North London coach shows the transformative power of boxing

A former army boxing coach is using a boxing-based fitness class to transform lives and create a positive change in the north London area.

Mark Schwalm, 57, an environmental health officer from Hertfordshire, has been packing a punch on people’s lives since he started coaching the all-inclusive boxing sessions in 2009.

With eight army amateur fights and professional boxing training to his name, coach Schwalm knows all about counter punching and fighting through life’s pain and he pulled no punches when describing the transformative power his classes – taught in Enfield – bring to fruition.

“I had one girl and when she started off, she was throwing an arm at you instead of throwing a fist. Within literally about three months she turned into a proper boxer who sat down on her punches and it’s not just about developing skills, it’s about developing confidence.

“I enjoy the teaching aspect of it. I remember some young lad that started a while ago and he was quite a shy and introverted chap and it was nice to watch him really come out of his shell and eventually go onto be one of our champion boxers.”

The hour-long session which consists of high-intensity fitness training teaches all the boxing skills and gets as close to doing proper boxing without belonging to a boxing gym. It consists of dynamic stretching, dynamic boxing base movements and circuit training, including the Japanese fashioned Tabata training.

“You can burn a lot more calories and cram a lot more work into a shorter time,” he said. “It doesn’t end at the circuit training we’ll put in some games where people are running around throwing punches but again we’ll do pad work, touch sparring and shadow boxing so all of the skills they will teach you in a boxing gym you will learn.

“Whilst we don’t have all the equipment like punchbags and a boxing ring, you’re taught all the skills that you need to defend yourself as a boxer, combining that with fitness and conditioning.

“You can shape it for any level of fitness. It teaches you the skills without getting hurt and it certainly gives you good hand-eye coordination and discipline. We have to be disciplined and calculated with what we’re doing. Men can spar with women, boys can spa with girls, there are no barriers.

“It’s light-contact boxing so the contact areas are shoulders and knees and we always stress that it’s all about control – punching joints really hard isn’t a good idea! We teach control and skill as opposed to power.”

He feels schools will benefit from implementing a boxing-based fitness class to give kids a broad range of sports and alluded to the positive mental health aspect.

“It’s always a good boost because of the adrenaline rush, the endorphins you get from it, the sense of achievement and also it boosts confidence.

“I think the good point for me is I know on certain days during the week I am going to my boxing class to meet a bunch of people who I am pleased to see, who are always pleased to see me and who I know I am going to have a good time with.”

He attributed his coaching ability to the fact that he was surrounded by some good boxers in the army boxing team and said the discipline he gained from training the regimental boxing team still stands him in good stead.

His biggest victory has been seeing the change in his close friend who has downs syndrome and feels the classes are shining a light on what boxing can do to help show people’s capabilities beyond their implied disability.

“You could see how someone with what anyone else on the outside would think is a disability excel and certainly improve their skills. I invited Paul to one of the towns shows where they were doing some boxing displays and Paul’s mum, dad and uncle turned up to see what was going on and his uncle pulled me aside and couldn’t believe how good Paul’s hand-eye coordination was.

“With a little bit of supervision, I reckon he could even run a class and he could certainly train people because he knows exactly what to do.”