Part 5: The Itch to Get Back in the Gym

In 2018, I was promoted at work. Just ten weeks later, I was demoted for something completely out of my control. It hit me hard… for about ten minutes.

Then I did what boxing had always taught me to do, roll with the punches. I tucked my chin, put my hands back up and got back to chippin away.

For the next four years, I worked relentlessly. Long shifts. All the overtime I could get. I sharpened my skills, stayed hungry, and jumped at every opportunity to grow and learn. In 2022, I earned another promotion… this time to Assistant Superintendent of Operations.

But the road back wasn’t just about work.
It was inside the gym where I truly started to find myself again.

At first, I trained solo. LA Fitness became my sanctuary. I started with what I know, jump rope, calisthenics, heavy bag work and some pick up basketball. Eventually, a guy I worked with started lifting with me, and that’s when everything started to change.

I saw real gains both mentally and physically. I fell in love with strength training. It gave me a new fire, and that fire turned into a brand! “YUCAN” short for You Ultimately Chose Another Narrative.

I wanted to share the fire that was burning and building inside of me.
Through setbacks and hiccups, I chose to fight again and I wanted others to feel that same fire through fitness and activewear. The brand began to grow. So did I.

The gym became my space to release the stress, the ill will, the frustration and a way to flip it all into something positive.

Then in 2019, an old classmate from high school reached out. His mother had a Taekwondo school, and was looking to potentially add boxing. He invited me to meet her, and at first, I was hesitant. I had been away from boxing for so long, the thought of coaching and teaching was daunting.

But that itch to return to boxing was growing stronger.

After a few meetings and some trust building, we partnered up and launched a boxing program. With their guidance and support, I slowly found my footing again, this time as a coach.

And I realized something big, teaching the youth was something my life had been missing.

Those years from 2019 to 2023 were some of the most valuable in my development, not just as a coach, but as a man. I watched members grow in confidence, fitness, and skill. I kept growing too.

In April of 2023, I stepped away from that program. My newborn daughter had just arrived, and my new railroad responsibilities demanded more of me. I couldn’t fully commit to the program anymore, so we parted ways respectfully.

Then came a moment I didn’t see coming. In November 2023, I resigned from the railroad, with no plan. No clear next step. Just a gut feeling that it was time for something different. Was I worried? For sure! But, Fear has no place in boxing and fear has no place in my life! 

Funny enough, just a few months earlier, in August, I had reconnected with an old teammate, my good ol boxing brother, Ki. This reignited everything!

TA Boxing was born shortly after. And that story… I’ll tell you next Friday in the final article of the series.

Stay tuned for Part 6 — “The Birth of TA Boxing” — next Friday.
This series is for anyone who’s ever needed to start again, to find their way back, or to rewrite their story.

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