Muay Thai, also known as Thai boxing, is a martial art that originated in Thailand and has been gaining popularity in the Western world over the past few decades. There are several factors that have contributed to the growth of Muay Thai in the Western world:
1 : Increased Awareness: With the growth of the internet and social media, people have become more aware of martial arts from different parts of the world. Muay Thai has gained popularity due to its effectiveness as a combat sport and its unique style.
2 : Fitness Benefits: Muay Thai is a full-body workout that helps in improving strength, endurance, and overall fitness. It is also an excellent stress-reliever, making it an attractive option for people looking for a fun and challenging workout.
3 : MMA: Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) has become increasingly popular in recent years, and many MMA fighters have incorporated Muay Thai techniques into their fighting style. This has led to a growing interest in Muay Thai as a stand-alone martial art.
4 : Availability of Training: With the increasing demand for Muay Thai, more gyms and training centers have started offering classes and training programs. This has made it easier for people to access training and has contributed to the growth of the sport.
Overall, the growth of Muay Thai in the Western world can be attributed to a combination of factors, including increased awareness, fitness benefits, influence from MMA, and availability of training.
Muay Thai is the national sport of Thailand and is well respected by most in the country. Despite that, the popularity of the sport has declined and is mostly followed by those of “lower class” or “Commoners” as it is a way to get paid, it is not uncommon for children starting at 8 years old to compete, and for adults to place bets. The gambling culture of Muay Thai is frowned upon from most, however still exists is some areas. People of “upper class” follow sports such as soccer, but still hold respect and pride for Muay Thai as it is in the history of their country. In Chiang Mai, Northern Thailand, Muay Thai is taught in the police force as a compulsory subject in the curriculum for self defence and the conservation of the art. ‘Buakaw’, a well respected Muay Thai fighter with over 276 fights, is one of the many trainers who conducts the subject.
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What is Sak Yant? And what’s it’s significance to Muay Thai?
Sak Yant is a style of traditional tattoo originating in Khmer and gained popularity within other country that practice Buddhism, such as Thailand. These tattoos, traditionally, are hand tapped by a Buddhist monk in a temple and chants are repeated during the tapping process. Sak Yant has a deep spiritual and cultural significance within followers of Buddhism and each design has a different meaning and purpose. Most Muay Thai fighters will have a few different designs of Sak Yant as they provide protection to the individual, physical and spiritual. Having Sak Yant comes with “rules” that need to be followed or it is believed the intentions and powers of the tattoo can weaken or have negative affects instead. The most common designs found in Muay Thai fighters are the “Hanuman”, believed to gain bravery and courage, a symbol or strength and perseverance. “Gao Yord”, tattooed at the nape of the neck and provides protection from evil spirits and gains good luck. “Tiger” Yant, symbolised strength, power and fearlessness. Before deciding on a design, make sure research is done because some of the rules with having these tattoos can be life altering.
Muay Thai is very intense and highly beneficial if you are looking to lose weight. Strength training combined with conditioning and a lot of cardio will help you lose fat and gain lean muscle. In an hour, you can lose up to 600 calories if you put in full power. Learning the proper techniques also allows you to avoid injury and you gain a self defence skill. In conclusion, Muay Thai is very effective for anyone on their fitness journey.
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In theory, Muay Thai / Thai Boxing works well because you are taught close distance techniques such as clinching and throwing opponents as well as more distanced combat, like kicks. Although there are no rules to street fighting and more likely to be fought dirty, Muay Thai has some moves that can lay a lot of damage in a fight even on a beginner level such as elbows to the head and knees to the body (or groin, because there’s no rules, obviously), if you manage to sweep your opponent and get them to the ground, it is beneficial and can prove to be a big advantage to you. Muay Thai also allows you to be calm under pressure because sparring is comparable to a real fight situation outside the ring, however, training also allows you to walk away knowing you have the skills to inflict damage, giving you the confidence that you don’t have to prove anything to anyone.
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Boxing gloves have padding more concentrated around the knuckle area, while Muay Thai gloves have evenly distributed padding because the nature of the sport needs padding to block kicks to the head with the palm area more open to allow more ease to catch kicks and clinch. The design of boxing gloves makes the fighters hand position to be almost in a fist, whereas, Muay Thai gloves make the hands more relaxed and less clenched when not striking. There is also a difference in wrist support, boxing gloves have more support because of the nature of the sport, which is purely punching so more support around the wrist is needed, while Muay Thai has a thinner band and less support to allow more movement.
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Muay Thai / Thai Boxing has a 10 point scoring system, that means, each round fighters start with 10 points and to maintain that score, the effectiveness of your strikes is put into consideration. Points are lost through warnings, such as illegal shots like groin shots, hook kicks with the back of the foot etc, technical knockout, where the ref deems a fighter unable to continue fighting, knockout, or even not defending yourself enough from the other fighters strikes. Each round is scored with 10 points, meaning after the 5 rounds, the best score you can receive is 50 points.
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The Mongkol is worn by fighter during the Wai Kru ritual/dance prior to their fight. The headpiece is part of a tradition dating back to the war, when soldiers would wear bandanas around their head before going into battle. Each gym or trainer has their own Mongkol , and has their own rules that need to be followed. Thailand is a predominantly Buddhist country so the Mongkol is blessed by a monk and considered a sacred item. Prior to a fight, the trainer places the Mongkol onto the fighters head and chants a prayer during the process, this is believed to protect the fighter from being hurt and provide good luck during “battle”. After the Wai Kru dance, the Mongkol is removed by the trainer then placed onto the pillar of the ring, as it is a sacred item, it is not allowed to be on the ground or on any lowered surface as a sign of respect.
The Pra Jiad is an arm band similar in appearance to the Mongkol. It’s made from fabric and twisted in a rope manner, tied around the arm of fighters. Thai soldiers, before leaving for war would take a piece of their mothers clothing and wrap it around their arm to bring them good luck so they could return home safe. Similar to the Mongkol, the Pra Jiad is blessed by a monk and considered sacred, therefore is not allowed to be placed close to the ground to show respect. The Pra Jiad is worn during the fight, it brings good luck to fighters.
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The rules established by the World Muay Thai Council states fighters must be within 5 pounds difference in weight, protective gear to be worn including groin guard and mouth guard. All fighters must perform the “Wai Kru” ritual before their fight, wearing the Mongkol.
There are 3 ways a fight can be won, Knockout, Technical Knockout and Points. The point system is simple. Each round, the highest a fighter can score is 10. If you score a 10 you have performed well, however, your score goes down if you’ve received a warning, or you have not blocked or defended yourself up to par. Muay Thai has 5 rounds of 3 minutes each, with a 2 minute break in between, if both fighter has performed well and received 10 points in all rounds, the fight is then declared a draw.
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Difference between Muay Thai / Thai Boxing and kickboxing,
Muay Thai / Thai Boxing is a sport that uses 8 points of striking, punches, kicks, elbows and knees, while kickboxing has a 4 point striking system involving only punches and kicks. Kickboxing fighters movement and technique to fighting tends to be more defensive and set up, whereas Muay Thai relies on heavy and aggressive motions, finding openings for counter attacks and minimal head movement and weaving that you would typically find in kickboxing. Kickboxing was inspired by components found in Muay Thai by Japanese boxing expert Osamu Noguchi, who developed the fight style wanting to add elements of Karate and Western Boxing as well.
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