Sully's Boxing & Athletic Club

Old photos line the entrance to Sully’s Boxing Gym. They’re pictures of the greats that have, at one point or another, passed through the doors. This deep connection with history is fitting for a space that looks like it emerged fully formed from any one of a number of classic boxing movies. “Muhammed Ali trained here when he fought George Chuvallo,” boasts the gym’s operator, Tony Morrison, pointing out that they still have the same speedbag that Ali knocked around during his visit.

Since its inception in 1943, Sully’s has moved around a few times, but it has been in its current space at Dupont and Dovercourt since 2009. The interior is utilitarian and industrial, which lends the place its authentic feel. That authenticity extends to the workouts, which are based on your own body’s resistance – at Sully’s you won’t find fancy machines or fad workouts. Even weights are generally discouraged. “If you do too much weights, you get slow in the ring,” Tony explains. “Repetition is better for you.” As a result, the workout is one of the most intense in the city. “My workouts are really hard,” agrees Tony, who in his prime used to do 1,000 push-ups and sit-ups a day. “To me, if you’re not burning, it’s not working.”