When was the last time you sweat? And I mean really sweat- like drip down into the trough of your lip sweat.
By: Rachel Baker
As a student, being active and healthy is the last thing that’s on our minds. Getting in to a gym can be more difficult than just about anything else college students are dealt with. Also, let’s be honest, the gym can be intimidating to go by oneself, (especially if you are a petite girl with only a dancing background like myself) . Figuring out how to put together machines the right way without looking like an idiot, wanting to jump rope or jump lunge with no space to do so, and not to mention the meat heads that only intimidate you while trying to lift are only some of the issues you get dealt with at the zoo that is otherwise known as the gym. Plus, in order to burn calories or lose extra weight one must actually escalate their heart rate and “sweat it out“-a feat that I find difficult due to my short attention span and lack of personal motivation.
Yet, as college students, it is extremely important to remain healthy and active. It has been proven that healthy eating choices and physical fitness can improve mental health. Mental stability is of utmost importance in order to be successful throughout one’s college career. By my sophomore year of college, I had become so overwhelmed with everything I was a part of in school that I became incapable of taking care of myself. Falling into an emotional depression and gaining 25 pounds, I knew I needed to take back control of my life.
Luckily, in the spring of 2016, a friend of mine let me in on a hidden Stillwater gem that was JRAUK Box-Fit. A high intensity boxing class, taught by boisterous ex-pro boxer and NFL player Jevon Langford, was exactly what I needed to wake up from my sophomore slump.
Originally growing up in the ghettos of Washington D.C, Jevon has dealt with his own personal demons throughout his years. There were two choices when growing up in the Washington, D.C. ghetto: rob or sell drugs. He knew that if not for sports, he wouldn’t have lived past 25. His father raised him to be a boxer, and he took up football in school as part of his salvation from the chaos that surrounded his livelihood. Jevon managed to make it out of the ghetto, and was offered a scholarship to play at Archbishop Carroll, Oklahoma State University, and eventually made it onto the Cincinnati Bengals. He also became the only player in history to simultaneously be a professional boxer.
Now, JRAUK Boxfit has moved to a place twice the size of the original. He’s empowered almost 2500+ clients he’s had since he’s started, and continues to improve and inspire himself, along with everyone that works with him. Punching bags have turned into my form of personal therapy, as this is now my second year of going. Honestly, I can say that I have never left a class without 1) sweating profusely, and 2) emotionally feeling strong, encouraged, and powerful. Meeting Jevon, and taking up boxing was the smartest thing I ever did for myself during my time at OSU. JRAUK Boxfit pulled me out of my slump and started a fire of motivation under my feet.
Despite his success in the NFL, earning a 6-0 record in the ring, and making more money than he could’ve imagined, a natural introvert, Jevon felt as if he was becoming undone on the inside. Langford was cut from the Bengals eventually, due to concerns of him getting roughed up during a boxing match. It was then when he was at his lowest time emotionally and needed to reach out to an old coach for help.
Jevon ended up moving back to Stillwater to work on the construction team renovating the OSU Student Union. Quickly he found that construction was not his forte since he had no construction experience. Soon after quitting, he found an old pair of his boxing gloves and came up with a new idea that he found joy in.
He started teaching free boxing lessons in 2011 at Boomer Lake with only 6 pupils, used gloves, and $10 mits. Soon other people caught on to his lessons, average people such as school teachers, students, and doctors around the area. Easily becoming hooked to his fitness program that focuses on mental toughness and having a positive attitude. With enough patience, hard work, and personal dedication, Jevon opened his first gym
in 2012. “The fight starts with self” he had painted on the walls, along with many other quotes that impassioned him and his clients.