Another Day of Intense Allergies

Saturday was another day off from training. The allergies are still pretty intense. I am hopeful, however, because all the rain we're having today should clear out a lot of the tree pollen that has been attacking so intensely. Of course, then there will be the mold... It's always something! Oh well, Sunday or Monday, I will definitely be back to my routine.

Allergies Attack!

Today did not go as I had planned it. The allergies came out swinging and were brutal today. They got me to take a standing 8-count today. Not fun. This means no Friday workout. But I will be back...hopefully as soon as Saturday.

Thursday's Easy Day

After some soreness from yesterday's workout, I took it easy today. I did only 24 minutes of roadwork. Tomorrow should be more intense.

Wednesday Training

Today was a good workout day. Here's the breakdown:

• 42 minutes of roadwork
• 6 rounds of shadowboxing
• 8 rounds of work on the pads with Bernard
• 3 rounds on the double-end bag
• 3 rounds on the uppercut bag
• 3 rounds on the heavy bag
• 2 rounds of situps and other abdominal exercises
• 1 round of stretching

That makes 26 total rounds. I am cranking it up. Today, we had a decent turnout: Mark V., Kevin, Cory, and me. Tim is still in Dallas. I'm hoping a few new guys--Ron, Rich, and Dan--will join us soon.

Bernard had us working on an intense drill on the pads. He has us alternately ducking a left hook, then countering with a hard left hook of our own, then ducking a right hook, and countering with a right hook of our own. It's brutal on the legs but it's an awesome drill for staying focused, staying on balance, and counterpunching. I managed to stay up on my toes pretty well and keep my balance and punch hard with either hand. It will be great if I can use that counterattack against a real opponent. We'll see. Hopefully, I'll get to try it out in sparring on Monday.

A Day of Rest

I am told that our muscles grow on the days we take off from exercising. Therefore, today, I am allowing my muscles to rest and to grow. I'll be back at the gym tomorrow.

Monday's Practice

Had a good practice today.

• 32 minutes of roadwork
• 4 rounds of shadowboxing
• 1 round of footwork drill to practice pivoting on left (lead) foot
• 2 rounds on double-end bag
• 2 rounds on uppercut bag
• 4 rounds on heavy bag
• 7 rounds of work on the pads with Bernard
• 2 rounds of stretching

In total, that's 22 rounds. A decent workout.

At practice were Mark V., Kevin, Andrew, and I. Tim is in Dallas all week, so he won't be back until Monday. I talked to Dan P. and he still wants to join us. I'm going to add Ron P. to our e-mail list because he is interested in joining us for some workouts.

Sunday Roadwork and Shadowboxing

William Shakespeare's birthday today. 30 minutes of roadwork with some shadowboxing mixed in.

Saturday Roadwork

1 hour and 1 minute today. Yeah, I like odd times; they make things more interesting. :-)

Friday's Routine

Again, more roadwork today: 51 minutes.

A Problem and a Possible Solution

Over at BoxingScene.com, Charles Jay has written a fascinating article about the economics of the professional side of our sport. Have a look; it's interesting stuff.

An Easy Thursday

Today I did only 21 minutes roadwork. In the early part of the day, I was a little sore from yesterday, so I decided to take it a bit easier. I'll hit it hard again tomorrow.

Wednesday's Workout

I cranked it up a bit today. Here's the recap.

• 44 minutes of roadwork
• 9 rounds of work on the pads with Bernard
• 2 rounds of stretching
• 4 rounds of shadowboxing
• 3 rounds on heavy bag
• 3 rounds on uppercut bag
• 3 rounds on double-end bag
• 1 round of situps

That's 25 rounds plus the roadwork. Yeah, it feels good.

Tonight Mark V., Kevin, Cory, and Mike B. were there. Tim was not there; I think he had to go to Dallas for work.

Tuesday Roadwork

Today's training was 28 minutes of roadwork; it was an "easy" day.

Today's Training

Our coach, Bernard O'Shea, returned from his vacation in sunny Cancún, Quintana Roo, México today. It's great that Bernard got to take a week off; he deserved the break, IMHO. Since he is back, the Chicago Athletic Association boxing team had its first scheduled practice since April 5. It's great to have him back.

Four of our club's boxers attended the workout: Justin (he's new), Mark V., Kevin, and me.

My workout was decent. Here's the breakdown:

• 28 minutes of roadwork
• 2 rounds of shadowboxing
• 8 rounds of work on the pads with Bernard
• 2 rounds on the heavy bag
• 2 rounds on the uppercut bag
• 3 rounds on the double-end bag
• 1 round of stretching

All in all, not a bad workout. I didn't get to do any sparring, but that's alright. There's always next time.

Welcome to the Lawyer-boxer's Blog!

Welcome to the Lawyer-boxer's Blog! What is this blog, you may ask? This blog belongs to Steve Imparl, a guy who lives in Chicago, who happens to be a lawyer and an amateur boxer.

I created this blog to chronicle my adventures in the Sweet Science and to share links to news and opinion articles, other boxing sites and blogs, and some of my own writing about the "manly art of self-defense."

Therefore, this blog will be more than just a training log, although it will be that, too. I'll offer my perspectives on boxing news and online resources. I hope you'll enjoy the site and come back often.

Thanks for visiting.