Muay Thai is arguably the best striking form around today, and thanks to the ever growing popularity of mixed martial arts organizations like the UFC people who otherwise would never have known about this striking art are getting a first hand look at it.
So this is a guide for beginners or anyone interested in getting into muay Thai. Keep in mind that the following is very basic stuff intended for people not familiar with the sport. However, as time goes on, I will get into more advanced technique.
Warm Up
Warm-up exercises are essential to any work-out regime. The point of the warm-up is to loosen up your body and to increase the amount of blood pumped to the muscles. People who do not warm-up often get injured during workouts. For the purpose of muay Thai a 20 minute warm-up will suffice. This includes a short run, jumping rope, and shadowboxing. Remember: the warm-up is not meant to increase cardio and endurance, hence why I say “short run”. Stretching immediately after these three activities will further loosen up your body and allow for more flexibility which is necessary for the kicks you will be doing. Furthermore, stretching will in a word “open” your muscles and allow for more blood, hence oxygen, to be absorbed by them. If you are not sure what stretches you should be doing ask a trainer. If you are not in a gym then there exist plenty of books on the topic. Hold each stretch for about 20 seconds. DO NOT BOUNCE! If any particular stretch is too difficult hold it for 10 seconds, take a few deep breaths, and hold it for another 10 seconds. Continue stretching until all of your muscles feel loose and limber. After stretching you should do a few rolling exercises to loosen your joints. This includes: hip rolls (think hula hoop), making circles with your arms to loosen the shoulders, knees, wrists, and ankles.
Workout
I will not go into specific workouts this early on, however I will discuss what goals you should have with a workout and how to structure them. Each workout should have a specific goal, whether it is improving your defense or learning a specific new technique. This allows you to focus on a single aspect of your style and improve it. Early on your goal should be to always keep your hands up. This sounds simple enough but many pro fighters do not even follow this rule (look at Chuck Liddell and what happened during his last two fights). Another thing you must remember is to keep your elbows tucked in to protect your ribs. This is even more important in muay Thai because knee attacks are often directed towards the ribs. Make sure you are not too liberal or too conservative with your goals. Give yourself a month to master a new technique, and three to master a certain combo. If you need more time, take it. But at the same time try to stay on your time line, and not take too long to learn something.
Cool Down
The cool down is as important as the warm up. Any athlete will tell you that if you transition from a state of intense activity directly to a state of rest your muscles will tighten and will be sore for many days after which will affect your workouts. The best way to cool down is with shadowboxing. This will allow you to break down the techniques you did earlier and make sure your form is where it needs to be. Stretching should immediately follow from the shadowboxing.
Next week I will begin talking about muay Thai in much more detail starting with stance and proper footwork. |
