Muay Thai has some of the best conditioning in all martial arts and is a fantastic way to get into shape. n this article using all my research and my own personal experience I will explain the 12 ways in which Muay Thai gets you into shape.

I know starting anything new can be intimidating but I promise you Muay Thai will change both your body and your mind forever!

Burn Up To 1000 calories Per Class

There are very few martial arts or any type of exercise that can compete with the fantastic cardio workout you get from Muay Thai.

You are in constant motion, round after round of kicking, punching, kneeing, and elbowing with conditioning drills are guaranteed to melt your fat and increase your heart rate.

High-intensity interval training(HIIT) is superb for losing weight(see this article) and most of your Muay Thai training will involve HIIT.

Everything from jumping rope, kicking, punching is done at the maximum effort as a conditioning drill. Usually for rounds of 3 minutes with a 1-minute rest in between rounds, there no better cardio out there!

If you see this article by Men’s Health it only takes two weeks to see results from HIIT, and after those 14 days, you will see the same increase in strength and endurance with only 134 minutes of HIIT training compared to 630 minutes of traditional endurance work(, cycling, running) which is over 4 times quicker!

Muay Thai not only will make you lose weight more quickly in a fan way but it will also IMPROVE your power and strength in about 1/4 of the time as doing traditional workouts! What’s not to like?

In an average Muay Thai class you will start warming up with 5 minutes of skipping followed by some bodyweight exercises, then you find a partner, to drill some combos with Thai pad (you can check out some of the best Muay Thai pads here on Amazon). All this is a very enjoyable fun workout.

This class will burn a whopping 600 calories per hour, with the average class being 90 minutes averaging a rough 1000 calories per session.

I can tell you from experience how much more enjoyable a Muay Thai session is than a boring hour-long treadmill session. Losing weight has never been so fun!

Muay Thai is mostly aerobic exercise which is known by many scientists to be the best way to maintain your weight. With around 45-75 minutes(just under a class) a couple of times of the week to be ideal to be at your ideal weight.

For long term weight loss overweight and obese adults should eventually aim for 200 to 300 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity per week to lose weight. This is around 3 Muay Thai classes as a week.

If you’re overweight or obese and think Muay Thai will be too intense for you don’t worry, you will be able to go at your own pace at taking a rest whenever you want and eventually work your intensity up.

Improved Bone Strength

Muay Thai like no other sport greatly increases your bone strength through a process called bone calcification when the body deposits calcium to increase bone density and strengthen bones. You can read more about it here.

Why is strengthening your bones important? Strong bones will protect your vital internal organs and provide added support for your muscles, which will help you in every aspect of your life.

The problem with not exercising is as you age, your body goes through a process called osteoporosis which causes your body to reabsorb calcium from your bones which makes your bones so much weaker.

Ever wonder why old people break bones so frequently? This is why, and it is because of a lack of exercise, worst still the break will happen suddenly and you won’t even notice it until it’s too late.

Osteoporosis is even worse with women as females have smaller, thinner bones than men, and when women reach menopause their estrogen hormone which protects bone health sharply decreases.

Making doing any physical exercise such as Muay Thai even more important for women as they age.

But physical exercise is PROVEN to increase bone health(article here), but with Muay Thai and it’s an emphasis on combat bone calcification; this process happens even quicker especially with the shins(see the above video in how strong Thai fighters shins are).

I noticed this myself as my shins have gotten a lot stronger which was done in Muay Thai with hours and hours of kicking heavy bags, Thai pads, and doing sparring.

Your body will understand it needs to strengthen the shin and other bones with calcium, and over time this will make the structure of your body so much stronger, preventing all manner of diseases from ever occurring later on in life.

Think how much your older body will thank you years from now knowing you chose to embark on this beautiful Muay Thai path, knowing your bones are full of calcium and way less likely to break.

In Thailand fighters have to go on runs daily, and running itself has shown to be very helpful to increase bone density.

This study concluded that runners of both genders had 40% more bone minerals than the non-running control group. I think a study of control and Muay Thai trainers will find an even bigger difference.

Increased Muscle And Strength

Muay Thai is known as the art of 8 limbs as you strike with your feet, arms, knees, and elbows which makes it a fantastic full-body muscle building workout with everything you do in the art.

Bodyweight training is key in Muay Thai, and you be doing do pushups squats and burpees pretty and jumping rope pretty much every training session before you even start kicking or punching!

All this exercise puts a lot of stress in the muscles and forces them to grow back stronger. After your first Muay Thai session I can guarantee you are doing to be sore but this is only temporary as your body rebuilds itself to become a better, more rounded machine.

All the various moves and combos you will be learning will work your body in new and interesting ways, there is a lot of core(abs) work in Muay Thai with the constant kicking and punching, which is why Muay Thai fighters always have developed core muscles.

So why not start learning Muay Thai and not only get a fantastic workout that burns 1000 calories per session, but also will improve your bone density and muscle mass? What’s not to like?

Reduce Stress

There is nothing better after a stressful 9-5 office job to wind down with your Muay Thai buddies and smash pads, you will find yourself so much more relaxed and able to wind down after a stressful workday, as getting out your frustration by hitting things hard feels SO good!

The higher levels of cortisol in your blood the more stressed you are, and the quicker you lose brain tissue see the above video for more detail. This is why people with high-stress jobs like bankers/doctors are more likely to have brain diseases as they get older.

Muay Thai is such a fantastic workout and I’ve noticed myself the powerful effects it has on reducing my cortisol levels as I feel so much better after training. As someone who suffers from very mild depression I’ve seen the difference myself between the days I train and don’t train.

Muay Thai is the perfect weapon to fight depression with the more intense workouts having a more impactful effect on stress levels.

However, any exercise in genera,l has been proven to reduce stress levels(see this study) but combat sports, in particular, have a more powerful effect in my observations with how I and other people I know feel after training.

Whilst you’re kicking the pads or sparring someone, you can only focus on that action and nothing else.

Doing a martial art that regularly detaches from the boring daily grind just helps you become a more stable, happier, and carefree individual.

Nothing will make you more relax and zen than 9 rounds of Sparring!

Increased Energy Levels

You might think, but Dillon wouldn’t training Muay Thai to make me more tired and less focused in my daily life?

No, exactly the opposite as numerous studies such as Researchers at the University of Georgia found that people who did as little as 20 minutes a week of aerobic exercise three times a week for six weeks reported an increase in energy levels and feeling less tired.

Now, if you want to know how often you should train Muay Thai click my post here, but as a beginner around two sessions of 90 minutes, a week is ideal.

This is a lot more exercise than the group in the above study, so I think the increase in energy levels would be even more improved.

Listen to what Pete McCall(his website), Exercise Physiologist at the American Council on Exercise says about exercise and improved fatigue levels.

“If a sedentary individual begins an exercise program it will enhance the blood flow carrying oxygen and nutrients to muscle tissue improving their ability to produce more energy (the chemical adenosine triphosphate)

Pete McCall Exercise Physiologist at the American Council on Exercise

Now training Muay Thai if your untrained will not immediately improve your fatigue levels as shown in a study by the medical journal Psychotherapy and Psychosomatic. One group did moderate exercise for 6 weeks while the other did low-intensity exercise.

Whilst both groups reported a 20 % increase in energy levels compared to the non-exercising group, the low-intensity group reported a 65% drop in feelings of fatigue while the more intense exercisers reported a 49% drop in fatigue.

Pete McCall said the following about the differences.

the discrepancy between the low-intensity and moderate-intensity groups could be explained, because if the participants in the moderate-intensity group did not take the time to develop an aerobic base, then the higher rate of work might leave them feeling more physically drained.”

Pete McCall Exercise Physiologist at the American Council on Exercise

This means for untrained individuals it will take a longer time to achieve a higher standard of fitness for Muay Thai, so you will temporarily feel more tired training Muay Thai than doing more moderate exercise; however, this will not last long as the more physically fit you become the more high-intensity workouts will improve your energy levels.

Improved Sleep

In modern society people across the globe have reported having sleep issues with 40% of people age 40 to 59 reporting(in this study) that they are getting less than recommended amounts of sleep; I don’t think these people do Muay Thai.

Your body operates on a 24-hour sleep cycle known as your circadian rhyme, with your body reaches the highest temperature at night and makes a chemical called melatonin which causes you to sleep; regular exercise increases natural melatonin in the body.

For older people, it’s even more important to exercise with this 6-month-study of 8 older people from a retirement center engaging in weight training resulted in a 38% sleep improvement with a 52% upper body strength increase!

These same effects would be found in Muay Thai, as all the bodyweight training you do together with the 100s of repetitions of hitting the Thai pads would result in similar muscle gains.

It isn’t just weight training and this study found that weight training, walking, and social interactions will improve sleep for older individuals. Muay Thai isn’t just a workout, I’ve increased my social circle a lot with the people I have met in the gym and I think it has helped my mental state a lot.

Training Muay Thai will make you less tired during the day and this study of over 2600 men and women aged 18-85 found that 150 minutes of vigorous exercise a week pound a 65 percent improvement in sleep quality.

People also said they felt less sleepy during the day, compared to those with less physical activity.

So even if you only do two Muay Thai classes a week roughly 180 minutes of exercise your sleep quality will DRASTICALLY improve and you will feel less tired and be more productive in your daily life. Muay Thai is sounding amazing right now right

Improved Hip Mobility And Strength

Muay Thai through the process of kicking and kneeing will make your hips so much more mobile, strong and less injury-prone.

Hip pain is a big issue at a later age in this study 14.3% of participants aged 60 years and older reported significant hip pain on most days over the past 6 weeks. Living in pain when your older, who wants that?

Whilst stretching is good for reducing the risk of injury, nothing is more effective than strengthening muscles to prevent injury. Resistant training helps strengthen muscle and tendons whilst increasing the flexibility of these ligaments.

With Muay Thai you will be kicking a LOT so by nature your hips will become a lot stronger with increased range of motion. Think, you lose what you don’t use as your body is very efficient with it’s movement patterns.

Who is less likely to have hip problems when their older, someone who never exercised ever, or someone who still practices Muay Thai and works his/her hips all the time?

For more information on how to open your hips to improve your kicks, please click my post here.

Improved Heart Function

Muay Thai is very unique as it is both an aerobic and anaerobic workout which is super good for your heart.

The main difference between both exercises is aerobic exercise causes your heart and breathing rate to go up like when jogging, and anaerobic means without oxygen and involves exercises that cause you to be quickly out of breath like whenever you sprint or lift heavyweights.

With Muay Thai pretty much everything you do can both aerobic and anaerobic exercise depending on the intensity. If you jump rope at a leisurely pace it’s aerobic but if you jump rope with the maximum intensity it will be a very anaerobic workout this is the same for; hitting the bag, pads, shadow boxing, etc.

With Aerobic exercise from Muay Thai, your heart will get stronger and pump more blood, with elite athletes pumping twice as pump blood to their bodies as average individuals. and your muscles won’t run out of energy as quickly and you’re less likely to get a heart attack.

The benefits of anaerobic exercise are it helps build lean muscle mass and calories are burned more efficiently in bodies with more muscle.

It also improves endurance and fitness levels and will make losing weight easier, as the more muscular you have the more your bodies naturally burn calories; this is why Muay Thai is fantastic for improving metabolism.

Better Weight Control

According to these statistics in 2017-2018 42.4% of Americans are obese, with obesity increasing the risk of developing many serious health conditions like type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and atherosclerosis.

A survey of global trend founds obesity was now second only to smoking as a cause of premature death in Europe.

Few sports burn as many calories as Muay Thai, with around 1000 calories burnt per class.

Aerobic exercise has been proven to sharply reduce the risk of many serious diseases, notably, the Diabetes prevention program of more than 3000 people with a high risk of diabetes lost 12-15 pounds with 150 minutes of exercise reducing their risk of diabetes by 58%!

Another study of obese postmenopausal women who did aerobic exercise for 16 weeks for 45-60 minutes increased their insulin sensitivity by 20%..

The evidence that aerobic exercise prevents or reduces cardiovascular disease is even stronger. One study of more than 13,000 men and women found fit individuals had around half the date of cardiovascular disease as unfit individuals.

Aerobic exercise prevents heart disease by reducing blood pressure so the vessels are less stiff and less likely for fat to build up and clog the vessels.

However, Muay Thai alone will not reduce your weight as maintaining a healthy diet is 80% of the battle of defeating obesity.

Click here for a list of the top 20 healthy foods to lose weight. Although you will be hard-pressed to find any exercise than can compete with Muay Thai’s fat-burning potential.

Increased Athletic Performance

Pretty much all Muay Thai movements can be both aerobic and anaerobic making muay Thai fantastic for making you a more athletic and well-rounded athlete.

Muay Thai fights are 5 rounds of 3 minutes making the whole fight last 15 minutes, so a Muay Thai fighter has to have the perfect balance between explosive power and endurance.

You only have to use the raising trend of both Muay Thai and MMA in popular culture, with former College Football player Dominick Reyes and other college athletes making the jump to fighting and MMA with the increased paydays.

MMA and Muay Thai athletes have some of the best conditioning in sports as reported by ESPN, and combat sports by nature is extremely taxing emotionally. Every time a Muay Thai athlete steps into the ring they know they could get a life-altering injury in that ring, yet they still step in.

Now you don’t have to be a professional Muay Thai fighter to get these benefits, as all the different things Muay Thai requires you from: boxing, kicking, kneeing, clinching, stretching, and mobility will all toughen you up both mentally and physically making you a super athlete version of your self.

Better Quality of Life

Muay Thai is one of the toughest martial arts you can do, and this is exactly why you should do it. Training martial arts is the best positive change I’ve implemented in my life and I’m so glad I started.

If you want to know how hard it is Muay Thai to learn, then check out my post here.

Regular Muay Thai training is tough and it will make you stronger physically but also mentally. This mental toughness of pushing past your limits will be felt in everyday life, and it will help you overcome many of life’s challenges.

Think, when you regularly spar someone who is trying to hurt you every week, how unimportant will things you normally stressed over and paid needless attention to seem?

Performing a presentation in front of your co-workers or asking for a raise from your boss, will all seem ever so trivial compared to VOLUNTEERING to be punched in the face every week. Trust me, it puts things into perspective.

The aerobic exercise from Muay Thai has also been shown to improve your thinking, with rates of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease being lower in older individuals who exercise three or more times per week compared with older adults who exercise fewer than three times per week in some cases the risk is 62% lower.

So Muay Thai will improve both your perspective on life and help you think better and improve brain function? Sign me up! Oh, wait too late…

Improved Skin Health

Have you ever noticed that older people who exercise regularly tend to have lovely glowing skin? The secret is regular physical activity such as doing Muay Thai

In this study researchers found that by age 40 men and women who exercised often had thinner, healthier layers in their skin, with the skin being much closer in health to 20-30-year-old people; compared to people of their same age group, even if they were closer to 65.

Just look at the above video of Richard Wee(58) who’s skin looks great for his age and he associates a lot of his newfound health to martial arts and Muay Thai in particular as he was overweight and unfit before he started training Muay Thai.

Whenever you start sweating your skin has a mini facial as it allows your pores to dilate and any trapped oil or gunk on your o be cleaned by your sweat; whereas if you don’t sweat often all that gunk and oil is still trapped in the skin, hurting your natural skin complexion.

With regular Muay Thai training your skin will produce more collagen which is a protein found in skin and other connecting tissues, the more you workout the less likely you will get wrinkles! Take a look at dermatologist(skin Doctor) Ellen Marmur, MD, author of Simple Skin Beauty points on the benefit. of exercise for the skin.

By increasing blood flow, exercise helps nourish skin cells and keep them vital. “Blood carries oxygen and nutrients to working cells throughout the body, including the skin,

Ellen Marmur, MD, Dermatologist

Even a few minutes of Muay Thai will send blood pumping throughout your body, let alone a full intense 90-minute class. Do Muay Thai your skin will thank you!

Do you ever feel like you forget things? According to this study regular aerobic exercise expands your hippocampus, a part of the brain that is linked to memory.

I feel a lot sharper the day after heavy training, which is likely due to the improved sleep and brain function triggered by intense Muay Thai exercise.

I think most brain diseases in older people like dementia are caused by a lack of both brain and physical activity. You lose what you don’t use, remember? Regular exercise, but especially Muay Thai is everyone’s best weapon for fighting every disease imaginable both for the body and the brain.

Interested in Muay Thai? Check Out My Recommendations

Looking For Gear To Use When You Train?
If you are interested in training Muay Thai, here is some of the gear I recommend: Best Mouth Guard Best Gloves Best Shorts Best Shin Guards
Want To Learn To Fight, But Don’t Want To Go In Person?
CoachTube has online training videos for Boxing, Karate, MMA and more. And best part is you can do it all from your home allowing you to go at your own pace. Check them out here.
Interested In Training Other MMA Fighters?
Click here to check out the MMA Conditioning Association and see what you need to become an MMA conditioning coach and begin training fighters.

Muay Thai is the most effective standing martial art, and Thai fighters are known to have the strongest kick in all martial arts.

In this article using all my research and my personal experience I give you 22 ways to practice Muay Thai kicks. I will split the drills into drills you can do by yourself, with a partner, and with a bag to make it easier for you to find what you’re looking for.

I know it can be intimidating not having a good Muay Thai roundhouse at first, but with consistent practice using the ways in this article, I can guarantee your kicks will greatly improve and you will become a menace in sparring! Let’s get to it!

Solo Muay Thai Kicking Drills

1.Dynamic Warm-Up

If you don’t warm-up and stretch before training you are risking injury and limiting the flexibility of your kicks. Click here for an article about why a proper warm-up and cool down is important for combat sports athletes.

This warmup by Sean Fagan is specifically for Muay Thai and is all you need for your muscles and joints to limber up and be ready for your kicking drills. Do not skip this step as it will improve the benefits of all the drills mentioned later in this article, and if you do these drills completely cold you could get injured. So warm-up!

2. Unlock Your Hips!

Hip mobility is very important for turning your kick in to kick properly, and general injury prevention. See this study on the professional application of injury prevention for Soccer athletes who practiced muscle mobility.

With Muay Thai good movement pattens are even more important, this is a summary of Don Heatrick’s fantastic video about how to unlock your hips as a Muay Thai athlete, this could be a major factor in your kicks feeling sloppy, as you might have the technique but lack the necessary hip flexibility to turn your hips in.

This is split into three different sections, for the first, you must have a foam roller(like this one on Amazon) or lacrosse ball(like this one on Amazon) for a cheaper option and a resistant band (here are some on Amazon).

I have everything and recommend you get the same, as they are vital not just for Muay Thai but for maintaining proper alignment and posture for good health throughout your life.

1. Releasing the hips
2. Opening the hips
3. Anchoring the hips

1.Releasing the hips

1. Start to foam roll at the top of the knee and gradually roll up and down the thigh to break down the muscle tissue
2. When you find a tight area “windshield wipe” your legs left and right to get at that tissue, and flex up and down.
3. Avoid the IT band(the middle of your leg) as it cannot be lengthened and for rolling, it could cause injury
4. Foam roll each leg for 1-2 minutes then switch legs.

2.Opening The Hips

1. Attach your band to something sturdy like a squat rack or a TV stand and little lower than hip height
2. Step into the band and have it high behind your glute/booty & make sure there is decent tension so it’s pulling your hips forwards
3. Squeeze your glutes by pointing your pelvis forward and thrust your hip in front of your knee don’t arch from your back make sure its the hips
4. Practice the movement from different angles ensuring you squeeze your glutes throughout the motion
5. Repeat for 1-2 minutes and then switch sides!

3.Anchoring The Hips

1. Place your foot on a bench or a platform at a similar height like a chair so your ankle can pivot down and up
2. Your stance must allow your hip to be at knee level or lower
3. Keep your chest up and chin down and drive through the floor with your foot whilst squeezing your glutes and feeling that near hip stretch
4. Once you understand the movement pattern try adding weights
5. Repeat for around 3 sets of 10 reps for both legs

Now these exercises reinforce many things to help your Muay Thai kicks. They affect the muscle length, the joint capsule(how your bones are positioned) and your neuromuscular control how your brain tells you what range of motion you have

You can do these exercises as part of your dynamic warmup to reinforce good movement habits, which are key to kicking properly and reducing injury risk from Muay Thai.

Release and open your hips are perfect for active rest between weight training sessions or part of a recovery day, where you work on the muscle tissues that are causing you bad pain or poor posture.

3. Stretching Routine For Kick Flexibility!

Now to add on to the dynamic warm-up and unlocking your hips, I believe a stretching routine designed for improved high kick flexibility to stretch all the muscles involved in kicking such as the quads, hips and the lower back is important for proper kicking form.

These stretches are designed to be done every day and will take around 10 minutes to complete, remember you need to warm up before stretching so your muscles can lengthen.

I can guarantee after doing fightTips daily stretching routine not only will your kicks feel more natural but your overall health would have improved. Stretching is not just underrated in martial arts, it’s underrated in life! So start stretching 🙂

4.Shadow Box (Focusing On Kicks)

The problem with shadow boxing is a lot of people(myself included) start to shadowbox without turning their hip over and incorrectly not following through, without turning their hip over with a foot pivot to hit with the shin.

This is bad as you are likely kicking with your foot and not your shin, which we don’t want in Muay Thai. Check out the video above by Head Coach of F5 Strength and Muay Thai Roxy Richardson, or read the drill down below.

To shadow kick correctly as a beginner.

1. Step out around 30 degrees to either the left or right depending on your stance be on the balls of your feet under your big toe with your heel lifted
2. Use your arm swipe to turn your hips(see the second tip) and follow through only to 180 degrees

Once you get the first one down.

1. Step out around 30 degrees to either the left or right depending on your stance be on the balls of your feet under your big toe with your heel lifted
2. Use your arm swing to turn your hips and swing 360 degrees and land facing your opponent in the same stance.

Helpful tips with the drill

• If you’re training in front of a mirror and see your booty as you kick, your practicing good form as your hip is turning incorrectly
• Practice with both feet to stop getting dizzy and to kick with both legs
• Make sure your heel lifts as you pivot

5. Standing Hip Stretch For Proper Hip Rotation

This is usually done with a partner but Sylvie a Muay Thai fighter with 200 + fights has shown how to do it at home by yourself,

1. Place your foot on a platform like a sofa and be on your toes on the other foot like your kicking
2. Turn the foot on the platform to the shin to mimic the kick whilst using your arms
3. Repeat for around 20 reps and then change legs for 3 total sets

6.Film Your Kicking Technique/Practise In Front Of A Mirror

This is the biggest advice I can give anyone training at home or even at the gym as I’ve recently started to implement it myself. Recording yourself showcases all your weaknesses and always tells the truth.

I couldn’t believe how bad I looked on the camera! You will notice how often you drop your hands, your lack of head movement, and for kicking if you are turning your hips enough.

Filming your Muay Thai kicks will slap you in the face with the problems you need to address, which could be related to technique or a lack of flexibility or a combination of both.

Just compare your kick with someone kicking correctly, you can find numerous videos on YouTube with someone utilizing the proper form. Just see why your videos different, and the mistakes you are making.

I recommend buying a Gorilla Pod Tripod to record yourself in any situation with your smartphone such as this JOBY Gorillapod that you can view here on Amazon.

Now if you don’t have a way to record yourself doing shadow boxing in front of a mirror is a good alternative, as you can still see yourself technique and what needs improvement, remember you need to see your glute in the mirror. as you kick to show you have proper form!

7.Shadow Kick Something Physical Tree/Pole/Sofa

Now the problem with shadow boxing is because your hitting/kicking air it’s easy to disguise poor form, like not turning in your hip with a roundhouse.

Now, I am not saying you go to your nearest tree and strike it with full force as that will HURT! Just strike it with precision with barely any power, making sure you turn the hip in to strike with your shin.

This is a good drill as you will know if you’re turning your hips correctly as you won’t strike with your shin. Also, it’s a lot easier to visualize an opponent if you’re kicking something physical.

Also, you can tie a Thai pad onto a tree or pole so you can hit with more power, you can see some of the best Thai pads on Amazon here.

Now start with shadow boxing without anything and then transition to hitting something physical. Be careful not to break anything!

8.Work On Chambering Your Kicks!

Ideally with your kicks you want to have good control of your balance as you kick, and where your kicks will land. Chambering is when you lift your knee towards your chest whenever you kick, and the act of retracting the kickback.

In Muay Thai we don’t chamber our kicks as much compared to martial arts like Karate and Taekwondo. but it is still very beneficial for improving your power, strength, and balance when throwing kicks.

These drills to improve your chambering are from the fantastic fightTips that you can access in the video above but I will summarise the drills.

Drill 1 Three Leg Dog

1. Get into a push-up/plank position and sit your hips back to get into downward dog(yoga pose)
2. Peddle your calves up and down to warm up the hamstrings & calves
3. Lift one leg up and then drive your knee up to your chest as high as possible with your heel towards your butt/glute, hold this position for three breaths
4. Bring the leg up and drive to the outside of the elbow aiming to eventually get the knee to the armpit, hold for three breaths
5. Repeat step 4 with the opposite elbow
6. The entire 3 movements count as 1 rep so repeat the process on the other leg for a total of three sets per leg.

Drill 2.Seated Leg Lift

1. Sit down with your back straight and place something next to your legs like a Yoga block(like this one on Amazon) or boxing glove/book
2. Swing your leg over the object and tap the ground and repeat for a total of 5-10 reps on each leg and 3 total sets

Changing the setting on the block makes it more challenging and remember to not hunch forward as you want the focus on the hip flexor.

Drill 3. Standing Hip Flexor Stretch

1. Stand on one leg and grab your knee with both hands and pull up to stretch the hips. hold for 3 breaths
2. Repeat the stretch but turn your knee inward, outward and behind and hold for 3 breaths in every position

If you lack the balance either do them leaning against a ball, or repeat all the stretches lying down as you can see Shane do in the video.

For the most benefit do these drills every day or at least 5 times a week, and you will see a vast improvement in your kick chamber which will benefit any kicks you will ever do across all martial arts!

Partner Muay That Kicking Drills

1. Beginner Drill To Help Turn Your Hip

This is a very simple drill that you can do whilst kicking a heavy bag or the air. Shoutout to Muay Thai PROS for this one(above video), this drill will help a beginner understand how to rotate their hips for a kick.

1. Have someone stand behind you when you kick and have their hands behind your hip
2. When you kick, have your partner PUSH your hips forward whilst ensuring you’re on your toes and push off with the heel and step out a bit before you kick

2. Drill To Make Sure You Kick With Your Shin

Most people who start Muay Thai(me especially) will kick with their foot instead of their knee, which can cause injury and importantly will not damage your opponent.

My good friend Elijah fresh from training in Thailand told me about this drill to fix this problem, and it’s super effective.

1. Have a partner raise their knee like they are checking a kick but don’t raise it that so to leave space between the knee and elbow to kick
2. Kick your partner in between the space between the elbow and knee.
3. Repeat for around 25 reps with each leg for 3 sets.

This is so effective as it forces you to kick properly if you kick incorrectly without turning your hip, you will hit your partner block. This drill will reinforce a good kicking pattern and I love it and try to teach it to everyone.

3.Body Kick Mobility Drill

Turning your hip over as you kick is crucial in Muay Thai, just drill done in Muay Thai gyms the world over is an excellent way to get the muscle memory of how you should finish kick.

1. Have a partner grab your leg like they are catching a kick
2. Turn your hip in whilst protecting your head and having your other arm out
3. Either hold the stretch for 10 breaths or do reps of 20 with each hip turn counting as one rep
4. Repeat for both legs

4.Handshake Roundhouse Drill

Your roundhouse will be your bread and butter Muay Thai kick, and this drill from the video above allows you to practice the ideal roundhouse technique, differently than the last two examples.

1. Stand across from a partner and have them hold out their hand like a handshake
2. Grab your partner hand, whilst pulling up and be on the balls of your feet and pivot with your shoulders back
3. Repeat for 25 reps on both reps for around 3 sets

If you don’t have a partner but have a heavy bag you can use resistant band attached to something sturdy, to simulate grabbing someone’s hand.

5.Balance & Hip Thrust(0:22 In The Video)

The following 5 drills are common Muay Thai partner drills which you can see in action in the fantastic Sean Fagan’s partner drills in the video above

1. Have a partner grab your leg whilst they’re catching a kick
2. Your partner will walk around whilst holding your leg to test your balance
3. Every time they stop, turn your hip in to practice the kick
4. Repeat for around 10 reps change legs and do 3 sets

6.Kick For Kick (1:00 In The Video)

Like the name suggests with. a controlled partner go kick for kick and block each time, this is great for a warmup whilst testing technique and balance. Focus more on the technique and turning in instead of power.

1. With a partner go in turns to kick each other blocks
2. Repeat for around 20 kicks then switch legs

7.Check & Return(1:18 In The Video)

This is great for balance and getting accustomed to returning immediately after you get it, which is super important in Muay Thai. It’s important to maintain good balance and vary your kicks when you return

1. Have your partner either go for a high kick or low kick
2. Check your partner’s low kick or block the high kick and then immediately return with either leg
3. Repeat for around 20 kicks and then switch roles with your partner, for a total of 3 sets.

8.Catch And Return (1:55 In The Video)

Catching kicks is very important in Muay Thai, and you must get used to dropping the leg and following up with a kick. Remember to vary your kicks

1. Have your partner go for a body kick
2. Catch your partner kick and drop the leg and kick with either leg
3. Repeat for around 20 reps then switch roles with your partner for a total of 3 sets

9. Check And Teep (2:29 In The Video)

The whole game between checking a kick and what happens after is crucial for Muay Thai, someone could kick again or a punch or move back so getting in. the habit of teeping after checking is a crucial skill to learn.

1. Have your partner go for a low kick
2. Check the kick and with the same leg with control teep your partner
3. Go 1 for 1 and repeat for around 2 minutes

10. One Person Kicks The Other Defends(3:00 In Video)

Working on your defense in Muay Thai and maintaining a strong guard is as important as your offense. With this drill only person kicks whilst the other defends and holds their ground. Try not to kick left-right but encourage fakes to make it more challenging and disrupt the kicking pattern.

1. Have your partner with control kick you, with whatever kick they want
2. Block and parry the kicks for around 1-2 minutes
3. Swap over from your partner

11. Get Hit Then Move Forward (2:30 In Video)

Whenever you get hit in Muay Thai you must be on the offensive! If you get intimidated and drop back, this shows your opponent you are frightened and worst still you cannot easily counter since you are too far. Practicing moving forward whilst getting hit is key to succeeding in Muay Thai.

1. Have your partner kick you
2. Take the hit and practice moving forward towards your partner
3. Repeat for around 1-2 minutes and switch roles with your partner.

Bag Muay Thai Kicking Drills

1.How To Kick Harder By Turning The Wheel

Using this drill you will drastically improve your kicking power and it is used by UFC fighters like Donald Cerrone and dutch kickboxing legend Ernesto Hoost. Try switching the kicks from low, to middle and high.

1. With your lead hand intentionally miss a hook aimed towards an imaginary opponent
2. After you throw the kick bring your other hand across your body
3. With the momentum of your hand coming back, turn your shoulders and hands like your turning a wheel.
4. As your turning, this wheel bring your leg and smash your shin to the heavy bag
5. Repeat for 50 reps and switch sides and repeat

2.Heavy Bag Drill How To Kick Faster

Once you learned the proper roundhouse technique and learned to deliver kicks with power, now you can work on your speed and stamina/balance. Remember in between kicks act like your in a fight keep yourself active on the balls of your feet.

1. Have one partner stand behind a heavy bag and hold it steady
2. On the balls of the feet kick the bag with speed and precision, as soon as you connect bring your foot back to the floor with the balls of your feet
3. Immediately kick again
4. Repeat 50 times and switch legs and hold the bag for your partner

3. Heavy Bag Drill To Improve Balance

Balance in all martial arts is key, especially for striking martial arts. This drill will help you maintain balance whilst you teep, which will help you check kicks whilst still being offensive.

Remember to use the balls of your feet and aim for the same spot to improve your accuracy and help the bag from spinning everywhere.

1. Stand in front of a heavy bag lift one leg and teep the bag this will cause the heavy bag to swing away from you
2. With the same leg give a shorter teep as it’s swinging back to prevent it from swinging again
3. Repeat 50 ties and switch legs

4.Condition Your Shins!

I’m sure you felt the pain of kicking someone’s block or clashing shins in Muay Thai it hurts! Dealing with this pain by toughening your shins through a process called bone calcification(read more here )is key to success in Muay Thai.

If your shins are constantly in pain, how can you kick properly?

Again Sean Fagan has a video answering this topic but I will summarise the main points.

• Your shins will always hurt. Dealing with shin pain. is just a normal part of Muay Thai, you can never clash with someone’s shin and not feel pain even with shin guards, it normal so just get used to it!
• Kick The Heavy Bag a LOT. The best method to strengthen your shins is just hit the heavy bag often and with power, avoid using the softer bags in your gym start with 50 reps per side and gradually increase the repetitions
• Run a lot. Like with the bag when you run your shins take a lot of damage(shin splints) and come back stronger. If you’re new take and ease into it and gradually increase your running frequency. In camp, Thais run 10k every day so there must be something to it!
• Take Care Of Your Shins. Aside from being healthy and having good nutrition, if you take a bowl of recently boiled you can wet. a towel and use this towel to put pressure on your shins and flush & break down the muscle tissue, see my post here on other ways to deal with the pain
• Spar Often. There is no substitute for sparring in every combat sport and getting used to fighting and the punishment your body takes is key to having strong shins. In a spar try to be accurate and not hit a body part that is hard like your opponent’s shin or elbow which will reduce the pain you feel after.

Interested in Muay Thai? Check Out My Recommendations

Looking For Gear To Use When You Train?
If you are interested in training Muay Thai, here is some of the gear I recommend: Best Mouth Guard Best Gloves Best Shorts Best Shin Guards
Want To Learn To Fight, But Don’t Want To Go In Person?
CoachTube has online training videos for Boxing, Karate, MMA and more. And best part is you can do it all from your home allowing you to go at your own pace. Check them out here.
Interested In Training Other MMA Fighters?
Click here to check out the MMA Conditioning Association and see what you need to become an MMA conditioning coach and begin training fighters.

Muay Thai is unique as it is both a martial art and a combat system, but does it have a ranking system? I decided to find out.

So does Muay Thai have a ranking system? Muay Thai does not have a belt grading system although some organizations outside of Thailand have created a colored based ranking system, based on the armband Muay Thai fighters wear known as Prajoiyud in Thai.

Understanding why the history behind Muay Thai is key to knowing why it doesn’t have a ranking system, also knowing if Muay Thai has belts or weight classes is key to comprehending the sport.

Why Doesn’t Muay Thai Have A Ranking System?

To understand why Muay Thai doesn’t have a ranking system we need to go back to ancient battle-worn Thailand when it was known as Siam. Fighting was very common during this period and Thailand was constantly at war like the Burmese-Siamese wars(wiki link) fought between the 16th and 19th centuries.

To protect their sons and husbands going to battle women from the soldier’s family would do a pre-battle ritual by tying a personal piece of clothing(usually a birth cloth) around their hands or arms before they went to battle.

See my post here for more information on the Thailand headband known as Mongkol and Prajoiyud(armband).

Muay Thai originated as a form of combat without weapons on the battlefield and still has all these traditional and spiritual values deep inside the art, which have lasted for hundreds of years.

Muay Thai predates any martial art ranking system as the ranking system for most martial arts was inspired by the existing ranking system in the popular Japanese board game Go(wiki link) “devised by Honinbo Dosaku in the late 17th century”.

Before this most student in different martial arts in Japan were given scrolls showing their skills.

“Muay Thai has been a part of Thai Heritage & History for over 2000 years”(link to history) so it predates the ranking system of all martial arts by a very long time.

This is why it doesn’t have one, and the reason why Sparring is a key element in the art and why Muay Thai is so effective; as it is a combat sport born in war.

Traditionally armbands are given whenever a trainer thinks a fighter is ready to fight and represent the gym; there were and still, no belts or colors to show you’re ready to fight.

With authentic Muay Thai, your fight record does the talking as there is no need for a grading system, unlike traditional martial arts like Karate, that don’t have a lot of sparring.

Whilst a new Muay Thai trainee will receive a Prajoiyud(armband) this has historical origins of good fortune and to stop evil spirits, it does not signify a rank.

The closest thing to a ranking system in Thailand is a trainer giving their student a Mongkol(headband) signifying they are ready to fight and represent the gym.

Typically in Thailand, most fighters are not training for leisure or a hobby they are training to fight themselves out of poverty such as the current One championship MMA/Muay Thai champion Stamp Fairtex. They don’t need a ranking system to encourage them to train as getting out of poverty and earning a living is all the encouragement they need.

Whereas with Muay Thai in the west, people train for fitness and leisure so creating a Muay Thai ranking system similar to traditional martial arts makes a lot more sense out of Thailand.

If you want to know the 12 other reasons Muay Thai is great for self-defense, check out my post here.

Does Muay Thai Have Belts?

As Muay Thai doesn’t have a grading system, there are not bet and belts are not worn in Muay Thai as there is no traditional martial art clothing like a Gi in BJJ.

Although if we answer this question hypothetically it’s important to discuss other martial arts and how long it takes to achieve a black belt in each art before we could answer how long would it take to get a black belt in Muay Thai if it existed?

Taekwondo 3-5 years For Black Belt

Taekwondo for a dedicated student typically they are eligible for a 1st Degree Black Belt(II Dan) around 3-5 years, with some schools have a minimum of 4-5 years.

To get the belt you need to pass a test to prove you understand what an instructor has taught you. You can fail this test, and the reason most people fail is just like taking a normal test; anxiety.

Aikido 4-5 years To Get A Black Belt

If you train 3-4 times a week you can get an Aikido blackbelt in around 4-5 years depending on how often you train.

What separates Aikido from other martial arts is if you must have the correct mentality and be a good representative of your martial art school. Even if you have the technique and strength/speed you will be denied your black belt without the correct martial art attitude.

Whilst, achieving a belt in a little over 2 years is possible you would need experience in another martial art but it varies from person to person.

Judo 3- 6 years To Get A Black Belt

You will achieve a Judo black belt in 3-6 years based on your commitment to the art. With Judo you have the standard colored belts with ten different black belts(dans) from Shodan(beginner) to Judan(10th-degree black belt).

To be a true Judo black belt you must have one or more tokui waza which is a match-winning throw that you can do effortlessly, watch the video above to see Shinjiro Sasaki the owner of Sasaki Judo perform various tokui wazas.

With Judo getting a blue belt does not mean you’re an expert but rather you are on the first step to becoming an expert. Like with all things in life you more you put into it the faster you succeed, and this is the same with getting a Judo black belt.

Karate 5 Years To Get A Black Belt

Typically following the guidelines set out and followed by most karate schools, and depending on your age and how often you train Karate you should get your black belt in around 5 years.

Whilst you can get a black belt in less time, Karate masters emphasize the time spent learning a martial art to be important. If you reduce this time you also reduce the wisdom and personal growth the art of Karate can teach you.

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu 10 years To Get A Black Belt

The hardest belt to get in martial arts and one of the most respected. Getting a blue belt(after white belt) in my school can take you anywhere between 1-3 years based on your dedication to BJJ, making the BJJ belt system the most difficult to progress in as it requires the most mat time and dedication.

Belt promotions in BJJ all depend on when the coach feels the student is ready, and whilst generally, they depend on someone’s skill ability and knowledge of BJJ they don’t always. I could be about how dedicated you are, or how well you perform in competition.

Either way, a black belt in BJJ will take you the longest to achieve and I think it’s a quite similar period to the hypothetical Muay Thai black belt.

Muay Thai 10 Years To Get A Black Belt

If a Muay Thai black belt existed you would need at least 10 years of consistent training with a solid amount of ring experience to be a black belt. Muay Thai is a combat sport and Sparring and ring experience is a vital part of becoming truly good at it.

This is hypothetical but since Muay Thai is the art of 8 limbs and includes a lot of grappling which makes it very complicated compared to other striking arts on this list, the closest art I can compare it with is BJJ as sparring is very important in BJJ like Muay Thai.

Both BJJ and Muay Thai are similar because they are so complicated and can never truly be mastered, you hear Muay Thai experts like Liam Harrison(fighter) who is basically a Muay Thai black belt discuss how complicated Muay Thai still is to him; your always figuring out new things and how to make known techniques more effective.

Does Muay Thai Have Grading?

Whilst Muay Thai in Thailand doesn’t have a grading system several schools in the USA use the Muay Thai armband to denote rank, and other prominent Muay Thai gyms outside of Thailand have a belt ranking system. Each ranking system will be discussed

• Bang Muay Thai ranking system
• Evolve MMA(Singapore) ranking system
• Roufusport Kickboxing Association belt system
• Thai Boxing Association of the U.S.A(Arm Band Ranking System)
• The Fight Centre(Brisbane)

Bang Muay Thai ranking system

The Bang Muay Thai belt ranking system was created by former UFC fighter and K1 champ and 2-time UFC coach of the year in 2013,2014 Duane Ludwig.

He took the commercial elements of Taekwondo and Karate and applied this progression over to Muay Thai the progression follows like this.

WHITE-YELLOW-ORANGE-BLUE-PURPLE-BROWN-BLACK

Unlike with traditional Muay Thai when your progression is about how many fights you have, Bang Muay Thai has a clear curriculum from white to black belt and a clear path can be learned and also practiced online which you can access here.

To test for a belt you must be in the BANG headquarters located in Colorado or a Bang certified gym. Just like with traditional arts the bang Muay Thai ranking system focuses on respect and discipline. You can see this support when Duane Ludwig gives a yellow belt promotion in the video below.

Evolve MMA(Singapore) Ranking System

The evolve Muay Thai program is run under the well known Sityodtong Camp(most successful Muay Thai training camp ever) under Kru Yodtong Senan, being the biggest Sityodtong Camp outside of Thailand. To read more about Sityodtong camp please check this post.

Kru Yodtong is considered one of the key grandmasters in Muay Thai as he has produced the most number of Muay Thai champions in history(57). Check here to see how long it takes to a Muay Thai grandmaster.

The Sityodtong Muay Thai curriculum is broken up into 7 distinct levels that are separated by training intensity, technical knowledge, and the proficiency level of Muay Thai at each level.

Kru Yodtong focuses on technique and the application with intelligence to understand how to use each technique. To progress through each certification you need to have completely mastered the level before it.

Check here to the official Evolve website but here are the official certifications from the Sityodtong Gym.

• Level 7 = Kru
• Level 6 = Expert
• Level 5 = Advanced
• Level 4 = Intermediate
• Level 3 = Advanced Novice
• Level 2 = Intermediate Novice
• Level 1 = Novice

Check out an interview from the man himself down in the video above.

Roufusport Kickboxing Association Belt System

Duke Roufus is a well known striking coach in the USA and the coach of the former Lightweight UFC champion Antony Pettis, Alan Belcher, and Sergio Pettis, also the owner of Roufusport competition team based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

He has an online course designed to teach you his system which you can access here. Like Bang Muay Thai all the testing has to be at Roufusport or one of the many accredited gyms across the USA, see the list of gyms here.

He also runs a black belt affiliate program, as some martial art school do not have a black of their own so they need someone from Roufusport to accredit a new blackbelt. Similar to 10th planet in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

See one of his black belts Antony Pettis do one of the best KO’s EVER in MMA. Enjoy

Thai Boxing Association of the U.S.A(Arm Band Ranking System)

Founded by Ajarn Chai Sirisute  “the first person to teach Muay Thai in the USA” has a grading system based on 16 differently colored Muay Thai headbands that go from white(beginner) to black/gold(senior instructor) that you can see above.

This is the companies vision statement so you can see what they are about.

To advance, promote, educate, and instruct the martial arts of Thailand throughout the world while offering the student, fighter, and instructor the highest standard of teaching Thai Boxing (Muay Thai).

WBTA Vision Statement

Like other schools, the WBTA has officially credited schools that are designed to teach the assigned WBTA method and promote students through the armband(prajoiyud) which you can see here.

The problem with these schools is whilst they are excellent for encouraging progression and keeping people motivated, the belt system could lean towards Muay Thai becoming watered down, with MC Dojos(urban dictionary) meaning martial schools that focus more on making money than teaching people the martial art.

The Fight Centre(Muay Thai Brisbane)

Located in Brisbane Australia the fight center use armbands for promoting students under 12 years and a tank-top(singlet) for students over 12 years many rankings are important but the main things they care about are.

• Dedication
• Experience
• Skill

This causes a unique issue with the trainers as someone training for one week could be a better fighter than someone training for 6 months but just be better because of genetics sadly, some people are blessed. 

Should that person who’s been training for 1 week get better grading than the person training for 6 months? In the fight center, they think no.

They believe a student must EARN their Muay Thai grading level by placing a lot of importance and dedication to the sport and get rewarded with a grade; grading should mean something.

I think a lot of teaching grades like this, as I’ve seen people in my BJJ gym get a blue belt when they were not that good at Sparring but it was more so my coach saw the dedication in them. If you open a school one day, make sure to implement these values whenever you grade someone.

Grading should be when students achieve something no matter if it’s preparing for their first Muay Thai fight, or winning a tough fight.

In the UFC many fighters like Tony Ferguson and Anderson Silva were given BJJ belts after winning via submission; it’s the same with Muay Thai; grading has to be memorable and a special moment in your martial art journey.

Does Muay Thai Have Weight Classes?

Muay Thai is a fighting sport and these weight classes are issued by the World Muay Thai council which was created in 1995 under the directive of the Royal Thai government which was approved by the Thai Parliament, you can see the website yourself here.

Saenchai(wiki link) is known as the best pound for pound Muay Thai fighters and is considered to be one of the best fighters ever.

He used to give up weight(be lighter) so fights were interesting for him and from 2003-2-14 he only lost 2 times when the weight was equal.

Against foreigners the skill gap is so large he would even go up to 147 pounds which is over 15 pounds his best weight class, so Thai fighters, because they are so skilled, don’t have to fight at their ideal weight.

Weight Class	Pounds	KG
Mini Fly Weight	105	47.62
Light Fly Weight	108	48.99
Fly Weight	112	50.80
Super Fly Weight	115	52.16
Bantam Weight	118	53.52
Super Bantam Weight	122	55.34
Feather Weight	126	57.15
Super Feather Weight	130	58.97
Light Weight	135	61.24
Super Light Weight	140	63.50
Welter Weight	147	66.68
Super Welter Weight	154	69.85
Middle Weight	160	72.58
Super Middle Weight	168	76.20
Light Heavy Weight	175	79.38
Super Light Heavy Weight	182	82.55
Cruiser Weight	190	86.18
Heavy Weight	209	95.00
Super Heavy Weight	209+	95.00+

Interested in Muay Thai? Check Out My Recommendations

Looking For Gear To Use When You Train?
If you are interested in training Muay Thai, here is some of the gear I recommend: Best Mouth Guard Best Gloves Best Shorts Best Shin Guards
Want To Learn To Fight, But Don’t Want To Go In Person?
CoachTube has online training videos for Boxing, Karate, MMA and more. And best part is you can do it all from your home allowing you to go at your own pace. Check them out here.
Interested In Training Other MMA Fighters?
Click here to check out the MMA Conditioning Association and see what you need to become an MMA conditioning coach and begin training fighters.

Muay Thai is known as the most effective stand up martial art, but how long does it take to master? I researched the internet trying to find out.

You can never truly “master” Muay Thai as the sport is constantly evolving with new discoveries being made, however, after 15 years of consistent training, you can be considered a master at the same level as a BJJ blackbelt.

Understanding why Muay Thai is so hard to master is key, and how long it takes to become competent and how many times a week should you train to achieve this level are important. All will be discussed in detail.

How Long Does It Take To Be Good At Muay Thai?

Now “good” at Muay Thai is subjective as your self-defense could be way better than an average person on the street in only a couple of months. However, I will outline the average Muay Thai progression from beginner to master.

To Learn The Basic Fundamentals 6 Months

You can learn all the fundamentals like basic fight strategy, tactics techniques, and proper Muay Thai fitness in 6 months. This is enough time to be competent with training gear, working with a partner, and being able to Spar and have the ability to teach someone some basic beginner stuff.

After 12 months of solid training perhaps you would have had some fighting experience at InterClub or amateur level making you a novice fighter with some basic Muay Thai ability.

Competent 3 Years (With 5-6 Fights)

To become competent at Muay Thai you need to regularly train for around 3 years and have some fight experience.

To say you are competent you should have had around 5-6 fights, as you can claim some experience and use the experience to fight far more tactically as your Muay Thai fight IQ has improved a lot.

To call yourself an expert in anything whether a physical skill such as fixing cars or Muay Thai you need to train for 7 years.

You should have had many fights during this time and it’s common in Thailand to have 100s of fights even at an early age as they fight so young.

Expert Around 7-10 Years(with around 15 fights)

It takes 7-10 years to become an expert, as in any skill that requires a combination of knowledge and physical ability, such as playing the harp, being a doctor, or fighting skillfully. By this time you will have had at least 15 fights and will be an expert fighter in muay Thai. It makes sense to have trained the other martial arts as well.

This 7-10 years’ time to become an expert in any field was popularized by Malcolm Gladwell’s book Outliers and known as the 10,000-hour rule. It applies to Muay Thai as well as other martial arts like BJJ and pretty much every field.

You can check out the Outliers book here on Amazon.

Master Around 15 Years

After 15 years you can be considered a master at Muay Thai, and you will know you’re a master when other experts come to you for new knowledge about the sport. Fighters like Liam Harrison are at this level, or anyone who actively does Muay Thai seminars where people pay to listen to them teach.

However “master” does not mean they know everything about Muay Thai as this is impossible. They are still learning new things every day but they’ve achieved a level where other people want to learn from them.

Grandmaster Around 30 Years

Since Muay Thai doesn’t have titles or belts like other martial arts after 30 years of training you can teach masters, so you’re like a grandmaster in Karate. Former fighters like Samart Payakaroon (pictured below) who is considered by many to be the greatest Muay Thai fighter of all time fall in this category.

Don’t let any of this discourage you! You don’t have to dedicate your life to training Muay Thai to become good at it! Honestly, I think around 2 years is enough to be good at Muay Thai and even a few months is enough to be a lot more competent in a self-defense situation.

Why Is Muay Thai So Hard To Learn?

Muay Thai is the perfect example of being easy to learn but very difficult to master. Do not get discouraged as within a short period around 6 months you will have most of the fundamentals down and be fairly competent in a street fight.

Nevertheless Muay Thai is so hard to master because it is known as the art of 8 limbs as you strike with your fists, knees, elbows, and legs! You also have a lot of sweeps, throws, and clinching (standing wrestling) to think about.

If you compare Boxing to Muay Thai (see my comparison here) you only have two ways to strike (both hands) and variations of the four basic punches: jab, straight, hook and uppercut.

But if you look at Muay Thai the potential combinations of strikes are infinite as you have so many options available to you.

Having elbows, and knees ads so much to the sport and even fighters who have trained their entire life always discover new things, which is why Muay Thai is such an amazing martial art as you are always learning and growing.

However knowing all the techniques is just the start, you need to know HOW to use those techniques against other people who are fighting back. It will take many years of training before you can perform all your techniques quickly with good technique under pressure.

Acquiring high fight IQ will take years and years as you create strategies and tactics on how to use every one of your 8 limbs to maximum effectiveness. Remember, you also need to defend against your opponents 8 limbs which is equally challenging to master.

Whilse you might be able to learn the basic punches, kicks, elbow, and knee strikes quite quickly.

There are roughly 9 elbows strikes, 4 main punches, 12 kicks, and 6 knee strikes but; there are effectively infinite variations of each strike that change depending on where you’re striking and if you are spinning as you strike and what combination you do.

Check out blackbeltwiki to get a full explanation of all these Muay Thai techniques and how to implement them.

Add to the roughly 31 strikes to learn, there is footwork, evasion blocking/parring, catching your opponents kicks, grappling work(clinching, sweeps & throws, maintaining control of your opponent, etc). You can see how it quickly gets complicated!

Although learning the moves so you could perform them is not too difficult.

You could probably be taught within a week if you have good muscle memory and spend a lot of time performing the moves assuming you have adequate flexibility to perform them (see my post on should you do Muay Thai if you’re inflexible here).

However, knowing how to do the moves is like knowing how each individual piece moves in Chess. This tells you NOTHING about how to attack and defend using each piece effectively.

Just like with Chess using all 8 limbs effectively against a capable opponent and defending against them is a very different thing to do indeed.

How Long Does It Take To Get A Muay Thai Black Belt?

Muay Thai does not have a belt grading system although western organizations located in the USA have created a system based on the armband Muay Thai fighters wear known as prajoiyud in Thai.

The schools started this armband system as a way to motivate students to train harder and earn better armbands.

Although if we answer this question hypothetically it’s important to discuss other martial arts and how long it takes to achieve a black belt in each art before we can answer how long to get a “Muay Thai black belt”.

Taekwondo 3-5 years For Black Belt

Taekwondo for a dedicated student typically they are eligible for a 1st Degree Black Belt (II Dan) around 3-5 years, with some schools have a minimum of 4-5 years.

To get the belt you need to pass a test to prove you understand what an instructor has taught you. You can fail this test, and the reason most people fail is just like taking a normal test; anxiety.

Aikido 4-5 years To Get A Black Belt

If you train 3-4 times a week you can get an Aikido blackbelt in around 4-5 years depending on how often you change.

What separates Aikido from other martial arts is if you must have the correct mentality and be a good representation of your martial art school. Even if you have the technique and physicality you will be denied your black belt without the correct martial art personality.

While achieving a belt in a little over 2 years is possible you would need experience in another martial art, but it varies from person to person.

Judo 3- 6 years To Get A Black Belt

You will achieve a Judo black belt in 3-6 years based on your commitment to the art. With Judo you have the standard colored belts with ten different black belts (dans) from Shodan (beginner) to Judan (10th-degree black belt).

To be a true Judo black belt you must have one or more tokui waza which is a match-winning throw that you can do effortlessly. Watch the video above to see Shinjiro Sasaki the owner of Sasaki Judo perform various tokui wazas.

With Judo getting a blue belt does not mean you’re an expert but rather you are on the first step to becoming an expert. Like with all things in life you more you put into it the faster you succeed, and this is the same with getting a Judo black belt.

Karate 5 Years To Get A Black Belt

Typically following the guidelines set out and followed by most karate schools, and the age and how often you train Karate you should get your black belt in around 5 years.

While you can get a black belt in less time, Karate masters emphasized learning a martial art to be important. If you reduce this time you also reduce the wisdom and personal growth the art of Karate can teach you.

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu 10 years To Get A Black Belt

The hardest belt to get in martial arts and one of the most respected. Getting a blue belt (after white belt) in my school can take you anywhere from1-3 years based on your dedication to BJJ, making the BJJ belt system the most difficult to progress in as it requires the most mat time and dedication.

Belt promotions in BJJ all depend on when the coach feels the student is ready. While generally they depend on someone’s skill ability and knowledge of BJJ they don’t always. It could be about how dedicated you are, or how well you perform in competition.

Either way, a black belt in BJJ will take you the longest to achieve and I think it’s a quite similar period to the hypothetical Muay Thai black belt.

Muay Thai 10 Years To Get A Black Belt

If a Muay Thai black belt existed you would need at least 10 years of consistent training with a solid amount of ring experience to be a black belt. Muay Thai is a combat sport and Sparring and ring experience is a vital part of becoming truly good at it.

This is hypothetical but since Muay Thai is the art of 8 limbs and includes a lot of grappling which makes it very complicated compared to other striking arts on this list, the closest art I can compare it with is BJJ as sparring is very important in BJJ.

Both BJJ and Muay Thai are similar because they are so complicated and can never truly be mastered.

You hear Muay Thai experts like Liam Harrison (fighter), who is essentially a Muay Thai black belt, talk about how complicated Muay Thai is as you’re always figuring out new things and how to make known techniques more effective.

How Many Times A week should I Train Muay Thai?

This question is the same as answering how big is a hole? It changes from, person to person and depends on how seriously you take Muay Thai. It will also depend on your fitness level and if you have any martial arts/fighting experience.

If you don’t work out or have no martial art experience

Typically if you’re a person who isn’t physically fit or a natural athlete starting with 1-2 sessions a week is a good start.

The problem is Muay Thai is a very intense martial art and can burn around 600 calories an hour! For untrained individuals, this puts a lot of stress on the primary muscles used in a Muay Thai class, which causes a lot of painful muscle soreness.

Click here for a blog post by evolving MMA for the four muscle groups that Muay Thai strengthens. Typically Muay Thai will give these muscles a workout:

• Shoulder and arm muscles
• Hip and leg muscles
• Core muscles
• Back muscles

If you are untrained Muay Thai will hit all these muscles especially the legs and hips very hard, so you could find yourself being very sore in the days after training. This soreness will only get worse if you force yourself to train when you’re in pain.

It’s much better to start small and wait a couple of days in between workouts to ensure your body is properly recovered. For example, train on Monday and don’t train again until Thursday.

I recommend daily stretching to reduce muscles soreness.

Typically your training should be 80% Muay Thai with kicking pads/bag and working on your technique movement etc. With the other 20% doing some basic conditioning with pushups, dips, bodyweight squats, etc. Just keep it basic and easy to stick to.

Once you’re used to training 1-2 times a week and you feel healthy and want more, then you can gradually increase the training frequency to around 3-4 times a week as your body get’s accustomed to muscle stress.

If You Workout Or Have Some Martial Art Experience

Now if you’re someone who regularly works out at home or in the gym or has some previous martial arts experience.

Typically you should start training Muay Thai around 2-4 times a week.

Training Muay Thai will still put stress on your muscles but the difference is your muscles were USED to being under stress; from weights or your previous martial arts training.

If you want to find out if you should lift weights whilst doing Muay Thai check my post here.

You will not be as sore from training Muay Thai compared to a complete beginner as your simply stronger and used to workout.

This is where I started training Muay Thai as all the calisthenics(bodyweight exercises)were known to me and I already had good cardio fitness.

Whereas if as a beginner you’ve never done a pushup before, of course, it’s going to be harder to perform, especially as straight after you’re going through an intense 90 minute Muay Thai workout!

Also if you want to learn Muay Thai in Thailand make sure you prepare yourself before you go! If you’re in Thailand for 1 month to train and spend the first 2 weeks catching up physically since you don’t have the required fitness you will waste your time.

This tip is mentioned in Sean Fagan’s 10 Muay Thai Thailand training survival guide which you can view below.

I still recommend starting at the lower end at around twice a week, as we all know it’s difficult to start a new habit so aim low even if you have the required fitness levels; as you can always improve instead of trying to immediately go 4 times a week and getting frustrated when you don’t.

If You Have A Lot Of Martial Arts Experience/Want To Fight Amateur Level

If you have considerable martial arts experience in a similar martial art or want to fight Muay Thai at an amateur/Interclub level.

Training anywhere from 4-6 times a week is ideal.

Maybe you kick-boxed for several years back in the day or did Muay Thai a long time ago and want to get back into it. Your body should be used to muscle fatigue from punching and kicking compared to less experienced Muay Thai beginners.

This is the level where I’m at as I’ve fought in InterClubs (friendly sparring with other gyms) and if you want to improve & compete you need to be training at least 4 times a week as the more you train the quicker you will improve.

Ideally, if you want to compete at InterClub you should be sparring at least once a week, read my blog post here for more info on if you have to fight to train Muay Thai.

If You Want To Be The Best Fighter You Can Be/Turn Pro

This is the highest level you can train up to, and you should train for months and months before you reach this training frequency.

Training around twice a day 5 times a week if you want to be a professional Muay Thai fighter.

This is the level professional Muay Thai/MMA fighters train at but it will take a long time to get your body accustomed to this level of stress if you came from being a complete beginner.

Typically, you want to split your training into morning and evening sessions, in the morning you could do some weights for your strength and conditioning then in the evening work on your technique and do bag work.

This gives you enough time to recover in between the training sessions. Usually strength and conditioning come first before technique as you want your body to be as strong as possible to push yourself with weights.

With learning technique training tired is okay because you will be tired in a fight anyway, while training weights after you do technique is counterproductive as you won’t be able to lift the same weights compared to being fresh.

Giving yourself two days off a week is a necessity even for professional fighters as their bodies need time to rest and recover. If you trained 7 times a week eventually your body will break down and your training will suffer.

Check out Flavia, a professional Muay Thai fighter, answer the same questions down below.

Interested in Muay Thai? Check Out My Recommendations

Looking For Gear To Use When You Train?
If you are interested in training Muay Thai, here is some of the gear I recommend: Best Mouth Guard Best Gloves Best Shorts Best Shin Guards
Want To Learn To Fight, But Don’t Want To Go In Person?
CoachTube has online training videos for Boxing, Karate, MMA and more. And best part is you can do it all from your home allowing you to go at your own pace. Check them out here.
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Click here to check out the MMA Conditioning Association and see what you need to become an MMA conditioning coach and begin training fighters.

Both boxing and Muay Thai are fantastic martial arts for self-defense, but would a Boxer beat a Muay Thai fighter in a fight? I decided to research the internet to find out.

Can A Boxer Beat A Muay Thai Fighter?

A Boxer would lose to a Muay Thai fighter 9/10 in a real fight. The Muay Thai fighter has 8 different limbs to strike from compared to the boxers 2, and Thai fighters are effective at all ranges. Thai fighters like Samart Payakarun even have WBC world championship boxing titles.

This doesn’t mean the Boxer can’t beat the Thai fighter, but they need to be very careful with the timing and they cannot get close due to the incredibly effective Thai clinch.

Either way, the Boxer will be at a massive disadvantage and I will explain why Muay Thai is so effective compared to boxing.

Why A Muay Thai Fighter Beats A Boxer

Muay Thai is known as the art of the 8 limbs as you can strike with your hands, legs, elbows, and knees as it originated as a self-defense style in ancient Thailand whenever soldiers lost their weapons.

This is a massive advantage over western Boxing as the Thai fighter will only be weary of the Boxer’s hands, and Muay Thai fighters have very good boxing themselves.

Top-ranked Thai boxers such as Sot Chitalada, Khaosai Galaxy, and Samart Payakarun transitioned into western boxing and won international boxing titles like the WBC championship when they were a genuine title, unlike modern times with numerous different boxing federations.

A boxer could NEVER transition to become a Muay Thai champion if they never trained Muay Thai before, as Muay Thai is just so complicated to learn compared to Boxing. To see if you can train Muay Thai and Boxing at the same time check my post here.

I will explain the various advantages a Muay Thai fighter has over a Boxer.

Muay Thai Is Effective At Every Range

If you look at Boxing it is only effective in the pocket up close and personal with your opponent or the outside around medium range, not the ideal situation against a Thai fighter who can keep the distance and kick as well as clinch the boxer and wreak havoc with powerful knees to the stomach and head.

There is not a distance where Muay Thai is not effective. With fighting, you have three ranges, close, medium, and far. A Thai fighter has weapons for each range. Up close you have elbows and punches both in and outside the clinch.

At a medium distance, a Thai fighter has boxing, knees and leg kicks and body/head kicks, and at a far distance, the Thai fighter has a teep(front kick) jab and roundhouse.

You might think a Boxer wants to close the distance, but the Thai clinch is deadly and is one of Muay Thai’s biggest weapons which a Boxer will not know how to defend.

A Boxer’s best chance is keeping medium distance with rapid punching combinations to overwhelm the Thai boxer.

Either way, you can see a Boxer is at a massive disadvantage as they only have the medium distance to work with, with a Thai fighter being comfortable in al three ranges.

Muay Thai Has Calf/Leg Kicks

The biggest problem a Boxer has fighting a Muay Thai fighter is they only train to defend their head and upper body as modern boxing is only above the belt.

The Muay Thai leg kick is a super important part of Muay Thai and is the number one weapon against a Boxer. All a Muay Thai fighter needs to do is hammer the Boxers lead leg repeatedly to take one of a Boxer’s main weapons away from him; his footwork.

I can tell you from experience if your lead leg gets leg kicked you become more sluggish and it’s a lot harder to move. Worse still are calf kicks that are super effective and quite popular in MMA. You see Justin Gaethje(UFC fighter) uses it all the time as it reduces his opponent’s movements which is one of Boxings key strengths.

For Muay Thai fighters defending against a low kick is simple as you just raise your leg to check the kick but for a Boxer, this isn’t a natural movement and he/she would be at the Muay Thai fighters leg kicking mercy.

A boxer’s stance is a lot more side on than a Muay Thai stance(see the pic) which leads the fleshy(above the knee) bit of the leg more open to a leg kick which makes leg kicks even more damaging and easier to land.

Leg kicks can even end fights and cause TKO(technical knockouts)o see the above video for some examples, making a Boxer’s weakness even worse.

A Boxers Bop & Weave Is Less Effective Against A Thai Fighter

In Boxing, the ability to duck under incoming punches whilst firing a counter punch is a crucial part of the sport. Whilst this is very effective in Boxing doing it against a Thai fighter carries with it a lot of risks.

For example, if a Boxer is fighting a Thai fighter at medium range and they are exchanging punches, THEN a Boxer tries to evade Floyd Mayweather Jr style a Thai fighter will simply kick the boxer.

A leg is a lot longer and a bigger target than a fist so it will still hit the Boxer as they try to duck under, also a Muay Thai kick should be straight and with a curve at the end with the hips turn in making a hook shape making it by nature very difficult for a Boxer to avoid.

A Boxers bopping and weaving gives a Thai fighter ample opportunity to knee the Boxer’s head as they duck or kick as it’s only really effective for dodging punches in a straight line or hooks to the head.

Look at arguably the greatest boxer of all time Floyd Mayweather Jr Boxing defensive masterclass in the video below, he simply wouldn’t be able to defend like that against kicks as that defensive tactic wouldn’t work against a Muay Thai fighter.

Boxing Techniques Don’t Work As Well Without Gloves

Boxing relies on having to have between 8oz-12oz for fights and is very reliant on having big chunky gloves to defend punches with.

The issue is Boxing functions in a very narrow set of rules and cannot function outside of those rules. The Mike Tyson Peek-a-boo will be far less effective without the big gloves.

Whereas Muay Thai is a martial art designed in ancient Thailand for combat without weapons and is JUST as effective without gloves as it is with. You can still use your other 6 limbs without gloves with your knees, elbows, legs being unaffected by not having gloves.

With a Boxer, this just isn’t the case, so if a Muay Thai fighter fought a Boxer without the gloves, the Boxer would be in very unfamiliar water and his defense would not be the same; whilst the Thai fighter is quite a happy fighting without gloves and it’s super common to clinch barehanded so the Thai will again have the advantage clinching without gloves too.

The Muay Thai Clinch Is A Giant Weapon Weapon

Whilst modern Boxing has the clinch it’s more for defense against a rapid puncher or a way to disrupt the pattern of a fight.

With Muay Thai it is a HUGE part of the game and very important in MMA where arguably the best UFC fighter ever Anderson Silva used it all the time most notoriously against Rich Franklin.

The Muay Thai clinch allows can grab the opponent’s neck whilst kneeing him repeatedly in the stomach, enabling you to sweep(trip) your opponent or throw him using the various Thai clinch throwing techniques.

Whereas the Boxing clinch is much less effective and only for defense, a Boxer wouldn’t know how to defend against a Thai clinch and would be at a Thai Boxers’ mercy.

This makes Thai fighters very dangerous up close as if a Boxer closes the distance, all a Thai fighter needs to do is Clinch and they are in the world of the Thai fighter.

Muay Thai Has Throws & Sweeps

Despite Muay Thai being a striking art it has tons of grappling involved, such as the numerous sweeps and throws from the clinch, and sweeps whilst holding your opponent’s leg.

Modern Boxing has NO throws or sweeps and they wouldn’t know how to defend against the various Muay Thai throws and sweeps leaving them to fall painfully on the ground whilst defenseless and ready to get ground and pounded by the Thai fighter.

Ultimately the Boxer just has a very small toolbox compared to the Muay Thai fighter, and lacking the tools means they cannot guess when the attacks are coming as they only understanding punching.

How Do You Beat A Muay Thai Fighter?

This is how you defeat a Thai fighter in general not as a Boxer, which I will discuss later in this article.

Counter The Thai Body Kick

The Thai fighter’s most common weapon is the body roundhouse, as it is both quick and powerful and useful in medium to long-range fighting. To defeat a Thai fighter you MUST counter these kicks to make them think about using it otherwise you won’t win.

To counter you can use a low kick or a punching combination it doesn’t matter, just make sure you make the Thai fighter think twice about kicking otherwise it’s an easy loss.

Use Unconventional techniques

Using unconventional techniques, like a spinning elbow or back fist or a check to superman punch is very effective especially against Thai’s as Thai fighters are typically very traditionally and use the basics.

Winning a fight is all about interrupting your opponent’s rhyme so using unconventional techniques against a Thai is one of your best weapons for dealing with them.

Box With Combinations

Whenever you box with combinations. Thai fighters love the long guard (see the link for more info) and whilst it’s fine when dealing with a small combination(1-2) is a lot harder to use with a flurry of punches.

Punching with combinations will disrupt a Thai fighter as they cannot easily use the long guard to defend against several rapid hits to the stomach and face. Against this disrupts your opponent’s rhyme and makes them uncomfortable which his key to winning fights.

Don’t Throw Middle Kicks

The issue with throwing middle kicks is most Thai has been training Muay Thai since they were children so any middle kick whether it’s a teep or roundhouse is very easy for them to defend, with a check, grab or lean back.

This is why you should not throw middle kicks and instead throw leg kicks and high kicks that are a lot more difficult to defend as they cannot be caught and then countered.

Defeat The Thai Clinch

I’ve already spoken about how powerful the Thai clinch is, so reducing the Thai clinches effectiveness is the best weapon against it. Either grab the back(see the below video) or always put your hands in the opponents to make it harder for them to clinch you.

Now I didn’t come up with these ways to beat a Thai fighter rather they are Gabriel Varga a Canadian kickboxer who has won 6 kickboxing world titles. Check his video below for demonstrations of these techniques.

How Can A Boxer Beat A Muay Thai Fighter?

I still think 9/10 times a Muay Thai fighter will beat a Boxer as they have 6 deadly limbs in their fighting toolbox that a Boxer no only doesn’t know but worse lacks any experience in defending.

However, this is how a Boxer could beat a Muay Thai fighter. The Boxer needs to keep the action at mid-range to avoid both the Thai clinch at close distance and the low kick. The medium range still allows the Boxer to use their main weapons whilst giving enough distance to avoid leg kicks.

When a Thai fighter retracts the kick this is the time to come in and fire of 2-3 punches and get back into the safe distance. The boxer needs to use straight punches and long hooks, as uppercuts fall into. Thai clinch territory.

Since Thai fighters do not usually slip punches and instead block punches, he/she will likely cover-up after your combination allowing you to sidestep and fire off a devastating liver shot. Just repeat this similar pattern to win the fight.

Alternatively, you can use your biggest weapon, straight knockout punching power to end the fight. If you can trade a leg kick to land a powerful right cross it would only 1-2 strong punches to get a KO.

This strategy is risky because leg kicks are so powerful but it’s a good way to finish the fight early especially since Thai fighters traditionally start very slow.

However, either way, it will be very hard for a boxer to beat a Muay Thai if their name is not Mike Tyson for the reasons already mentioned. Thai fighters themselves also just have very good boxing in general.

Look at the video below of a Muay Thai fighter and Boxer sparring. It is difficult to who is who aside from one wearing Muay Thai shorts but it showcases just how proficient most Thai’s are with Boxing, and even in my gym we train and spar Boxing quite frequently.

Can A Traditional Martial Artist Beat A Boxer?

Now this question will always depend on the size of the fighters, how much experience they have, and what martial art they practice. But let’s assume this martial art is traditional and doesn’t have much if any sparring.

An average Boxer would likely beat average martial artist or even someone who has trained martial arts for several years. The reason is simple, Boxing like Muay Thai actively involves fighting and the art of trying to hit and no get hit.

With traditional martial arts that focus on one single death punch or breaking boards, they rarely spar if not at all. The majority of these arts will focus on technique, theory, and drilling without the heavy focus on combat sparring that Boxing has.

Martial arts like Taekwondo might have flashy, spiny kicks but these don’t have much real-life application. Boxing has 4 main strikes, the jab, cross, upper, and hook, and these are SUPER effective in self-defense. Just look at how important boxing is for MMA with numerous fighters like the Diaz brothers and Jorge Masvidal having strong Boxing roots.

Now I’m not saying martial arts are useless far from it, but sparring must be a key part of any effective martial art.

Martial arts like Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and Judo are very effective arts and are more practical to use than Boxing as grappling is easier to use in a street fight than Boxing; as fighting with bare knuckles carries with it a high injury risk to the hands, and in BJJ &Judo, they spar often.

Interested in Boxing? Check Out My Recommendations

Muay Thai fighters no matter what nationalities will often wear headbands and a string on the bicep, but why is this? I decided to find out.

The Muay Thai headband known as the Mongkol, or “Mongkhon” is blessed by a monk or Rusei(shaman) and is traditionally worn by fighters before they enter the ring when they perform the Wai Kru dance. It is meant to protect the fighter and bring good luck.

Why Do Muay Thai Fighters Wear The Mongkhon?

Traditionally the Mongkhon is blessed by a monk or shaman and is only worn during the Wai Khru(pre-fight dance ceremony) which is meant to show respect for the fighters teacher, family, and the art of Muay and Thailand as a whole.

When the Wai Kru is finished, the fighter will return to this corner, and a prayer is whispered between the main coach and assistant coach with the Mongkton being removed before the fight and hung near the corner of the room u high up; as the sacred headband must be kept high to the ground and never pass under the ropes or between the ropes before entering the ring.

This is why male fighters must step over the ropes before entering the ring with the Mongkhon worn. The Mongkhon will be placed on the male’s fighters head by the trainer before he enters the ring, over the top ring ropes.

For women, it is forbidden to wear a Mongkhon as it brings bad luck, and traditionally women should enter the ring by going underneath the ropes. Unfortunately Muay Thai still carries with it a lot of sexist traditions but it’s important to still respect these traditions if you train in Thailand.

Although the attitude towards women doing Muay Thai is changing and certain Muay Thai schools will allow the women to wear a Mongkhon and perform the Wai Kru.

You can see the young Thai fighter Jodie McCarthy performing the Wai Kru whilst wearing the Mongkhon in the video below.

In Thailand, you will only receive a Mongkhon from your coach when he/she believes you have trained hard enough and can represent your gym with complete honor and respect.

Fighters wear Mongkhon to pay respect to the coach, their gym, and the practice of Muay Thai itself and to pay gratitude for following the fighter through the difficult journey of preparing for a fight.

Individual gyms and training camps have their own unique Mongkhon that is blessed with the spirit and strength of the gym and the master instructor. It is worn on the head as the head is sacred in Thailand and blesses the fighter with good fortune and luck in their fight.

History Of Mongkohn

The history of the Mongkol Buddhist tradition dates back to ancient battle-worn Thailand when it was still called Siam. Fighting was very common during this period and Thailand was constantly at war such as the Burmese-Siamese wars(wiki link) fought between the 16th and 19th centuries.

The ancient Siamese warriors had their unique pre-fight rituals that involved tieing bandana like cloth around their heads before heading to battle.

The Mongkol has many legends about how it was made even including a method using a live snake! This is from the book page 70 of Muay Thai: A Living Legacy that you can purchase from Amazon via the link.

… when the selected snake opened its mouth, its tail was rammed down its own throat, forming it into a circle, in which state it was placed in the sun to die and dry for seven days and nights. The Mongkok was then woven around this shape.”

(p. 70, Muay Thai: A Living Legacy)

Thailand and Muay Thai have deep spiritual roots and whilst the Mongkok snake origin cannot be proved or disproved it showcases the importance of magic in Mongkol’s history, it does also make sense because of the string shape of a Mongkol.

The mongkol was usually made of cloth or talisman from. a loved one like a mother and was blessed by a monk and supposedly filled with memories of their loved ones so they come back safe from battle.

The incantations purpose such as Gam Baan Nak Muen” which meant “the clenched-fist weighing many thousands” blessed the fighter with power and luck in preparation for battle.

The siamese warriors blessing each other created the tradition of the master created the Mongkol to pass it to their students. This is continued to this day with modern Muay Thai preserving the tradition.

Muay Thai is very closely connected to the modern history of Thailand mainly due to King Chulalongkorn’s personal interest in Muay Thai. You can read more about the history of Muay Thai here.

The Mongkol is still important in Muay Thai culture not only for Buddhist fighters but also for fighters from other religions. Different religions have separate methods of putting power into the Mongkol to provide strength and protection.

Certain Muslim fighters, particularly in the south of Thailand and Malaysia(high Muslim population), will place scrolls of verses from the Quran inside the Mongkon. This will wear their Mongkol on top of their Keffiyeh which is a traditional Arabian headdress

What is The Mongkol Made Out Of?

When Thailand was still called Siam the Mongkol was usually made out of hair from a loved one or pieces of material from a treasured piece of clothing like a baby’s birth towel, or the bones of a fighter’s ancestor. Occasionally Mongkol will be blessed with sacred amulets.

Traditionally a Mongkol will always be something personal and venerable to the fight, you can see on page 69 of Muay Thai a living legacy.

strand of [the fighter’s] father’s hair or even a thread from [one’s] mother’s paa-tung (sarong) used at the time of [one’s] birth.”

Muay Thai: A Living Legacy Vol 1., 2nd Ed.

In the west birthing, clothes are not that common, but a Mongkon can be made out of any piece of clothing that’s personal to you or related to your family.

Tiger Muay Thai(their website) one of the best Muay Thai Gyms in the world, Mongkon has a sacred tiger amulet woven into it and was blessed in the Wat Chalong temple located in southern Thailand.

Sylvie von Duuglas-Ittu a Muay Thai fighter had her Mongkol made from her mother’s skirt fitting the Thai tradition. They shredded the skirt into strips and twisted the strips into cords to wrap around the tubing at the center of the Mongkol which gives the structure and shape.

You can see Slyvies’s beautiful custom made Mongkol in the video below

Mongkol/Muay Thai Traditions

Mongkol Traditions

A mongkol can never touch the ground. Mongkol should be kept as high as possible. Usually, in Thai gym, the Mongkol will be kept on a hook high up far away from the ground as even being near the ground is bad luck.

Thai’s view the feet as being the least sacred part of the body since they are dirty and connected the ground. The Mongkol is put on the head as Thai’s view the head as sacred and of course, the head is furthest from the ground.

The Mongkol must not touch the ground – In fact, it must be kept as high as possible. In Thai gyms, you’ll usually see the Mongkol hung on a hook high above the ground as Thais believe that it is bad luck if it were to touch the ground or even be near it.

Thai’s view the head as the cleanest and most sacred part of the body, while feet are the dirtiest. Thai fighters traditional Say Yant tattoos have the more important tattoos closer to the head to influence the tattoos towards the lower body.

You need to enter the ring by the top rope whilst wearing the Mongkol. The Mongkol must be kept as high as possible and nothing can pass over it as its sacred.

Make sure to never duck your head to enter the ring through the middle ropes as you are putting your Mongkol closer to the ground and under the top ropes which is a great disrespect to Thai culture and is very unlucky.

If your a girl always enter over-under the top rope not to offend. Sadly the rules are quite different for females.

For women, you need to enter the ring under the bottom rope which is why the Mongkol is put on a female fighters’ head after they’ve entered the ring. It is Buddhist superstition that because females menstruate they have the power to destruct any blessed object so they cannot pass over the top rope.

Prajioud(armband)

The Prajioud origin is similar to the Mongkol and was traditionally made from a torn piece of mother’s clothes to protect her son from battle and to wish them luck and protection.

Unlike the Mongkol they are not mandatory to wear but you will still see fighters all around the world wearing them but this is probably too look cool. If they aren’t tied properly they could be annoying and even distract you from the fight.

In some gyms in Thailand but mostly in the west prajioud is used as a ranking system similar to belts in traditional martial arts, with white being the beginner level and black being the highest level you can achieve.

Now, this has nothing to do with the culture of Muay Thai, but rather it’s been adopted by some Muay Thai teachers to encourage their students to reach a goal as Muay Thai doesn’t have a ranking system and apparently it works!

You can see this ranking system spoken about in the video below.

Wai Kru Ram Muay(Pre Fight Dance)

Like the Mongkhon the Wai Kru Ram Muay is a way to show respect to your teacher and who helped you on your fight journey. When Thai fighters fought in front of royalty this dance also paid respect to the King.

The word “wai” is a traditional Thai greeting with the palms together to show respect. With “Khru” meaning “teacher”, lastly “ram” is the Thai word for dancing in a classical style and “muay” meaning boxing.

When fighters enter the ring, they will circle the ring in a counter-clockwise direction and pray in every corner, whilst bowing their heads three times in salutation to Buddha, Rama(Hindu God), and the sangha(community of monks).

The dance is always accompanied by music giving rhyme to the fighters movements and each dance is unique and will depend on the gym and the fighters individual religion. You can see how John Wayne Parr and Buakaw’s Wai Kru’s are very different around 7:00 minutes in the video below.

The Wai Kru also helps pre-fight anxiety and helps put you into that flow state before a fight, it is known to fight evil spirits and bad luck and to showcase your ability to perform the dance itself, as well provides a stretch and loosening. the fighter’s joints.

Whilst you don’t have to do the Wai Kru if you fight I would recommend doing so, as it shows respect to your trainers, gym, and the culture of Thailand and Muay Thai itself.

The Wai Kru is what makes Muay Thai special and unique, and preserving these traditions are important. If you want to know-how. to perform the Wai Kru by one of the best Muay Thai fighters ever Yudthagarngamtorn please view the video below.

Mongkol Monk Blessing

Since Mongkol is a sacred object they are blessed by Buddhist monks regularly before a fight, for Muslim fighters the blessing is done by an Imam(a Muslim priest).

The ceremonial blessing involves Buddhist incantations and prayers with the placement of Buddhist prayer scrolls in the tail of the headband, the monk will hold the Mongkol in their hands whilst chanting and he will blow on it as he chants.

Monks and women cannot touch each other so when a Monk blesses a females Mongkol they will return it via a folded cloth which is used as a vehicle to transport things between women and monks

You can see for yourself a monk blessing a Mongkol in the video below of a monk blessing Tiger Muay Thai’s new Mongkol.

Sak Yant Tattoos

Like everything spiritual in Thailand these tattoos such as the tiger and the 5 lines are meant to give the fighters good luck, success, and anything to help them fight.

Historically the tattoos should be done by Buddhist monks with bamboo needles, I’ve seen this in Thailand and the practice takes much longer and is way more painful than modern tattoos guns used in tattoos shops. It’s bad luck to get a Sak Yant tattoo done by someone who isn’t a Buddhist monk.

If you want to respect Thailand’s traditions or want to be blessed with the try supernatural or sacred power and believe these in the supernatural then make sure you get your tattoos done by a monk.

Watch the vice documentary below if you want to know more about the sacred tattoos of Thailand.

Interested in Muay Thai? Check Out My Recommendations

Looking For Gear To Use When You Train?
If you are interested in training Muay Thai, here is some of the gear I recommend: Best Mouth Guard Best Gloves Best Shorts Best Shin Guards
Want To Learn To Fight, But Don’t Want To Go In Person?
CoachTube has online training videos for Boxing, Karate, MMA and more. And best part is you can do it all from your home allowing you to go at your own pace. Check them out here.
Interested In Training Other MMA Fighters?
Click here to check out the MMA Conditioning Association and see what you need to become an MMA conditioning coach and begin training fighters.