It all started with....

My current world began with beginning my 2009 New Year's Goals. My fitness goals were to simply find some workout that would:

a) whip me into shape
b) involve close to one-on-one training or specific instruction from a trainer/leader
c) hold me over until March, when I could get back on the warmer tennis courts
d) help me reach my goal of a bangin' body!

One sport, unexplored, came to mind- Boxing! Hmmmmm, this covers all my criteria and more. With the help of google, a quick call for information to Ultimate Gym of Charlotte, and one class observation, I WAS SOLD!

You may could call it love at first sight. As I entered the open, dingy, concrete warehouse, I new this was going to be the place. Next, the question was, "What were all the guys here really going to think about a girl in their gym?" Well, you would be surprised! There were two other girls who had been training for over a month, one of which I knew. Besides that, everyone I was introduced to was super friendly and accommodating. They were all excited about my interest, and encouraged me to sign up immediately!! I was so impressed with the intense workout that I witnessed on my observation day. Not only was boxing in session, but in the main ring an MMA class was going on concurrently. With in the first 10 minutes of observing, I heard warnings from the instructor to the guys who were athletically twisted in bear holds to "not elbow your partners in the face!" WOW!

[quietly contemplating the excitement to myself I thought...] "This is going to be interesting!"

Smiles! Amber

Relaxed Fit Photography

I wanted to take a minute and give a shout out to Relaxed Fit Photography for swinging by Ultimate Gym and taking some photos of me in action. Very sweaty, moody pictures...but they're awesome (and not just because I'm in them!).

We'll post more work from Relaxed Fit Photography in the future, so keep your eyes peeled (Ed note: what the hell does keep your eyes peeled mean anyway?). Big ups to Heather, the talent behind Relaxed Fit Photography, for the amazing shots.

-Megan

(You can click the header link to go directly to the photos or copy and paste the URL: http://relaxedfitphotography.blogspot.com/2009/06/killer-bee.html)

Queen Bee no. 4 [Abby]

I was watching an episode of the Biggest Loser one night - probably eating ice cream. They had Sugar Ray Leonard on the show leading one of the teams in a shadowboxing cardio class. It looked like so much fun! I've always enjoyed watching boxing, so I figured…why not give it a try.

The following week I signed up at Ultimate Gym here in Charlotte, NC, where I've been training for the past 3 months with Coach Leon Moffett, pro boxer, Roberto, and the baddest women in town: Megan, Melanie and Amber!

In the beginning, I just wanted to get in shape, challenge myself with cardio and upper body exercises. I didn't really see myself as a potential boxer. I remember the first time I worked on the heavy bag, I felt silly just hitting this bag. That lasted for about 15 minutes, then I was all into it!

I really fell in love with this sport. And the more I thought about it - it just made sense for me. I've always been a fighter in some capacity. When I was younger, my dad would praise me for being strong-willed and independent - kinda didn't work in his favor when I started those rebellious teenage years, but we're all good now. I just learned from him to stand up for myself and others, so now I am very engaged with community, art and political activism. I am very assertive concerning social justice issues and have participated in my fair share of protests and demonstrations.

So, I'm a fighter - mentally…and now, I'm working on the exterior (bangin' bod, right, ladies?)

I love my gym. I love my team. I'm really grateful for the help that everyone has so willingly offered, and I'm really proud to be working with these hardcore chicks!

I've come a long way the last few months, so I'm excited to see where this takes me!