GET HOOKED ON BOXING!
Celeb trainer Michael Olajide Jnr explains why boxing is the workout you need right now
Looking for a workout that provides serious cardio burn while also toning every muscle in your body? We may have found it! Former professional boxer-turned-celeb trainer Michael Olajide Jnr has worked with some of the hottest bods in the biz (think Adriana Lima, Doutzen Kroes, Will Smith and Hugh Jackman). Now he’s joined forces with Chris Hemsworth, along with a bevvy of fitness, nutrition and wellness experts who are lending their skills to Hemsworth’s Centr fitness program.
“Fitness is not just a matter of moving the body,” Olajide says. “It’s much more than that. And that’s why I love the approach on Centr.” While boxing used to be seen as a mostly male domain, Olajide says he noticed a big change when the Victoria’s Secret models began sharing their workouts. He famously trained both Kroes and Lima for the Victoria’s Secret shows, and helped Lima get back into catwalk shape after giving birth.
“She really had the mindset of a fighter,” he says of Lima. “I remember when she had her first baby. After she got clearance from her doctor, she had five weeks to get ready. We went one month, non-stop every day, two workouts a day. And she was incredible. She’d go to the gym in the morning, then home to her baby and come back in the afternoon. To show that kind of love for what she does and love for her child at the same time, I was blown away.”
While boxing can get you fit, Olajide says many people don’t realise it’s a form of mindfulness, too. “I call it aggressive meditation,” he explains. “Superficially, you’re moving very aggressively, you’re throwing with speed and precision and purpose. But in your mind you have to visualise your punches and you have to execute them in a certain way. And when you’re doing that, it takes you out of your current frame of thought. That’s what I hope people get from me when they take my classes. You really do know yourself better after the workout.”