Leanne Kavanagh, February 2009, vol. 1, no. 18

I can clearly remember, as if it were yesterday, my drive home after my first alternating punch out (or week Eight ) with WBK.  It was a Saturday afternoon in February of 2005 and for the first time in over five months, I felt like I didn't have a care in the world.  The endorphin rush I felt on the drive brought me straight to my parent’s home, as I wanted to share this joy with someone.  I can still see my reflection in the window of their front door, as I sprinted up the steps.  I looked like an excited kid coming home to tell their parents about making the team or passing the big exam.  I also looked slightly out of control, but I didn’t care, because I hadn’t felt anything in such a long time that this was a moment I wanted to embrace.  I bulldozed through the front door and by this time my mother had met me in the entrance with this concerned look on her face (she must have thought I had gone off the deep end). I am sure I still had pieces of sweat drenched hair stuck to the sides of my face, but I proceeded to explain the torture I had just put my body through.  I was just so excited!  With a puzzled look in her eye, my mother said, “And you call this fun?” Really though, she didn’t care what I had done, because she knew from the glow on my face, that something inside me had changed.   Something inside me did change that afternoon.   I can’t really explain it, but I just know it did and I believe without a doubt that that was the starting of an inner transformation for me. From that point on, I had completely bought into the WBK system and have committed myself to each and every workout since.

Without dwelling on the negative, I think it is important to understand who I was before I came to WBK. As I have previously mentioned in my ‘Boxing For Better Living’ profile (www.wbk.ca/b4bl.html) I was downtrodden and basically, miserable.  I had just recently ended an unhealthy marriage (something I had been hiding for years) and was dealing with all the shame, guilt, and embarrassment that accompanies not only a divorce, but the fact that I had let my life get so completely out of control.   I had spent much of the last 10 years of my life walking on egg shells and words like passive and insecure come to mind when I think of myself back then. Thankfully, there was still some spirit left within me and once I found WBK and a will to survive through the hardest time of my life, there was no turning back.  I believe in my first years of training with WBK I was punching to save my life.  With every punch I became stronger, I stood a little taller, life became clearer and I started to rebuild myself.  Today, I look back at those times and I can’t believe how far I’ve come.  

WBK works.  The system and training are something I swear by.  I no longer punch to ‘save my life’, but rather I train to be the very best I can be.  I commit myself to every workout.  I try to hit the hardest and fastest I can.  Yes, there are days I don’t feel like doing it and the anticipation of what I have to put my body through can psyche me out even before getting my wraps on.  Yet, I push through every hour and the end result is worth all the sweat and aches.  I am sure anyone who trains at WBK would attest to the fact that a punch out can cure most daily troubles and give you the strength you need to face tomorrow’s obstacles.  In Level 2, I decided to train twice a week.  It was a juggling act at first to budget both classes and very often I conveniently found myself showing up on my parent’s front step during the supper hour.  There I would shadow box on my mother, tell of these ‘ridiculous’ skipping techniques I was supposed to be able to do and of course show off my whip marks and bruised knuckles all with a huge grin on my face.  Both my parents would look at me like I was nuts and then my mother would go on again to say, “And you call this fun?” I think it was in my earlier years at WBK that they also started to believe in the system because of the new energy and outlook it had brought to my life.

Last April, I was very honoured when Chris and Dana decided to promote me to Level 7: WBK’s Coaching Program.   I had hoped that I would be able to draw parallels between my coaching and my career as a teacher (Other than the importance and dependency on bells!).  As I reflect back on my short journey as a coach, I can see that there are definite similarities between the two.  As a teacher, I believe that the best lessons come from being prepared, just as you need to be ready and prepped for your WBK lessons.  However, I believe that exceptional lessons (the ones that ‘inspire’ students to be their very best) come from being passionate about what you’re teaching.  As an educator, there really isn’t a better feeling than being in front of a group of students who are completely engaged in what you’re presenting to them.  The energy at that moment is very uplifting.  As a coach at WBK, I feel that same energy when I’m presenting material and all eyes are on me.

 I get that rush when I know my students are in the zone and pushing themselves through a boxathon and/or punch out.  I am beginning to recognize that point when the body gives way and your mind takes over, getting you through the rest of your workout.  Now that is something to witness!  As a teacher, the rewards are indescribable when a student first learns to read, just as they are in coaching when a student’s eyes light up because they’ve reached a new PB in double skips.  By no means, am I saying that coaching is easy, just as the training isn’t easy.  Both are hard work and require a level of commitment in order to be successful.  In both teaching and coaching, there is something that makes it easier when you believe in what you’re doing.  

I love being part of an organization where the leaders completely believe whole heartedly in what they are doing.  Chris and Dana (along Kent and Brent) are committed to excellence where their coaching is concerned.  Chris and Dana encourage their coaches to be their best and push them to levels I honestly never knew existed...which brings me to SPARTA!!  THE SPARTA EVALUATION occurs every “ Week 8” and consists of four Skill, Strength and Conditioning Tests for WBK Coaches.  I remember in Level 5, seeing Kent and Brent go to the weight room after class and knowing it had something to do with being in Level 7.  I thought maybe they were doing a little cool down stretching or lifting a little weight. Never had I imagined they'd be lifting their whole body up over a bar!!?

Last April, I watched in awe as both Kent and Brent persevered through 4 three minute rounds of intense forward and backward skipping (crossovers and double skips) and 4 three minute rounds of grueling strength testing (pull ups, chin ups and push ups) I watched knowing that I would be doing the same in 8 more weeks! What was I getting myself into?  Now, you may see me grabbing my green milk crate after class on my way to the weight room (which I stand on when I do my SPARTA training).  I’ll admit that even working out in that weight room which is predominantly male has been a feat for me in itself.

When I started I could barely get myself off that milk crate.  Both Chris and Dana continued to encourage me, reminding me to be patient and that I would make gains.  I have and I should have known, because as in all training at WBK, it works if you commit.  I’m still on my milk crate, but my feet touch it a little less with every SPARTA evaluation.  One day, I know I won’t be needing it anymore and I’ll be able to do my chin ups and pull ups all on my own.  I have that much faith in the system and in my desire to pull myself up off the ground!                       

WBK is set up in a way that if you commit to it, you’re going to succeed.  We will provide the opportunity, encourage and correct you and your job is to do the reps. The reps and your desire will move you through the system.  I have gone off on my boxing spiel to so many people over the years, that I’ve lost track. I do so confidently because I know it works!  Chris once told me when I was struggling with my SPARTA training to keep it up and to see the training as “water dripping on a rock.”  He’s right, at first many tasks before us at WBK may seem so out of reach, yet drop by drop (repetition), we can break down our limitations and achieve more than we ever thought possible!  It works and yes, mother, it’s fun too!!                              

Leanne Kavanagh