The Border Heat Chronicles: Sweating Those Pounds Away.

As the fight between “Pretty Boy” Floyd Mayweather and Arturo “Thunder” Gatti approaches this Saturday, Gatti has been telling many of the media people that he is struggling to make the weight for this fight. This was something he shared with yours truly, when I interviewed the fighting legend. This was also very evident as, with so little time left for the fight, he was still working out in full “sweat” regalia and judging by the way that he constantly licks his lips during interviews; “Thunder” is definitely lacking some water in his system. Please fight fans, do not even consider what I am about to say as an insult as I would never dare compare myself to a true ring warrior and a professional prizefighter, but I can somewhat relate because it does remind me of my days of training and straining my body to sweat off those excess pounds. Let me clarify, my training was for “smokers” or amateur contests, which never seemed to materialize in the end. In Arturo’s case, it is for a professional prizefight, viewed by thousands of people in attendance, and millions more on pay-per-view. The only comparison drawn here is the fact that sweating down weight is still sweating down weight. A fighter, who is trying to make weight for an amateur fight, tries many of the same things as one that is in the paid ranks.

I can remember that it was about one year ago to date. I live in a border city in Texas in which the average temperature this time of year is roughly over 100 degrees. The gym where I would train is made of cinderblock with no air-conditioning. If you know anything about cinderblock, then you know that it traps heat in the summer and cold in the winter. It turns into a sweat lodge quick! Once the relatively small area fills with warming human bodies, it is not uncommon for that hot box to reach temperatures between 110 to 115 degrees Fahrenheit.

I was preparing for a contest that was to take place in Kingsville, Texas; my weight for the match was not to exceed 165-pounds. It was approximately four days to my weigh-in and fight, since in the amateurs, you weigh in on the same date, and I was weighing approximately 173-pounds after working out for over two hours. I was in trouble. My trainer at the time, Freddy Gonzalez, was really pushing me hard, since it was him that I was representing. I was running at five o’clock in the morning and after my boxing workouts at seven o’clock at night daily. I would wear nylon sweat suits, and would spar from six to eight rounds using what equates into a “sauna” in suit form. I would eat one hardboiled egg in the morning, and would eat a small side salad at night. If I could not take it, I would eat one small orange during the day.

That week was really beginning to wear on me. I would get headaches, but would never complain about them. I would literally dream of drinking tall glasses of water filled with ice without end. Every morning, I felt “cranky” since I was very hungry, and very thirsty, but I could not do anything about it. There were a few times that, while doing sit ups, if I would accidentally close my eyes, I would feel faint, and would vomit at times. It was tough, and to think that it was for a fight that was going to be for three one-minute rounds. CRAZY! Still, there I was busting my body up, just trying to get the weight off.

The Friday night before my scheduled fight, I stepped on the scale, after the worst four days of my life, and I weighed 166-½-pounds. YES! Then, once I got off the scale, I realized something. I had done all this to be ready for my weigh in, but I WAS EXHAUSTED, and still about sixteen hours before my official weigh in. How on God’s green earth was I going to be ready to give my best performance when I felt like I could barely stand? Moreover, this was just for three fighting minutes, not the possible thirty-six minutes that “Thunder” to which he may haveto subject his body.

In the end, I chose to fight so it did not matter. I guess it was not to be because the tournament was cancelled the following morning. My trainer and I received the call when we were on our way to Kingsville. I was very, VERY disappointed, because I had put in all the hard work and I was ready. DAMN! We rushed back home, and I went to the nearest “Denny’s” restaurant and ordered myself a “Grand Slam” breakfast which consists of two eggs, three pancakes, sausage, bacon, and I added hash browns on the side. I drank about three glasses of cold, cold chocolate milk. I cannot even imagine what that is like for a fighter of Gatti’s caliber.

Many people that may have never trained for a boxing match, or done a strenuous camp, are probably thinking that Arturo is preparing to have an excuse should he lose. Believe me fight fans; this is not an empty concern for any fighter. I can tell you from experience that he is truly feeling strained and weak. Arturo will have had only about thirty-six hours to re-hydrate, and get as strong as possible for his fight. The great thing about it my fellow boxing fanatics is that Gatti, exhausted or not, will go into that ring and leave yet another piece of himself tonight because he just cannot help himself. At the end of the day, he loves to fight.

Sergio Martinez can be reached at srg_mrtnz@yahoo.com