Lawyer-boxer's Blog
The training, adventures, work, and life of a lawyer and amateur boxer.
Friday, July 09, 2010
Six-figure Solopreneurs
http://www.inc.com/marla-tabaka/six-figure-solopreneurs-the-common-link.html
http://www.inc.com/marla-tabaka/six-figure-solopreneurs-the-common-link-pt-2.html
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
New Visual Theme for Blog
A Brief, and Far Too Tardy, Update
It's the summer, usually the most productive and enthusiastic time of the year for me. My plan is to do more blogging during these summer months.
Training is going along reasonably well, though not optimally. I don't want to turn this blog entry into a complaint-fest, so I'll wrap it up by remembering the words concerning improvement that my grandfather, John Sebastian Imparl, often told me when I was a little boy. There is indeed much room for improvement, and I intend to use every cubic nanometer of it!
Sunday, May 30, 2010
Sunday Morning Blackhawk Talk
In a text to my friend this morning, I wrote:
"Yeah, nice goal by [Blackhawks forward Tomas] Kopecky to wrap it up [broke a 5-5 tie in the third period]. (I once had an opposing counsel with that name.) Flyers will likely play more intense defense in game 2."The lawyer I mentioned is attorney James L. Kopecky. I don't know him well, but many years ago, he and I represented opposing parties in some construction litigation. It was as competitive as any litigation I've done in my career, if not more so, but I'm still happy to remember Mr. Kopecky's thoroughness, professionalism, politeness, and civility. I believe Jim is in solo practice now. I'll plan to contact him this week to reintroduce myself.
For all of you AHL fans, of which I am surely one, the final round of the Calder Cup playoffs gets underway this week, starting Thursday. The finalists are the Hershey Bears and the Texas Stars. It, too, looks to be a good series. You can get more details here.
So many sports, so little time!
Wednesday, May 05, 2010
Calling All Albertans... Event on Saturday, May 8, 2010
My friend Steve Boissoin, who lives in Calgary, Alberta, sent me an announcement about the "Rumble in Red Deer," a boxing event that will happen on Saturday, May 8, 2010, in Red Deer, AB. From the announcement:
Alberta's Best Amateur Boxers & White Collar Boxing: Your next door neighbour, your teacher, your coworker battling it out in the ring for 3 rounds after only 12 weeks of training.All the additional details you need are available at the following site:
The Red Deer Boxing Club and Piper Creek Optimist Club present the Rumble in Red Deer 2010 - Fight for the Cure. Featuring Red Deer Boxers, from lightweight to hard hitting heavyweights, who will be defending our turf against opponents from all over Alberta. Plus White Collar Boxers who have stepped out of the office and into the ring after only 12 weeks of training. Last years’ event was sold out so get your tickets early, or call 403-304-5400. Proceeds support the Red Deer Boxing Club Programs, and Young Adult Cancer Canada.
General Admission Doors open at 7:00pm - Boxing starts at 7:30pm
This is another "Fight for the Cure" Boxing Event. All proceeds go towards supporting the programs at the Red Deer Boxing Club and youth affected by cancer. We chose this cause because no one is left untouched by this terrible disease, even our own at the club.
http://www.rumbleinreddeer.com
Best wishes to Steve and the Red Deer Boxing Club for an amazingly successful event. They're promoting a great cause that will benefit the lives of many people. Good work!
And, Steve, I was serious about my offer to box in the event next year, if you can use another "white collar" guy in the ring, so please place me on the list of people who will get advance announcements. Heck, I might even have a Canadian lined up who would be a suitable opponent (an engineer who is finishing up his Ph.D. in optics at Carlton University in Ottawa.)
Keep up the fine work, and my apologies for the delay in posting this.
Monday, April 26, 2010
Sunday and Monday Roadwork; Mental Game
I'm making some progress on the mental game. So far, I am mainly using visualization of footwork, proper balance, and practicing punches and defense. It's good to do mental rehearsal of the basic boxing techniques.
Since the proper movements and their sequence can be fairly complex, practicing it all in my mind first is very helpful. That practice also seems to make defense and counter-punching flow a lot more naturally. Additionally, I find the mental rehearsal/visualization to be useful for planning strategy and alternatives to it, just in case my opponent doesn't go along with the brilliant bout-winning strategy I intend to use!
Friday, April 16, 2010
Working on the Mental Game
I see participation in sport as a complete endeavor: whether we win or lose, we enjoy the most rewarding experiences when we play the game consciously with all of the aspects of our being--physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual. For that reason, I want my engagement to be more complete, more integrated.
Soon, I'll write more about the specifics. At this point, I want to ask you, my readers, how you do mental training? I'd especially like to hear from the other boxers, but I'm confident I can learn much from any athletes who want to share their routines and experiences with the mental component of sports. Please post your thoughts as comments. Thanks.
Thursday, April 08, 2010
Simple Training Update
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Spring is Here; Staying Positive; A Sprinkling of Shakespeare; Two Online Friends Have Upcoming Bouts
"When in disgrace with Fortune and men's eyes,I all alone beweep my outcast state,And trouble deaf heaven with my bootless cries,And look upon myself and curse my fate..."
Thursday, February 18, 2010
Sunday "Fight Club"
It seemed like we did an unusually large number of drills on Sunday, but we can't have done many more than usual because the workout lasted the usual duration. I'm getting a lot more confident with the "3-punch answer-back" drill. Here's how it works.
DO WHILE practice round continues
- Boxer A throws a quick left jab, right cross, and left hook at Boxer B.
- Boxer B slips (or blocks) the jab and right cross, and blocks the left hook.
- As soon as "B" blocks the hook, and preferably before "A" is back in a safe guard position, "B" quickly launches his counterattack.
- Boxer B throws a quick left jab, right cross, and left hook at Boxer A.
- Boxer A slips (or blocks) the jab and right cross, and blocks the left hook.
- As soon as "B" blocks the hook, and preferably before "A" is back in a safe guard position, "B" quickly launches his counterattack.
I did 30 minutes of roadwork after the morning gym session. It was a good day of training, and I'm grateful for it.
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Help Nerd of Steel Find a New Boxing Gym
I'm taking the liberty to ask my readers to help "Nerd" with his search. He hasn't asked me for any help--and by offering, I don't mean to imply that he needs it--but I know how it is to be displaced from a boxing club where I trained for a long time, and to start over at a new place. Others, including my former coach, Bernard O'Shea, and Chad Robbins, one of the owners of Go Time Chicago, helped me during that transition a few years ago. Therefore, if I have the chance to try to help a fellow boxer who is going through the same thing, I will take it. That's especially true when the boxer is an all-around good guy and is becoming an online friend, like Nerd of Steel.
So if you can help another boxer find a new place to train and minimize the interruptions to his training resulting from the move, please visit Nerd of Steel's blog and offer your suggestions in the comments to a blog entry such as this one. Thanks.
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Sunday's Training
We did a lot of drills. In addition to the attack and defense--the punches, slips, blocks, and other maneuvers that make up a boxer's arsenal--I paid special attention to balance and footwork. I noticed I was moving more smoothly and positioning myself a lot more effectively. Footwork and balance are really basic, and they seem basic after I do them well, but I don't think one can practice them too much. When I am well-positioned on my feet and in a state of balance, I can move a lot better, punch better, protect myself better, fight my fight (rather than the opponent's), and stay more energized. It can be surprising how tiring poor technique can be!
Howard and I sparred a spirited three rounds. He's a skilled strategist and knows how to use his left-handed stance to his advantage. Still, with the recent practice I've gotten with Scott, who is also a lefty, I was pretty confident during all three rounds. After those rounds, Glen gave us each a few suggestions for improvement, and Howard and I shared with one another our assessment of the work. It went well. We finished by doing a few rounds of heavy bag drills, abs, and then the crown jewel of the workout: the thirties.
I'm pleased with my progress, even though, as always, I see lots of things I can do better. We've got a good guys in our group, and everyone is very encouraging, so that's a huge help. I'm making some new friends, so that's a bonus. It's great to work with Glen. He's upbeat, keenly interested in our progress, and willing to explain and demonstrate moves for me as many times as it takes for me to get them right.
Often when I am close to doing a combination well, I'll ask Glen some questions about strategy I can use in case my opponent anticipates or counters any of my punches. I always want to stay a step or two ahead of the other guy. Glen always enthusiastically explains defenses and counters I'll likely face, and gives me concrete pointers for beating them.
I'm keeping up my training fairly regularly, despite my blogging about it less than I prefer. As some other things in life quiet down, I hope to write more here. I had also hoped to play hockey this winter, in a league, but there are only so many hours available. With the economy in the recession, I am really having to hustle to generate new business for my law firm. When I have fewer clients, my writing becomes a lot more important so I need to focus on that. At this point, boosting income and wealth is important, so I have to emphasize my professional life more. While I might play ice hockey next winter or in a summer league, or roller hockey in the summer, sadly that sport will have to stay on hold for a while. For now, my athletic endeavors will be aimed at becoming a better boxer.
Saturday, January 09, 2010
Happy Birthday to My Grandfather
My grandfather had a hard life. A naturalized United States citizen, during World War II, he served in the U.S. Army in the Western Pacific. After he returned home, he faced considerable suffering. His beloved wife and my grandmother, Genevieve Kolenc Imparl, passed away in 1947. Their oldest son, my dad's brother, John, followed her in death about one year later, while serving in the U.S. Army and stationed in California. The remaining three children thrived, but I can only imagine the pain my grandfather must have felt during the last few years of the 1940s.
Even in the face of all of that adversity, my grandfather persisted, determined to make a good life for himself, his family, and his later descendants in his adopted homeland. I remember, as a boy, listening to his stories, such as his tale about having been visited in the "old country" by his guardian angel when he was 13 or 14 years old. He also shared several pearls of wisdom such as, "The biggest room in your house is always the room for improvement," and "No news is good news." With my propensity to interpret things literally, I must admit I puzzled over those little maxims until I was a grown man before I really understood them. Even so, those wise words give me fond memories and food for thought today.
I remember my grandfather was always kind to my parents, his remaining children, my brother, and me. In his later years, he didn't have much but he always offered the best hospitality he could and I always felt welcomed and safe at his home. He passed away on January 27, 1978, when I was freshman in high school. I miss him.
Rest in peace, Gramps. You live on, not only in your descendants' fond memories, but also in our very bodies, in our DNA. We're working to make you proud of us.
Sunday, December 20, 2009
Brief Update
There was no "fight club" today because Glen was not available, so we're on our own for training until next Sunday. That's fine: I need a break to do some mental training and visualization, so I can absorb everything I've been practicing during the last few weeks. I'd like to get in one workout this week that is dedicated to footwork. Some of the combinations I'm working on are good, but they're only going to work if they are built on a foundation of solid footwork.
Meanwhile, I keep working on the basics such as practicing my left jab hundreds of times. I figure I can never practice the basics too much. Hopefully, next week will be a bit more normal for training and I'll be able to get some good sparring. Until then, it's practice, practice, practice, and more practice.
Wednesday, December 09, 2009
Sunday's Training
I trained with Jim and Jeff and Glen on Sunday morning. As always, Glen kept things interesting with a variety of sparring drills that focused on attack and defense and counterpunching. When I was first learning to box, I remember hearing something about the jab being about 60% of the punches a boxer will generally throw during a round. While I've never counted how many of my punches were jabs, I have noticed that I do throw a lot of them and that seems consistent with what I see other boxers do. Thus, the jab is an important punch to master, so we spend a lot of time drilling it. When we win, we're most likely to win on points, so it's essential to have a quick, solid, and accurate jab that can score a lot and create openings for other punches such as a straight right or left hook off the jab.
The other drills included the straight right, the old one-two punch, blocking the opponent's combination and answering back immediately with a combination, and limited sparring with one or two punches to practice them.
It went well. After the drills and limited sparring, I sat out the regular sparring because my left ankle was bothering me. If I take a break and ice it, I generally don't have any big trouble with it. That's a good preventive strategy for the ankle, but I was unhappy because I was fired-up for sparring and looking forward to the chance to practice some new footwork and combinations I've been working on. Thus, it was a disappointment. My ankle sprain, suffered during a shirts-and-skins pickup basketball game at BahÃas de Huatulco, Oaxaca, Mexico in the summer of 1991, came back to haunt me again.
In any event, I finished the workout strong, with the usual abs and "30s" routine. There's always room for improvement, and I intend to keep improving.
I capped today's training with 38 minutes of roadwork. (It's getting cold out there!)
Thursday, November 05, 2009
Tuesday Training with Glen
I didn't get to the Sunday workout this week, but I am hoping to be back to that this coming weekend. Hopefully, as it gets colder outside, more of the guys will show up more regularly.
Saturday, October 31, 2009
This Week's Training
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
General Update on Various Things
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Lawyer-boxer-blogger-tweeter!
Thanks, Lance and 22 Tweets, for your interest; it was great to talk with you and it's good to get to know you, too.
Sunday's "Fight Club"
Glen pushed us really hard this week. It was a great workout. I am liking these Sunday morning sessions; they're a great way to start the week.
I also did one hour of roadwork. It was good training. Hopefully, we'll have a few more guys at the workout next Sunday.
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Nobody Here But My Roadwork and Me
I didn't get to "fight club" on Sunday because fierce sinus congestion and headache made me immobile until around 10 am. I really missed seeing the guys, sparring, and doing all the practice drills, but after not sleeping well, I wasn't exactly eager to get punched in the face!
My plans to get to the gym later in the week have been foiled by work and helping my parents with some improvements at their home. Thus, training this week has just been roadwork. Here's the breakdown for the early part of the week:
Sunday: 1 hour and 5 minutes
Tuesday: 52 minutes
Wednesday: 31 minutes
It's less than optimal, but I am in this for the long haul, so when I keep that in mind, it seems alright.
Friday, September 18, 2009
Busy Week
Have a great weekend, everyone!
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Sunday: One-on-one Training
For most of the workout, Glen held the punch mitts for me and kept me busy throwing combinations, working on my speed, power, and balance. We worked a lot on counterpunching and answering back with hard, fast combinations. For example, if my opponent throws a left hook-straight right combo at me, I block the hook and right, and immediately follow up with my own straight right, left hook, and second straight right. I have to perfect the timing--an important element of any effective punch combination--but I look forward to practicing this a lot more and trying it out in sparring.
Friday, August 14, 2009
If I Drink More Coffee, Does That Mean I Will Win More?
Hat tip to fellow lawyer, Aaron, at Iced Coffee and a Bagel.
Friday, August 07, 2009
Instant replay? In boxing? Are they nuts?
I don’t like this idea. Boxing judging, scoring, and refereeing are subject to enough controversy as things stand; I don’t think the sport would benefit by the kind of second-guessing that instant replay and review would encourage.
Football season is approaching; regular NFL games start on September 10. (For all you pre-season fans, those games begin this coming Sunday, August 9, as the Buffalo Bills square off against the Tennessee Titans at Fawcett Stadium, in Canton, Ohio.) I mention football because I’m not wild about the use of instant replay in NFL games. I’m even less enthusiastic about the specter of any role it might play in boxing matches.
Friday, July 24, 2009
Lawyer-boxer Joey Gilbert Forms Firm with Partners in Reno, NV
Congratulations, Mr. Gilbert, on the start of your new firm. May it bring a lot of success for you, your partners, and your clients.
A recap of the other lawyer-boxers I've featured on this blog is available here.
Friday, July 10, 2009
Replying to "The Generation M Manifesto"
Umair,
Thanks for posting this thought-provoking manifesto. There is much that I like about it. There is also much that I don't like. Initially, calling it a "manifesto" is problematic for reasons that, I think, are self-evident.
More seriously, many of the ideas you espouse in the Manifesto are not really "new," and certainly do not originate with "Generation M." On the contrary, they are the aspirations of humanity, including most, if not all, humans alive today. Casting the Manifesto as an answer to a supposed intergenerational conflict appears to misunderstand the division that has prompted you to write this statement of aspirations. It's not a matter of "old" vs. "young" or even "old" vs. "new." What you are seeking is human progress, not a division based on age.
That progress does not depend on age or upon a new "generation" (presumably a wiser and more enlightened one) as you use that term. Instead, it depends on people working together. Let us unite, rather than divide, our potential allies in this work. Note my use of “us” and “our” here; it’s intentional. I consider myself part of the “M” generation that you describe. For the record, I’m 45 years young. People like my parents are also part of the “M” generation, but if you use a demographic term to describe what is really a social movement, then we might leave them out. If you do that, you’ll alienate a lot of talented people who have contributed much to the world—people, including many of those you deride—whose work has, at least in part, made it possible for you to be blogging your ideas here.
I recommend you add another “M” to your list: mindfulness. Mindfulness has its roots in ancient teachings, and is increasingly used in areas such as psychology, psychotherapy, medicine and healthcare, law, and even economics and business. Without this important “M” (or call it “consciousness,” if you prefer), we are likely to commit the same mistakes as those “old people” in your salutation, and probably even worse mistakes as technology advances and exacerbates the impact of our mistakes. (Eckhart Tolle discusses this last phenomenon, what he calls “technology in the service of madness,” in his best-selling book, A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life’s Purpose.)
Finally, please lose the “Dear old people” in your salutation. It’s unnecessarily—and probably unwittingly and unintentionally—offensive and sets a negative tone right from the start.
Overall, I like the Manifesto. You have collected several important ideas that deserve attention, individually, as well as holistically. I’d like to see more discussion of these themes in a context that does not depend on conflict between “generations.” After all, like it or not, we really are all in this together.
Thanks again.
Thursday, July 09, 2009
Walking the Walk
Friday, June 19, 2009
Nerdcore Boxing Returns!
To the rest of my readers, I encourage you to read his blog. As you can see from his past blog entries, he publishes a lot of useful content and logs his experiences, which seem fairly similar to my own adventures in the sweet science.
Hat tip to Marc at My Boxing Blog, who keeps punching as the Australian winter sets in.
Thursday, June 18, 2009
A Training Update
Here's the roadwork recap for this week.
Sunday: 1 hour and 10 minutes
Monday: 47 minutes
Wednesday: 1 hour and 1 minute
Thursday: 34 minutes
Not terrible, but not ideal. I'm planning to get some gym time Friday morning, and do some cycling before this week is over.
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