Coach Ian – Week in Review:
What I’m Reading:
Last week I summarized a few points in the book, such as:
- How some of the teachings from this book (and Oxygen Advantage) helped me in the my running and PR a marathon
- I covered topics such as Emil Zatopek’s hypoventilation techniques to win the Olympic Gold medal, Konstantin Buteyko’s breathing methods for overall health, and Phil Maffetone’s heart rate training to avoid the “black hole”.
- A summary of the benefits of Nadi Shodhana Pranayama or alternate nostril breathing.
“There are dozens of alternate nostril breathing techniques. I’ve started with the most basic. It involves placing an index finger over the left nostril and then inhaling and exhaling only through the right. I did this two dozen times after each meal today, to heat up my body and aid my digestion. Before meals, and any other time I wanted to relax, I’d switch sides, repeating the same exercise with my left nostril open. To gain focus and balance the body and mind, I followed a technique called surya bheda pranayama, which involves taking one breath into the right nostril, then exhaling through the left for several rounds.”
-James Nestor, Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art
This week, I moved into the section on changes in our evolution and how industrialized food shrinks out mouths and destroys our breathing.
“For me and the majority of the population, the best medicine, Gelb said, is preventative. It involves reversing the entropy in our airways so that we can avoid sleep apnea, anxiety, and all the chronic respiratory problems as we grow older. It involves expanding the too-small mouth.”
“Breath” James Nestor
Boxing Shares of the Week:
I wrote a comprehensive guide to the non-technical aspects of your first boxing match. While many fighters are consumed with their boxing development and making weight, there are several things when you actually go to an event that you should know (i.e. don’t come with a red mouthpiece, Gatorade bottle, and unauthorized headgear, stop tapping gloves, etc.)
I’m overwhelmed by the feedback, from fighters intending to compete, who have competed, and coaches, this article has received!! Feel free to bookmark this article as it can serve as a checklist before competition.
Julio Cesar Chavez vs Meldrick Taylor:
As part of the article noted above, I also wrote about the importance of paying attention to the ref if you are given a standing eight count. Many fighters aren’t told what to do in the case they are given an eight-count, perhaps because coaches like to pretend that it won’t happen to them. But a fighter must be prepared for the scenario in which both he or she scores an eight-count, or has one given to them.
In this fight, Meldrick Taylor was winning handily in the 12th round, before getting caught with a devastating punch that knocked him down with 15 seconds left. Meldrick Taylor was clearly hurt, and Richard Steele stopped the fight in a controversial stoppage that many observers disagreed with. There’s a great HBO documentary on this (would highly recommend watching!) and you learn that promoter Lou Duva was yelling at Meldrick Taylor after he was knocked down, causing Meldrick Taylor to look away from the referee before the ref stopped the fight.
Julio Cesar Chavez vs Meldrick Taylor I
This just goes to show that this kind of stoppage can happen in the amateurs, as well as in the professional ranks. We’ve seen this happen at amateur fighters as well, when a fighter walks away from the referee instead of following instructions. While it sounds simple, you have to understand that the venue can get quite loud and fighters may get distracted in that moment.
The Kaiser Permanente Half Marathon:
The Kaiser Permanente San Francisco Half Marathon, 10K & 5K are GOING VIRTUAL and I’m joining in as an official Ambassador! Enter any of the races individually or sign up for the “Triple” Peaks Challenge to tackle all three. You’ll receive a participant shirt and medal just for signing up. Registration opens, Nov. 2nd.
This Week at Dreamland Boxing (11/14/2020) – Happy Birthday to our photographer Brett Ostrowski, Sandra Magallon, Vicky Zhao, and Mark Salgado continue their intense workouts, Training for Your First Fight, Dreamland Boxing gloves for sale, and learning the peek-a-boo style of boxing, as inspired by Slapsie Maxie Rosenbloom.