Advanced Shadowboxing For Advanced Skill Sets
THINK YOU'RE A SHADOWBOXING EXPERT? TRY THIS!
By Evan Lee
Shadowboxing is an extremely effective method of training, and it is training that can be done anywhere and without any training partners.
However, this method of training may seem inferior to pad work or bag work because the same stimulus of a partner or impact on a bag is not there, but it is not inferior. It is a necessary supplement.
When you are hitting pads or hitting the bag, it is easy to let yourself flail and let how powerful a strike feels tell you whether or not you’re doing a good job. “Blasted the bag with a kick and produced a loud bang. I’m doing awesome!” impact and how you feel is not a good judge.
When you are shadowboxing, you get a chance to pay attention to your body, how it’s moving, how balanced you are, how smooth everything is, whether your whole body is working together, etc.
These are all crucial factors in determining how effective of a fighter...
5 Non-Muay Thai Drills & Exercises for Muay Thai
UNCONVENTIONAL DRILLS TO BOOST YOUR MUAY THAI SKILLS
By Sean Fagan
Muay Thai is hella fun. If you didn’t think it was fun, you wouldn’t be on this blog site reading about it!
While it’s easy to fall into the routine Muay Thai drills that we all love so much – roadwork, skipping rope, bag work, pad work, sparring, wash, rinse, repeat – those aren’t the only drills that combat athletes need in their training regimen.
Consistency breeds champions, but consistently doing the same things over and over again with no variation can also breed boredom, burnout, and – the athlete’s constant concern – injury. In order to be a beast at Muay Thai, you may want to consider doing some exercises that seemingly have nothing to do with Muay Thai.
Here are five non-Muay Thai drills that can help bring your fight game to the next level – and you don’t even need a partner, heavy bag, or ring to do them!
DRILL...
Showing Respect: MUST-Know Pre-Fight Rituals In Thailand
WHY YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT PRE-FIGHT MUAY THAI RITUALS
By Sean Fagan
In my opinion, being respectful should be one of your top priorities as a fighter and as a person. There are plenty of douche bags who fight for the wrong reasons and act arrogantly whether it’s in the gym or in the ring.
Don’t be that douchebag.
You know the type of person I’m talking about, right?
The one who takes sparring way too seriously in the gym and makes excuses, or states that he wasn’t trying when he gets tagged. He also loves to brag about his accomplishments (usually which are over-exaggerated or non-existent) and talk about himself whenever the opportunity presents itself.
This same douche will enter the ring with zero background knowledge of the traditions of Muay Thai and show zero respect to his trainers, his opponent, and the sport as a whole. He will neglect all of the Muay Thai pre-fight rituals, showboat during a fight, and show little class after the...
How Can I Train Without My Gym?
MAKING YOUR "MUAY THAI BEST" OUT OF A GLOBAL PANDEMIC
By Emily Moore
As I’m writing this article, the COVID-19 pandemic is causing gyms the world over to temporarily close. Your gym may have recently cancelled its classes, leaving you wondering, “how am I going to train?” or “am I going to lose all my progress?”
This is not the first time that I’ve had zero access to a gym. Heck, it probably won’t be the last! Training in Muay Thai, as in any sport, is a journey that will sometimes require you to hit the “pause” button, whether you want to or not.
For instance, you may find yourself in dire financial straits. You may move to a new town that has no gym. You may even find yourself in the middle of a pandemic that requires every gym near you to close (!!!).
Whatever the situation, fear not. Here are some strategies to ensure that you can keep up your training until you can get back to the gym:
The Game Plan is Key
When you had...
Tips To Increase Punching Power For Muay Thai
BLAST YOUR OPPONENTS WITH STUPID PUNCHING POWER!
By Sean Fagan
Want to increase punching power?
Want to learn how to punch hard so you can land the perfect knock out punch the next time you fight?
Want to know the best tips and great exercises that are sure to help you improve your punching power?
If you answered yes to all of those questions, scroll down to find great boxing, MMA and Muay Thai training tips and the best explosive exercises to increase punching power!
Top 5 Exercises To Punch Harder
Explosive Pushups – Plyometric exercises like explosive pushups are sure to help you increase your power punching. An explosive pushup is very similar to a regular pushup except you are pushing yourself off the ground as high as you can.To make it even more of a challenge, try doing explosive push ups like the guy to the right!
Clean and Press – This full body power lifting exercise helps increase the power and explosiveness of your entire...
Comparing Kickboxing vs. Muay Thai
THE MAIN DIFFERENCES BETWEEN TWO "SISTER SPORTS"
By Angela Chang
With both kickboxing (K1 rules) and Muay Thai growing simultaneously around the world, fans of one sport are often fans of the other.
With many Muay Thai fighters successfully making the transition over to kickboxing (such as Sitthichai, Petchpanomrung, Tiffany van Soest, and many more), it’s easy to think they are the same.
While there are many similarities between the two, there are a few things that set Muay Thai apart from kickboxing.
1. Kicks to Punches Ratio
When you watch a professional Muay Thai fight, punches are usually only used to set up kicks and knees. Less commonly, some Muay Thai fighters will have the Muay Maat style and attempt to knock out their opponents with punches instead fighting to win on points.
However, you will see much much more punches being thrown in a kickboxing fight, often in long combinations or with the “haymaker” style of...
The 10 Best Beginner Muay Thai Sparring Tips
HOW TO SPAR: A CHECKLIST FOR BEGINNERS
By Sean Fagan
These are the best beginner Muay Thai sparring tips that will help you avoid getting your nose broken and spirits demoralized the first time you decide to step into the ring.
Since I’m the guy who had his nose broken and spirits demoralized his first sparring session, I want to help you avoid that at all costs because it SUCKS!
Check out this 10 step beginner checklist on how to spar during your first session(s):
My Top 10 Beginners Muay Thai Sparring Tips
#1. Make Sure Your Kru/Instructor Approves
Don’t be that asshole who steps into a first sparring session without permission. Chances are you haven’t sparred yet because your instructor feels like you are not ready. And guess what? If your instructor thinks you are not ready, you are NOT ready.
Not only is this for your safety but it’s for your training partners safety too. There has been way too many times I’ve...
Dynamic Warmup Routines For Muay Thai Training
MY #1 WAY TO KEEP WARMUPS FUN, ENGAGING & EFFECTIVE
By Sean Fagan
Before each and every training session, I do almost the same exact pre-workout routine. It involves foam rolling, skipping rope, dynamic movements, and some light static stretches.
I find that performing this dynamic warm-up routine before banging the heavy bag or doing any other type of Muay Thai training helps me get prepared in more ways than one.
Probably the most obvious benefit of having this pre-workout warmup is that it gets my body prepared for a hard training session. My muscles loosen up, the blood starts flowing through my veins, and the important areas of my body are ready to put in some work.
Besides being physically prepared to train, having my pre-workout routine gets me mentally focused and in the zone. This short 15-minute session gives me the right amount of time I need in order to get my mind zoned in on what I want to accomplish during my Muay Thai...
10 Key Muay Thai Defense Techniques Every Fighter Must Know
"NO DEFENSE, NO MUAY THAI!"
By Sean Fagan
Having a solid defense is super important as a Muay Thai fighter, but, you already knew that...
Right?
Learning defensive techniques for Muay Thai like how to check a kick, parry punches or counter your opponent's kicks, are essential skills to have in order to be a dominate force in the ring.
If you are unable to defend yourself chances are you'll end up with more bumps, bruises and injuries than the intelligent, technical fighters who focus more on being elusive and having unbreakable defense.
To be honest, if I were to start my Muay Thai journey over again, DEFENSE would be the main thing I would focus on. When the first half of my career, my defense was mostly just blocking punches with my face... and it’s not as fun as it sounds.
The defensive Muay Thai technique videos below demonstrate some of the basic moves and techniques that are CRUCIAL to any fighters repertoire. Perfecting...
5 Tips For Your First Muay Thai Fight
AVOID GETTING SMASHED IN YOUR FIRST FIGHT WITH THESE POINTERS!
By Sean Fagan
You’re nervous as hell.
You feel like throwing up.
You start doubting why you decided to step into the ring against someone who is trying to kill you.
You can’t get your mind off the fight.
I get it. I’ve been there. We all have! Every Muay Thai fighter goes through relatively the same process when they first step into the ring.
Doubt. Fear. Anxiety. Excitement. Adrenaline.
It’s all a part of the process. Learning how to control these emotions is key to winning your first Muay Thai fight. The first step is knowing what to expect and how to deal with the inevitable emotions and situations that are going to pop up. Follow these tips for your first fight to be as prepared as possible once you step into that ring!
Best 5 Tips For Your First Muay Thai Fight
#1. Understand Your Opponent Is Human Too
Very rarely during my first few fights did I ever consider how my...
