Boxer Alycia Baumgardner is Ready to Go Toe-to-Toe With Fashion

The Olympics may be in comprehensive swing, but Tokyo isn’t the only position in which athletic excellence is flourishing. In Orlando, Florida, super featherweight boxer Alycia Baumgardner is now making ready for her August 14th comeback match towards Vanessa Bradford—her initially level of competition due to the fact the pandemic commenced. Baumgardner, who turned pro in 2017 and holds a 9-1 report is a familiar encounter to sports activities admirers, but currently, she’s been creating waves in manner circles much too. Signed to Ford Designs in May well, Baumgardner has been entrance and centre in adverts for Adidas as a single of the sportswear brand’s formal representatives, and is poised for crossover accomplishment. Nonetheless, that’s not distracting her. “Everything that I do I’m doing for the upcoming since I know that long run me is ready,” she shared on the cell phone from Florida. “I’ve learned that if you function tough, you can attain anything [and] I’ve structured my lifetime about that concept.”

Like many athletes, Baumgardner has confronted difficulties thanks to the COVID-19 lockdowns, which shut down lots of sporting gatherings throughout 2020. Through this time, she was also dealing with a torn anterior cruciate ligament in her knee, which required surgical procedures, more delaying her development in education. “I was off for a yr and a 50 %, so now it is back again to the drawing board,” suggests Baumgardner. “[Normally] there are no breaks in boxing. It is year-round, so lockdown gave me a tiny time to perform on myself. I’m absolutely sure everyone professional a little bit of despair and stress here and there throughout that time because we had been all so isolated. I had to dig deep on that stage because I love heading outdoors, becoming in the sunlight, likely for operates, or looking at outdoor. I experienced to stay energetic since it can be an crucial component of who I am.”

Baumgardner’s affinity for sports activities began early. Athleticism runs in the family—her cousin is Buffalo Bills security Micah Hyde—and her moms and dads observed Baumgardner’s innate athletic skills before she hit quality university. By the age of five, Baumgardner commenced wrestling in her hometown of Freemont, Ohio, a person of the couple girls concerned. Getting in a position to compete alongside the boys was a self esteem builder. “There wasn’t this separation. I realized I could go up towards the boys and be just as very good as they have been,” she suggests. “When I was around 8, they asked me if I’d want to try boxing, and I explained, ‘sure, why not?’” Getting currently asserted her talent at combat athletics, she swiftly acclimated herself to boxing. “It was a fantastic transition, I’d already been concerned in a male-dominated activity, and all those activities shaped who I am as an athlete,” she suggests. “I just fell in adore with the activity and have continued ever due to the fact.”

All the while, Baumgardner was also deep diving into large manner by way of journals, documentaries, and her at any time-evolving personal design which skews sporty but unapologetically female. “I was viewed as a tomboy simply because I’m this lady who performs boy’s athletics, but I’m a girly girl at heart,” she claims. “I’ve generally liked dressing up, placing on makeup, receiving my nails finished, and just exhibiting my feminine aspect. Some men and women only see Alycia the boxer, or they’ll view me as just a quite facial area but realizing that I can be a beast in the ring and a attractiveness outside of it is impressive.” There are even practical strengths to keeping abreast of the tendencies. “Boxing is an enjoyment business your impression is crucial,” Baumgardner clarifies, citing theatrical stars like Deontay Wilder as an illustration. “People spend interest to your entrance, and from the moment you wander out, your uniform tells a story. Clothes are a way to display who you are irrespective of whether it’s a glittery outfit, rhinestones, or sequins, the style statement can emphasize your abilities.”

On social media, Baumgardner exemplifies that strategy. Her Instagram is stuffed with snapshots of herself education in leopard print bicycle shorts and posing in multi-color crop tops and leggings that showcase her sculpted physique. Though she proudly shows off her muscle groups now, Baumgardner admits that self confidence took time. “I view my physique as an art piece my muscle tissues notify a tale,” she suggests. “I employed to be incredibly self-conscious about them as a youthful lady, I’d inquire my moms and dads why I experienced them mainly because muscle mass had been [coded] as masculine. I experienced to outgrow that mentality and turn into cozy in my pores and skin. That is a thing I hope to deliver to the style globe, the understanding that muscle tissues are womanly and female you can embrace your all-natural seems and showcase that in its place of conforming to a mould.”