Weekend mornings are conducive to rolling out of bed at 11AM and leisurely strolling to one of Bushwick’s many brunch destinations, and enjoying a delicious meal with your friends. So how would you feel about coming to the gym at 9AM and getting punched in the face instead? A group of men have being doing just that every day for about a month at Green Fitness Studio at Varet Street in Bushwick, and for years in other places. Jamiva Boxing is a professional team of boxers who have never been defeated. We asked them about their lives, dreams, prospects, and if they are allowed to eat cookies (spoiler alert: they are not… damn it!)

Their teacher leads them with pride and passion.

Mustafa Marconi’s (52) roots are Italian but his parents immigrated to the States from Panama. Grey-bearded and charismatic, Mustafa has devoted 37 years of his life to boxing. He stood in the ring for the first time at the age of 15, but has always been more interested in teaching and leading others to victories than his own boxing career. When Mustafa isn’t holding one of his student’s padded heads in his hands, he holds an adorable little girl, Jamiva. He looks on lovingly at his granddaughter; no wonder his boxing team is named after this little lady.

Mustafa speaks proudly and with respect of five professional boxers he trains. The team was working at Judah Bros. Boxing Gym in East New York until recently, when the owner lost the building. That’s when Jamiva Boxing relocated to Bushwick. Here, the men train for five hours every day while classical or jazz music plays gently in the background. Mustafa explained that he never plays upbeat music during training sessions because “it gets in their head, and they box in the rhythm but there is no music in the ring.” Mustafa is quite happy about his recent move to Bushwick: “Every other gym charges more, so we like it here,” although he added that too much movement is not great for the boxers.