THIRUVANANTHAPURAM:When life tries to knock you down, bob and weave. That’s the first lesson
you’ll pick up (the hard way) at this 3,400 sq ft fitness centre called Title Boxing Club. Helmed by prominent Indian industrialist N V George and former Mr India K S Vinod, this is the first Indian facility which has the World Boxing Organisation’s (WBO) licence to participate in bouts andfunction as a club.
“Despite the licence, there’s absolutely no sparring/competitions here. Ours is a strictly family-oriented workout facility. For aspiring fighters, we have a different association within Kaloor Stadium,” insists Vinod, elaborating, “The only other WBO-recognised gym in the country is being developed in New Delhi by my hero—Olympian Vijender Singh, the current Asia Pacific Super Middleweight Champion.”
The right hook
Having invested close to `1 crore in
building this gym at Jawahar Nagar in Kochi, the duo has also roped in top combat sport instructors like Rajan Varghese, Kerala’s only certified krav maga coach. They are also working on flying in Philipino champion Gary Razon, as their chief MMA instructor. The in-house facilities include a 16 by 20 feet practice ring, state-of-the-art training stations like the BoxMaster and imported training and CrossFit equipment from brands like Everlast (US) and RDX (UK).
Vinod explains, “Despite having been a bodybuilder, I had poor immunity. My lungs were so weak that I couldn’t even climb a flight of stairs! That’s when I turned to old-school boxing. This combat sport—which is approximately 80 per cent anaerobic and 20 per cent aerobic—is also the fitness regimen of choice for supermodels like Gigi Hadid, Gisele Bundchen and Hollywood stars like MarkWahlberg.” He declares that combining shadow boxing with exercises like burpees, shoulder presses, jump ropes and walking lunges, etc.—anyone can get into fighting shape as the sport improves muscular endurance/cardiovascular fitness and aids stress relief.
Open from 5.30 am to 11 pm.Annual membership `12,500.Details: 9287000005