Last night I saw the movie Southpaw, and I can honestly say it’s one of the best movies I have seen in quite some time. The movie stars Jake Gyllenhall as Billy Hope, the Light Heavyweight champion of the world.
The plot begins with Billy on top of the world after he successfully defends his title. He has it all. The money… the glory… a beautiful wife and daughter… Everything is perfect.
However, tragedy strikes when Billy’s wife is killed by an accidental gunshot during a press conference brawl.
From there, his world begins to crumble. He is an emotional wreck. His finances dry up. He loses his title. He gets suspended from boxing. Eventually, the state decides that he is no longer fit to raise his daughter… So he loses his daughter as well.
To the outside world, this seems like the end for Billy Hope. However, this is where things start to get interesting.
Broke, emotionally drained, and hopeless… Billy has nothing and eventually has a friend drive him to Wills Gym.
Wills Gym is a relatively unknown, old school gym, located in uptown New York City. It doesn’t look like much. In fact, it blends right in with the surrounding bodegas and storefronts.
However, Wills Gym is the breeding ground for resurrection. Under the guidance of the gym owner Tick Wills (Forest Whitaker), it is here where Billy Hope is resurrected. It is here where he rebuilds his body. It is here where he rebuilds his mind. It is here where he rebuilds his soul. And it is here where he becomes a stronger man and a completely different fighter.
Wills Gym is a representation. It represents getting back to basics. It represents focusing on what’s important and the elimination of distractions. It represents the creation of something new.
How This Applies to You
Find Your Wills Gym
It is often the case that you are at your best when your mind, body, and soul are in harmony. No distractions. No glitz. No glamour. No bullshit. Ask any serious trainer or athlete… They are at their best when there is no audience. They don’t need it. Their competitive spirit and their desire to create fuels them. It’s just them versus them.
Look to bodybuilding as an example. There’s a reason why Ronnie Coleman trained the way he did to win 8 Mr. Olympias. His gym was Metrofllex Gym in Arlington TX. There’s a reason why Dorian Yates trained as hardcore as he did. His gym was Temple Gym in Birmingham UK.
Both champions forced themselves to be hardened by their environment. Both succeeded in continually pushing the bar higher and higher.
This applies to any vocation/craft that you can imagine. Whatever the case may be, you are at your best when you are in the lab by yourself hellbent on creating something special.
It is an honor to train/create/build in a Wills Gym. Nothing comes close to it. And if you are lucky enough to stumble upon a Wills Gym, cherish those days/nights you spend grinding away in it.
They will make you a stronger person and you will remember them for the rest of your life. That’s what matters.
What’s your Wills Gym?…
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