Larry Holmes' disdain for rigorous training and hardcore coaching

Spot on Rob. He said he loved training in his book.

 

Larry makes some good points here. Miles of roadwork is ridiculous, sprints are way better. Weight training more than once a week can really do more damage than good to a fighter, calisthenics are superior.

 

He has a good point about overtraining. I've heard a fair few stories about fighters (even just amateur guys at a fairly low level) being beat before they've thrown a punch just because they put their body through hell in camp and had nothing on fight night.

 

But there is a difference between training hard and overtraining.

Larry is not saying he never loved training or never trained hard; he’s just saying he never overtrained.

 

Yeah, he did. He believed very much in sparring.

He trained six months for Cooney per Ray Arcel to the New York Times (he was in camp with Eddie Futch for that fight). Sports Illustrated and others reported on his camps and sometimes the sparring rounds were mentioned — pretty sure it was for Shavers II, Ali and Cooney where they were that high. Often it was 150 or so for a more ‘regular’ camp.

I agree he was never overtrained but that comes from keeping the foot on the gas but not pedal-to-the-medal for whatever period camp lasts and sometimes pumping the brakes — don’t run for a couple days here, don’t spar for a couple days there, etc.

I think it was also evident that he was rarely, if ever, undertrained. Maybe a bit toward the end for a Scott Fran or Lucien Rodriguez type fight, a few of those.

 

Nor did thousands of others.

He actually came in too light at his age and career stage for Witherspoon.

 

The reason for that is because it breaks the day up. Run in the morning, breakfast and sleep. Midday sparring, evening Strength and Conditioning etc.

Not saying I agree with it, but it's done so as to maximise rest in between sessions.

 

Even 100 rounds of sparring is a lot for a fighter, including for one who has been inactive. I don’t believe Larry Holmes sparred as many as 300 rounds for a fight. Not even a maybe. Perhaps in a calendar year. Then again, even that would be excessive.

 

OK, all those reports were lying. They made it up.

Larry sat by the pool and drank appletinis and waddled into the ring. Whatever.

 

Here's Holmes categorically stating he overtrained. Futch said the same about the same fight way earlier than Holmes did. I'd say he agreed with Eddie.

https://www.nytimes.com/1983/11/24/sports/holmes-is-talking-tough.html

Holmes said he took Witherspoon ''too seriously and overtrained.'' For Witherspoon, he weighed in at 213, about 10 pounds lighter than he wants to be for Frazier. A $2.5 Million Payday

 

What was the name of his first trainer that took him to the title? It wasn’t futch. It was some white guy with a tache but I can’t remember his name

 

Ron Jeremy.

 

So I was right. My earlier post on Holmes saying to take everything lightly that he says.

“I'm a BIG fan of Holmes.

“But he slavers rubbish and should be taken with a pinch of salt.

“His trainers asked him to run 100 miles? He makes it sound as if that was a single run, but he more than likely means during an entire camp for a fight. Doesn't explain himself enough.

“But that's Larry for you.”

JT, that’s only one fight he admitted it. Fair enough. That said, he did admit it for Witherspoon which totally contradicts everything he was quoted as saying in the opening post on this thread, about taking it easy, not overdoing things, not listening to his trainers.

But again, that’s Larry for you. The same guy who moaned and complained that he wasn’t given the credit he deserved during his career. Yet after he retired, he discounted the credentials and attributes of all the heavyweights in the 90s and beyond. Evander Holyfield and Lennox Lewis included.

 

JT, my apologies. On what I said below, I contradicted myself, after saying to take everything Larry says with a pinch of salt. But hey, I’ll learn my lesson on Holmes. I’m taking Larry at face value on one thing then you’re providing me with something to the contrary.

“But there is a difference between training hard and overtraining.

“Larry is not saying he never loved training or never trained hard; he’s just saying he never overtrained.”

 

Ritchie G

Ritchie Giachetti