There are a number of different styles of martial arts out there, from boxing to jiu-jitsu and everything in between, but there is one form that surpasses the rest, and that is Muay Thai. Muay Thai is the most effective striking art form in the world.
The emphasis on sparring and competition is what sets Muay Thai apart from the rest of the martial arts. This is why it is a great way to train your body and mind at the same time. Keep in mind that Muay Thai should not be treated as just a cardio exercise, as it is much more than that. After reading this blog, you’ll know everything there is to know about this art form.
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In Summary
Comprising 8 different aspects, Muay Thai training is one of the most explosive methods of Martial Arts training that helps you build your flexibility, agility, endurance, and strength. It incorporates cardiovascular activities in the form of road work, power building with shadow boxing, pad work, and bag work, agility boosting with partner drills, and combat training for improved wrestling ability and reflexes with clinching and sparring. You can also incorporate Muay Thai training into your workout routine to lose weight, burn fat, and gain muscle definition healthily and sustainably.What Is Muay Thai?
Muay literally translates to “combat,” and Thai comes from the place where it was developed, which is Thailand. It dates back thousands of years when Thai elders trained the younger generation the art to help protect the nation against invaders.
Muay Thai is known as an 8-point combat art since it employs different parts of the human body as natural weapons such as fists, feet, elbows, and knees. It can be used for both close and long range situations. It was used by guards and police for the king and his family during the time.
These days it has become a sport with different weight classes and international tournaments. UFC is a prime example of this.
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Muay Thai Training Structure
When you are training for Muay Thai, you don’t go straight into punching and kicking; it’s a long journey before you can actually take a person down.
The Muay Thai training structure is a long and grueling process, which takes years to master. It is essential to find a good gym to train for Muay Thai as every gym has a different schedule and training structure.
Even though it may be different for all gyms, but the basic outline of the structure is relatively similar and is broken down into eight different aspects.
Road Work
Road work in simpler terms is running, where you have to dedicate a certain amount of your daily gym time to running. This serves as a great way to improve your body’s energy system and build up your cardio. It is essential to build up your stamina for the training that is to come as you slowly progress in your training.
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Shadow Boxing
When you start, you are required to put time into shadow boxing. This is usually done in front of a mirror so the person can work on their stance, guard, and rhythm while throwing techniques. Initially, it is important to slow yourself down and work on your form rather than go for sheer force.
Seeing yourself in the mirror gives you a chance to see how you look and what you need to work on. Don’t think about throwing a double roundhouse kick, instead work on throwing a technique swiftly and going back into original stance. This helps solidify your fundamentals and develop your techniques.
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Pad Work
Pad work is an integral part of any Muay Thai training, where an advanced student will hold pads, and you will be required to practice your techniques while being corrected. During this training, it is important to slow down again and work on your stance and technique rather than packing a punch.
Speed and accuracy win matches in a Muay Thai fight because everyone has to have the ability to land a punch, but the technique is what sets the person apart.
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Bag Work
The heavy bag is one of the most important pieces of equipment when training since you practice your striking on a heavy bag. This is a great way of building stamina and can also be used to condition your knuckles and shins. If you are looking to toughen up your shins, the heavy bag is the way to go.
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Partner Drills
Drills with a partner can be a great way to get comfortable with combat. The important thing to learn from drills is to work on your speed and guarding. Since drills are performed with no force, it can serve as a great way to focus on your techniques without having the risk of hurting yourself. The whole point of training drills is to develop reflexes, reactions, and timing when you are up against an actual opponent.
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Clinching
The Muay Thai clinch is the wrestling and BJJ side of MMA, where the two fighters are in close combat and battle to take control of the position. During a clinch arm control, sweeps, knees, and elbows come into play.
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Sparring
Sparring is the process of using all your learned techniques in the ring. There are two types of sparring which are Muay Thai and boxing sparring, where one focuses on all techniques, and the latter only focuses on punches to improve striking.
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Body Conditioning
One thing that separates Muay Thai fighters is their toughness and conditioning to take a hit. Fighters who have conditioned their bodies to take the pain, which means that they can withstand an enormous amount of damage without going down.
As a beginner, your goal is to focus on slowly developing a strong body over time. You will notice that your shins will be screaming in anguish when you first start. That is entirely normal and something you have to live with. Unfortunately, there are no shortcuts to conditioning your body in Muay Thai. The more you kick and get hit, the tougher your body will become over time.
Muay Thai requires responsibility and like any workout requires patience to master. It is not only a workout for your body but also your mind. It is one thing to have muscles, but if you are looking to gain strength and agility, Muay Thai was made for you.
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Muay Thai for Weight Loss
Muay Thai is not just for combat sports anymore. It’s a full body workout that sets you on your weight loss and fat loss journey. Because it is so intense, explosive, and works all your muscles, it amps up your calorie-burning process.
In a study by the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, participating members burned 694 kcal during one hour of Muay Thai training.
In addition, another study reveals that 2-3 sessions of Muay Thai training per week leads to overall boost in your physical fitness.
Muay Thai Training and Weight Loss
If your goal is to burn fat and lose weight, then Muay Thai training is a great method of not only improving your athletic ability, but getting fit.
Here are a few ways in which this training routine helps you lose weight:
- Intense Calorie Burn: In 1 hour of Muay Thai training, you can burn up to 694 calories on average, which is much higher compared to other cardio routines such as HIIT, sprinting or running.
- Works Up Your Metabolism: Since this training routine revs up your metabolic rate, you’re not only burning calories during your workout, but also in the post-training phase.
- Targets Multiple Muscles: Muay Thai comprises elbow strikes, punches, clinching, push-ups, defensive maneuvers, kicks, knees, core drills, squats, footwork drills, etc. These moves help you build explosive strength while gaining definition in your muscles and flexibility in your stabilizers.
- Functional Strength Building: Your regular gym routine may help you gain a lean physique or muscle mass, but it doesn’t do much for functional training. With Muay Thai training, you execute moves that improve your endurance, strength, and agility. This contributes to muscle definition and weight loss.
- Boosts Cardiovascular Health: Because Muay Thai training is aerobic and anaerobic in nature, it elevates your cardio health. This helps you build endurance and stamina, allowing you to lose weight.
Benefits of Muay Thai Training
Muay Thai training not only charges you up with power and strength, it also improves your overall physical fitness.
Here are some benefits of Muay Thai training:
- Elevates Your Physical Fitness: Utilizing your bodyweight, this training routine helps you unlock your true strength and build your agility, speed, flexibility, and endurance. The best part is – you gain visible muscle definition.
- Instills Self-Discipline: One of the key elements of this training regimen is to block out the clutter and noise and zone into your internal world. This requires focus, discipline, concentration, and resilience. As a result, you’re able to overcome mental blockages and develop discipline. Not only does this help in your physical fitness, but it also improves the quality of your life and your mindfulness.
- Regulates Anxiety And Stress: To master the moves in this training routine, you need to control your breathing. This practice allows you to naturally lower your anxiety and stress levels, improving your overall mental health.
- Builds Self-Defense: Since you execute bodyweight movements that nurture your inner strength and power, this training method equips you with self-defense skills. Think of it – Muay Thai conditions your reflexes to react when you’re threatened. This easily translates into self-defense skills, allowing you to feel confident in yourself and be your best protector.
- Improves Balance And Coordination: Muay Thai training includes a lot of superset movements. You throw a kick right after a punch, then it turns into elbow jabs and continues until you’ve executed all the movements. This enhances your overall physical coordination and balance, which prepares you for other daily activities as well.
With Muay Thai training, you’re not only activating your body’s weight loss process, but you’re also preparing it for agility and flexibility. It improves your athletic abilities, helps you define your muscles, and also boosts your mental well-being.
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Conclusion
Muay Thai is more than just martial arts training. It’s a complete way of life that prepares your mind and body for self-improvement and discipline. Since it involves sparring, competitiveness, and vigorous movements, it gives you a full-body workout to lose weight, gain strength, and achieve flexibility. But beyond athletic prowess, it allows you to gain functional strength and cardio health.
It helps you manage your stress and anxiety levels effectively, all the while nurturing your discipline and concentration. The dynamic movements in this routine equip you with the skills necessary to constantly conquer your inhibitions, in and out of the ring.
FAQs
What does Muay Thai training involve?
Essentially, Muay Thai training is a complete cardio routine that involves power building with strength training, sparring and controlled breathing. This routine comprises:
- Road Work - Running, sprinting, or jogging to boost your cardiovascular health, stamina, and endurance.
- Shadow Boxing - This is the technique that helps you work on your movement and form.
- Pad Work - This phase of the Muay Thai training helps you work on your precision along with movements by hitting pads.
- Bag Work - In this practice, you hit a heavy bag, which conditions your muscles for strength and power.
- Partner Drills - This training phase focuses on improving your reflexes and reaction timing.
- Clinching - This incorporates close-combat moves such as arm control, knees, and strikes.
- Sparring - This levels up your training regimen where you apply the fighting technique within the ring.
- Muscle Strength Conditioning - In this phase, you incorporate core and bodyweight exercises to build flexibility and improve your strength.
Can I learn Muay Thai on my own?
You can always learn any kind of workout routine including Muay Thai training on your own. You can find free online resources or online paid classes to learn this from an instructor. However, it is recommended to learn this art from a qualified trainer in person. A specialized Muay Thair gym will provide you with the right kind of equipment to train efficiently. You’ll have experts who correct your form and teach you the right kinds of techniques you need to master the art. They’ll also provide you with posture correction guidance, feedback for improvement, and sparring opportunities with partners who are on the same or an advanced level to help you improve your reflexes and reaction timing.
Is Muay Thai training good for fat burning?
Yes, Muay Thai training is great for fat burning. It is a mixture of intense cardio and strength training, mainly utilizing your bodyweight. This helps you burn an average of 500-700 calories in an hour long session. It also includes exercises that improve your stamina, flexibility and endurance, revving up your metabolic rate to help you burn even in the post-training phase.
How much weight can I expect to lose with Muay Thai training?
When setting weight loss goals, it is important to keep realistic expectations and targets. Trying to lose 15 kgs in a month is not only an unrealistic goal, but it is also not recommended as it’s too drastic. Rapid weight loss leads to muscle breakage, nutritional deprivation, and other health problems. You should always aim for a sustainable weight loss strategy where you lose weight slowly but steadily. Ideally, you should aim to lose 0.5-1kg of weight in a week. Incorporating a healthy, high-protein diet as you train for Muay Thai will keep you on track, helping you achieve your fitness goals effortlessly.
