"50 is too young for last effort, just start slowly practising movements that focus on arms, shoulders, stomach and legs," Hassan Abdul Salim tells an elderly-looking man whom I later learnt is the chief finance officer at one of Kenya's five-star hotels.
Nearby, two women are gasping for breath after taking turns to land a round of 150 uppercuts [a punch delivered upward with an arm bent] and triple jabs on Mr Salim's black Puma boxing pads.
The women throwing punches as if they were Floyd Mayweather, with good precision and quick body movements, catch my attention.
Men and women in their 50s are flocking to gyms to do boxing exercises or lift weights, following doctors' advice.
At 51, Mr Salim the fitness coach is also benefiting from boxing.
"People get shocked when I tell them my age. I have been boxing all my life. I started boxing as a career in 1985. This is what boxing does to your body,” he says, showing off his well-toned body.
Mr Salim says his body conditioning and age factor are some of the reasons he courts clients over 50 years old.
"I have about 30 clients right now, most of whom are in their 50s and 60s. The oldest is a 74-year-old man. We box three times a week. Normally, when most people get to that age, they become sluggish with movement, but he is fast,” says Mr Salim, who is part of the Kenyan national boxing team's technical bench.
He gives me an analogy of Bernard Hopkins, an American former professional boxer, who fought his last professional bout at age 51.
“Hopkins is another proof that you can still throw punches and move nimbly past the age of 50. Look at Mike Tyson who at 58, fought Jake Paul who is 31 years younger and still managed to go the distance of the eight-round-bout even though he lost by unanimous decision. What does that tell you about boxercise? ”
It is the same reason he says has attracted him to older clients who are in their second half of life.
“Boxing helps you maintain and even improve your physical ability which is very important for the body especially as you age. When you box-train, you strengthen the muscles of your upper body, such as your chest, shoulders and triceps that help you punch. Your legs get stronger because they develop the power for your punches,” Mr Salim explains.
But there is also the issue of improving one's agility which is greatly affected by age, thus making the body movement of the majority of those who don’t exercise, sluggish.
“Because boxing is a fast moving sport where you need to react quickly to dodges, and throw punches, training as a boxer improves your reflexes and body coordination. Your ability to balance your body weight also improves because boxers need to maintain their center of gravity to throw effective punches,” he says.
Mr Salim confesses that most of his clients want to remain agile.
Boxing coach Hassan Abdul Salim throwing a leading hook at a heavy punching bag at the Workout Warehouse gym Nairobi on March 7, 2025.
Photo credit: Sinda Matiko | Nation Media Group
“Some say they want to be able to play with their grandchildren, others tell me they don’t want to become a liability, while others want to be able to move around with ease and enjoy what life has to offer. Boxercises guarantees these because it’s a movement exercise that indulges a lot of swiftness,” he adds.
Because boxing training uses many of body joints in full range of motion, it improves joint health and flexibility.
The footwork helps keep joints in the lower body loose while the punches thrown do the same for upper body. Almost every part of the body is involved when a boxing technique is executed. The movements in the boxing class improve mobility as you age.
“Your body works on ‘use it or lose it’ principle,” he says.
Even those with age-related diseases like Parkinson's disease see a slow progression of symptoms such as tremors in hands and arms, muscle stiffness and slowness of movement if they start boxing early.
“It also helps lower risks of heart disease which is most common among people past 50," he adds.
He also argues that, compared to lifting weights or running, boxercise is very exciting and does not get boring.
“With boxing your body gets toned while cardio [exercises such as aerobics] doesn’t, as it eats up the muscles. There is a big difference. When you hit the heavy 90 kilo punching bag, you get resistance training which helps to increase bone density thus reducing effects of bone loss as you age. Your muscle coordination also improves because of this resistant training,” he says.
However, before starting the boxing exercises, get a customised workout programme.
"After 50, everyone is different, people's bodies recover differently, there are those who recover quickly and those who take some time, there are those with bodies that can withstand punishing exercises in consecutive days and those who cannot, and so each client you have to tailor a workout programme designed to meet their body goals," he explains.
One of those adaptations would be to request a trainer you do seated boxing, which is the opposite of the usual standing.
"It takes away the risk of falling, but you still get to throw punches and work your core and upper body muscles. If you have a lower body injury or a condition like Parkinson's, sitting boxing is one of those options. Avoiding injury at all costs after 50 is the primary goal because your body takes longer to recover as you age.”
If you are over 50, you can also start with exercises such as high knee jumps to ease the muscles and to avoid injuries because the spinal cord discs are not as strong as compared to those in their youthful years.
"I also take them through sit-up exercises because it's very effective in improving the coordination of the lower and upper body," he adds.
Retiring early from elite boxing
Mr Salim began his boxing career in 1985 as a young man growing up in Kibera slums, under the tutelage of the late Ugandan coach Elias Gabriel.
After a stint in America, Gabriel returned home and found his way to Kibra, where he set up a community gym, Kibera Olympic.
It was here that he scouted Mr Salim as a budding boxer and also where many Kenyan great boxers were discovered.
“Under coach Gabriel, Kibera Olympic produced four boxers who represented Kenya at the 1988 Olympics, hence the name,” Mr Salim says.
He convinced Mr Salim to hang up his gloves after just five years in his professional boxing career, and take on the mantle of running the Kibera Olympic as head coach, which he continues to manage,27 years later.
