Initial Impressions

[donnydarkoIRL]

I like all those points - especially the one about the judges - I often feel like there is a bit of an art to winning over the judges that is something separate from just being as effective as possible.

My training is sort of happening but not very structured. I'm having to take it one day at a time to work around uni commitments a bit. I have managed to prevent uni stuff from cutting into my actual boxing trainings too much but I have to be flexible to get in the conditioning workouts - include more of it as transport cycling or running or do really short sessions with sprints. Very haphazard!

At least the nationals will be in Queensland in December which will be really hot and the work I'm doing outside in the sun at the moment means I'll be the most heat acclimatized fighter there - just add flies and dirt and I'll have a real advantage! I swear soooo many flies - I go to sleep at night and I can still hear them!

You are very organized in advance. I have just under one month left and don't really have a firm plan except that I'll try to get in weights for the first three weeks and want to really work on improving my competition mentality.

Well, the only reason im getting prepared so early is because it's easier for me this year as my college stuff is work based...
After that, it's because i want this bad...this is actually what i dreamed of when i started boxing to win a national senior title...
I got the motivation and the physical ability so hopefully i can pull it off.

And you will too!
How long you been training for this? How much have you sacrificed? Of course your going to do well!!!

[Scrap]

Sharla,one thing you must have is Structure, what you do today affects tomorrow its all about biulding good foundations. If the foundations are wrong the structure is.

[Sharla]

Exact opposite issue Sharla,with anyone but me,she plays around too much,instead of getting her head in to the concept of,when the bell rings that person means you bad intent.With me it allways starts like we're playing,but usually by the second round,playtime is well and truly over with.

With another female fighter it's less personal and there's probably less power coming her way consistently - so it makes sense that being used to hard sparring with you all the time she's not going to fire up as easily when against others. Might get easier for her to do that if you spar at a slightly lower intensity than she fights at though - so she has a reason to up her game in competition perhaps?

Sharla,one thing you must have is Structure, what you do today affects tomorrow its all about building good foundations. If the foundations are wrong the structure is.

Yeah I know. I'm just not very good at balancing things - still trying to work that out! With most shows other than the nationals or state titles I don't even know whether or not I have a match until a week or max 2 weeks before. With uni I have a similar problem - although with uni it's often because I underestimate how long things take - stupid things like finding functions in the updated Microsoft programs or getting posters to print properly etc. I find if I stress about not being able to stick to a structured program I'm never happy because at some stage things have to give.

[Trainer Monkey]

Sharla,one thing you must have is Structure, what you do today affects tomorrow its all about biulding good foundations. If the foundations are wrong the structure is.

Thats so funny Scrap,when my adopted daughter was down this weekend and decided she wanted to learn some boxing,almost the exact words came out of my mouth.
We started on the jab,and she wasnt getting it,so I told her,"We'll keep doing it until you get it right,these are your building blocks.If you try to build a house with a bad foundation,its going to come down"
cc

[Sharla]

I got the motivation and the physical ability so hopefully i can pull it off.

And you will too!
How long you been training for this? How much have you sacrificed? Of course your going to do well!!!

Thanks for the encouragement hitmandonny I think you've got the kind of attitude that wins national titles

[Trainer Monkey]

Oh dont get me wrong,when she's off of suspension she'll rarely spar me,but the problem is,is she CAN goof off with all of her other sparring partners.Im the only one locally that will bring it with her.
I think alot of her issues with this last fight was also a total cluster f***
First we hire our cornerman,his father gets terminal cancer(I swear to god),our second and much pricier cornerman turns out to be busy that weekend,then the matchmaker promises us a cornerman,a few days before the fight we find out we dont have a corner because that guy wont be there.So she was totally alone out there like some weird scene from Oliver Twist,trying to get her own corner together,"Spare a cornerman Guv'nor"

[donnydarkoIRL]

cc Sharla....

Every time i think about them i start grinning, i no im going to be way younger than average and i no they will be more expierienced but i no im gonna do this.

[Scrap]

I got a kid whom we put in the championships 4 entrys he turns up 3 pull out it happens

[donnydarkoIRL]

I got a kid whom we put in the championships 4 entrys he turns up 3 pull out it happens

I got a kid whom we put in the championships 4 entrys he turns up 3 pull out it happens

Im either entering at 71kg or 75kg, their the two most competitive in terms of numbers of entrants so with the help of god there will be no walkovers!

[greynotsoold]

I read once that the thing that kept Jack Sharkey- whom Ray Arcel called the best pure boxer he'd ever seen at heavyweight- from being a truly great fighter was emotion. He was too emotional, while great fighters operate in the eye of the hurricane. No emotion. I've always been a big believer in this concept.
The first round is the first stone of what you are trying to build, and I know that sounds very trite. Most, if not all, say to go out and land the first punch. For me, unless there is a big skill difference, I'd almost rather get hit the first punch. Keeps me from getting complacent, but that's just me. In that opening round, early, its good to clinch with your opponent, to feel their strength and to see how interested they are in working inside and how good they might be at it. Catch his jab in your glove to see how hard he's popping his punches. Feint a lot to feel out his reactions to your jab, to the idea of you going to his body, and so on. You don't want to throw punches just to throw them because that lets him see your reach and to begin to time you. You want to be just out of range of his punches so that you don't give away any of your defensive and counter ideas.
Watch Ricardo Lopez. He was a great 1st round fighter. But the important thing is that emotion has no place in it. You get hit, don't get mad. Figure out why you got hit and what to do about it. Save the hostility for the appropriate time.

[Sharla]

CC Grey I'm with you on the emotion thing - for me as an individual until I know where to channel it and what to do with it I don't feel it helps.

I haven't really worked out whether or not it works for me to be hit first or to hit first myself. If they hit me first then sometimes it will register and I'll know what to avoid and other times landing a punch on them has given me an idea of exactly what my range has to be and I can go from there. I haven't been taught to clinch a lot and since I'm an amateur I won't be allowed to much.

I also get what you're saying with needing to test how strong they are and what type of fight they favour. I make too many assumptions based on weight sometimes. I think I'll go with what hitmandonny said and muck around with a few different ways of starting at interclub sparring this weekend. I'm glad you replied because it's given me the notion of just how much the best way to start could vary from individual to individual.

[Sharla]

CC hitmandonny - your advice worked. Got to spar 2 new people on the weekend and I didn't start too badly even though they were both tall and i usually suck at dealing with tall people!

I won't say I knew exactly how to tackle them but I didn't start with mistakes and repeat them for an entire round. I think using your method I might be able to start as I'd mean to continue. If this works as well in competition and I still have trouble it will be because even at my best i haven't learnt how to deal with that style yet.

[donnydarkoIRL]

Glad to hear it Sharla-cc returned.

It's a good way to prevent them punching in the amateurs, they defend when they see the jab coming as they feel there has to be another behind it...and as you are laid back you can easily observe the moment where they decide to be aggresive.