You’ll have to tolerate a paragraph or two from me before we get to the meat of today’s lesson, some wise words from a Master Trainer on training for robustness.

Who is the Master Trainer I speak of?

Jimmy DeForest.

For those not in the know, Jimmy DeForest was the boxing trainer and conditioning coach for… well, have look at a few of the luminaries he prepared for battle:

• Jack Dempsey
• Stanley Ketchel
• James J. Jeffries
• Joe Gans
• George Dixon
• Joe Walcott
• Kid McCoy
• Tommy Ryan
• Philadelphia Pal Moore
• Jack Sharkey
• Luis Angel Firpo

That is quite a stable of leather-tough, nail-spittin’, hard-hittin’ hombres if there ever was one.

These men all share in common heavy hands, no quit in the tank, and to-the-marrow toughness.

So, what was it that DeForest thought was so important?

Toughness. Robustness.

What is robustness?

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It is not merely the conditioning one does (which is all fire important) it is also the circumstances, the environment, the overall “feel” or vibe that training is conducted in.

It is un-smoothing the gym, it is un-boxing the athlete, it is getting rid of any and all comfort while the uncomfortable work is being done.

Let’s turn the floor over to Mr. DeForest.

Mr. DeForest penned those words in 1930. This before the age of air-conditioning (or air-cooling as it was termed then), efficient heating, or anything that we encounter in even the least well-equipped commercial gym of today.

Imagine how much more shade he would throw at today’s training environments.

Imagine the look in the eyes from that stable of fighters as they view our comfy “Boxes” from the vantage point of their bare-bones proving grounds.

Probably the same look a hungry coyote has when it sees the pampered pet let out into the manicured lawn to relieve itself and get back inside where it’s all nice and cozy.

To capture a bit of the old school toughness and fearsome fighting ability, perhaps it’s more than merely duplicating tactics, and going through the motions of similar conditioning.

Perhaps there is as much to be said for duplicating the environment as well.

A man as knowledgeable as Mr. DeForest thought so, who are we to say he’s wrong?

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