Why Do You Box?

[mgkirkpatrick]

it wont go 2 the ground tho wen ur really good,he will be the only 1 goin 2 the ground lol

tru that. dude u probably think im stalkin u around agreeing with everything u say by now haha

[fraidycat]

i remember reading or hearing ( somewhere forget where entirely, might have even been on here ) dialogue that went like this...

other guy - why dont u play a normal sport like basketball or football?

boxer - cause i dont like sports that only require one ball

or something like that.. best response i ever heard.

That was my first sig: "I box because football, basketball, tennis, and golf all only require one ball."

[mgkirkpatrick]

That was my first sig: "I box because football, basketball, tennis, and golf all only require one ball."

ah yeah i remember that now. but im pretty sure ive read it somewhere else too..

[fraidycat]

As to why I box:

I started off doing "Boxing Fitness" to try to lose some weight, and in the hopes that I might learn something about self-defense (yeah, yeah -- WTF did I know?) because things were heating up with my crank-dealing next-door neighbor. I quickly realized that "Boxing Fitness" wasn't going to do jack for me, and I tried several "real" boxing gyms, ultimately opting for the toughest one I could find. One that had blood on the canvas and duct-taped equipment, in a really bad neighborhood.

I went to that gym 3-4 nights a week for six months. I came home bleeding and bruised more often than I want to think about, forced myself up at 4:30 AM to do my roadwork, lifted weights on off nights, cut out beer and soda pop and bad food; I even started taking my coffee black. My wife iced my eye and rubbed Tiger Balm into my back every night, and God bless her, she understood.

I've lost 30 pounds. My neighbor sucker-punched me and ended up in the hospital -- his place is on the market and I haven't seen him in two months. My self-confidence is through the roof: my boss, my co-workers, even the pushy Audi-driving ******* in the parking lot at the coffee shop this morning, all "see something" when I look at them, and back the **** off -- not that I'm a badass, not that I'm looking for a fight; I'm just comfortable in confrontation, which is something that's been missing from my life for 30 years and I've suffered for it. Now, if someone gets in my face, my pulse doesn't even change. My reflexes and reaction speed are greatly improved -- I no longer "freeze" when something happens; I react. In my line of work, that might save my life. Or someone else's.

I'm different because of boxing. Stronger, tougher, better suited to dealing with the ugly patches of my life. The only thing I don't like about boxing is that I didn't pick it up twenty years ago. The good news is, the next twenty years should be a lot more fun.

[Ringo]

I got into boxing (I dont yet, but I'm waiting on the lady at USA boxing to respond to my email) because I got tired of T.O., honestly. There's something really clean cut about the sport. There is no guessing about why people whine, no negotiating shoe deals, no mini camps where you ride a bike. You get in shape, you come to fight, you get paid. If you skip a step, people KNOW why, and the reasons are simple: you didn't want it, or you didn't think you could win. Cut and dry is how all sports should be, and there are only a handful that actually are. Boxing has the greatest champions because they rely on themselves and their ability to physically dominate or outlast someone. If I was going to be affiliated with any sport (after playing soccer and baseball for 12+ years, each), boxing would be it.

[slickwalt210]

the ring is the only place where my demons can be let loose and it relieves the stresses of day to day life... it's kill or be killed... when i am in the ring i think of the missed meals as a kid, having only three pairs of pants for school, barely eating, sleeping outside sometimes, no parents who cared.. if it wasn't for boxing, i would have been dead or in jail..

anybody can play on a team and ride the bench, but there are no benches in boxing...

you play basketball, football and baseball. you don't play boxing.. larry merchant

[Nacho_Analstain]

tru that. dude u probably think im stalkin u around agreeing with everything u say by now haha

lol nah its cool,thers only a few of us online

[The Raging Bull]

I started watching some fights on T.V and having previously seen the rocky films etc I took up an interest in boxing. I decided to look for a gym to try it out and see if I liked it. I found a gym that was suitable and started going. I've never looked back since.

[hotbox2316]

'cause I cant sing or dance.

this is the same response i use

[GTL]

As to why I box:

I started off doing "Boxing Fitness" to try to lose some weight, and in the hopes that I might learn something about self-defense (yeah, yeah -- WTF did I know?) because things were heating up with my crank-dealing next-door neighbor. I quickly realized that "Boxing Fitness" wasn't going to do jack for me, and I tried several "real" boxing gyms, ultimately opting for the toughest one I could find. One that had blood on the canvas and duct-taped equipment, in a really bad neighborhood.

I went to that gym 3-4 nights a week for six months. I came home bleeding and bruised more often than I want to think about, forced myself up at 4:30 AM to do my roadwork, lifted weights on off nights, cut out beer and soda pop and bad food; I even started taking my coffee black. My wife iced my eye and rubbed Tiger Balm into my back every night, and God bless her, she understood.

I've lost 30 pounds. My neighbor sucker-punched me and ended up in the hospital -- his place is on the market and I haven't seen him in two months. My self-confidence is through the roof: my boss, my co-workers, even the pushy Audi-driving ******* in the parking lot at the coffee shop this morning, all "see something" when I look at them, and back the **** off -- not that I'm a badass, not that I'm looking for a fight; I'm just comfortable in confrontation, which is something that's been missing from my life for 30 years and I've suffered for it. Now, if someone gets in my face, my pulse doesn't even change. My reflexes and reaction speed are greatly improved -- I no longer "freeze" when something happens; I react. In my line of work, that might save my life. Or someone else's.

I'm different because of boxing. Stronger, tougher, better suited to dealing with the ugly patches of my life. The only thing I don't like about boxing is that I didn't pick it up twenty years ago. The good news is, the next twenty years should be a lot more fun.

thats sick man.. i honestly feel for you. i have tons of respect for people like you who do that..

its like motivation u kno