achillesthegreat
07-14-2007, 09:11 AM
By PAT SHEEHAN
July 14, 2007
AMIR KHAN insists he has the body of a man, even though he looks like a baby-faced assassin.
The lightweight sensation bids for his first major title when he takes on Commonwealth champ Willie Limond in a SunSport-backed fight at the O2 Arena in London tonight.
He has blitzed his way to 12 straight wins since turning professional and reckons his body has exploded in size since he changed his diet, training and exercise routines.
In fact Khan, 20, is so lean and mean he believes he would beat the fighter who won silver for Britain at the 2004 Athens Olympics.
He said: “If I fought against the Amir Khan who first turned pro I would knock myself out, that’s how strong I am now.
“I’m a man now, I’m no longer a boy. I’m strong, fit and totally focused. The strength I’ve got compared to my first professional fight is wicked.”
Khan has added two inches to his neck, which is now 17in, and another two to his 38in chest.
His fitness results in key tests are staggering, he can bench-press almost twice the 40kilos he was doing as an 18-year-old and in the killer ‘bar bag’ exercise can do more than Ricky Hatton.
Khan added: “The bar bag is an iron bar set waist high and when I first started I could struggle to four but after that it would kill me.
“Now I get to 40 without any trouble at all, I’m told Ricky does 35 — and he sets the bar lower than me!
“My circuit training used to comprise three fierce 10-minute sessions and I’d be knackered after the first and again struggle to finish.
“Now 30 minutes is no problem. I won’t say it’s a stroll in the park but I can do it very easily.
“I can bench-press 90kg if it is explosive quick work. I was doing 40kg before the Olympics. That shows how much I’ve developed — twice the level I was doing before.
“It has taken me two years to get this far. It hasn’t happened overnight but instead has been a hard grind to get into the best possible shape.
“I look at my body and it is a massive change. In the last 10 weeks of training I’ve taken my body to different levels.”
Such is the change in Khan’s physique that he is constantly giving his shirts to younger brother Harry, although he insists on keeping his designer suits, even though he has outgrown them too.
He explained: “Harry is getting the benefit of my muscle growth as much as me — he and the other guys at the gym get all the shirts that no longer fit me.
“I have to keep getting bigger shirts from my sponsor Reebok. Look! You can see right now by my biceps how the shirt sleeves are too tight for me.
“One thing I’m very reluctant to give away are my designer suits.
“I get suits from Moschino, Armani, D&G . . . all sorts, and they are, like, up to £5,000. Even they don’t fit me but I’m not giving them away, they’re hanging in my wardrobe.”
Khan is very much a modern fighter, packaged with the right branding and a slick line of confident patter in any kind of company.
But what you see on the surface is underpinned by genuine talent and a backroom team that he listens to.
He said: “I have a dietician, a nutritionist, proper professionals looking after me. You can see the effect of all the advice in the development in my muscles.
“Before, when I had to make the weight for a fight, I would lose muscle — it’s the first thing to go when you go on a diet unless you exercise properly. This time I’ve not lost muscle, I’ve just lost the fat.
“At the weigh-in there will be just five per cent fat on my body. That shows I’m in good condition.
Looks how he's grown
This is how much Amir Khan has grown since his first pro fight.
v Mario Kindelan in May 2005
WEIGHT 9st 12lb
HEIGHT 5ft 10in
CHEST (normal) 38in
CHEST (expanded) 40in
BICEPS 9 3/4in
NECK 15in
v Willie Limond July 2007
WEIGHT 9st 12lb
HEIGHT 5ft 10in
CHEST (normal) 40in
CHEST (expanded) 42in
BICEPS 10 3/4in
NECK 17in
“I’m on supplements, I’m eating the right food. The days when I was into my curries and kebabs have gone.”
But Khan admits he is planning a small celebration if he pulls off the win tonight.
He said: “Most boxers celebrate a win by getting drunk, but I don’t drink or smoke. I’ll be taking myself off for a curry or a kebab.”
July 14, 2007
AMIR KHAN insists he has the body of a man, even though he looks like a baby-faced assassin.
The lightweight sensation bids for his first major title when he takes on Commonwealth champ Willie Limond in a SunSport-backed fight at the O2 Arena in London tonight.
He has blitzed his way to 12 straight wins since turning professional and reckons his body has exploded in size since he changed his diet, training and exercise routines.
In fact Khan, 20, is so lean and mean he believes he would beat the fighter who won silver for Britain at the 2004 Athens Olympics.
He said: “If I fought against the Amir Khan who first turned pro I would knock myself out, that’s how strong I am now.
“I’m a man now, I’m no longer a boy. I’m strong, fit and totally focused. The strength I’ve got compared to my first professional fight is wicked.”
Khan has added two inches to his neck, which is now 17in, and another two to his 38in chest.
His fitness results in key tests are staggering, he can bench-press almost twice the 40kilos he was doing as an 18-year-old and in the killer ‘bar bag’ exercise can do more than Ricky Hatton.
Khan added: “The bar bag is an iron bar set waist high and when I first started I could struggle to four but after that it would kill me.
“Now I get to 40 without any trouble at all, I’m told Ricky does 35 — and he sets the bar lower than me!
“My circuit training used to comprise three fierce 10-minute sessions and I’d be knackered after the first and again struggle to finish.
“Now 30 minutes is no problem. I won’t say it’s a stroll in the park but I can do it very easily.
“I can bench-press 90kg if it is explosive quick work. I was doing 40kg before the Olympics. That shows how much I’ve developed — twice the level I was doing before.
“It has taken me two years to get this far. It hasn’t happened overnight but instead has been a hard grind to get into the best possible shape.
“I look at my body and it is a massive change. In the last 10 weeks of training I’ve taken my body to different levels.”
Such is the change in Khan’s physique that he is constantly giving his shirts to younger brother Harry, although he insists on keeping his designer suits, even though he has outgrown them too.
He explained: “Harry is getting the benefit of my muscle growth as much as me — he and the other guys at the gym get all the shirts that no longer fit me.
“I have to keep getting bigger shirts from my sponsor Reebok. Look! You can see right now by my biceps how the shirt sleeves are too tight for me.
“One thing I’m very reluctant to give away are my designer suits.
“I get suits from Moschino, Armani, D&G . . . all sorts, and they are, like, up to £5,000. Even they don’t fit me but I’m not giving them away, they’re hanging in my wardrobe.”
Khan is very much a modern fighter, packaged with the right branding and a slick line of confident patter in any kind of company.
But what you see on the surface is underpinned by genuine talent and a backroom team that he listens to.
He said: “I have a dietician, a nutritionist, proper professionals looking after me. You can see the effect of all the advice in the development in my muscles.
“Before, when I had to make the weight for a fight, I would lose muscle — it’s the first thing to go when you go on a diet unless you exercise properly. This time I’ve not lost muscle, I’ve just lost the fat.
“At the weigh-in there will be just five per cent fat on my body. That shows I’m in good condition.
Looks how he's grown
This is how much Amir Khan has grown since his first pro fight.
v Mario Kindelan in May 2005
WEIGHT 9st 12lb
HEIGHT 5ft 10in
CHEST (normal) 38in
CHEST (expanded) 40in
BICEPS 9 3/4in
NECK 15in
v Willie Limond July 2007
WEIGHT 9st 12lb
HEIGHT 5ft 10in
CHEST (normal) 40in
CHEST (expanded) 42in
BICEPS 10 3/4in
NECK 17in
“I’m on supplements, I’m eating the right food. The days when I was into my curries and kebabs have gone.”
But Khan admits he is planning a small celebration if he pulls off the win tonight.
He said: “Most boxers celebrate a win by getting drunk, but I don’t drink or smoke. I’ll be taking myself off for a curry or a kebab.”