Long and arduous are the two words that come to mind when describing my road to being physically fit. Life as a severely obese high school student made me popular with the football team but presented many other challenges on a more social level. As a result, I’ve always been on a quest to be in the best shape that I could. Some times with great results, some times, not so much. I can still fully appreciate the hardships of a person who struggles with his/her weight.
In 2000 I discovered Muay Thai, an intense sport from Thailand. To date, it still ranks as the best work out I’ve ever had, and I base most of my training with clients on the things I’ve learned while training myself. With that said, it’s pretty obvious that most of my clients have no desire to ever step in the ring, so I complement their workouts with a balanced program of free weights, flexibility training and cardio vascular exercise. Like most people who start training Muay Thai, I had no desire to get into the ring, six years later that all changed, when I decided to enter the World Kickboxing Association’s national tournament. Taking second place in a field of eight was very rewarding but left me with regrets. I have continued fighting on an amateur level and amassed a record of 2 wins with 2 KO’s and 2 losses.
One of the things that has helped me immensely in my training has been my work as a Muay Thai instructor and my work as a personal trainer at various fitness clubs in NYC. Teaching Muay Thai has helped me learn how to realize and correct my clients and students mistake and more importantly realize and correct my own mistakes, not to mention helping my clients/students who want to fight get in the ring and perform at high levels. In January of 2010, I decided to escape the cold of NYC and spend time traveling and training in Thailand. It turned out to be one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. I trained twice per day for roughly three hours per session with some of Thailand’s best Thai boxers. The closest thing I can compare it too would be like going to spring training with the NY Yankees. It was a great way to shore up some of my old techniques and learn some new skills, but most importantly it left me feeling highly invigorated and motivated to get my students/clients into the best shapes of their lives.
I’m really excited to announce a new chapter as I begin teaching classes with the team at Hinds Combat Sports.
