What do you do outside of training? I am currently a student and just finishing up my degree after a long hard slog! So, at the moment, I’m polishing up my resume and I am looking forward to getting out into the professional world. I also have a part-time job with the public service. Between uni, work, training, playing some video games and cleaning up after myself, I keep pretty busy!
If you could choose one super power, what would it be and why? It depends if I was being a superhero or not! I think teleportation would be pretty handy for normal life – you know, save on petrol, being able to pop over to Italy for your pizza on the way home from work, swing past Thailand to do some muay thai training, etc. However, after watching Jessica Jones, I think having indestructible skin or superhuman strength would be a bit more useful for superhero business.
TV show you secretly enjoy? I have two guilty pleasures: Antiques Roadshow and COPS. I enjoy watching Antiques Roadshow because I love trinkets (or junk) myself, but I’m always amazed at the random things people bring in and also when the experts uncover something hugely valuable. I enjoy COPS because it’s just trashy!
If money and career were no object, where in the world would you choose to live? I’d retire and live in a house with enough space for a games room, gym and sauna in a forest somewhere in New South Wales! I like the idea of pottering about and growing veggies, planting trees and cutting firewood. But I’d still like to be within at least few hours drive to Canberra or Sydney.
Why did you start doing muay thai? By accident! I was hanging around the gym in the afternoon after a workout and ran into Stefan, another student at Chopper. I asked him about his funny looking shorts and he convinced me to stick around to come in and have a go. I used to do Tae Kwon Do and I had gone to a muay thai class in high school, so I figured why not? The rest is history! Thanks Stefan!
What do you believe differentiates muay thai with other sports? Firstly, i’ve never had such an intense workout. Secondly, would be the comradery. I’m not particularly into team sports like rugby or soccer. Whilst it’s an individual sport, you can’t advance or practice without other people there – whether it’s sparring or just holding the bag for you. The environment at Chopper is awesome, everyone is happy to give advice, plenty of support and encouragement to keep going.
Which class do you like best, Techniques or Heavy Bags and why? I like both classes for different reasons! Like I said above, I’ve never had a more intense workout than I have in a Heavy Bags class. And it’s fun hitting something which are designed to be hit. But, bags don’t move or hit back, so it’s always a nice change of pace to go to a techniques class! Techniques classes are a good way to practice the things you learn in a Bags class, but also learn how to defend and react to different situations.