THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, August 21, 1995 TAG: 9508180611
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E1 EDITION: FINAL
SERIES: Fitness Quest
SOURCE: By DEBRA GORDON, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Long : 157 lines
SMACK!
THWAAACK!
JAB. JAB. JAB.
BUZZ!
Sweat pours off Mike Villareale, soaking his T-shirt until it could be wrung out like a sopping rag. His chest heaves as he takes giant gulps of air.
Before he can regulate his breathing, a red light on the side wall changes to green, and Villareale steps back up to a yellow duffle-sized bag and begins hitting it.
His face twisted in a snarl, his gloved fists strike the leather bag slowly and methodically, the muscles in his arms straining to put as much power as possible behind each punch.
For Villareale, 30, this workout at the punching bag at Virginia Beach's Wareing's Gym is not to ready himself for the ring, but simply to stay in shape.
The Virginia Beach pharmaceutical salesman finds that spending an hour at the bag, alternating three minutes of punching and one minute of resting, gives him an excellent cardiovascular and upper body workout.
That's obvious, judging by the sweat puddling around his feet.
What's not so obvious is the internal effect of this intense workout. ``It's cheaper than psychiatry,'' he jokes.
Non-contact boxing is burgeoning in gyms across the country as an alternative to the electronic Stairmasters and shiny Nautilus machines that fill trendy workout clubs.
It's even making its way into aerobics classes, in the form of ``boxercise,'' in which participants use the thrust and punching motions of the boxer to add pizazz to their routines.
``Boxing is such a big thing,'' said Mike Wareing, an owner of Wareing's Gym in Virginia Beach. Wareing's has long been a mecca for the boxing aficionado, but in the past couple of years, Wareing says, he's seen more and more people, including women, hitting the bag - not to train for actual contact boxing, but just to stay in shape.
``It's different. It's a diversion from running or stair-climbing,'' he said.
And it's a great workout.
Punching a 70-pound bag over and over, dancing around it and punching it again, build upper body and leg strength in addition to physical stamina. They also improve hand-eye coordination and breathing.
``It's very physical. It turns me on,'' says Kelly Pickral, 37, of Virginia Beach. Pickral, a contact-lens fitter, added boxing to her athletic routine a year and a half ago. She was looking for a good cardiovascular workout without having to resort to running and aerobics, both of which she dislikes.
Initially, the new routine was intimidating. She'd never hit anything in her life, she says, and has always tried to avoid conflict. ``Some people misinterpret it because it looks very aggressive when you're doing it. It definitely gets out your frustrations.''
People come up to her all the time and ask what she's thinking about, she says, and who she's pretending to hit.
No one, she tells them.
``It's just that you have to be very focused to do it. . . . I look aggressive because I like to hit hard.''
And it feels just ``fabulous'' to hit that bag, she says. ``It makes me go `Whoooo!' You feel free. I feel very relaxed when I'm finished.''
There's more to boxing than just punching a bag, however.
There's a certain style to it that can only be gained through hours of practice. You want your punches to be crisp, to be delivered with precision and speed.
Like the basic combination. One-two, one-two-three. Listen to the rhythms of boxing and they soon begin to count themselves out in music.
When someone spars with a trainer, as Jon Sedel of Virginia Beach is at Wareing's, this pugilistic sport begins to resemble a graceful dance.
Sedel, 39, is a real-estate developer who has been boxing about 15 years, using the sport as a adjunct to his regular workout routine.
``As you get older, you can't do just one thing all the time,'' he says, lacing up his gloves for his sparring match with trainer Tony Wareing, brother of Mike and another owner in the club. ``Cross-training saves the body.''
In the ring, Jon throws a one-two punch into Wareing's mitts as the trainer backs up. Jab, jab, jab. One-two. One-two. One-two-three.
Like perfectly matched partners at a ball, Wareing leads Sedel in a gliding dance across the ring's scarred floor.
``Give me three,'' Wareing shouts.
Sedel jabs right, left, right.
``Oh, yeah. Come on. One, two, three.''
The ring vibrates with the weight of their bodies, and within minutes, a fine sheen of sweat breaks out on Sedel's body.
Down on the floor, former professional boxer Bobby Acey, 45, who now boxes just to stay in shape, is warming up on the bag. Acey, who sells commercial real estate, calls his workouts ``more therapeutic'' than conventional exercise.
``It's a way to channel aggressions after a day spent working in commercial real estate,'' he said, hitting the bag hard, and then harder.
Another former professional boxer, Ed Kelly of New York City, has turned the boxing fitness craze into a full-time job. He teaches a combination boxing/aerobics class at more than a dozen clubs in the New York area.
The hourlong class, similar to what Mike Wareing is planning to start at his gym sometime in September, begins with a warmup then segues into an intense, 20-minute cardiovascular workout, including jump rope, jumping jacks, situps and pullups. Next, Kelly leads his students in a set of drills and techniques to teach them the moves and style of boxing. Participants learn how to stand, how to move left, right, forward, backward. They put on the gloves and practice ducking each other's punches, sweeping their arms right and left.
Then comes work at various places around the room - the punching bag; a 1-, 2- or 3-pound jump rope; an abdominal station; and a station where Kelly holds up his mitt-clad hands for the students to punch.
``It's something that demands your focus and attention,'' he says of his classes. ``In a traditional aerobic class, it gets to the point where you can memorize the whole class. In this class, you really forget about your day because it really demands your attention.'' MEMO: The Virginian-Pilot's Fitness Quest is a six-month project to
inspire our readers to adopt a healthier lifestyle. Through the end of
the year, we are focusing on health, exercise and diet, as well as
reporting monthly in the Real Life section on four people's quest for
fitness. To join Fitness Quest or share your story, call Infoline at
640-5555 and then press BFIT (2348).
ILLUSTRATION: Color staff photo by PAUL AIKEN
Jack Bellis of Virginia Beach works out on a heavy bag at Wareing's
Gym. Non-contact boxing is burgeoning in gyms across the country as
a fitness alternative.
Mike Vilareale shadow boxes as part of a warmup for his boxing
workout.
Kelly Pickral says, "I feel very relaxed when I'm finished."
B\W photo
Jon Sedel of Virginia Beach punches the heavy bag as two other
boxers examine the speed bag that broke during a workout.
BOXING BENEFITS
According to Ed Kelly, who teaches Fitness Boxing classes in New
York, here are some benefits to this type of exercise:
Stress relief. The opportunity to vent in a healthy way by
striking punching bags, speed bags, focus mitts.
High calorie-burn rate. A one-hour workout burns twice the
calories of aerobics.
Excellent muscle toning and smoothing exercise. Women get a firm
look without bulkiness.
Increased mental alertness and focus due to the combination of
concentration, self-determination and effort required. This is a
skills-based activity, so the participant should constantly strive
to improve.
Workout variety, which prevents boredom.
Cardiovascular training that mirrors the routines used by boxers
for decades. Optimum for increasing lung capacity.
Endurance enhancement through jump-rope interval training.
Agility improvement through drills, footwork, jump rope, etc.
by CNB