Countdown

This is part where things start to get hairy. It's one week to day of my fight. I've been sick (last week), away (all weekend), and busy (working this week). In short, I feel fat, flabby, and unprepared. However, I've been thinking a lot. And envisioning how this has to go. I know how I need to fight and I have the ability to do it. I know what to expect (which is usually not the case). And I'm expecting worse than it's ever been in the ring with my opponent. Make no mistake, I do not believe she's unleashed her full capabilities on me in a sparring session. But then again, neither have I.

I think my biggest advantage will be my experience level and comfort in the ring. I'm ready for the show.

Tonight and tomorrow are my last two sparring sessions. My stomach is turning.

Purple is the new Black

My first substantial boxing injury comes in a lovely deep purple color. Luckily, one that can be masked with some purple and black eye shadow. I'm heavy on the makeup this week.

I got hit with an elbow in an early sparring round on Wednesday. I felt her elbow bone hit my left eyebrow bone, but after the initial shock I didn't think too much of it. Then as I was attempting to watch the next round, I could barely keep the eye open and it was slightly throbbing. Of course, I did another round, wherein she accidently (cause we were only throwing rights in that round) threw a jab that caught me off guard. It landed squarely on the left eye. Naturally, I couldn't stop there and did an additional round of sparring during which I didn't get hit significantly, but enough that it just exacerbated the bruise.

I iced the eyebrow when I got home, while watching Project Runway, of course. But I failed to ice the entire eye, which was a mistake I believe. The brow line is still a bit swollen but it's not red/purple. However, the eyelid is precisely the color I've been craving for fall.

My Profile

I have to close my ears and eyes to enjoy this...

http://www.dealmakerdaily.com/boxing/pictures.html

Yay!

Martin was back today! Hurrah!!! He worked with Danielle and I on a pivot move that I'm now in love with. I'm going to pivot all day long now. 

For your viewing enjoyment:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q6XhhGNU-wc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AxWwKSZXXO0

Sparkle!

All that practicing paid off! I laided 1-2 of those slip, upper, left to the body combos. And I got another couple good rights to the body in at sparring tonight. John told me to just eliminate my left hooks altogether for the time being, they're too wide and badly timed. Whatevs, I'm a body girl. I'm just going to stick with that and jabbing. 

Julie and I are campaigning to wear skirts in this fight. She found these awesome muay thai skirts that look like the skirt that Xena the Warrior princess wears! As long as the USA boxing people, the people sponsoring the fight, and John agree to it, we get to wear them for our fight "costumes"! So John and the sponsors are ok with it - but the USA boxing officials are incredibly elusive. 

John told me to try to get in touch with Sparkle... who actually was my first fight referee. I seriously adore this woman. #1 She weighed me in and was really sweet, it was my first fight and she made me feel totally comfortable #2 After the fight (I lost) she came over to my side of the ring and said "You're one tough cookie." It's one of the nicest things anyone's ever said to me and #3 Dude, her name is Sparkle - I want to be named Sparkle! I hope she remembers me. (Wow, I also hope I don't sound stalkerish.) 

 

Just do it

I spent about 6 rounds doing this: slip right, upper right, left to the body. 

Isaac was working with me on this in the ring, only when I do it I don't lean far enough to the left after the upper right (using the momentum to shift my weight) and then I don't sit down enough when throwing the left to the body. 

So I moved from the ring to the wall bag. Upper, left. Upper, left. Instead of sitting on the left, I'm still pushing forward straightening my right leg. Treating what should be a wide left to the body instead like a left hook. Isaac moves me to the mirror. 

I practice facing him. Slip, upper, left to the body. I'm not getting it. We work on the sitting... it's like you're sitting in a chair, not turning the foot like a hook. We practive while hovering above the bench to feel the sitting. Slip, upper right, left to the body. 

Extend the left arm on the body shot, it's wide, not a hook. Slip, upper right, left to the body. Shift to the left after throwing the upper. Slip, upper right, left to the body. 

I think I've got it. But I'm afraid I'll be thinking so much about doing this right when trying it in sparring tomorrow that I'll get hit with a hook to the head, just after the body shot. Oh, I can feel it already. 

Don't think, just do. Think, do. Just do, don't think. Don't think. Just do it. 

Wonder if the guys who came up with that slogan were boxers?

Made a video today

Not the dirty kind that shouldn't get into the hands of strangers. Well, there is some blood at the end, though I'm not sure the handheld camcorder picked up on that. 

We taped our sparring today and it was only Hannah, Julie and I (i.e. the three more experienced of the sparring bunch). We rotated so that we each did 4 rounds, 2 rounds with each person. Given my major disadvantage (one must refrain from eating sausage before sparring), it went surprisingly well. 

First of all, I majorly held back on being the aggressive puncher and worked on my defense. As Julie put it, I do aggression well and I do defense well, I just need to get to the point where the two work in harmony. But I slipped many more punches today and landed some good ones, apparently a right went right to Julie's "babymaker"...I'd been working on that punch all week. 

Second of all, there's nothing like watching yourself spar that helps you to see that, despite obvious critiques you may have, you're actually a good fighter. I feel like I'm in slow motion when I'm sparring, but I actually had some good, fast punches in there. I get wild in about my third round, which I could see the difference when viewing the tape. Hopefully, now that I can see what that looks like it will help me to correct. 

And finally, I stopped beating myself up and stopped hating myself in the ring. I put my brain on mute and tried to keep my cool. Apparently, it's obvious to Julie when I'm losing it. She said she told me to "breathe" in the fourth round cause I was visibly started to get frustrated. I must read like a book. I wonder if I'm like that in life? 

Today was good and fun, and I left with a lovely red bruise on my eye and the side of my nose. Luckily, I'm also pretty handy with eye makeup.