We trained at the world’s most famous boxing gym with the man who has trained 19 world champions

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Harrison Jacobs

2017-11-24T16:20:00Z

We trained at the world’s most famous boxing gym with the man who has trained 19 world champions — here’s what it was like (1)

Gleason's Gym in Brooklyn, New York is arguably the world's most famous boxing gym, having trained everyone from Muhammad Ali to Floyd Mayweather Jr.
Anyone can train at Gleason's Gym — most of the members todayare regular New Yorkerslearning how to box
We trained with Hector Roca, who has trained 19 world champions along with actors like Hilary Swank and Wesley Snipes

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Gleason's Gym in New York City is a "mecca" of boxing, due not only to its storied history, but also its world-class trainers.

Since the gym opened in 1937, Gleason's has helped 134 world champions reach their peak, including legendary fighters like Jake La Motta and Roberto Duràn, and contemporary stars like Sonya Lamonakis.

Many of Gleason's 92 trainers have played a hand in shaping those champions. Some, like Alicia Ashley, are former world champions themselves.

At 78-years-old, Hector Roca is the elder statesman of thegroup. He's trained 19 world champions and oncewas considered thetop Spanish-speaking trainer in the world.

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Irecently spent the morning at Gleason's to train with Roca and see what it's like.

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Gleason's Gym is located at 130 Water Street in Brooklyn's trendy DUMBO neighborhood. The gym first moved to DUMBO in 1985, but this is actually its fourth location.

We trained at the world’s most famous boxing gym with the man who has trained 19 world champions — here’s what it was like (2)

We headed to the office of owner Bruce Silverglade to get set up. Silverglade has helped run the business since 1983. His office is overflowing with nods to the gym's long history.

We trained at the world’s most famous boxing gym with the man who has trained 19 world champions — here’s what it was like (3)

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There was a sparring match going on in the gym's front ring. I've only boxed in the backyard in the past, but I was hoping to get in the ring.

We trained at the world’s most famous boxing gym with the man who has trained 19 world champions — here’s what it was like (4)

Silverglade introduced me to Hector Roca, my trainer for the day. Roca has trained 19 world champions, including Arturo Gatti. Roca has also been a go-to trainer for celebrities, training Hilary Swank for "Million Dollar Baby," Wesley Snipes for "Streets of Gold," and Jennifer Lopez, among others.

We trained at the world’s most famous boxing gym with the man who has trained 19 world champions — here’s what it was like (5)

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Roca got me warmed up with fifteen minutes of jump-roping, a signature workout to improve conditioning. Conditioning, according to Silverglade, is more important than ability when it comes to winning boxing matches.

We trained at the world’s most famous boxing gym with the man who has trained 19 world champions — here’s what it was like (6)

Afterwards, Roca taught me how to stand and "step." Roca said the best advice he had for someone learning to box is to "learn the basics and get it right first."

We trained at the world’s most famous boxing gym with the man who has trained 19 world champions — here’s what it was like (7)

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For Roca, that means learning a proper boxing stance, learning how to "step," and having the right hand positioning.

We trained at the world’s most famous boxing gym with the man who has trained 19 world champions — here’s what it was like (8)

I dropped my hands nearly every time I moved at first. I didn't even realize I was doing it.

We trained at the world’s most famous boxing gym with the man who has trained 19 world champions — here’s what it was like (9)

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The proper boxing step is to "step and drag." You step with your lead foot and then drag the other foot, keeping your stance grounded and ready to attack or defend. If you want to move left, you lead with your left foot. If you want to move right, you lead with your right foot.

We trained at the world’s most famous boxing gym with the man who has trained 19 world champions — here’s what it was like (10)

I had some trouble getting the step down. I can't imagine Roca had much fun going from training world champions to me. When I got the step or stance wrong, he would kick my foot into the right position.

We trained at the world’s most famous boxing gym with the man who has trained 19 world champions — here’s what it was like (11)

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For the first 20 minutes of the training or so, all we did was execute different steps — left, right, front, back. I thought this was because I was terrible. Roca told me later that when trains new fighters, he works solely on "footwork" for days.

We trained at the world’s most famous boxing gym with the man who has trained 19 world champions — here’s what it was like (12)

The key to boxing is repetition, according to Silverglade. "There are only so many different ways to stand or punch," he said. The goal is break bad habits, like my hand-dropping (pictured here) and turn the right actions into "reflexes."

We trained at the world’s most famous boxing gym with the man who has trained 19 world champions — here’s what it was like (13)

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Roca explained that all movement when training is in relation to the heavy bag, which represents the opponent. Understanding that made the step work a lot easier.

We trained at the world’s most famous boxing gym with the man who has trained 19 world champions — here’s what it was like (14)

Next we worked on the boxing "shuffle." In the "shuffle," you bring the back foot up and kick the front foot out. The shuffle helps you move around the ring quickly, but doesn't allow you to stay in a grounded fight stance.

We trained at the world’s most famous boxing gym with the man who has trained 19 world champions — here’s what it was like (15)

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Roca called out different footwork combinations as I moved around the bag, shifting between shuffles and steps. As he told me to step to the bag, I often reflexively pulled my head back to not get too close. A bad habit, Roca said.

We trained at the world’s most famous boxing gym with the man who has trained 19 world champions — here’s what it was like (16)

Next it was time to learn how to punch. Roca usually introduces how to punch last, after a week or more training other skills. Once you teach a fighter how to punch, he says, that's all they want to do.

We trained at the world’s most famous boxing gym with the man who has trained 19 world champions — here’s what it was like (17)

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First up was teaching me speed and control. Roca told me to just "touch" his hand, not punch.

We trained at the world’s most famous boxing gym with the man who has trained 19 world champions — here’s what it was like (18)

If I was too slow, he pulled his hand away. If I moved too hard, he chastised me for punching. It takes a great deal of control to move your hand quickly without power.

We trained at the world’s most famous boxing gym with the man who has trained 19 world champions — here’s what it was like (19)

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We worked at that for a while. It was clear I wasn't going to spar today. Roca said new fighters can start to spar after a week if they're talented enough. Some will take much longer.

We trained at the world’s most famous boxing gym with the man who has trained 19 world champions — here’s what it was like (20)

Before we started punching I had to get in a proper stance. This wasn't it. Hands open and down, feet splayed — this was a recipe for getting clobbered in the ring.

We trained at the world’s most famous boxing gym with the man who has trained 19 world champions — here’s what it was like (21)

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Still not perfect, but more like it. Weight evenly distributed between the feet, spread diagonally, with a little bounce in the knees. Elbows down, hands up, and chin down slightly behind the gloves.

We trained at the world’s most famous boxing gym with the man who has trained 19 world champions — here’s what it was like (22)

Next up was teaching me how to jab. Keep your body still, extend your fist straight. Rotate only the fist as you punch and pull the hand back immediately to defend.

We trained at the world’s most famous boxing gym with the man who has trained 19 world champions — here’s what it was like (23)

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Roca says he usually trains between 8-12 people per day, but he's always laser-focused. If I had one jab with poor technique, he stopped me to correct it.

We trained at the world’s most famous boxing gym with the man who has trained 19 world champions — here’s what it was like (24)

There were a lot of jabs with poor technique. One mistake I kept making was bringing my elbow out and turning my whole arm for the jab. You're only supposed to turn your fist.

We kept at it. I'd get some punches right and some wrong, often with no rhyme or reason. Roca was hard on me, telling me later that I'm the kind of person who won't learn anything unless he's tough. He's probably right.

We trained at the world’s most famous boxing gym with the man who has trained 19 world champions — here’s what it was like (25)

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The biggest problem with new boxers and amateurs, according to Roca, is that they all think they know how to box. Then he has to break their bad habits.

We trained at the world’s most famous boxing gym with the man who has trained 19 world champions — here’s what it was like (26)

One of the most common habits, he said, is that people try to hit the bag as hard as they can. That's all they try to do, he said. But technique and precision are far more important to master first than power.

We trained at the world’s most famous boxing gym with the man who has trained 19 world champions — here’s what it was like (27)

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"Everyone wants to prove how hard they can punch," Roca said. According to Silverglade, it takes about six months of hard training to get a fresh fighter like me ready to fight in an amateur match.

We trained at the world’s most famous boxing gym with the man who has trained 19 world champions — here’s what it was like (28)

Next he had me combine the stepping and shuffling I had learned earlier with the jabbing technique we had just worked on. How Roca and others train newbies and Wall Streeters is identical to how they train professional fighters, Silverglade said. The only difference is speed, due to how much more pros train.

We trained at the world’s most famous boxing gym with the man who has trained 19 world champions — here’s what it was like (29)

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He had me shuffle around the heavy bag, or execute different steps. Hard training, according to Silverglade, means being in the gym 5-6 days a week and running on your own time.

We trained at the world’s most famous boxing gym with the man who has trained 19 world champions — here’s what it was like (30)

Then on Roca's command, I'd get into a boxing stance and execute jab combinations. In most boxing matches, according to Silverglade, conditioning wins. That's even more true in amateur fights. Sometimes, the gym runs special programs for Wall Streeters to fight in as little as 12 weeks. Those trainings are heavily focused on proper conditioning.

We trained at the world’s most famous boxing gym with the man who has trained 19 world champions — here’s what it was like (31)

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Inevitably, Roca had a lot to say about my inconsistent technique. "Amigo, you must have fissures in your brain," he admonished me when I would do something he had just taught incorrectly.

We trained at the world’s most famous boxing gym with the man who has trained 19 world champions — here’s what it was like (32)

Roca usually only trains pros, he told me. "I don't like training amateurs because I don't like the aggravation," he said. But both have their problems. While pros don't make a lot of the mistakes amateurs do, he said, pros often decide they want to fight like Floyd Mayweather, when their style isn't suited to that.

We trained at the world’s most famous boxing gym with the man who has trained 19 world champions — here’s what it was like (33)

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After about fifteen minutes of working on jab combinations and step work, Roca called time. When Roca trains pros, he has them in the gym all the time, conditioning, sparring, or hitting bags. "Professional fighting is hell," said Roca.

We trained at the world’s most famous boxing gym with the man who has trained 19 world champions — here’s what it was like (34)

After we were finished with the punching part of the training, Roca explained that I wasn't actually that bad. He had essentially taken me through a week's worth of training in a single hour.

We trained at the world’s most famous boxing gym with the man who has trained 19 world champions — here’s what it was like (35)

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We finished up with some more conditioning. I ran for about 20 minutes, but Roca said he usually makes fighters run for a lot longer to build stamina. He was going easy on me.

We trained at the world’s most famous boxing gym with the man who has trained 19 world champions — here’s what it was like (36)

He then took me through a 15-minute ab workout, which I have to admit was one of the hardest I've ever done. My abs were screaming by the end. Your core is one of the most important muscle groups to work for boxing.

We trained at the world’s most famous boxing gym with the man who has trained 19 world champions — here’s what it was like (37)

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We trained at the world’s most famous boxing gym with the man who has trained 19 world champions — here’s what it was like (2024)

Gleason's Gym is located at 130 Water Street in Brooklyn's trendy DUMBO neighborhood. The gym first moved to DUMBO in 1985, but this is actually its fourth location.

We headed to the office of owner Bruce Silverglade to get set up. Silverglade has helped run the business since 1983. His office is overflowing with nods to the gym's long history.

There was a sparring match going on in the gym's front ring. I've only boxed in the backyard in the past, but I was hoping to get in the ring.

Silverglade introduced me to Hector Roca, my trainer for the day. Roca has trained 19 world champions, including Arturo Gatti. Roca has also been a go-to trainer for celebrities, training Hilary Swank for "Million Dollar Baby," Wesley Snipes for "Streets of Gold," and Jennifer Lopez, among others.

Roca got me warmed up with fifteen minutes of jump-roping, a signature workout to improve conditioning. Conditioning, according to Silverglade, is more important than ability when it comes to winning boxing matches.

Afterwards, Roca taught me how to stand and "step." Roca said the best advice he had for someone learning to box is to "learn the basics and get it right first."

For Roca, that means learning a proper boxing stance, learning how to "step," and having the right hand positioning.

I dropped my hands nearly every time I moved at first. I didn't even realize I was doing it.

The proper boxing step is to "step and drag." You step with your lead foot and then drag the other foot, keeping your stance grounded and ready to attack or defend. If you want to move left, you lead with your left foot. If you want to move right, you lead with your right foot.

I had some trouble getting the step down. I can't imagine Roca had much fun going from training world champions to me. When I got the step or stance wrong, he would kick my foot into the right position.

For the first 20 minutes of the training or so, all we did was execute different steps — left, right, front, back. I thought this was because I was terrible. Roca told me later that when trains new fighters, he works solely on "footwork" for days.

The key to boxing is repetition, according to Silverglade. "There are only so many different ways to stand or punch," he said. The goal is break bad habits, like my hand-dropping (pictured here) and turn the right actions into "reflexes."

Roca explained that all movement when training is in relation to the heavy bag, which represents the opponent. Understanding that made the step work a lot easier.

Next we worked on the boxing "shuffle." In the "shuffle," you bring the back foot up and kick the front foot out. The shuffle helps you move around the ring quickly, but doesn't allow you to stay in a grounded fight stance.

Roca called out different footwork combinations as I moved around the bag, shifting between shuffles and steps. As he told me to step to the bag, I often reflexively pulled my head back to not get too close. A bad habit, Roca said.

Next it was time to learn how to punch. Roca usually introduces how to punch last, after a week or more training other skills. Once you teach a fighter how to punch, he says, that's all they want to do.

First up was teaching me speed and control. Roca told me to just "touch" his hand, not punch.

If I was too slow, he pulled his hand away. If I moved too hard, he chastised me for punching. It takes a great deal of control to move your hand quickly without power.

We worked at that for a while. It was clear I wasn't going to spar today. Roca said new fighters can start to spar after a week if they're talented enough. Some will take much longer.

Before we started punching I had to get in a proper stance. This wasn't it. Hands open and down, feet splayed — this was a recipe for getting clobbered in the ring.

Still not perfect, but more like it. Weight evenly distributed between the feet, spread diagonally, with a little bounce in the knees. Elbows down, hands up, and chin down slightly behind the gloves.

Next up was teaching me how to jab. Keep your body still, extend your fist straight. Rotate only the fist as you punch and pull the hand back immediately to defend.

Roca says he usually trains between 8-12 people per day, but he's always laser-focused. If I had one jab with poor technique, he stopped me to correct it.

We kept at it. I'd get some punches right and some wrong, often with no rhyme or reason. Roca was hard on me, telling me later that I'm the kind of person who won't learn anything unless he's tough. He's probably right.

The biggest problem with new boxers and amateurs, according to Roca, is that they all think they know how to box. Then he has to break their bad habits.

One of the most common habits, he said, is that people try to hit the bag as hard as they can. That's all they try to do, he said. But technique and precision are far more important to master first than power.

"Everyone wants to prove how hard they can punch," Roca said. According to Silverglade, it takes about six months of hard training to get a fresh fighter like me ready to fight in an amateur match.

He had me shuffle around the heavy bag, or execute different steps. Hard training, according to Silverglade, means being in the gym 5-6 days a week and running on your own time.

Inevitably, Roca had a lot to say about my inconsistent technique. "Amigo, you must have fissures in your brain," he admonished me when I would do something he had just taught incorrectly.

After about fifteen minutes of working on jab combinations and step work, Roca called time. When Roca trains pros, he has them in the gym all the time, conditioning, sparring, or hitting bags. "Professional fighting is hell," said Roca.

After we were finished with the punching part of the training, Roca explained that I wasn't actually that bad. He had essentially taken me through a week's worth of training in a single hour.

We finished up with some more conditioning. I ran for about 20 minutes, but Roca said he usually makes fighters run for a lot longer to build stamina. He was going easy on me.

He then took me through a 15-minute ab workout, which I have to admit was one of the hardest I've ever done. My abs were screaming by the end. Your core is one of the most important muscle groups to work for boxing.

Lastly, I did some pull-ups. I had worked up a good sweat at this point.

Afterwards, I watched a sparring match with Roca and the other trainers. I wasn't getting in the ring today, but may be next time.

References