Coach Ian – Week In Review: 08/29/2021
Book I’m Reading
Damage: The Untold Story of Brain Trauma in Boxing by Tris Dixon
Brain Trauma is one of those topics that fighters like to ignore. And I get it. Ironically, when you start fighting with that fear of getting knocked out, the likelihood of you getting knocked out goes up drastically. You really need to be all in on boxing to participate in it.
Boxing is as beautiful as it is brutal. I cheered like crazy when Mark Magsayo scored that scary knockout last weekend. Boxing has it’s ebbs and flows, but that knockout seemed to come out of nowhere, and after a rough patch of rounds where Magsayo was getting broken down with body shots. There are times that these shots come when least expected, reminding us that one punch can change the outcome of a fight. As a fan, that adds to the intrigue of a fight, like a plot twist you never saw coming. It’s part of the reason we love this sport so much.
As a coach, we train fighters for the knockout. A lot of times, we envision the same outcomes our fighters do – not foreseeing our fighters on the receiving end of punishment. But truth is, our number one responsibility is to protect our fighters. I spoke about my change in mindset from being a boxer to a coach with UCLA Boxing Coach Tony Gonzalez here.
We all know a few people who hung around the sport too long. I’ve written about how age isn’t the biggest factor on when to hang the gloves up (we host Masters Boxing tournaments and have had boxers over 70 years old compete!), but the wear and tear on your body is. Listen to your body.
Lately, I’ve been reading books on various aspects of recovery that correlate with mental health. There’s lots of promising research and I’ll keep you all posted in the recovery section of my blog. But the absolute best thing you can do is be wise in monitoring your fighters’ sparring and emphasizing defense. That will extend a fighters window in the sport. I hope that everyone can have a long career in the sport of boxing – but most importantly, be able to retire from the sport on their own terms, not have the sport retire them.
Run Streak and Running Goals:
Progress: As of 8/28/21, I’ve now run 1,038 miles for the year, while maintaining my 241-day run streak. I’ll be running the East Canyon Marathon in Utah on 9/4/21!
Share of the Week: Rupa Health is a company aiming to make ordering specialty labs more accessible. I’ve written in the past about why I check my bloodwork regularly and the key biomarkers that I look for. I use WellnessFX for specialized tests that doctors will not prescribe me for (although I bug them enough for them to allow me NMR and CRP tests).
Rupa is interesting in that they offer a number of additional tests, such as the Cyrex food sensitivity test and DUTCH hormone test, which I plan to order soon. They have a few other recommended functional medicine lab tests here.
Learn a little more about Rupa Health in this interview conducted by Dr. Mark Hyman with CEO Tara Viswanathan below:
Article of the Week: Running Mistakes: Lessons From My First Marathon
As I wind down for my 10th marathon, I wanted to share a write-up I did of all the things I’ve learned along my journey.
I made a lot of mistakes training for my first marathon. From not knowing how to fuel, to wearing improper running shoes, to having a poor stride, and not tapering – I had a real wake-up call when I ran my first marathon. Read more here.
This Week at Dreamland Boxing:
Our classes have been increased to 16 people per class. Intro to Sparring and Members Only Sparring are underway. See the full updates here. Come join me on Fridays at 4:30PM for a workout!
Also, I have continued to host our virtual boxing sessions. Thank you to our members for keeping your memberships active and continuing to support our gym during this time. And I’m personally glad to have been able to aid in your boxing development all year!
Our virtual practices this week featured the following:
- Focusing on fundamentals – slowing down and perfecting technique
- Counter-punching
- How to hold mitts
- Breaking down Mayweather’s mittwork routines
- Body weight circuits
- Kettlebell Single-Arm Swings and Turkish Get-Ups
- And more!
You can find a full list of drills if you are a current Dreamland Boxing member in the Premium Drills section of my website.
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