Questions From The Audience

Hello followers of the "Blue Corner".
It has been a very busy week for The Brick, including lots of sparring. I even had sparring at Richard's gym this week, and two sessions at Bloor.
There are a lot of new guys trying out the sparring at Bloor. This past Thursday's class was really busy.
On Monday, I think I scared one away. I sparred one new guy one round, blocked everything he threw, and scored a number of points on him. After the one round, he decided to try running the treadmill instead.
I think I need to try to take it a bit easier on the newbies. Then again, it does not really help them. You learn more from someone who is better than you.

There is not much other news in the Toronto boxing world, except that Berry has opened his new gym in the Christie Pits area, and I have been invited to check it out this weekend.

Since this entry is a bit short, I will answer a few questions I have received.

:: I want to start boxing. How is the best way to go about it?


First of all boxing is very physically intense. I always recommend checking with your physician before even  considering stepping foot into a boxing gym. If your physician feels you are OK to start, visit some local boxing gyms and talk to the coaches, and if possible some of the boxers who train there. This is the best way to decide where to start. Always remember that a good gym will not let you immediately jump into the ring.
That is a good thing. It is better to make sure you have all the basics before you start sparring.

:: Do your muscles hurt after sparring?


Not any more, but they did. Just like any physical activity, muscles should feel "worked" after exercise. After a while they do not hurt any more.

:: When you box, do you go all out to try to hurt your opponent?


I look at boxing as a sport. You can score points without causing damage to your opponent. However, I am a guy. I will admit that there are times when my opponent nails me really hard, and the testosterone kicks in. It happens. Although, that is not my initial goal. My goal is to score points, while defending the attack...just like with any other sport.


That is all for this entry. Have a great week.

Paul "The Brick" Brec,
Stockyards Boxing Team/Bloor Boxing Team, Master's Novice Division, Heavyweight (90 kg)

Bloor vs. Stockyards, Almost Live!

Sounds good doesn't it?
There are some changes happening at Bloor Boxing, and in my opinion they are good changes.
Thursday evening sparring is being cancelled...and being replaced with a proper boxing class. There is still going to be sparring, but not just sparring as before. He is adding stuff to the class to make it more like a training class for boxers. It is very much what Richard does on his Saturday morning classes.
There was also an announcement that he wanted us all to register to be on the boxing team. Does this mean that Bloor is going to have a regular competitive team like Stockyards?
That is a wise decision, and I have to say it is about damn time.

You are probably wondering, what is "The Brick" going to do?
This is getting interesting.

...and now, live from Toronto, Paul "The Brick" Brec Enterprises proudly presents...

T A L E   O F   T H E   T A P E

                                  STOCKYARDS                                          BLOOR                 

Richard Souce, probably Toronto's best coach     COACHING      Instructors, not certified coaches (yet)   

     Not enough sparring                              SPARRING        Regular sparring classes

   Limited training hours                                       HOURS            Can train anytime 24/7

Lots of one-on-one coaching               PERSONAL COACHING     Mostly group training 

Here are the details: Richard is the absolute best coach I have ever had. Period. Richard was also a professional boxer. Not that I am taking anything away from Kobe at Bloor, he is a good teacher. However, Rick does a lot of one-on-one training with his boxers. Kobe's classes are mostly group classes, although he does occasionally come over and provide some personal coaching.

Also, as far as I know he is not yet certified by Boxing Ontario. He might be by now, or he will be. If he wants his boxers to compete, he will have to become certified. Boxers taught by non-certified teachers are not allowed to participate in Boxing Ontario sanctioned events.  

Stockyards has limited hours, although they are very good hours. They are open weekends, and late during weekdays, which is better than other boxing gyms, but Bloor Boxing and Fitness is open 24/7, which can come in handy on those sleepless nights, or when I can't make it to Stockyards.

My biggest peeve with Stockyards is lack of sparring. Sparring is important for any boxer to succeed. Unfortunately, Rick's gym does not have enough boxers in my division, and for some reason Rick does not like boxer's to spar outside their division or weight class. Kobe has sparring every week, and there is always at least one guy to spar.

Finally, I have to look at the cost. Stockyards is slightly more expensive than Bloor. It is only $4 more, but we have to go back to the fact that Richard is a former professional boxer, who once went up against one of my favorite boxers from the '80s, Hector Camacho.

Lastly, I still have to bring up the whole shower thing. Yeah, that still bothers me a bit. I don't know why Rick can't get use of one of the shower/change rooms. However, that might change this summer.

Okay, enough avoiding the case at hand. I can not belong to two teams at the same time once I start competing. Both teams seem eager to have me. 

The answer is, I can not yet make a fair decision. For now, I will continue to train at both gyms. I guess my final decision will be based on who can get me into competing the quickest. 

Yes, it is a war, a competition. Who wants it more?

Round One...

Paul "The Brick" Brec

Stockyards Boxing Team/Bloor Boxing Team, Master's Novice Division, Heavyweight (90 kg)