Fight Training...again

Training for my fifth fight. I can't believe I'm actually doing a fifth. I guess it's funny that after every fight that I do, I am unsure if I will do another one. Part of that has to do with the fact that I have my own business and am making a feature documentary so the time to train isn't always there. Also, I put myself through so much, even though it's just an amateur Master's Division fight, that I sometimes dread going through it all again. The last part of this equation is that I am 45. I don't feel or act my age, but since I turned that age, I know there is a ticking clock on the times I get to keep going into the ring and fighting in a way that is hopefully fast and strong. Once that goes, I don't really see the point. The fight with myself is bad enough without the kind of frustration that comes from watching my abilities wan and my body dwindle.

So, I know it's a gift to be able to train and fight for my upcoming match on October 21st. I have the time to really train. My trainer, Marcelo, is great and seems to be really into it, and my training partners, Kaiyana and DeMauriea, give me good work in the ring on a regular basis. I also love my treks to Wildcard to spar with Georgia and ogle the pros.

The best part of this fight is I actually know the drill. I know the kind of training and cardio I have to do in order to feel good about stepping into the ring. I trust my coach will be there for me (This is only the second time I will have the coach who trained me in my corner during a fight - Yeah, it makes a difference) and I know that I have to work hard at correcting my weaknesses for these next two weeks. Every day there is progress, like there should be. My favorite thing I learned about training for a fight is not to be so hard on myself if I don't feel like I performed well enough in sparring; or if I gassed out early, or slipped into an old bad habit. That's not to say I don't curse myself out and get upset by accident at times, especially when the training starts. But, I understand that that kind of "beating up" is futile. It's so much more productive to be gentler with myself and to move on to the next moment with the corrections in mind. It's a lesson I seem to need to relearn every time I am training to fight. I have to know that each day my conditioning will improve. If I'm sucking wind after a few rounds today, it will only get better by the end of the week if I put the work in.

I guess those are the things I love about boxing most. The lessons that carry over into my daily life if I practice them every day.

Having just finished a fine cut of my film, "Girl In The Ring," I do feel like a weight has been lifted and I seem to have more energy to do things outside of editing. We still have to do sound design, color correcting, scoring, etc, but the story has been mostly ironed out and we are ready to give birth to our five and a half year old newborn. It's the kind of thing that makes you want to do something celebratory, like train to fight!