EP11: Using Sports Science To Build Elite Level Boxers With Andrew Usher

Professional super lightweight boxer & good friend, Lucas Ballingall kicks off season 2 of The Ringside Nutrition Podcast.  This is an episode I have wanted to record for a while because of some of the insights I knew Lucas would happily share when it comes to making weight & coming back from set backs for professional boxers. Me & Lucas talk all about how he struggled to make weight for his English title fight at lightweight last year & how he learnt from his mistakes during the weight cutting process. Lucas also talks about the importance of nutrition, having a nutritionist in his corner & how he likes to adopt a flexible approach to dieting during training camps to keep his diet interesting & fun so he doesn't go insane! We also discuss mental health & how difficult it can be for a professional fighter to come back from defeats & stay motivated. This is a really insightful & raw listen & I would encourage any younger fighters to take note & listen to Lucas's reflections.

In this very special episode of The Ringside Nutrition Podcast I am joined by my client & now close friend, WBO Global Welterweight Champion - Mikey "The Problem" McKinson. Myself & Mikey talk all about his journey through the professional ranks & lessons he has learnt along the way & how he has got to the level he has reached. We also unpick the rumble on the rock fight vs Chris Kongo & Mikey shares his experiences from fight week & how he made weight the best he has ever done in his career to date. We then reflect on the first lockdown in 2020 & how it lead to Mikey losing motivation to train & box which lead to a significant increase in body weight which made his preparations for the Martin Harkin fight in October difficult.  Mikey also shares his views on nutrition & how much of an important factor it has become for him in the last year. Whilst we also answer some of your quick fire questions you guys submitted to us & we find out which brother is Mikey's dad's favourite! This is a really insightful listen for any younger fighters out there who want to hear the journey of a world class professional boxer who hasn't even reached his peak yet.  https://www.instagram.com/mikeytheproblem/

The fight week taper phase is arguably the most important part of a fighter's training camp. However there is a lot of confusion surrounding the taper phase. Fighters often don't know when to start tapering, or how to go about doing it effectively, when to train, what type of training should they be doing & how they should mentally get into the zone to prepare for fight night. In this episode I am joined by Reiss Silva (Elite Step) who makes a return to the podcast & we unpick these questions & discuss how a fighter can master the taper phase to set themselves up to feel fresh & perform at their best come fight night. We talk all about the importance of recovery, sleep, intensity of training, winning mental battles, mobility in fight week, practice ring walks & so much more. We also talk about Reiss's new gym "The Strength Box" & how he has progressed to get to this point - a common theme in this one is enjoy the process - something we should all be doing!

To kickstart Season 2 of the podcast I am delighted to have been joined by Andrew Usher who is a sports scientist & boxing performance coach working with some of Scotlands finest professional boxers. Myself & Andrew connected on linked in & regularly speak about all things high performance & the different sports science protocols we use in our practice with fighters. It's fair to say that the level Andrew operates on is above any other I have heard or come across.  In the episode we talk about the high performance blueprint Andrew uses with his boxers which includes; movement screenings, body composition analysis, metabolic testing, strength markers, oxygen saturation & hand speed/punch output testing. Andrew also touches on the importance of not just collecting data, but using it to inform decisions which will impact a fighter's performance in the ring. We get stuck into areas such as; cooling & breathing between rounds, do the bright lights on fight night increase sweat rate, caffeine protocols, recovery strategies & periodising energy demands to match training. We also touch on WHY FIGHTERS DON'T NEED A MEAL PLAN & why there are more useful ways people like me & Andrew can spend our time which will result in us helping fighters 10 x as much as if we sat behind a computer writing a meal plan for 4 hours. This is a great episode for any boxer who is serious about reaching the elite level & wants to be the best they can be. Grab a pen & paper, take some notes & try to understand Andrew's accent.

Leanne Prichard is a qualified S & C coach working with amateur boxers all the way over in New Zealand. Leanne helps get her fighters as fit, strong, mobile & conditioned as possible before they step into the ring. I connected with Leanne on social media & started working with some of her fighters with their nutrition. I wanted to get her on the show to chat all about amateur boxing! In the episode we chatted about the key differences between professional & amateur boxing, why amateurs need to adopt a 52 week approach to their training & nutrition, the dangers of poor weight cutting practices on health & performance, the importance of periodising training sessions across the week as well as the negative impacts consuming a low carbohydrate diet has on performance in the ring. This is great episode for any amateur boxers out there to tune into & learn from, Leanne is a super passionate coach & it really comes across in this chat! You can check out Leanne's personal instagram here - https://www.instagram.com/leanne_prichard/

David Stache is a performance nutritionist with over 10 years of experience gathered working with some of the UK's best professional boxers such as Kell Brook, Josh Taylor & Tyson Fury. David is probably best known for the work he is currently doing alongside Ben Davison at the new MTK performance centre. I wanted to get David on the show to talk about what it takes to become a world champion & how to squeeze out every performance advantage possible. Too often fighters approach people like myself or David because they need to 'make weight' - however making weight is simply a bi-product of performing well in training, living the correct lifestyle & of course having some expert nutrition support! In the episode we chat all about David's background & his philosophy when it comes to nutrition, what qualities he looks for in a fighter, why it isn't just about making weight, the importance of monitoring training load & data on sleep, heart rate & other recovery markers. We also talk about the importance of metabolic & fitness testing to help identify a fighter's weaknesses to help them improve their performance.  This is a great episode to listen to for any fighters who want to step into the elite & for any practitioners who want to know how best to support elite combat sport athletes. 

Current commonwealth cruiserweight champion Chris Billam-Smith joins The Ringside Nutrition Podcast to talk all about what it takes to become an elite professional boxer. In this episode we discuss how & why Chris gathered an interest in nutrition & how much it has benefitted his career & why he chose to kickstart his own podcast.  Whilst we also discuss what nutrition & hydration strategies Chris uses in day to day training & in fight week to help him perform at his best. We also touch on sleep, & why it is the most important recovery tool out there on the market & why a WHOOP is Chris's go to tool to help provide him with data on his sleep, heart rate variability & overall recovery to ensure he keeps his health in check. This episode is a great insight into how athletes can chase the small 1%'s to evolve into becoming elite fighters. Be sure to check out Chris's podcast - The Perfect Athlete Podcast which is a great listen & has some great guests discussing all things sports performance.

In this episode I am joined by performance nutritionist, Mark Germaine. Mark holds an MSc in sports nutrition from Liverpool John Moores University - the hub of combat sports nutrition research. Together we discuss the number one topic on fighter's minds - supplements. We get stuck into Mark's approach to supplements, what role supplements can play in improving performance, which ones have been shown by research to work, how to know if a supplement is safe to take, whilst we also touch on CBD, the current evidence behind it & why it might be risky for fighters to take!

Sam McKenzie is a sports nutritionist working with professional boxers. Sam is another nutritionist who uses evidence based information & the latest scientific literature to help inform his nutrition recommendations he provides to fighters. I wanted to get Sam onto the show to talk about the science behind making weight & how it can make a huge difference, not only to a fighter's performance levels but their whole long term career. As Sam puts it in the episode - nutrition can be a game changer! In this episode we chat about his experiences working with boxers & how it can be hard to get them to let go of traditional weight making methods, the difference between fat loss & weight loss & what tanks the body is made up of & how we can manipulate them to our advantage, as well as how to safely cut weight in fight week. If you are a fighter & you want to know how to structure your nutrition & hear how important nutrition is to a professional fighter & their career - make sure you listen to the full episode.

In this short episode I am joined by professional boxer Jack Flatley (The Quiet Storm) where we talk about all things nutrition for professional fighters. Jack reflects on the mistakes he made in regards to nutrition in the early stages of his career & how he has unskilled himself on nutrition over the past couple of years & how this has translated to huge improvements in performance levels & making weight. We also talk about the importance of fighter's paying attention to their nutrition year round & what not to do outside of fight camps & why restricting foods on a daily basis can not only completely drain energy levels but also create negative relationships with food in the long term. Jack also shares his favourite go to snacks, the importance of carbohydrates for fighters (there is a theme here...) & shares some quick fire nutrition advice to younger fighters. If you are a fighter & you want to know how to structure your nutrition & hear how important nutrition is to a professional fighter & their career - make sure you listen to the full episode.