As my journey towards Golden Gloves continues, things in my personal life have become a little difficult. With 4 weeks left until the tournament (less than 2 weeks now), I made a pact with myself, that I wasn't going to have any excuses. I was going to adhere to my routine, stay focused, battle through all injuries, and most importantly, get my work in and continue to train everyday and get my road work in(running schedule). Afterall, although most boxers are treating Golden Gloves very seriously, it's different for me, it's emotional. I've waited 42 years for this moment to compete at the sport I love. It is special for me to be a part of Team Destiny, it is even more special for me to be a part of our dynamic team, a team with such a range of quality people and personalities, I'm extremely happy and proud, just to be their team mate. It is also a special time for D-Mac and I, we've shared a special friendship and bond and have brought out the best in one another, Golden Gloves will provide some of the reward for that for sure. There are so many reasons that this is important for me, I don't know where to begin. I guess I just did! This is the start of my boxing career. By the time Golden Gloves starts, most competitors would've felt that they have waited 8 weeks for the day to arrive, I feel like I've waited my whole life. I get chills thinking about it, it brings me to tears almost every time.
The weight cut alas is over. After experiencing difficulty after getting to 142(I'm fighting at the 139lbs category), feeling weak in training and not looking good, I made a decision to not diet to drop weight, to eat healthy, no junk, and just train hard. I was prepared to go into the tournament at 143-144 and just cut the water weight the day of. I wasn't really looking forward to this, even though Syd felt I would be fine. This last week of training has been my best ever, and I have ignored the scale as much as possible, this morning I stepped on, and was overjoyed to discover that....I was 140lbs! I feel strong, look great(compared to looking almost sick at 142) and feel a big relief.
Along with the weight cut news, I have also made an effort to work with some guys at the gym doing mitts(pad work) whenever possible. I've also scheduled days with my roommate and my cousin to get extra work in as well. This has also aided in my improvement and has given me a lot of confidence that I can execute some combinations that I feel I can use and will be successful with. I have some 'tricks' up my sleeve for the tournament, I know I can pull it off.
I've also found a way to train with a serious injury that I got at the tryouts. I feel that it is almost healed and that I've mentally gotten tougher from this, it has raised my confidence and belief in myself even more. So, I'm building myself up, I feel better everyday, and I will have absolutely NO excuses come tournament time, I'm going to put it all out there, give it EVERYTHING I have, and have no regrets, whatsoever. I'm focused. Sure there are tons of things going on in my personal life,(things keep piling, my grandmother passed this morning) but I've learned from mistakes in the past, and I am staying focused on what I need do.
Most importantly, I'm going to have fun. I'm going to enjoy the moment. Every minute. I'm going to embrace the company of my teammates and celebrate their efforts. I'm going to fight like I've never fought before, I'm going to live out my dream, I'm going to compete with heart and love every second that I am in there, even when I'm getting punched in the face! I don't know if I will win, I don't know how I will perform, but I do know that when that bell sounds to end my time at GoldenGloves I will have nothing left, because I plan on leaving it all in the ring.
