If you’re planning a relaxing vacation, Thailand is worth considering. It’s a top tourist destination known for its beautiful beaches and mouth-watering cuisine. When you search for popular holiday spots, Thailand will definitely appear on the list.
Thailand has come a long way since being known as a vacation destination. In 2023, Muay Thai, a martial art that originated in Thailand, will debut in the Olympics in future. This is a massive accomplishment for the sport, which has been around for centuries. It’s exciting to see Thailand making such an impact on the global stage.
Muay Thai is a type of hand-to-hand combat used for hundreds of years by the Thai military. It is more famously known as ‘Thai boxing’ and even as the ‘Art of the eight limbs’. The main reason for its name as the art of the eight limbs is because it uses eight limbs in its combat techniques: hands, elbows, knees and shins.
The history of Muay Thai started as the art of warfare used by the Thai soldiers. In the Thai military, weapons were not seen as the only means of winning the war. Soldiers used to practice Muay Thai to ensure that their entire body and mind were used during battle. The legendary Muay Thai fighter, Nai Khanom Tom, showed the effectiveness of Muay Thai as not only a tool to fight and defend oneself. His ability to go against ten different Burmese fighters back to back and win showed how powerful the art of the eight limbs is.
Today, Muay Thai is not only used as a sport. It is ingrained into the Thai culture that most if not all, people are familiar with a few Muay Thai moves. As time passes, more individuals are becoming interested in Muay Thai. Despite its reputation as a violent and risky sport, people of all age groups, from children to adults, are now adopting it and enjoying it.
So, what about Muay Thai makes it captivating as both a sport and a form of exercise? If you are considering starting Muay Thai, here are five benefits you can gain from its training.
Cardio Health
Have you ever had the chance to witness a Muay Thai competition? It’s truly an impressive sight! These fighters use a combination of their hands, legs, elbows, and knees to deal with punches and kicks, and they use various moves to inflict damage on their opponents. However, to keep up with these deadly combo moves, fighters must first focus on building their stamina, starting with their cardiovascular health. This sets Muay Thai apart from other martial arts, making it an even more intense and challenging sport.
As you train for Muay Thai, you must start training by doing exercises such as running and jumping ropes. This is something that takes work. It is one of the most gruelling parts at the beginning that makes most give up quickly. The main reason is that you will be able to swiftly and accurately deliver a Muay Thai combo and not hurt yourself simultaneously!
If you value your overall health and well-being, you should know how important it is to maintain good cardiovascular health. Strong cardiovascular endurance can help keep serious diseases like heart disease and blood vessel conditions at bay while allowing you to perform your daily routine and activities more efficiently.
Strengthens the Entire Body
As you know, Muay Thai is famously known as the art of 8 limbs. It uses the hands, legs, elbows and even knees in its combination attack. Unlike most sports, the Muay Thai uses almost the entire body in its fights. By learning Muay Thai, you must train every part of your body, even your mind.
The famous Thai manual called the Chupasart mentions that fighting takes more than just weapons. Using one’s entire body is essential, and this includes the mind. A Muay Thai fighter must have the physical strength to fight and a strong mind and will. This is because, unlike many other martial arts, Muay Thai is all about patiently waiting and calculating the precise moment to deal a combo move to ensure the most damage to their opponent. This can’t be done with just strength. The mind has to be strong, also.
Training in Muay Thai will strengthen the entire body. You will learn to deal with combination attacks such as the low kick- punches-low kick. This is extremely difficult and a combination that, more often than not, causes a knockout.
As its name suggests, this combination move begins with quick and powerful low kicks that can catch your opponent off guard. From there, you seamlessly transition into a barrage of punches that keep them on their toes and unable to predict your next move. But when they think they have you figured out, you switch back to a series of low kicks, leaving them confused.
This combination move is a masterclass in deception, making it nearly impossible for your opponent to defend themselves effectively. One of the most perfect shows of this combo can be seen delivered in the fight between Rodtang vs Sok Thy.
Reduce Anxiety and Stress
Anxiety and stress are prevalent in this day and age. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), in 2019, 301 million people all around the globe were suffering from an anxiety disorder, including adults, teenagers, and kids.
In 2021, Gallup, known for its worldwide public opinion polls, found that at least 4 in 10 people experienced stress and worry. A lot of people around the world suffer from this. One way to manage stress and anxiety can be through learning Muay Thai.
Muay Thai is a kind of exercise that is a proven method of maintaining mental fitness. When you exercise, you will reduce stress hormones, and your body will release more endorphins, which will help reduce anxiety and stress. It will also help with your moods daily. People who train in Muay Thai feel that this martial art allows them to release their work and personal stress and anxiety by focusing their minds and bodies on the training and attacks they learn.
Mental Clarity and Increased Focus
Muay Thai is more than just about attacking your opponent. It requires a lot of mental stamina and perseverance, too. To execute Muay Thai moves flawlessly, you need complete focus and concentration. A wandering mind can cause you to perform the moves inadequately and even hurt yourself. So, focusing on the task at hand is essential to achieve the desired results.
A Muay Thai fighter who enters and participates in a competition should be able to concentrate and block everything else around them. As you know, matches can be noisy, with people screaming and cheering. You must be able to block all of this and solely concentrate on your opponent and fight. This is a challenging feat. This is why Muay Thai fighters are trained to have clarity and focus.
A good trainer will be able to increase your clarity and focus, which comes in handy during combat and in your day-to-day life in the office or even during menial tasks during the day. This skill is precious and sought as it can be applied and used daily.
Easy to Learn
No martial arts is easy to master. Yes, it takes a lot of training and perseverance to master Muay Thai, but unlike many martial arts out there, it does not focus on Kata. Kata is a Japanese word which refers to forms. A form in martial arts is a choreographed pattern of movements that one must practice. It is a way to memorise so that a perfect movement can be achieved quickly. Muay Thai does not have Katas. It is, in fact, very straightforward. It does not have a set of choreographed movements as it is not meant to be performed as entertainment, unlike other martial arts such as Karate. Muay Thai is a standing-up striking martial art. As it is and has been used in the Thai military for hundreds of years, it is developed to ensure the most efficient and precise way to hurt its opponents. It was designed so that it is deadly but quickly picked up. This is why it is still used in Thai military training. It is not developed to be complicated and lengthy. It is fast and efficient. This characteristic of Muay Thai makes learning easier than most martial arts.
Muay Thai has multiple benefits. It will enrich you in Thai culture and bring you many health benefits. As mentioned above, learning Muay Thai might be easier than some martial arts, but it requires much hard work and perseverance.
Muay Thai’s widespread popularity has not only established it as a favoured sport but has also left a significant mark on popular culture across different forms of entertainment, such as movies, television shows, and video games. Are you interested in learning this martial art? Why not look at learning Muay Thai using Superprof? We have many Muay Thai Kru who can teach you from basic Muay Thai to even advanced levels.
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