Power Games

When Cheryl Spotts took a kickboxing class at a gym in her native New Jersey, the instructor took notice. She said that Spotts’ quick handwork and powerful punch made her a natural for "real" boxing—even though Spotts is barely five feet tall.

The instructor was right. Spotts excelled at the sport and even entered an amateur fight. "I had a TKO in the first round. That’s a technical knockout. The person went one round and didn’t want to go again," says Spotts.

Three years later, in 2002, Spotts moved to Fort Myers. "I fell in love with it after visiting my parents’ place here," she says.

But she didn’t retire the gloves that hang behind her desk at Voltech Instruments, where she sells transformer testers and power analyzers. Off the clock, Spotts throws punches at a gym affiliated with the faith-based Bridge Youth Center in Fort Myers. She works with a trainer there occasionally, but most of the time she’s clobbering the bag on her own—and still getting noticed.

"That’s what keeps me going," Spotts says. "The [other boxers] usually compliment me on how well I’m doing."

Despite her obvious talent, the pint-sized powerhouse doesn’t fight competitively. "I think I’m too old to fight amateur, so I’d have to go professional. At this time I just [box] to stay fit," she says.

Fitness has long been a top priority for Spotts, 36, who plays soccer in a women’s league and last year ran a marathon in Hawaii. With boxing, however, the 36-year-old gets more than a strong body. "Boxing keeps me disciplined."