For the North Hudson children who train at Global Boxing, learning to box is more than self-defense. It’s also a fun way to get healthy and to build poise and confidence.
“I want to be an athlete when I grow up,” said Ashley Velez, 12, of North Bergen.
Velez, who used to take Tae Kwon do and plays soccer and basketball at her school, said that she wound up learning about Global Boxing, located on Tonnelle Avenue, almost by accident.
A few months ago, she and her mother visited the Breadman Café and realized that next door was a boxing ring. When Velez found out they offered a boxing class to children, she signed up.
Global Boxing, along with the café and adjacent Hudson Bread distributor, were founded by Mariusz Kolodziej. North American Boxing Federation Super Featherweight Champion Maureen Shea, a professional boxer who is known as the “Real Million Dollar Baby” due to her training Hilary Swank for the 2004 movie, is the president of the gym.
“I didn’t know. I thought it was just for grownups.” – Jonathan Marrero
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More importantly, Shea said, regular people, or even children, can come in and take a cardio kickboxing or Zumba class or gets sports-specific training.
“In every other sport, people can’t touch the fighters,” said Shea, explaining that professional athletes and gym members train in the same house here.
“When I was 8-years-old I saw boxing on TV and I wanted to go into boxing and I asked my dad and he said ‘yeah,’” said Jonathan Marrero, 9, of North Bergen. “I didn’t know. I thought it was just for grownups.”
Giving kids’ confidence
Juan Medina, a Shotokan Karate and Kobukan Judo 1st degree black belt, fought nationally before becoming a boxing coach. Medina, a Secaucus resident who also coaches at the teen center there, is originally from Union City.
Medina trains each child to their needs, often having them warm up on the treadmill, complete a light weight workout, then having them do a few rounds on each of the boxing bags. They sprint, and do pushups, sit-ups, and lunges.
Medina said that boxing helps lose weight, but it also helps them gain self-confidence.
“What I teach the kids is when you learn how to fight, you don’t want to fight no more,” said Medina. “The best fight that I had was the one I walked away from.”
Marrero said that in the two months he has been coming to class, he’s already seen a difference in himself, and so has his dad.
His older brother Michael, 10, said that boxing was going to help him get in shape and “get strong” as well.
“I feel like some kids could get bullied and picked on a lot so maybe they need little defense methods and learn how to defend themselves instead of just being scared and running,” said Velez. “They can also get healthy and lose weight at the same time.”
Becoming a better athlete
Velez said that boxing has helped her get stronger. She really enjoyed being able to use the same rings the professional athletes train in.
CJ Francisco, 9, of West New York, said that he had learned new things in the class.
“You learn new mechanics, like I play baseball and you learn new things in different sports,” he said. “You learn hand-eye coordination.”
Medina said that while athletes get hurt in sports like football, someone can using boxing as a workout without the fear of getting hurt.
“You don’t have to get into the ring,” said Medina.
For more information, visit www.globalboxing.com.
Tricia Tirella may be reached at TriciaT@hudsonreporter.com.