All boxers arrived at Hilton Doubletree, Aberdeen between 4 and 5pm where once registered and allocated their rooms, weights were checked before sitting down to dinner. After a light meal, the boxers had a brief rest period before commencing light training at 8.30pm in the hotel studio.
Assisting me (Tony Kerr) was Philip Brown of Kincorth ABC. The boxers were split into 3 groups for the warm up, each group starting at a different station –
- Ladder work for mobility
- Themed pad work
- Themed shadow boxing
- Use of the spin bicycles.
Robbie McKechnie & Mark McKeown in action at the Youth Finals
We ended the work out with an abs circuit, stretch and cool down. This was an enjoyable start to the weekend for the boxers, who then showered, had their weight checked then retired to bed.
On Saturday morning we met at 7.15am for a weight check then headed to Aberdeen Sports Village to use the running track. We made use of the 40m and 100m indoor track to time the boys before using the outdoor track for 400m and 2400m. All the boys pushed themselves to their limits allowing us to collate strong statistics to allow us to monitor their progress at future training sessions. After this we headed back to the hotel for breakfast.
We met at 11am to transfer to Byron ABC. Here we had 3 coaches in attendance as Mike Keane joined Philip and myself. After our warm up we split the 8 boxers into 3 groups with Mike taking charge of Ryan Collins, Bryce Stewart and Robbie McKechnie in the ring, Philip taking Robert Forrest and Grant Quigley on the pads whilst I had Keiran Smith, Mark McKeown and Michael McGurk working on the bags reacting to the whistle. This enabled all boxers to use the circuit and receive close attention from the coaches.
Michael McGurk at the Youth Finals
These exercises were followed by shadow boxing, abdominal exercises and a flush skip before a cool down. We then went for lunch, which consisted of sandwiches, fruit and power drinks before returning to the hotel for a rest period and use of the leisure facilities.
We met at 6pm for an early dinner before once again heading to the hotel studio for a light training session, during which the boxers participated in pad work, themed shadow boxing, touch shadow boxing and a circuit of abdominal exercises before beginning their cool down. The boxers then retired to their rooms for the evening before the final sessions on Sunday.
The following morning we met at 7.15am for a weight check before making our way to the beach promenade for a run. Bio-Mechanist Gary Anderson who was monitoring on behalf of ABS joined us there. Gary took our 3 boxers who will represent Scotland at this weekends Mostar Tournament in Bosnia (Michael McGurk, Mark McKeown and Keiran Smith) on a sprint run which he monitored closely. The coaches took other 5 boxers for a 30 min run along the beach front.
After the run we returned to the hotel for breakfast before transferring to Byron ABC at 10am. Here we split the boys into 2 groups, with Mike taking the three boxers who will be representing Scotland at the Mostar tournament, giving them individual coaching on the pads, myself and Philip took the rest of the squad for technical bag work. This was followed by a cool down and some stretching. Gary Anderson then had a group meeting with all the boxers followed by a light lunch before returning to the hotel to prepare to leave.
On the whole this was a very successful training camp giving the boxers a good work out without pushing too hard in all three sessions due to the fact they will box this week. The atmosphere was good with all the boys getting to know the coaches and each other. All boxers commented that they had enjoyed the camp and have taken positives they can use in their own training in the future. There is a lot of talent in this group and with our on-going focus on development we can assist in helping the boxers reach their full potential. Special thanks also to Gary Anderson for his valuable input throughout the session.
Tony Kerr
ABS Youth & Senior Coach
