching my stomach / Photo By Chris Friesen

The most challenging part of week one was the pain conditioning. Harry employed a technique that Manny Pacquaio uses for working through the pain. 





It's helping me work through pain.

Harry demonstrates pain conditioning / Photo By Chris Friesen

One of our tough Fight Club Contenders / Photo By Chris Friesen

Welts from Ervin / Photo By Chris Friesen

End of day welts / Photo By Cathy Kuryk

As bad as it looks, it doesn't hurt that bad....

I will post some pictures from Fight Club in the next couple of days. Please check it out. 

Fight Club 3...So it begins...

To better prepare ourselves for the documentary, Ervin and I both decided to immerse ourselves into boxing. Harry Black suggested that we join fight club.

 COACH HARRY BLACK / PHOTO BY CHRIS FRIESEN 

To quote Pan Am's site Fight Club is:

" If you haven’t heard about Fight Club yet, ask any of our leaders, members or volunteers and they’ll likely tell you it’s the hardest and best training program you could ever do. Fight Club is an 8 week intense boxing training program that focuses on bringing your workouts to a much higher level in intensity and frequency. Fight Club also focuses on adopting healthy habits for life, nutrition information, motivation and improved boxing technique. You don’t have to be a fighter to train like one…. You’ll enjoy the numerous benefits of improved health & well being, weight & inches lost, improved cardio and overall fitness. "


I always wanted to learn how to box. This was a perfect opportunity to learn how to do it. Plus, after watching Harry workout, both Ervin and I wanted to do this. 

PHOTO BY CHRIS FRIESEN

PHOTO BY CHRIS FRIESEN

PHOTO BY CHRIS FRIESEN

PHOTO BY CHRIS FRIESEN

PHOTO BY CHRIS FRIESEN

PHOTO BY CHRIS FRIESEN

PHOTO BY CHRIS FRIESEN

PHOTO BY CHRIS FRIESEN

PHOTO BY CHRIS FRIESEN

PHOTO BY CHRIS FRIESEN

PHOTO BY CHRIS FRIESEN

PHOTO BY CHRIS FRIESEN

PHOTO BY CHRIS FRIESEN

PHOTO BY CHRIS FRIESEN

PHOTO BY CHRIS FRIESEN

PHOTO BY CHRIS FRIESEN

PHOTO BY CHRIS FRIESEN

PHOTO BY CHRIS FRIESEN

PHOTO BY CHRIS FRIESEN

PHOTO BY CHRIS FRIESEN

...so it begins.

Jim

Pan Am Place: A brief overview

On October 22nd, 2010, my friend and co-conspirator/filmmaking partner in crime ,Ervin Chartrand, presented an article in the Winnipeg Free Press to me.

http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/boxing-club-striving-to-give-at-risk-kids-a-fighting-chance-105510018.html

The article speaks for itself.  Ervin, who had been a gangster in his previous life, told me how important a program like this would've been in detering his criminal activies. He said that we should do a documentary about the impact this will have on at-risk youth and the importance of inner city sport programs in general.

I was immediately sold...

After convincing coaches Harry Black and Roland Vandal to allow us to film a documentary on Pan Am Place, Ervin and I decided to decicate ourselves for three years to this film....so the journey begins.

This blog will discuss our journey as filmmakers to make this film. Ervin and I will both blog but I'm sure we'll have several guests that will get on this thing as well.

Jim

P.S. I'll have more info to come. In the meantime, please check out Pan Am Boxing Club's site and link to Pan Am Place.

http://panamboxing.com/
http://panamboxing.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=16&Itemid=17

Jim