Aspria spoke to one of the Belgian’s finest athletes, Ryad Merhy, about his fitness methods. (In this time of COVID-19, why not install a punching bag in your garage or somewhere else in the house and you too could float like a butterfly and sting like a bee…)
Ryad Merhy is the pride of Belgium when it comes to boxing. Ryad turned professional in 2013 and won 18 consecutive fights before winning the WBA Inter-Continental cruiserweight title. He would improve his record to 24–0 before getting a shot at the vacant WBA cruiserweight (Regular) title against Arsen Goulamirian. Ryad would end up losing for the first time as a professional as he would go on to get stopped in the 11th round by Arsen.
The boxing bug has clearly taken hold of this talented young man who has gained a formidable reputation, and he spoke to us about his passion for his sport, about the intensity of his training, as well as about how he benefits from the clubs Aspria Brussels Arts-Loi and Royal La Rasante.
The welcome
“When you arrive at the club, you’re always given a really warm welcome, the receptionists are so friendly and they’re always smiling. When I visit, my primary motivation is to relax. I spend a lot of time training at the boxing gym, and those workouts are noisy and intense. So that means that, for me, the club is about time to relax more than anything else. I do a bit of cardio – mostly on the treadmill and the bike – and some abdos. Then I head off to the sauna and hammam.”
The perfect gym for an athlete
“When it comes to activities, I really like the functional zone. I always spend some time in that area to do my abdos and my stretching. It’s functional cardio – cardio exercises where you’re moving – and that’s the perfect combination, getting closest to the ideal conditions for an athlete. I’ve also tried out the “MILON” zone at Aspria Brussels Royal La Rasante: it’s great for when you want to vary your exercises. I really like the timed circuit, where you move from one activity to the next after each buzz.”
