In strength training, the goal is to train your body to failure. To lift an object, at various weights, till you cannot lift it anymore. Failure. As boxers and martial artists we have a bell, or a buzzer to tell us when the end of the round is. That bell sounds and you have an opportunity to talk to your cornermen, or advisors, get some water, and oftentimes patch a cut on your face. Needless to say, it is a very NECESSARY component, when in a competition.
I’ve trained people for about 15 years. Anyone who has trained with me will probably tell you that the bell was rarely used. I competed as a boxer, for 24 years, and I can’t tell you how much I appreciated and respected a straight through round. No Bell, No Rest! Starting out strong and ending with the feeling that my arms where on fire, my heart was going to jump out of my chest, my legs shaking, my mouth dry. Nothing I’ve ever done compares to that feeling. Well, besides running marathons, but we’ll get to that some other time.
Training straight through the bell benefits me in many ways. I first started it when I was competing, and my trainer at the time, Victor Valle, had myself and a fighter named Glenwood Brown sparring with each other. When the bell would go off, he kept saying “Keep Going”. So we kept sparring. He would scream instructions to both of us throughout the round, so there was no need to stop, unless he needed to explain something. This went on for over 10 minutes. Glenwood was actually a welterweight, and I was a lightweight, so we were 2 weight classes, and 12 pounds apart. We were both getting ready for fights, so it was full speed, full on combat. I remember that when we finally got out of the ring, Victor said that was it, we had nothing else to do that day. I went right over in the corner of the gym, and sat down and closed my eyes. I felt like I could have slept for the rest of the day, right there in that spot.
I was on the Navy Boxing Team years ago. Our coach, Richard Pettigrew, believed that when a fight was over, if you came back to the corner, and still had enough energy to talk, you did not give it your all. If you didn’t give it your all, he would sometimes make you go for a run right then. I remember fighting against the marine team once, and when I got out of the ring, he made me run 9 miles right after the fight. This was also in the 90º heat of Texas. Oh, and did I mention that I WON that fight. But, I was not exhausted. I ended up having to fight again the next day. I didn’t make the same mistake that day.
Training straight through helps me in a number of ways:
- As a trainer, I would never ask anyone to do anything I couldn’t do. Therefore anyone who is training students back to back for hours at a time knows that it can take a lot out of you. YOU, as a Master, Teacher, Coach, etc. have to be as fresh with the last student, as you were with the first.
- I also have to spar sometimes with two or three students in a session (I stay in the ring, and they alternate in and out) I have to have enough energy to spar with them, while talking, and I can’t be out of breath when I do it. We sometimes spar for the whole hour, so I can’t be so exhausted, that I can’t jump in the shower and train the next person.
- When I was competing, it was used as a barometer, to show me at any given point in my training, exactly how fit I am. My reasoning: If I can punch for 12 minutes straight, I’m ready for a 3 round fight. This also works the same for 10 rounds. Thus increasing my recovery rate, and making the rest period in between rounds easier. I didn’t have to work hard to catch my breath and could fully concentrate on what my trainer was telling me.
- When I was competing, training in this way also helped me to have a mental advantage coming into every fight. I knew that if all else fails, even if my opponent was more experienced or even technically a style that would be harder to fight, I could outwork him.
Boxing is called “Sweet Science”. Looking at that sometimes implies that it’s purely a technical sport. My favorite boxing book of all times is a book by Bryce Courtenay called The Power of One. The message I got from this book was “First with the head, then with the heart”. Anyone who has read the book will understand this. It is Combat you are getting ready for. No need to stop in situations where no one is throwing punches at you. So, challenge yourself today, so you can challenge your opponent tomorrow. In the words of my first boxing trainer Mazaughn Kemp when I was 15 years old “You can bounce around them all night, but when you’re ready to win, you have to FIGHT”.
Oh, and one thing to remember: Don’t try this in the gym without your trainer present, and without first doing the proper amount of cardio. Doing so would increase the risk of serious fatigue, or even heart attack! Don’t start an exercise program without first consulting your physician, or licensed professional!
Terry Southerland was a 3 time National Champion, All Navy Champion, and winner of many International bouts, including participation in the first Goodwill Games representing the U.S. in 1986. Compiling an amateur record of 147 wins & 18 losses, and a professional record of 21 wins & 3 losses in his Boxing career.
