Nikki Yeager

Seriously, I've just discovered the new love of my life. And that love goes by the name of "boxing". 

I get to punch people (hard), swing my sweaty legs over the boxing ring ropes like they do in the movies, hang out at an actual gym and, the best part of all, wear pink boxing gloves. Oh! And did I mention how hard I get to punch people?!

Yesterday I had my first session at Work in Manhattan. Walking into the gym I felt a little foolish being completely alone and never having seen a boxing ring in real life. But instead of bumbling around awkwardly, some guy at the door showed me exactly where everything was and then introduced me to my very own personal trainer. Who just happens to be a professional boxer. 

And that professional boxer, Thomas Baldwin, managed to kick my butt in all sorts of ways for the next 60 minutes. After I ran a good 15 minutes on a treadmill, he came over and confined my little baby hands with big, fat, boxing gloves as big as my head. Then he made me hit him with my left hand, then my right. Then my left. Then my right. Left. Left. Right. Left. Ahhhhh! 

Next came the 30 "quick" punches. Now I'm sorry, but after flailing my arms  around for 20 minutes the last adjective you could use to describe my punches would be "quick". But I tried, and that's what counts. Or at least that's what I told myself. 

Then the ab workout snuck up on me, then the push ups, the weights. Omg I was ready to punch this Thomas fellow in the head (which I guess would've been strangely appropriate if my arms weren't so unbelievably worn out). Anyways, we finished with a good stretch and a little bit of chit chat.

Turns out he agrees with me on one particular fact - New York City makes boys soft and sort of whimpy. Out of 10 girls he meets 5 that can actually box. Out of 10 boys ...well, not so much*. And that's when I decided to like him. Considering I've always wanted to box for the sole reason that it's a "boys sport" and not fitting for females, I got all warm and fuzzy about being part of the tougher gender. Sure, it may only be a Manhattan thing, but it still makes me incredibly happy. 

Anyways, I've wanted to learn how to box so I've decided to postpone my marathon training and try my hand at this. It's much more my speed. And seriously, if you've ever wanted to try it out GO TO THAT GYM and ASK FOR THAT GUY. It's like 50/50 boys and girls so you'll never feel awkward and the lockers are beautiful. Oh, and the first 3 sessions are only 40 bucks. Amazing. So do it, it'll be the best decision of your life. 

 * Not a direct quote, just the gist of the conversation.