Colleen's Road to Agency Wars 2

The Globe & Mail did a story on my journey to the Main Event.

http://tinyurl.com/2eefpt8

For more info on the Main Event and to buy tickets please vist the Agency Wars site:

www.agencywars.ca

This is a peek into our boxing lessons.

November 27th was a ‘double’ (two workouts in one day).

The first workout was a serious 9k run so why not make the second one a fun run. 4k with 400+ Santas in the town of Amherstburg. The Super Santa Run was super fun.

So much fun - you should join us next year:

www.riverlights.ca/santa%20run.htm

November was 1 night per week of circuit training and 1 night per week of boxing lessons. Everything else was left to us which meant we had to be self disciplined.

Weight training, running, biking - no matter what we had to ensure ‘No Off Days’. Every day is a workout day. Remember this whole process is only 11 weeks from start to finish.

By the end of the month my conditioning was starting to come along but I felt there was still lots to learn about boxing - and when I say lots I mean ‘holy crap is this going to start coming together soon?’

Raising $$$ for Ronald McDonald House.

From the Agency Wars website:

Agency Wars is a not-for-profit event. We have chosen Ronald McDonald House Toronto (RMH Toronto) as our designated charity of choice.

Since 1981, RMH Toronto has served as a welcoming home for out-of-town families who travel to Toronto seeking specialized medical care for their seriously ill children. Over the years, however, the House has evolved into more than just a place for families to stay. RMH Toronto is a place to heal better.

As the medical profession embraces “family-centred care”, and with research showing that children do better surrounded by the comforts of home and family, RMH Toronto plays a vital role in the continuum of paediatric healthcare delivery. Families who stay at the House can wake up each morning better rested, less stressed and better equipped to fight.

However, the sad reality is that the demand for rooms far exceeds the present House’s ability to serve families and at times the turn-away rate is as high as 70 percent. This is simply unacceptable.

To ensure RMH Toronto can help more families in the future, they are building a new 96-bedroom House to serve 80 families. The new RMH Toronto will be the largest Ronald McDonald House in the world!

Proceeds from Agency Wars will go towards the $34 million construction costs of building this remarkable new House. The new House truly will be a place to heal better.

So the email went out - who wants to represent Bensimon Byrne at Agency Wars II? Immediately I thought that this could be for me. I am not a boxer nor have I had a burning desire to be a boxer or to pummel someone but the email immediately piqued my interest.  I asked a few questions:

Do I need to know how to box? No.

Do I need to be in my twenties? No.

Do I need to be male? No.

I’m in.

Why? 

I could sum it up by saying it is my lack of self-discipline. A year ago I found myself with 2 herniated discs - this really impaired my workout regime and expanded my waistline. Once my back was healthy I found it very hard to get back to the old workout routine.

Agency Wars II has given me the drive to get my conditioning back. I can’t put any workout off until tomorrow. From start to finish our training sessions total 11 weeks. Eleven weeks to train and learn just enough to not embarrass myself in the ring. That means every day is a workout day.