Anthony Joshua ended the year on a high, knocking out Éric Molina in the third round at the Manchester Arena to retain his IBF heavyweight belt.
And the Watford-born boxer has shed some light on the intense training camp that got him in the shape he needed to get the better of his American opponent.
Joshua extended his professional record to 18-0 with 18 knockouts to set up a 2017 bout with Wladimir Klitschko, and has revealed he ran more than 210 miles across a mammoth 98-day camp.
“That’s the biggest and strongest I’ve been,” he said of the preparation, which he laid out in detail while talking at the Beats by Dre launch for the ‘Be Heard’ campaign.
It can be broken down as follows:
- 98 days in camp
- 392 organic meals
- 28 physio sessions
- 210 protein shakes
- 420 litres of water
- 350km interval training
- 42 strength training sessions
- 98 fish oils
- 950 acupuncture needles in his body
- 660 rounds of sparring
- 210 miles of running
Joshua has a few months to wait until he takes on Klitschko in a bout that might have happened this year were it not for the Ukrainian’s injury troubles.
And, while the old AJ might have been the type to get right back in the gym on Christmas Day to prepare for the next fight, he has revealed he is “not about that life now”.
“It’s just that dedication but I’ve learnt about my body and when I need to rest and when I need to train,” he said.
“I’ve done all that before. Waking up at 3am because I watched a Tyson documentary! Everyone’s different but I’ve learnt about myself and what works for me now.”
Catch up with this week’s episode of Football Friday Live:
