Ahead of his fight against Travis Reeves this Friday, JOE asked Anthony Yarde how he gets in shape for a bout
Yarde trains out of Peacock Gym in Canning Town, East London. This gym has been home to a handful of top fighters over the decades, including Frank Bruno and Lennox Lewis.
It's now where boxers Daniel Dubois and Anthony Yarde ply their training day trade. Yarde is the second ranked light-heavyweight on the planet.
Aside from our chat, I was also put through my paces in a HIIT session arranged by Anthony Yarde's trainer.
The HIIT workout looked like this:
- 20 minutes on the watt bike, resistance increasing every single minute
- 4 station drill: partner wrestling, clinch, plank crawls and bench step-up
These metabolic workouts come in particularly handy in the run-up to a fight.
When I met Yarde in the cafe area of his gym, he was mixing up a dark purple-looking pre-workout. I began by asking him what was in it and why.
"It's just beetroot juice mixed with concentrated fruit juice. As well as this, I'll have a black coffee before training."
How much of our HIIT workout features in your training?
"A lot. With me, I've been in the field of fitness and the gym for years. I was a personal trainer at one point.
"I'm a boxer now so the majority of my training has to be specific to that, with pad work, bag work, natural bodyweight movements and exercises.
"I did a lot of weights when I was younger but now I stick to the best bodyweight exercises like pull-ups, push-ups and dips."
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Did you get into boxing through your work as a PT?
"One thing people don't know about me is I started boxing very, very late.
"I only started training to box at 18, and then had my first amateur fight at 19. I started very late - 10 years late."
At one stage, the interview was hilariously interrupted by one of Yarde's pals entering the gym. A recreational boxer, he proceeded to walk through the reception area, dancing, with his hood done all the way up, unaware of his surroundings.
This is one example of the camaraderie in Peacock Gym, and Yarde feels this sense of community is invaluable.
"These are my friends - I surround myself with my people and my friends and we all train at the same time of day."
Bodyweight exercises such as chin-ups and dips are your favourite exercises - so how do you progress on them?
"When I do use free weights, the maximum I'll use is a five kilo plate in hand and I'll punch with that.
"Thankfully, I'm heavy enough ha ha so my bodyweight makes up enough resistance."
"In terms of reps, I keep the pull-ups and dips at 10-12, and I don't normally go above that, but I might increase the sets I'm doing if I want a more metabolic workout."
How much of the Rocky lifestyle - drinking raw eggs and endless running on the streets - applies to a modern boxer?
"When I was younger, I begged my Mum to go boxing and I also watched all the Rocky films. I used to drink three whole eggs out of a cup. I just vomited. You'll catch salmonella!
"With regards to a sweat suit, I might wear one the day or two before a fight. When I see people in the gym wearing a sweat suit a month before their fight I think, 'what are you doing?'"
Undefeated Anthony Yarde defends his WBO Inter-Continental Light Heavyweight belt against Travis Reeves, exclusively live on BT Sport, Friday 8 March from the Royal Albert Hall. For more information go to bt.com/sport.
BT Sport will exclusively show heavyweight Daniel Dubois v Razvan Cojanu, headlining a night of Championship Boxing, Friday 8 March, live from the Royal Albert Hall. For more information go to bt.com/sport.
