In one of those not-surprising-at-all things you find yourself doing when you reach a certain point in your life -- a point often accompanying entry into middle-agedom, when things are suddenly turned upside down, when you realize you don't control much, if anything at all, and you're not quite sure what's up or down -- I've started boxing. I started with a few friends who began going to this gym, California Kickboxing and Fitness in Pasadena (Cakickboxing.com). Forget what you're thinking. This is a place that can be a serious as you want it to be. It's run by Joseph Del Real, whose mixed martial arts pedigree is too long to go into. And our boxing instructor is Benjamin Martinez, a former pro who went on to be a WBC supervisor and is now a serious trainer. These guys are frighteningly good at their disciplines, but what makes the place great is that they are both really cool, regular guys. They grew up around here, love to crank punk rock, Joy Division and great music during workouts and get really stoked when they see folks of any age, or size, who are stoked to learn. Read more...