LEARNING TO COUNTER THE AGGRESSIVE BULL IN YOUR GYM

By Angela Chang

Behold! The original list of ten sparring partners that you will encounter continually throughout your career. Today we break down one of the most challenging opponents to overcome in the gym: aggressive sparring partners. We called this fighter “the God Mode partner,” but they are better known as “blitzers.”

Imagine this, if you will: The bell goes off and you settle your eyes on your sparring partner for the round. As soon as you touch gloves, he or she goes in. I mean really goes in on you. We’re talking about non-stop combinations, punches and kicks, barely giving you any space to breathe. You’re trying to defend and hit back but you’re also worried about what might be coming next, which is coming at you in a matter of nanoseconds.

While they’re not necessarily hitting with ill intent, the aggression from this opponent is there and it...

THE BEGINNER'S EXPERIENCE: 3 COMMON DISCOMFORTS

By Sean Fagan

Starting from square one is always a hard thing to do.

It can also become downright discouraging when the first couple of Muay Thai sessions are impeded by physical discomforts that seem to reoccur every time.

Just know that this is a common experience and there are others who have worked through the same thing.

So before we start unflinchingly kicking down banana trees, here are the three common discomforts that beginners experience and how to help reduce the chances of them occurring:

 #1: Muscle Cramps

Muay Thai is extremely dynamic and involves different muscle groups that are not commonly activated during daily routine, especially not for a beginner with a regular nine-to-five.

After all, nobody goes around doing 25-50 left and right leg kicks in public for fun on a daily basis.

Add high intensity training into the mix and the chance of cramps skyrocket.

That sharp pain in the sides…...

THESE 'CAN'T-PUT-IT-DOWN' READS ARE MUST-HAVES IN YOUR MUAY THAI LIBRARY

By Aimee Laurence

You may be a recent convert to Muay Thai or have been a connoisseur for rather longer. But as well as enjoying watching the "Art of Eight Limbs" on the television, or training and competing in it, you may want to seek out some good reading material to help round out your appreciation of this unique sport.

No matter what your level of interest in Muay Thai (that’s "Thai boxing" to the layman), here are the eight best books on the sport for you to enjoy.

Muay Thai Basics: Introductory Thai Boxing Techniques by Christopher Delp

As the title suggests, this is a beginner’s guide to the sport of Muay Thai, and a comprehensive one at that. As you would imagine, there are many efforts aimed at enticing people into the sport, but this is definitely one of the best, covering everything from the basic techniques in which to train, but also detailing more around the culture of the sport...

THE MUAY THAI GUYS PODCAST: EPISODE #42

By Sean Fagan

Training in Thailand can be a daunting task. Everyone who has done it has made a number of mistakes (including Paul and I) and are constantly learning new things about training in the motherland of Muay Thai.

Our goal for this podcast episode is to get you as prepared as possible for the intense training that comes with Muay Thai in Thailand. Follow these 10 survival tips for training in Thailand and you’ll be happy you did 

Click To Listen ===> 10 Survival Tips For Training In Thailand

Here’s a brief summary of the things we cover in this weeks podcast:

#1. Proper Cooldown – It’s critical to minimize delayed onset muscle soreness and keep the body from locking up in future sessions.

#2. Thai Liniment – This stuff is awesome! It will help warm up stiff joints, minimize pain and help keep you from being unbelievable sore.

#3. Electrolytes and Hydration –...

THE MUAY THAI GUYS PODCAST: EPISODE #009

By Sean Fagan

Some people get into Muay Thai for the specific reason to test themselves in the ring, while others start training because they want to get in better shape and learn an effective method for self defense. Regardless of why you began training, chances are that you have at least contemplated the idea of stepping into the ring and fighting…. haven’t you?

In this podcast, fighters Sean (19-6) and Paul (12-2-1) breakdown a complete guide so you can be 100% prepared for your first (or next) fight.

With a combined 40+ fights, The Muay Thai Guys share their best tips, strategies and training tools that have helped them be prepared mentally, physically and spiritually before entering the ring. Here’s a brief rundown of what the cover:

Complete Guide To Fighting For The First Time

1. Figure Out Your “WHY” – Knowing why you want to fight is the first step to...

THE REASON 'PITBULL' IS SUCH A POPULAR NICKNAME

By Lindsay Bohonik

This summer, Chael Sonnen gave a unique definition as to what makes a fighter during his You’re Welcome podcast. He said:

Fighting is when it’s hard. Fighting is when that person is coming back at you with equal or greater resistance. That’s what a fighter is, and when it doesn’t go your way and you want to stay in bed in the morning, when that alarm goes off you get your ass up, put your boots on and you go face the world. That’s what a fighter does.

When Sonnen made this statement, he was discussing former UFC bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey as being an aggressorversus a fighter. However, as this quote also illustrates, that the word “fighting” can be diversely applied to many facets of life. There is, of course, the literal definition of fighting: to physically engage with another person in a violence, combat or aggression.  Tied to that...

IT'S SMART TO TRAIN MUAY THAI (WITHOUT TAKING A FIGHT)

By Angela Chang

Wherever people are engaging in serious sporting competition, you can guarantee there are also countless others practicing the same sport for recreation only.

For every Tiger Woods, there are a thousand average joes on driving ranges; for every Buakaw, Sitsongpeenong or Samart Payakaroon, there are droves of regular men and women practicing Muay Thai in gyms across the world with no intent of ever having a real fight.

It’s been said before and it will be said again: Muay Thai has something for everyone. This is one of the unique qualities about Muay Thai, that it invites onto the mats people from all sorts of jobs and backgrounds.

Let’s break down some of the benefits of training Muay Thai without any real intention of taking an opponent:

The Physical: “I Want To Get Jacked/Healthy!”

Muay Thai is a great way to get in shape. It burns tons of calories while giving...

TRY THIS HEAVY BAG DRILL TO PRACTICE GOOD CHIN DEFENSE

By Sean Fagan

This was one of the first heavy bag drills I did when I started boxing when I was younger. I learned really quick that I need to keep my chin tucked, especially if I wanted to make sure I didn’t lose any money! You’ll get what I mean once you watch the video of this type of Muay Thai heavy bag drill:

Chin Tucked Heavy Bag Drill

See what I mean? There’s much more on the line now when you hit the heavy bag if you are holding money underneath your chin.

Of course, although using money as the tool for this drill can be highly motivated, if you’re a broke joke like myself and can’t afford to put some bills underneath your chin, you can also use a tennis ball or rubber ball of some sort.

JOIN THE TEAM AT THE NEXT NAK MUAY NATION MUAY THAI RETREAT OR CAMP

By Sean Fagan

Think about your favorite hobby, whatever it is… OK, I mean your #2 hobby after Muay Thai! Maybe you’re into skydiving, or crocheting, or bodybuilding, or trading stamps, or WHATEVER!

Now think about doing that hobby with a friend. Not just any friend, but a like-minded friend… a supportive friend… a friend who is just as passionate as you are about collecting Pogs, or painting landscapes, or fixing up old furniture. Isn’t it better with a friend like that? Doesn’t your hobby go from a “great” to a “WOW!” with a buddy who is just as into it as you are??

That philosophy is at the heart of every single Nak Muay Nation retreat or camp. In the time that we’ve been setting up these excursions, I can’t tell you how many of our attendees have left with phone numbers, emails and Facebook info from the...

HOW TO KNOW WHETHER OR NOT YOU NEED TO SUPPLEMENT PROTEIN

By Angela Chang

Everyone is obsessed with protein and getting enough of it. Almost any person who is health or fitness -oriented has a tub of protein powder in their house. We are often told by our friends and training partners that we need to take protein powder if we are active, especially in an intense sport like Muay Thai. Protein, protein, protein!

Setting all the hype aside, guess what? Generally speaking, if you are:

1) eating enough calories, and;

2) eating a balanced diet

…then you do not need protein powder! A balanced diet that takes into account your Muay Thai sessions will provide you with the protein you need to recover and grow your muscles. Having too much protein will put stress on your kidneys. Similar to how extra carbs turn to fat, it’s the same with protein.

Moreover, if you’re getting enough protein from eating actual food, why waste money on buying...