What does it take to reach a peak-form level of strength? The pros from Absolute Health & Fitness chat with Scottish boxing guru Ryan Scott to find out what it takes to get fit as a fighter.

As I write this article, I’m currently back home in my beloved Glasgow, Scotland. Currently, it’s a bitter cold four degrees Celsius and I

can barely feel my ears and fingertips. I’m situated in an old, no-frills results-focused gym, huddling around the one radiator that works. I’ve not long finished my training session and I’m still trying to recuperate from the lactic acid present in my legs from pushing the dreaded prowler – a simple yet brutal piece of equipment that you merely push, but makes you scream to the high heavens.

By Jonny Parr Beside me is local professional boxer Ryan Scott. Today is his second session of the day in which his trainer Andy Tsang, is looking to develop his strength, power output, work capacity and general conditioning. His first session started at 6:00 a.m. when he ran up hills and flights of stairs. Sound crazy? Well he wasn’t finished there. In the evening he was to have his third and regular skills-based session specific to his adored boxing.

This type of commitment has a reason of course, as Ryan is to compete in a huge boxing event in May against Scottish Middleweight Champion Gary McCallum. With such an important match on the horizon, I had a huge interest in how he, and other boxers, prepare for such a mentally and physically-draining event. This has led me to observe how he trains and what he eats, courtesy of his strength and conditioning coach Andy Tsang.

Typical Week Mon: GPP/Strength and Conditioning (with Andy) & Boxing Tues: GPP & Boxing Wed: GPP/Strength and Conditioning (with Andy) & Boxing Thurs: GPP & Boxing Fri: GPP/Strength and Conditioning (with Andy) & Boxing Sat: GPP & Boxing Sun: Rest or Active Rest (40-minute run) *GPP – General Physical Preparedness

Timing Schedule Of A Typical Day 6:00 a.m. – GPP 12 noon – Strength and Conditioning/Injury Reduction/Postural Work 7:00 p.m. – Boxing (skill-training)

SPORTS

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What does it take to be the

top of your game? We head

into the ring to find out!

Diet, dedication and stamina

are an athlete's training trifecta

We will focus on his Strength and Conditioning/Injury Reduction/Postural Work sessions that currently take place three times per week. Here’s an example of a session he undertook.

Warm-Up A: Foam-rolling B: Dynamic warm-up C: Activation D: CNS – Jump squats 3 sets of 10 reps

Power-Based Movement 1 A: Hip power-snatch, 3 sets of 5 reps

Power-Based Movement 2 A: Trap-bar dead-lift, 3 sets of 5 reps

Assistance Exercises (Superset*) A1: Paused barbell back squats, 3 sets of 5 reps A2: T-bar rows, 3 sets of 5-10 reps * Performed the above exercises back-to-back with no rest.

Core A: Abs wheel roll-outs, 3 sets of 10 reps

Restoration A: Static stretching B: Foam rolling

Typical Food Schedule 5:00 a.m. – Porridge/oats/blueberries/raspberries 7:30 a.m. – Chicken, sweet potato and vegetables 11:00 a.m. – Apple and banana 1:30 p.m. – Omelet and vegetables. Spoonful of peanut butter. 5:00 p.m. – Apple and banana 8:30 p.m. – Fish, vegetables and brown rice Note - Ryan also has three post-workout protein shakes.

It’s clear from the breakdowns above that to compete at the very highest level within boxing requires a great degree of commitment, discipline, planning and having the correct social network and professionals working with these athletes in their respective fields.

In almost all instances preparation is key and Ryan couldn’t be more prepped at the moment as he looks forward to battling on the canvas yet again. While we all don’t adhere to being professional boxers we can all take lessons from how they prepare in terms of nutrition and training. I’m not suggesting training three times per day but certainly incorporating

elements such as GPP, Strength Training, Injury Reduction and Postural Work can all benefit us when we look to our own personal fitness and nutritional routines. What’s more, for a lot of us, eating six times per day is unrealistic – but having at least three balanced meals per day will pay dividends to both your fitness and health.

If you want to be more functional, drop body-fat, get stronger and generally feel better, then key components used to improve boxing performance are real areas for you and everyone to consider. I personally intend to include elements of what I learned from both Ryan and Andy. Certainly, I’ll be using boxing drills with clients to improve their conditioning. I’m sure they’ll enjoy and revel in this type of training – you guys should consider it also. n

Jonny Parr is the founder and CEO of Absolute Health & Fitness. For more information on personal training options call 3385-2696 or visit www.absolutehealthandfitness.org.

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