Why not learn how to defend yourself while staying in shape

Get down to the very basics of fitness and self-defense with boxing

Passion is infectious. And Bob McAdam’s passion for boxing makes it seem like anyone can step up to a punching bag. And why not? McAdam himself came from a hard-luck background in working-class Newcastle in northeastern England. He wasn’t great at soccer, the go-to sport, so he took up boxing. He then worked his way up from his local club to playing for the county and then the country.

Today, he’s in Vancouver, where he started a professional boxing gym on Marine Drive seven years ago. Now Sugarrays has downtown digs on Granville Street, where he’s recreated the club atmosphere he grew up in. Here you’ll find pro and amateur fighters, training and sparring in the ring, alongside recreational boxers. It’s a community, and it’s for everybody.

“We have doctors, trauma surgeons, lawyers, body guards, undercover police officers, actresses…” says McAdam. “It’s fascinating the kind of eclectic mix that we have.”

What you won’t find here is boxercise. This is the real deal. Even though the bulk of the membership is recreational, “People come here because they want attention to detail, value for money and they want real training—they don’t want boxercise,” says McAdam. Not that there’s anything wrong with boxercise, but it’s not boxing.

Sugarrays is known for being a tough gym; the training here is hard. But beginners are always welcome and eased into the boxing doctrine. “We’re trying to establish the regimen of training of a real boxing gym. It’s not been done in Vancouver,” says McAdam. “We keep it real.”

And that’s a good thing. You’ll burn way more fat here than in that aerobics class. “There’s a huge amount of weight loss involved in boxing,” says McAdam. And that’s just short term. “It’s the long-term effect that people love about boxing. You lose inches, you become fitter,” he explains. “It’s phenomenal for cardiovascular fitness, and the conditioning is second to none.”

The bonus, of course, is the self-defense aspect of boxing. Why not learn to defend yourself while staying in shape? And, especially in the wake of the mixed martial arts craze, boxing offers another authentic alternative. “We’re probably bigger than the top-three MMA clubs in Vancouver in terms of membership,” says McAdam. The disciplines are different, and one isn’t better than the other, but “If you want self defense…you’ve got to be able to stand up and punch,” and you can’t beat boxing there.

Training here is inspirational. You can see pro fighters in action—like the legendary Freddie Roach training Amir Khan for the Paulie Malignaggi fight (if you were lucky at the old Marine Drive location). And then there are the amateur fighters. “We’ve got a little core of amateur fighters who we’re hoping to start competing shortly,” tells McAdam. On Monday, Wednesday and Friday you might see these guys on the seawall, where they run for an hour as a team before training inside. Sound tough? It is.

But it’s still accessible to anyone—every sport is what you make it, boxing included. Sparring and competing at the club is at your discretion. You make a request to the gym to get in the ring, and before that happens, every safety precaution is taken, from protective clothing and head/mouth guards to an instructor overseeing any bout.

It’s about focusing on the beauty of boxing. In his English brogue, McAdam talks about today’s inspiring pugilists—from Martinez to Manny Pacquiao. And the two Sugar Rays the gym’s named for. There might even be some future involvement with Sugar Ray Leonard himself, who’s approached the gym with interest. “He’s absolutely iconic,” says McAdam of his fave fighter (along with Sugar Ray Robinson). With that kind of connection, there are bound to be more Sugarrays locations popping up across the city and beyond. “We’re very little known,” says McAdam, “ We’re kind of Vancouver’s best kept secret.” Not for long.

Sugarrays is open 24 hours a day with electronic key access and instructors on site from 7am to 11pm. Get your gloves on at Sugar Ray’s at 1132 Granville St., 604-321-9377, www.sugarrays.ca

Words | Barb Sligl

Photos | Georgia Esporlas