First Amateur Boxing Match: Training Week 3

On to week three...

Sunday
Various Skills, Bag, and Timing Training - Review of errors and improvements based on yesterday's sparring session
Training Time - 1 1/2 hours

Monday
Light Drills and Bag Work - 1 hour

Tuesday AM
Bag Work - 3min rounds @ 30 sec rest
Round 1 - Jump Rope
Round 2 - Runboxing
Round 3 & 4 - Stretching
Round 5 & 6 - Gear Up
Round 7 - Heavy Bag - Warm Up
Round 8 - Heavy Bag - Jab Hand Only
Round 9 - Heavy Bag - Power Hand Only
Round 10 - Heavy Bag - Straight Punches Only
Round 11 - Heavy Bag - Open Round
Round 12 - Shadowboxing w/ Gloves On
Round 13 - Shadowboxing w/o Gloves
Round 14 - 16 - Stretching
*For all working rounds throw 8 punch flurry and jab out at least every third combination
Training Time - 1 hour

Tuesday PM
Boxing Class - 1 1/2 hours

Wednesday
Circuit Training:
100 jumping jacks
5 x 20 push ups (regular, fingertip, wide, narrow, reversed grip)
5 x 20 squats (regular, wide, narrow, right lunge, left lunge)
10 leg lifts (full 180 degrees)
50 flutter kicks (single count)
50 standing trunk twists (single count)
20 crunches
20 twist crunches (single count)
Shadowboxing with gloves - 3 x 2 min @ 30 sec rest
Shadowboxing w/o gloves - 1 x 2 min
Cool Down - Neck Exercises and Stretching
Training Time - 30 min

Thursday
Bag Work:
2 min Rounds @ 30 sec rest
Round 1 - Jump Rope
Round 2 - Shadowboxing
Round 3 & 4 - Stretching
Round 5 & 6 - Wrap Hands
Round 7 - Heavy Bag Warm Up
Round 8 - Heavy Bag Jab Hand Only
Round 9 - Heavy Bag Power Hand Only
Round 10 - Heavy Bag All Punches
Round 11 - Heavy Bag All Punches
Round 12 - Rest
Round 13 & 14 - Slip Rope Single Slip
Round 15 & 16 - Slip Rope Double / Triple Slip
Round 17 - 19 - Shadowboxing
Cool Down - Stretching
Training Time - 1 Hour

Friday
Rest

Saturday
Sparring - 11 Rounds
Offense / Defense Drill - 2 Rounds
Training Time - 2 Hours

Weekly Notes
Weekly Training Hours - 8.5
Camp Training Hours - 19.5
Camp Sparring Rounds - 19
*No Change In Weight

1. Conditioning - My coach has informed me that my stamina is already adequate and that I am naturally strong / powerful, thus I should focus on refining my skills before my bout.  With that in mind you will note that where I had planned a Strength and Conditioning day on Wednesday in previous weeks I have replaced that with a more moderate skill oriented workout.
2. Unplanned Cheat Meal Monday Night - Even the best of us cave to our sweet, grease, or junk food cravings now and then.  The best thing I've learned to do is to shake it off and continue on a your good diet as normal without trying to compensate the next day.  DO NOT do this, it will only increase the likelihood of you needing/wanting to induce an additional binge/cheat.  If you've been doing a good job with your diet, your body will quickly (and literally) dump most of the excess just like on your planned cheat day or meal.  I am also not terribly concerned about this as I am satisfied with my current weight and body composition (PBF).  I'm not trying to lose a significant amount of weight for this competition currently weighing 165.5 and competing at 162 lbs.
3. Cheating on Diets Explained (RANT) - There are a lot of idea floating out there about cheating on diets.  Some prefer to spew a soundbite from a magazine or website about how eating healthy is a "lifestyle change."  Frankly, I don't know whether to puke or punch them in the face when I hear that.  There are two main functions of a and abnormally high flux in calories (ie:  a cheat or break from your "good" diet).  The first is the psychological reprieve or reward.  Everyone deserves a vacation now and then and your diet should be no different, so long as the cheat remains the exception and does not become the rule.  Once a week is a good idea, due to factors (genetics, activity level, and size of cheat meal) two may be acceptable, but three or more creates concern for your diet as a whole.  The second benefit is a physical one in which your metabolism spikes to compensate for the excess calories and can actually allow weight loss faster!  Not to mention that when your body is conditioned to "clean" food and you suddenly consume a large amount of **** food; that is just what you'll do and it will be gone before it has digested fully.  As to the size of the cheat meal, I myself have tossed around comparisons of single cheat meals, entire cheat days, or binge periods of 4-6 hours.  The single meal does not provide as much of a psychological benefit as the entire day, but the long term calorie surplus is a negative aspect that you will need to recover from.  Another important aspect to keep in mind is to not sweat the small stuff.  A couple pieces of hard candy are not going to kill you and certainly don't mean that you have to tell yourself that since you already broke your diet you might as well go on a binge and shoot the whole day down the crapper.  DO NOT do that, I've done that many times myself and it is NOT productive.  On that note keep in mind a concept of lesser evils.  For whatever reasons you're getting a sweet tooth and eyeing down a box of Krispy Creame Doughnuts.  Then you see some cookies sitting next to them.  If two cookies keep you from eating half a dozen doughnuts, take the cookies.  On the other hand; if a banana and an apple keep you from eating the cookies, though you still have a calorie surplus, take the fruit for its nutritional value.  The bottom line with cheating is to remember that the less than perfect plan that you can adhere to for a long time is infinitely more effective than the perfect plan you cannot stick to for more than a couple days.
4. 4-Hour Body Tips Added - My two favorite dieting books are "The Diet Solution" by Scivation (which is the basis of the diet I currently follow) and "The 4-Hour Body by Time Ferriss.  I have frequently referenced Ferriss in other posts and there are a few useful tidbits I am reapplying.  I am taking cold showers after training session for a metabolic boost and to reduce inflammation.  I am icing the back of my neck before bed for the same reasons.  Additionally I am keeping a weekly list of foods to eat on my cheat day as well as implementing 90 seconds of exercise before and after each cheat meal.  Ferriss also recommends fruit (my preference is juice - cranberry, apple, grape, or grapefruit) be consumed with cheat meals because fructose (the sugar in fruit) slows digestion.  Also, a caffeine source should be included with cheat meals for its diuretic effect (renal blood flow to be more specific).  I know that my initial diet plan only allowed a single cheat meal per week but the reality (for me anyway) is that these often stretch for a couple hours thus making the above principles still applicable, only in a more moderate sense.
5. Sparring Notes - I felt much better this week.  I feel like my techniques are starting to take shape nicely.  I do not feel ready for my fight yet, but that is expected; I still have another two weeks to "peak."  There are a few things I still need to work on.  My "homework" from my coaches is A)  Keep my elbows in when throwing punches (don't throw wide punches), B) Keep my power hand higher on the chin when jabbing and make sure the jab comes back high, C)  Lead with punches and not with my head, DO NOT "walk" in, D) When I get inside, keep the pressure ON!, and lastly E)  RELAX!