Erica's Killer Ab Workout

My body constantly reminds me that I'm not in as good of shape as I think I am.  While shadowboxing at Loyola Park, my right side kept bothering me.  It didn't start doing that until after I arrived at the gym.  I decided not to spar.

The guys -- Alan, Professor, David, Connor, Sanal, Leon -- sparred.  Connor was hit three times in his right side with hooks by Professor.  Alan told him, "You'd think that after three times, you would cover up!"

Sanal was pawing David most of the time when they sparred.  I wanted to tell him not to do that, but Alan and Leon were talking to him.  David had told Sanal beforehand that he was worried about Sanal throwing wild punches.  "If you go fast, I'll have to go fast, too," David said.

Leon took on Alan.  I watched carefully because Leon is a big, tall guy, and Alan is in his middle sixties.  "I don't want to have to call the hospital,"  I thought to myself.  It appeared that Leon wasn't hitting Alan as hard as he could have.  After two rounds, they were done because Leon was spent.

Erica called everyone into the ring who wanted to do an ab workout.  I scrambled in behind everyone else because I'm tired of people thinking I'm three months pregnant (yep, I've been asked a few times "when is the baby due?").  It was a hard workout of leg raises, ab punches, butterfly kicks, etc.  I've been working out five days a week for the past three weeks.  But it was clear that I need to do more work.

But now it's the holidays, and I've been nipping eggnog every day (not caring about my diabetes for the moment).  I'm still sticking to having meat only once a day, and upping the veggie and fruit content.  But there's not much I can do about getting older and slower other than deal with it and work with it accordingly.

Now I Know Why She Won A Bronze Medal

My late younger sister's oldest daughter asked me what I wanted for Christmas.  "How about Marlen Esparza's Power Boxing Workout?" I said.  It arrived in the mail today.  Normally, I watch an exercise DVD in its entirety first before attempting to do the workout.  This time, I decided to follow along and keep up the best I can.

I knew I was in for something when the warm-up proved to be a challenge.  I had become used to warm-ups that involved gentle stretching and deep breathing.  Ms. Esparza and the two women with her were doing crunches, push-ups, and Superman stretches.  It's been a long time since I've done crunches or push-ups.  Even with making modifications, I couldn't finish the set, and the Superman stretches weren't easy, either.

The lower body exercises involved squats and lunges.  My knees acted as if they wanted to give up several times, but overall, those exercises went well.  I can see myself getting better at them as I do them more.

Ms. Esparza explained orthodox and southpaw stances very well, and she kept reminding viewers how they went throughout the workout.  She also did a very good job explaining the punches ("the lead hand is in front, and the power punches come from the hand in the back").  I also learned another way to throw overhand rights that involved turning over the arm and turning the body into the punch.  Another tip:  escape from the line of fire by moving to the side of where one's last punch came from.  For example, after throwing a double jab, followed up by right cross, step over to the right.

She went through a series of combinations that combined the hand movements along with body movements she showed earlier.  Her hands are fast, and I kept missing the order of the punches.  I thought, "This girl is 24 years old and she can do this easily."

In the words of the late Roger Ebert and Gene Siskel, I give this workout a thumbs up.  It's tough, but effective.  Ms. Esparza keeps the viewer moving.