Birmingham’s world amateur boxing champion heads east for Olympic gold with help of CNP Professional
World amateur champion boxer Frankie Gavin is on a mission to bring back Olympic gold from China. The Birmingham-born southpaw was the first-ever Briton to take the AIBA World Boxing Championships Lightweight Gold Medal – having beaten all-comers in Chicago last year, 2007.
But he’s hoping the 2008 Beijing Olympics will take him to new heights, with the help not just of a punishing training routine, but also a new approach to diet and nutrition. He’s one of the growing band of boxers who are using the CNP Professional protein supplements programme.
22 year old Frankie is a star of the Hall Green Amateur Boxing Club, set up by trainer Tommy Chaney eight years ago for youngsters from 10 years old, as a healthy outlet for sport and fitness.
When Frankie achieved world-class status last year, he was a natural lightweight, says Tommy Chaney, but afterwards he put on another growth spurt. "Frankie’s amazed me with his speed and power and he’s got tremendous self-discipline. But although he watches his diet carefully and doesn’t let himself go, he’s getting to be quite a big lad. And if he’s going to stay in the lightweight division, as we think he should, he needs to come down a few pounds."
The trouble is, Tommy points out, amateurs have got a very busy schedule – they have to earn a living and often don’t have the time or expertise to look seriously into nutrition.
"What is difficult is losing the weight to get down to the 60kg limit for the Olympics, while still training hard and building strength," says Tommy.
After speaking to rising pro Matthew Macklin, Tommy learned of the protein supplements programme developed by Kerry Kayes, leading sports nutritionist and founder of the CNP Professional protein supplements range. Tommy contacted Kerry, who agreed to visit the club and give a talk about nutrition in boxing, and the important role that protein supplements can provide in a sports diet.
Kerry Kayes founded the CNP Professional range after a lifetime working in fitness-focused sports, including a spell as a champion body builder. He regularly gives talks to sports clubs such as Hall Green ABC on the issues surrounding sports nutrition and its role in training.
After hearing Kerry’s talk in May this year, Frankie Gavin immediately started the CNP Professional programme. It includes a carefully planned routine of protein supplements, regulated to fit the body’s needs, along with meticulous attention to healthy eating. But Kerry also stresses the need to drink plenty of water – far more than most hard-training boxers conventionally drink, he says.
And in just a month Tommy has seen significant improvements in his young champion. "The weight is coming off, while his strength is increasing at the same time – that’s something that’s normally very hard to achieve."
The lessons learned with Frankie Gavin will be invaluable to the new generation of youngsters crowding into the club, Tommy Chaney believes. "I’ve got sixteen boys training hard here, including several potential champions, and there’s up to 50 coming in regularly. More than ever we are teaching them the importance of proper nutrition as part of their training."
CNP Professional is one of the UK’s leading sports nutrition specialist companies. For more information visit www.cnpprofessional.co.uk or call +44 (0) 161 320 1212 for sports nutrition advice and +44 (0) 161 320 8145 for sales.
HALL GREEN AMATEUR BOXING CLUB:
The club was set up by Tommy Chaney in 2008 in Hall Green, near Solihull. It is now at Alton Boulevard West in Acock’s Green, near Tyseley, Birmingham, and is open to youngsters from the age of 10 onwards.
Hall Green Boxing Club is entirely voluntary and amateur, and is not only eager to recruit local youngsters who want to learn the noble art, but keen for sponsorship and support from local and national businesses.
For more details, call Tommy Chaney on 07811 277262, or email thomas.chaney@armourydemolition.co.uk.
THE CNP PROFESSIONAL PROGRAMME:
CNP Professional is a leading supplier of sports nutrition supplements ranging from protein shakes, protein bars, creatine supplements, meal replacements, mass gainers, weight loss supplements and post work out shakes all designed for the ultimate in sports nutrition.
Kerry Kayes, the founder of CNP Professional is a former national bodybuilding champion. He has been involved in sports nutrition for many years and his dietary expertise has established him as ‘the man in the know’ to sportspeople worldwide including boxer Ricky Hatton, Sean Long of St Helen’s RLFC and David Dunn of Blackburn Rovers.
CNP Professional supplements are carefully formulated to ensure that the body is able to make best use of the nutrients. Unlike some protein supplements, CNP Professional’s products are easy to drink – in fact, the Pro Slam only takes 5 seconds.
There are several articles explaining protein nutrition supplements on the CNP website – go to the home page and click on ‘nutrition’ under the articles section.
A guide to the boxer’s diet :
At the heart of the training /weight-loss Kerry Kayes approach is the CNP Professional ‘Pro’ range of protein supplements. It starts off in the morning with Pro CLA, capsules of a healthy fat that have been shown to help reduce bodyfat whilst retaining and possibly helping to increase muscle tissue.
For breakfast the sportsman enjoys Pro MR or Pro Peptide – blends of undenatured "fast and slow" proteins – sometimes with porridge, as well as Pro Vital (high strength multi-vitamin/mineral/antioxidant formula capsules) and Pro Lipid, an EFA supplement delivering unique ratios of Omega 3, 6 & 9 and cholesterol-lowering plant sterols. Around 45 mins before training, on leaving home, he will take Pro GF, a formula of creatine and nitric oxide which helps water hydrate the body during the workout.
Immediately before all hard exercise comes a serving of Pro Slam, a ready-to-drink vial that delivers 27 grams of protein without carbohydrates or fats in only 86ml. It comes in three delicious fruit flavours and can be drunk in seconds, delivering a ‘tingle’ that shows it’s working quickly. Immediately after the workout he’ll take a Pro Recover, a recovery drink containing fast-acting carbohydrates and proteins that aid muscle repair and growth, as well as antioxidants that help to limit the muscle damage caused by intense exercise.
If the sportsman feels really hungry for a snack, he’s advised to eat a Pro Flapjack, combining the complex carbohydrate of oats, with a high-protein blend, without the high sugar and fat content of most commercial products.
The biggest meal of the day usually comes in mid-afternoon, with chicken, fish or turkey accompanied by potatoes, rice or pasta, and – naturally – plenty of green vegetables, followed by relaxing to digest the meal properly.
An evening run would be preceded by a Pro Slam, with a Pro Recover afterwards, with more Pro Vital and Pro Lipid capsules during the evening, and Pro MR again shortly before bed, to ensure the body has nutrients to repair and recover during the night.