Aaron King waits for his turn to do pad work at Zen’s Gym in Columbia, Mo., Monday, Jan. 31, 2021. King says he attributes his gym and its trainers for his recovery from alcoholism. “They weren’t why I started changing as a person, but they were a place where I was able to change, so I owe a lot of that to them.”
Aaron, left, and his trainer partner Bill, right, receive advice from a guest boxer at Zen’s Gym in Columbia, Mo., Monday, Jan. 26, 2021. Aaron says that the strenuous activity he’s doing isn’t the healthiest, and he’ll pay for it decades down the road. “We only got so much cartilage in our knees, we only got so much tension in our tendons.”
Aaron’s partner Sam touches his cheek as he gets ready for work in their home in Columbia, Mo., Sunday, Jan. 30, 2022. Aaron works out at least four days a week while training at the boxing gym for six.
Aaron paints a miniature figurine days after his second professional fight and his first lost in his career, at his home in Columbia, Mo., Sunday, April 24, 2022.
