What is Muay Thai? (A Brief History)

The country was at peace and muay functioned as a means of physical exercise, self-defense, attacking, recreation, and personal advancement. King Chulalongkorn formalizes Muay Boran by awarding in 3 muen to victors at the funeral fights for his son in Lopburi, Korat, and Chaiya. British boxing introduced into the curriculum of the Suan Kulap College.

British boxing and Muay taught as one sport in the curriculum of the Suan Kulap College. First international style 3-rope ring with red and blue padded corners, near Lumpinee Park. Muay and British Boxing. King Rama VII r. Thailand's first boxing ring was built in at Suan Kularp. Referees were introduced and rounds were now timed by kick. Fighters at the Lumpinee Boxing Stadium began wearing modern gloves, as well as hard groin protectors, during training and in boxing matches against foreigners. Traditional rope-binding Kaad Chuek made the hands a hardened, dangerous striking tool.

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The use of knots in the rope over the knuckles made the strikes more abrasive and damaging for the opponent while protecting the hands of the fighter. It was also around this time that the term "Muay Thai" became commonly used, while the older form of the style came to be known as "Muay Boran", which is now performed primarily as an exhibition art form. It became the governing body of amateur Muay Thai consisting of member countries worldwide and is recognized by Olympic Council of Asia.

In , the World Muay Thai Federation was founded via the merger of two existing organizations, and established in Bangkok becoming the federation governing international Muay Thai.


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As of August , it had over 70 member countries. One of the requirements of SportAccord was that no sport can have a name of a country in its name. As a result, an amendment was made in the IFMA constitution to change the name of the sport from "Muay Thai" to "Muaythai" — written as one word in accordance with Olympic requirements. According to Thai folklore at the time of the fall of the ancient Siamese capital of Ayutthaya Kingdom in , the invading Burmese troops rounded up thousands of Siamese and took them to Burma as prisoners. Among them were a large number of Thai boxers, who were taken to the city of Ava.

In , in the Burmese city of Rangoon , the Burmese King Hsinbyushin known in Thai as "King Mangra" decided to organize a seven-day, seven-night religious festival in honor of Buddha 's relics. The festivities included many forms of entertainment, such as the costume plays called likay , comedies and farces, and sword-fighting matches. Nai Khanomtom was selected to fight against the Burmese champion. The boxing ring was set up in front of the throne and Nai Khanomtom did a traditional Wai Kru pre-fight dance, to pay his respects to his teachers and ancestors, as well as the spectators, dancing around his opponent.

This amazed and perplexed the Burmese people, who thought it was black magic. When the fight began, Nai Khanomtom charged out, using punches, kicks, elbows, and knees to pummel his opponent until he collapsed. However the Burmese referee said the Burmese champion was too distracted by the dance, and declared the knockout invalid. The King then asked if Nai Khanomtom would fight nine other Burmese champions to prove himself.

He agreed and fought them all, one after the other with no rest periods in between. His last opponent was a great kickboxing teacher from Rakhine. Nai Khanomtom mangled him by his kicks and no one else dared to challenge him. King Mangra was so impressed that he allegedly remarked that "Every part of the Siamese is blessed with venom. Even with his bare hands, he can fell nine or ten opponents. But his Lord was incompetent and lost the country to the enemy. If he had been any good, there was no way the City of Ayutthaya would ever have fallen. King Mangra granted Nai Khanomtom freedom along with either riches or two beautiful Burmese wives.


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  8. Nai Khanomtom chose the wives as he said that money was easier to find. He then departed with his wives for Siam. Other variations of this story had him also winning the release of his fellow Thai prisoners. Today, some have wrongly attributed the legend of Nai Khanomtom to King Naresuan , who spent his youth as a royal hostage in Burma while Ayutthaya was a Burmese vassal. However, Nai Khanomtom and King Naresuan lived almost two centuries apart.

    Muay Thai Books

    Formal Muay Thai techniques are divided into two groups: Muay Thai is often a fighting art of attrition, where opponents exchange blows with one another. This is certainly the case with traditional stylists in Thailand, but is a less popular form of fighting in the contemporary world fighting circuit where the Thai style of exchanging blow for blow is no longer favorable. Almost all techniques in Muay Thai use the entire body movement, rotating the hip with each kick, punch, elbow and block. The punch techniques in Muay Thai were originally quite limited, being crosses and a long or lazy circular strike made with a straight but not locked arm and landing with the heel of the palm.

    Cross-fertilization with Western boxing and western martial arts mean the full range of western boxing punches are now used: As a tactic, body punching is used less in Muay Thai than most other striking combat sports to avoid exposing the attacker's head to counter strikes from knees or elbows. To utilize the range of targeting points, in keeping with the center line theory, the fighter can use either the Western or Thai stance which allows for either long range or short range attacks to be undertaken effectively without compromising guard.

    The elbow can be used in several ways as a striking weapon: From the side, it can be used as either a finishing move or as a way to cut the opponent's eyebrow so that blood might block his vision. The diagonal elbows are faster than the other forms but are less powerful. The elbow strike is considered the most dangerous form of attack in the sport. There is a distinct difference between a single elbow and a follow-up elbow. The single elbow is a move independent from any other, whereas a follow-up elbow is the second strike from the same arm, being a hook or straight punch first with an elbow follow-up.

    Such elbows, and most other elbow strikes, are used when the distance between fighters becomes too small and there is too little space to throw a hook at the opponent's head. Elbows can be used to great effect as blocks or defenses against, for example, spring knees, side body knees, body kicks or punches. When well connected, an elbow strike can cause serious damage to the opponent, including cuts or even a knockout.

    The two most common kicks [12] in Muay Thai are known as the thip literally "foot jab" and the te chiang kicking upwards in the shape of a triangle cutting under the arm and ribs , or roundhouse kick. The Thai roundhouse kick uses a rotational movement of the entire body and has been widely adopted by practitioners of other combat sports.

    It is done from a circular stance with the back leg just a little ways back roughly shoulder width apart in comparison to instinctive upper body fighting boxing where the legs must create a wider base. The roundhouse kick draws its power almost entirely from the rotational movement of the hips, counter-rotation of the shoulders and arms are also often used to add torque to the lower body and increase the power of the kick as well. If a roundhouse kick is attempted by the opponent, the Thai boxer will normally check the kick, that is, he will block the kick with the outside of his lower leg.

    Thai boxers are trained to always connect with the shin. The foot contains many fine bones and is much weaker. A fighter may end up hurting himself if he tries to strike with his foot or instep. Shins are trained by repeatedly striking firm objects, such as pads or heavy bags. The foot-thrust, or literally, "foot jab", is one of the techniques in Muay Thai.

    It is mainly used as a defensive technique to control distance or block attacks. Foot-thrusts should be thrown quickly but with enough force to knock an opponent off balance. In Western boxing, the two fighters are separated when they clinch ; in Muay Thai, however, they are not. It is often in the clinch where knee and elbow techniques are used.

    To strike and bind the opponent for both offensive and defensive purposes, small amounts of stand-up grappling are used in the clinch. The front clinch should be performed with the palm of one hand on the back of the other. There are three reasons why the fingers must not be intertwined. Furthermore, the arms should be putting as much pressure on the neck as possible. A correct clinch also involves the fighter's forearms pressing against the opponent's collar bone while the hands are around the opponent's head rather than the opponent's neck.

    The general way to get out of a clinch is to push the opponent's head backward or elbow them, as the clinch requires both participants to be very close to one another. Additionally, the non-dominant clincher can try to "swim" their arm underneath and inside the opponent's clinch, establishing the previously non-dominant clincher as the dominant clincher. Defensively, the concept of "wall of defense" is used, in which shoulders, arms and legs are used to hinder the attacker from successfully executing techniques.

    Muay Thai Basics for Beginners - An Introduction to the Guard, Stance and Rhythm

    Blocking is a critical element in Muay Thai and compounds the level of conditioning a successful practitioner must possess. Low and mid body roundhouse kicks are normally blocked with the upper portion of a raised shin this block is known as a 'check'. High body strikes are blocked ideally with the forearms and shoulder together, or if enough time is allowed for a parry, the glove elusively , elbow, or shin will be used.

    Punches are blocked with an ordinary boxing guard and techniques similar, if not identical, to basic boxing technique. A common means of blocking a punch is using the hand on the same side as the oncoming punch. For example, if an orthodox fighter throws a jab being the left hand , the defender will make a slight tap to redirect the punch's angle with the right hand. The deflection is always as small and precise as possible to avoid unnecessary energy expenditure and return the hand to the guard as quickly as possible. Hooks are often blocked with a motion sometimes described as "combing the hair", that is, raising the elbow forward and effectively shielding the head with the forearm, flexed biceps and shoulder.

    More advanced Muay Thai blocks are usually in the form of counter-strikes, using the opponent's weight as they strike to amplify the damage that the countering opponent can deliver. If you can see, stand, move your limbs, jump and run, you will do just fine. No special ability is required. This question gets asked a lot. As a full-contact competitive sport, Muay Thai is notorious for being one of the most violent.

    These are, however, carried out under a controlled environment with referees to enforce rules and stop the fight when necessary. There are certainly health risks associated with a professional fight sport and to a lesser degree in amateur events, but rarely life-threatening.

    A majority of modern Muay Thai practitioners, myself included, do it purely for fitness, health and recreational purposes. These are usually mild and can be recovered from, usually in little time. Instead of feeding you with supposed claims of miraculous benefits, I would like to share with you the benefits that I have personally experienced in this time since I started training Muay Thai.

    Improves Fitness This was the most obvious benefit I gained. My stamina improved, I had a lot more energy to carry myself throughout my day of work, and I was getting more muscular from the additional strength training I did to improve the game. Everything about training makes my heart smile: But nothing works as well as getting completely exhausted from training to fill my entire being with a sense of joy.

    A thorough workout such as Muay Thai never fails to send a rush of endorphins that keeps me feeling relaxed. The improved quality of your sleep from working out hard also helps to keep my energy up throughout the day. So not only does it make me look good, Muay Thai makes me feel good too!

    Builds Mental Strength Muay Thai training is tough as hell and will often push you to your limits. You can either give up in the midst of training or you can stretch yourself and summon every last ounce of energy you have to push till the end. And the latter, is how training Muay Thai builds mental strength. Session after session, day after day, you just keep raising the bar for yourself.

    This continual process helped me to develop more focus and grit that translated to improved productivity in my work. This new found resilience made me wish I had started training Muay Thai at a younger age, as I can only imagine how much more I could have achieved. Better late than never. Widens Social Circle As my work is home-based over the past few years, I have had very little opportunities for meeting new people. There is a strong sense of camaraderie at the Muay Thai gym which makes it one of the best places to make new friends.

    You share a common interest and you are all working towards a common goal of improving your fitness or Muay Thai skills. Since I started Muay Thai, I have made friends of all ages and backgrounds, many of whom I have forged deep friendships with, due to our common love for Muay Thai. But some fighters have been celebrated more so, than other fighters of their era. Here are my personal picks of the top Muay Thai fighters you should know:. He is adept with every Muay Thai technique and truly a king of the sport. At the peak of his fight career, he transitioned to boxing and won the WBC junior featherweight title in the process.

    Proving his unparalleled ability in both sports. Check out his fight videos and it becomes apparent why he is one of the top Muay Thai fighters of all time. Holds what is believed to be the best fight record in Muay Thai history with an insane wins out of fights. Namsaknoi was also undefeated for 6 years at Lumpinee stadium, which is simply mind-blowing, given the tough competitive nature of the sport. Petboonchu is the clincher par excellence and an aggressive knee fighter. Besides a set of iron lungs and indomitable will, he was a smart fighter who used the scoring system to his best advantage.

    A living legend who continues to fight actively at the age of 37 and entertain fans around the world. Saenchai is the most technical fighter you will ever see. I would likened him to Bruce Lee, and the living embodiment of speed. He may appear to be disadvantaged by his shorter stature but he makes up for it with gravity-defying moves and the most flexible kicks ever displayed in Muay Thai. Bar none, the most entertaining Muay Thai fighter to watch in the ring. The poster boy of Muay Thai. There is no doubt that he is the most well-known Muay Thai fighter of all time.

    And given his popularity in the Kunlun Fight promotions, his legion of fans continues to grow in the massive Chinese market. There are two schools of thought when it comes to learning new things: You can either prepare for it or just dive in and let everything sort itself out. With Muay Thai, I kind of went with the latter. Despite a severely poor state of fitness, I simply showed up at each lesson, believing that the training will get me stronger.

    I mean, sure, my fitness leveled up along the way just doing Muay Thai and boxing. But if I could start all over again, I certainly would have done a little more research and pre-training. In this chapter, I discuss the prep work you can make before jumping right into training. Training on your own when you start out, is simply the worst decision you can make. Having someone to correct your form during bag work or pad work is vital.

    Even a martial art genius like Bruce Lee started out training under Kung Fu masters. At my gym, the instructors are all multiple-time champions of the highest level back in Thailand. I know I am learning the very best and authentic form of Muay Thai. There are also other parts of training in a gym to consider.

    There is the social aspect, which can be a motivating factor in training. The power of the community can push us to train harder, reinforce the desire to practice and provide valuable support to newcomers. There is also a proper learning environment with the right equipment. If you have trained for 1 year or more, you will be in a better position to consider training at home. With a heavy bag, a training partner to hold pads, and the drive to train on your own on a regular basis, this is a viable option. But definitely not for a beginner. It actually depends on what you are looking for and what your training goals are.

    People train Muay Thai for all sorts of reasons: Each of which requires an appropriate match to the right type of gym. Choosing a gym also depends on your budget, and whether you need the add-ons like 5-star facilities, MMA classes, etc. More and more Muay Thai gyms are diversifying and introducing other curriculums like BJJ to keep up with the times so if you are into MMA, there is no lack of gyms to choose from. I had a few friends who train in Muay Thai, so the first thing I did was to ask them about their gyms. Why else would they choose it in the first place? Most people would have done their fair share of researching to find the best gym possible so based on that, you can narrow down your selection choices.

    You can then check out review sites like yelp , and Muay Thai forums reddit, sherdog for more opinions on the gyms. After reading a bunch of reviews, I would do a background check i. Google to see if the instructors are legit. The last thing you want is to sign up for membership at a McDojo. If everything is looking good, call up for a trial session. Almost every reputable gym offers free trial session and you should take advantage of this to check and compare a few gyms. If you are more comfortable with monthly fees even if it works out to be more than an annual fee, just go with whatever suits your financial profile.

    After you sign up or even before you start your search for the right gym, you might want to consider some physical preparation. Muay Thai is a highly intensive sport. No amount of pre-training is ever going to be enough because you will be performing completely foreign moves that utilize every inch of your muscles. These are muscles that have been largely neglected in the daily course of life. If you are severely unfit, like I was before Muay Thai, you can consider giving yourself a month or two to build up your stamina before your first session.

    Running and swimming are both recommended exercises to level up on your cardiovascular endurance. While sprint training and skipping can build your anaerobic fitness and leg muscles which are vital for the sport. Or alternatively, just show up like I did! In this case, the only preparation you really need is to be prepared to feel absolutely wasted at the end of every class for the first few weeks.

    Expect wobbly legs, sore knuckles, a few bruises, and muscle soreness after each lesson. Seriously, it almost felt like I was going to be crippled at the end of each session. It took about two months for my body to get conditioned enough but I was critically unfit so you might do better. In general, anything you would wear for your gym workout works at a Muay Thai gym too.

    I personally prefer to train in a breathable top matched with a pair of Muay Thai shorts , or go topless if I was training in Thailand due to the hot weather. Muay Thai shorts allow for a complete range of lower limb movements and also offers great comfort. There are no rules or laws that call for a mandate of Muay Thai shorts but in terms of comfort and cultural modesty, they are the best options available. Also ensure the material is tough enough as you will be throwing plenty of leg-splitting kicks. In a lot of modern gyms, women sometimes show up in trendy exercise wear like leggings, sports bra, or exercise shorts.

    These are all fine too. Ankle supports are fairly common in Muay Thai. Fighters and casual practitioners alike wear them. They offer a good amount of support and protection but are optional. If you find some discomfort in your feet or ankles after your first training, you can give these a try. Muay Thai training is conducted bare-footed on cushioned mats but there are gyms -especially those in Thailand- where the fighters go for a run as part of endurance training.

    In this case, you can bring a pair along or turn up in your running shoes if you want to join in the run. Well, of course you need gloves! They are the only compulsory gear you need to train Muay Thai and preferably a pair of your own. The gloves at the gyms mostly stink terribly, so just stay away from them. The padding could have thinned out too and may not offer enough protection for your hands.

    I would narrow it down to 3 deciding factors: Punching gloves sizing are measured in terms of weight in ounce and for general-purpose training, they run from 8 to 18 oz. If you are on the heavyweight scale, you can also consider a heavier 16 oz or 18oz. When trying on gloves, make a fist and see if it feels comfortable. Brand new gloves tend to be snugger but will break in after a session or two. If the gloves are pressing against your fingertips too tightly when you make a fist, the hand compartment is too small for you and you should try a different brand or model.

    On the other hand, ensure that the cuffs fasten firmly around the wrists for adequate support. If you are on a budget, cost is a huge deciding factor. You can get decent to good quality gloves between 50 to 80 USD. The cheapest place to get Muay Thai gloves is of course, Thailand. But if you are there, you are in a good place to stock up on gear. The next best option is from online stores.

    Amazon has the widest range of gloves and shipping is fast for most parts of the world. There are Muay Thai online shops that are based in Thailand with good deals but shipping can be comparatively slower. The last factor is the aesthetic design. Not a deal breaker for many people and most brands offer a variety of designs to cater to most tastes. Modern fight brands like Top King, Yokkao, Venum and Hayabusa have a wide range of head-turning boxing gloves that tend to appeal to the younger crowds.

    Traditional brands like Fairtex and Twins tend to have more muted designs but are still favored around the world for their premium quality. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion. Feel the fear and do it anyway! I have to be absolutely honest: Muay Thai is not easy. Most of the movements are simple but training will exhaust you thoroughly.

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    As I always say, anything easy is not worth doing. I remember this guy from my gym, Mikhail, who looked like the fittest dude. Mikhail just happens to be a triathlete and even he was feeling worn out after each training. No kicking of banana trees, no punching blind-folded, no meditating under waterfalls. There is no standard curriculum or formalized structure for Muay Thai. These days, Muay Thai gyms are run by trainers of every level and experience imaginable.

    Back in Thailand, however, the fight camp style of training is executed in a similar fashion across almost all camps founded on time-tested formulas. Fighters train twice a day: A typical session lasts for about hours and looks something like this:. Bear in mind that such a strenuous training program belongs in the realm of pro fighters.

    General or casual Muay Thai practitioners simply do not have the time nor physical capacity to adhere to such a schedule. For most beginner and intermediate levels, classes run between an hour to 2 hours. Each session begins with running and skipping as part of the warm-up routine, after which you will be asked to perform a myriad of things.

    You will learn to execute basic techniques involving punches, kicks, elbow and knee strikes, and various blocks. These can be performed in the form of shadow boxing, partner drills, bag work, and pad work. There will also be various strengthening exercises involved such as push-ups, sit-ups, squats and any physical routine that your instructors are able to conjure. Basically, a watered-down version of pro training. We are all born with different degree of athleticism, but training to the best of our abilities can help us achieve the best possible. Muay Thai training is a lot about conditioning and drilling.

    Just show up and train. It is not unusual to feel nervous when you go for your first formal Muay Thai training. For me, it was a bit like travelling to a foreign country for the first time: The hardest part for most people, in general, is to actually sign up and start training. But once you get past this stage, and going for your first lesson, you have essentially overcome the greatest challenge.

    Muay Thai Basics: Introductory Thai Boxing Techniques

    You may quickly realize how uncoordinated your body movements are, when asked to execute certain basic moves. Your trainers will quickly take notice and should typically pay you more attention to correct your techniques, making sure you are taken care of. Just follow what is taught, try and catch your breath and have yourself a great time. As a matter of fact, I do have some training tips for beginners. That will certainly reduce those early days of pain and agony, and definitely ease the curve in learning the art. Here are my top tips that you can apply easily that will surely enhance your early experience in Muay Thai: In my own experience, just straight-up running has been the most effective exercise routine to improve overall performance.

    Running will power up your endurance and stamina, and you will see results within a short period of time. The best routine is to incorporate both long-distance running with sprint interval training. My tip is to go for running tracks as the impact on the knees is lower. Always wrap your hands. Wrist injuries are common among Muay Thai and boxing beginners because the soft bones and tendons of the hands take time to be conditioned. Form IMO, this is the most important thing to take note of.

    Many people start out over-enthusiastically with their fists of fury and football kicks only to end up with injuries. But do it too frequently and you may damage your body. Once you make correct form a habit, power and speed will follow naturally. Muay Thai training is a powerfully effective body dehydrator.

    Dehydration can result in some nasty effects such as headaches, impaired brain function and reduced endurance. Researchers recommend drinking at least 2 litres half a gallon of water per day.