As the story has it, one day I headed to the opposite side of the globe – the Flipside. I arrived in Korea February 16th, 2005 and thought I’d do a year, then leave. I was wrong. I stayed, launched my first company, Flipside Fitness, and then opened Korea's largest boxing club, Hulk's Boxing (now called Hulk's Club).

After 11.5yrs in Korea, I then picked up one day and returned to Toronto, Canada. But then I left again.

Now I live in the Philippines where I am the CEO and head coach of Empowered Clubhouse, the Philippines' first and only boxing clubhouse exclusively just for women. I also am the founder of the Lil' Sistas Project, CEO and designer of Slay Gear and Baa Baa Black Sheep .Ph.

Monday, January 13, 2020

Sparring Day... Monday, January 13

I feels like too long since I last sparred and yet I feel every time I spar I'm saying exactly this.

Plan is to spar every week. 

Why is sparring so good?!  Let me count the many multitude of reasons...

For starters, it's the closest you're going to get to an actual real, in-the-ring fight and it's where you put into practice what you've not only been learning but have picked up and habits you've formed.  Unlike when you're doing pads and your coach is calling the shots and telling you punch-for-punch what to throw, here you're calling the shots and having to think for yourself.  You not only have to worry about what you're doing and setting up your combos, but you also have to worry about what your opponent is doing.  It's like multi-tasking on a whole other level. 

I love sparring. 

I used to be so completely full of anxiety at the thought of sparring that I always insisted my coach give me at least a day's head up on when I'd be sparring next.  I needed to get a good night's sleep, rewatch my training videos, and then make sure I wake up with enough time to get in a solid meal that's not too heavy but not too light.  I had a whole pre-sparring routine and it included peeing like a million times because of the anxiety and excitement.  Now I'm cool.  I just need to make sure I have a decent breakfast because the heat at the boxing club is really mean and it really sucks the energy out of you if you're not properly prepared.  

So today I had sparring and I loved it. 

Five rounds of sparring. 

I felt some of my old habits resurfacing so it was a bit frustrating.  But it's always a learning experience.  I think I threw heavier shots and moved around more but I still kept to infighting and pushing my opponent against the ring.  I'm most comfortable in the ring when I'm the attacker, the bully.

"Bully Bere", it's so fitting.

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