A little over a decade ago, weight loss was all about pills and fad diets. Then came yoga, followed by aerobics, steps, spinning classes and pilates as a generation of Egyptians — young and old alike — accepted that the only way to achieve overall fitness was the old-fashioned way: exercise, sweat and proper eating.

Still, there were always limits on what the nation was willing to do to get fit. Combat sports such as taekwondo or karate, for example, have never taken off here. They’ve long been seen as great for kids and international competitors, but not exactly the ideal way to shed a few kilos and keep one’s cholesterol under control.

Boxing has long had the stigma of being an underground, aggressive men’s sport (think Brad Pitt and Edward Norton beating each other bloody in dark, dank basements in Fight Club), but the comprehensive and intense workout provided by boxing is attracting more and more women who see it as empowering.

More than five years after trail-blazing gyms such as Samia Allouba and Gold’s were joined by packs of imitators across the nation’s capital, at least a handful of the newer entrants are looking to carve out niches by mixing fitness with self-defense training.

One of these, Knockout Gym, which opened earlier this summer in a smartly renovated Maadi warehouse, has the added selling point of employing a renowned Egyptian Olympian as a trainer.

“We searched for about a year for a place that was conveniently located in Maadi, and finally we found this place,” says Ezzeldin Zahzah, one of three partners in Tri-Mate, the company that owns Knockout. “It needed a little work, but we took it and started construction.”

Mohamed Allouba Punching and jabbing, this Knockout customer fights for fitness

Zahzah says the idea for Knockout originally came from his friend Ahmed Shama, explaining, “He boxed in London during his undergraduate studies. Myself, I took a couple of boxing class in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, during my studies. When we came back, we both talked about how it was really fun and a very cool sport, so we started looking for a place here in Egypt to box.”

That search soon became a quest: Zahzah says he and Shama found all the facilities on offer to be below-par in terms of cleanliness, service and equipment. Many had very old equipment, and Zahzah recalls one of the gym’s boxing rings was made of laundry ropes. “There was no professional boxing gym the way we imagined it, so we decided to open one.”

At first blush, that’s exactly what they have done: Knockout Gym exudes professionalism, from the facilities and equipment to the trainers, coaches and class schedules.

The 400-square-meter gym has an airy reception area, sparkling clean changing rooms for men and women (with lockers and showers), and rows of exercise machines on a shiny hardwood floor lined with spotless mirrors. Crowning it all is the ring itself.

Immediately upon walking into Knockout’s facility, marked by wide-open spaces and high ceilings, I feel energized and compelled to trade my high-heels for some Nikes, and my skirt and jacket for a pair of mesh shorts and a T-shirt.

Wessam Omar Start exercising your body and not your excuses

As I wander through a forest of punching bags, my fists and feet feel magnetically drawn to the smooth plastic bags — I’m not sure if it’s their newness calling out for a beating, or my years of college kickboxing and sparring yearning to be relived.

“All of the equipment is from the US,” says Zahzah as he notices me eyeing the bags. The owner proudly claims that I will not find a boxing ring — let alone this many punching bags — in any other gym in Egypt. “The boxing equipment is from Everlast, one of the most renowned brands in boxing, and the strength and cardio equipment are also from the States. We wanted to get top-of-the-line equipment because that’s the service we’re targeting: We’re an exclusive gym, looking for an exclusive clientele.”

New facilities, new equipment and music to make you move create a prime workout atmosphere, but combine that with experienced, Olympic-medalist trainers and the competition is knocked out.

“The boxing trainer we have is Mohamed El-Baz, an Olympic boxing champion. He won the bronze medal in Athens 2004,” Zahzah proudly declares.

Knockout offers adult classes in boxing and kickboxing, as well as kids’ classes, private lessons and general gym memberships. It also boasts a fully stocked pro shop that sells everything you need to get started, from boxing gloves and wraps to apparel.

“Knockout Gym is the first of its kind here in Egypt, and that’s why I come here a lot. You can get all of your frustrations out at the end of the day, and you have the benefit of exercise and learning how to box,” says Hassan Khalifa, a regular client.

This is exactly the end result that Zahzah and his partners are hoping for.

“We are trying to promote fitness — not just looking good and having a fit body with no stamina to go with it. We really would like people to feel fit, to be able to run half an hour without breaking a sweat and to have endurance — and boxing provides that.” et

Although it kicked off in Asia nearly 2,000 years ago, kickboxing as we know it today didn’t start until the 1970s, when karate fighters sought the freedom to make full-body contact.

Kickboxing is a generic term for a sporting martial art that is a derivative of boxing, karate and taekwondo and can be practiced for general fitness or as full-contact combat sports. As in regular boxing, opponents are allowed to hit each other with their fists, but they can also strike with their feet above the hip. The use of elbows and knees is forbidden.

Boxers need to be fit to stay on their feet, constantly moving and ducking, while throwing punches for at least 10 three-minute rounds. Cardiovascular (cardio) or aerobic kickboxing is becoming very popular. The workout provides overall conditioning and toning and consists of shadow boxing, heavy bag work, abdominal exercises, as well as strength and endurance drills. The workout targets and develops both the upper and lower parts of the body — the upper body for hits and punches, and the lower body for kicks. It is a form of fitness that offers a total-body workout while also learning self-defense techniques.

Kickboxing is a great way to burn calories in a high-energy environment. A woman in her mid-20s can burn anywhere from 400 to 500 calories per hour (depending on fitness levels) while simultaneously reducing stress, frustration and anger.

Not enough? The sport also improves balance, flexibility, coordination and endurance.

It’s so easy to talk about exercise but unfortunately, equally as easy to make excuses to not exercise

If we know that exercise is crucial to our physical and mental health, why is it so easy to postpone, neglect and excuse it away? Ramadan is supposed to be a time of great spiritual and physical health, so make the most out of the Holy Month by embracing a healthy lifestyle and banishing the excuses that exclude exercise from your routine.

Yes, even while fasting: A workout in the 30-60 minutes before iftar takes your mind off the fast and revs up your metabolism before you dive into your mahshi and pasta — to say nothing of the after-iftar sweets. Too tired to get going without some food? Get a workout in after iftar and you’ll be in a better position to burn off those sohour calories.

Consider these four familiar exercise excuses and how to combat them:

Try: Envisioning how you’ll feel after the workout. Physical perks aside, exercise has massive mental benefits: It immediately elevates your mood, and research proves cardiovascular exercise makes you smarter and more mentally productive. If the thought of leaving work to go to the gym seems much more daunting and less inviting than heading home, take advantage of the environment in which you’re most comfortable and go for a walk or a run in your neighborhood or get moving with fitness videos.

Make exercise fun by working out with a friend or listening to music, and you will increase the likelihood that you’ll move more than the hand that holds the remote control. If your excuse is more physical than mental, try eating more protein and sleeping eight hours per night. When you’re sleep deprived, your body produces more ghrelin, a hunger-triggering hormone, and less leptin, an appetite-suppressing hormone. Peppermint, in the form of tea or chewing gum, is also proven to provide a quick energy fix.

Try: Changing the timing of your exercise. No one enjoys pounding the treadmill on a full stomach, so instead of tugging on the gym shorts after a heavy iftar, break your fast with something light like juice, soup, nuts, fruit and yogurt and eat your meal after exercising.

Another option is exercising in the morning, but it is important to keep the workout low-impact (think yoga or walking) to avoid dehydration for the rest of the day.

Try: Adjusting your attitude. Even a little exercise, like a walk around the block or at the track at the club, is better than nothing. Weight is only one factor representing health: Don’t live your life on the scale.

And keep in mind that exercise is only one part of the equation for weight gain. Even if you can’t spend two hours at the gym, you can still maintain your weight by minding your caloric intake. Food is abundant during the Holy Month, but instead of gorging from heaping plates, serve smaller portion sizes or use smaller plates.

Also try eating slower, keeping a food journal or creating a calorie budget.

Try: Giving yourself a reality check. Exercise is important to everyone, even those who are not overweight. Not only does exercise keep our bodies physically healthy, it also releases chemicals that positively affect our mental health and mood.  et