I can honestly say that I have never thrown a meaningful punch in
my life.

I'm lucky that I have never had to settle a dispute with my fists but also, if I'm totally honest, I don't suspect I'm very good at fighting, so never seek trouble.

I do love watching boxing from the comfort of my sofa though and marvel at the skills, stamina and bravery of prizefighers such as Joe Calzaghe, Floyd Mayweather, Oscar De La Hoya, Kelly Pavlik and Ricky Hatton.

Often during or after an exhilarating bout I will jump around the living room shadow boxing, thinking 'I could have been a contender' but than reality kicks in.

Even if I did have a more aggressive character, boxing dictates a remarkable self discipline and is an art form learned in amateur clubs from childhood.

If I was to step into the ring for the first time at 30, it would be…well, bloody.

But now there is an opportunity for older armchair fight fans, like me, to pull on our gloves and throw some combinations.

White collar boxing originated in America more than a decade ago to give business professionals and beginners a chance to try boxing training as a means to keep fit with no physical contact.

But there is the opportunity to take it further with sparring and ultimately get in the ring with an opponent.

One of the converts to the sport is Andy Godbold, who now runs
one-to-one sessions as part of his personal training at his health and fitness studio in Metfield, near Harleston, as well as classes twice a week in Norwich.

Andy's company Bolddog runs a motorcycle display team and he is also a stunt man, with his work including being a double for Hollywood superstars Angelina Jolie, Daniel Craig and Ewan McGregor.

During his training to become a stuntman, he developed a passion for boxing and did a handful of amateur bouts in his mid-20s.

Two years ago he decided to pull on the gloves again but as he was older than 34, he had exceeded the age limit for amateur boxing.

After a short stint in unlicenced boxing, he discovered white collar boxing and starting competing and teaching the sport a year ago in Metfield and Norwich.
"It is mostly men but some women do come too," said Andy, 37.

"A lot of people come for personal training and I will ask them if they've ever thought about doing boxing training and they're not sure.

"But when you put them on the hook and jab pads and the bag, they're surprised how much of a good workout it is.

"My girlfriend Chloe and her mum both do it now and they would never have thought of putting on a pair of boxing gloves."

I decided to take Andy up on his offer to give the sport a try at his gym in a converted barn in Metfield.

To prove what a good workout boxing training is, Andy strapped a heart monitor to my chest, which showed I had a resting rate of about 70 beats per minute (bpm).

After some stretching and a warm-up on the treadmill, where my heart peaked at 170 bpm, it was on to the main event.

My first step to becoming a pugilist was a stint of shadow boxing in front of a mirror.

Andy gave me a basic overview of my stance, punching technique and footwork.

Suddenly it felt like I had a 110 things to think about but the main things I remembered was that I had to keep my hands up to protect my face, my elbows in to shield my ribs and when I delivered a punch to start the movement by transferring the weight from my legs and turn my fist over three inches before I connect.

While I did all this I had to keep moving and be on my toes.

When you see the pros shadow boxing before a big fight, it looks like poetry in motion but when I did it, I looked like an out-of-rhythm dad, dancing at a wedding.

Regardless, I stick with it and then move on to the hook and jab pads, with another one of the club's trainers, Gareth Edwards.

Gareth, 38, of Rickinghall, started boxing at ten at the former Diss Boxing Club, and had more than 40 amateur fights and is now a qualified ABA coach.

I put on my hand wraps and my 16oz boxing gloves, which are 6ozs heavier that those used in amateur bouts and safer due to the extra padding and additional weight which slows down the hand movement.

Gareth talked me through some basic jab cross combinations, with some hooks thrown in for good measure.

It was hard enough when he was calling one or two punches at a time but any more than that, say a double-jab backhand, and I found myself rushing and making mistakes.

With the exertion of the constant punching and keeping on the move, my heart shot up to 195bpm at the end of each of my two three-minute rounds.

Beginners to white collar boxing would go no further than this stage but after a number of weeks, if they wanted, they could move on to sparring.

For the sake of my story, Andy agreed to let me get in the ring for some sparring and next thing I knew we were both slapping in gumshields, putting on headguards and stepping into the
all-important groin guards.

The buzzer went and it was seconds out round one. Even though Andy assured me he wouldn't be throwing any punches, my adrenaline was pumping.

In theory I could hit him as hard as I liked but the reality was I had to catch him first.

The instinct was not to get too close but even when I stepped in for a punch, I was not close enough and my opponent got out of the way with consummate ease.

Whereas when punching with the pads I was lazy with my guard, faced with an aggressor, my hands were instinctively higher to protect my face.

Also I had to remember my footwork and to keep moving.

Inevitably I was going to forget something and when I dropped my guard, Andy gave me a little reminder that he was not a punchbag and gave me a tap on the headguard.

It was just a tap but with the adrenaline pumping and my senses on red alert, it came as a bit of a shock.

I was praying that buzzer would go to call an end to the round, as my lack of fitness was letting me down and I was finding it difficult to breathe with a gumshield in.

With my heart thumping through my rib cage, Andy called time early.
Amazingly, I had only lasted a minute and Gareth informed me that my heart-rate was up to 195bpm after just 30 seconds, which the heart monitor considered my 100 per cent rate.

As soon as I had got my breath back I was eager to go again. I tried to be less predictable and add a few feints before my punches but they didn't fool Andy.

I did manage to slip one through and get a 'good punch' recognition through Andy's gumshield but there is no time to reflect on my glory as he gave me a 'tap' on the forehead to remind me about my defence.
Again, I hit the wall after a minute and we called time early.

"It's just the whole anticipation," said Andy explaining why I tired so quickly.

"If you kept coming you would learn to relax. You were very tense. The more you relax the better the punches will flow and the better you can box."

Although not ready to go another round with Andy, I had caught the boxing bug.

I finished with some work on the punch bag and tried to pace myself over three minutes.

I concluded with a burst of punches which saw my heart-rate go close to 200bpm–my highest yet.

At the end of my session, I was physically and mentally shattered but also buzzing from the experience.

I had a great workout and realised there is so much to learn about the art of boxing.

I have always had the utmost respect for what boxers put themselves through but after having had just the smallest taste myself, I'm even more in awe.

Factfile
* Club: Bolddog White Collar Boxing Club.
* Sessions: One-to-one or private group training at Bolddog Health and Fitness Studio, Metfield, near Harleston, £25 per hour.
Classes at The Kickstop Gym, 25 Whiffler Road, Norwich, Monday and Wednesdays, 7.30pm- 9pm, £5 per session.
* Contact: Andy Godbold: 07766 567007.
* WebWatch:
www.whitecollarboxingclub.com
www.bolddog.com