“A guy who came to Fight Club for the first time, his ass was a wad of cookie dough. After a few weeks, he was carved out of wood.”

Step Six: Learn to fight

In the film: The part-time pugilists all seem to handle themselves surprisingly well, despite no coaching in any fighting methods.

In real life: “The boxing ring is more like a chess board” says Alan Lacey, co-owner of The Real Fight Club. “As physical a sport as it is, it’s more to do with the mental aspects.”

Total Film step in the ring to try out some sparring. Our partner is Lee, the recent Real Fight Club convert and future amateur fighter.

“You try and hit me, and I’ll do some counters.” He tells us. When we inquire as to whether we should put decent force behind the blows, he smiles, “Don’t worry, I’ll move out of the way” - and to our surprise, he manages.

His counter-punches come out of nowhere, were he trying to, he could do quite a number on us. We’re thankful this is just practice.

Next: Reap the benefits