The People of Muay Thai

This page is dedicated to our Instructors and to Woman in Muay Thai

Myth about Muay Thai training in Thailand #1

"Fly to Thailand, get a cab in Bangkok and you will be taken to one of the many camps around Thailand", this is a direct quotation from one of the Muay Thai "expert" on-line forums, most if any have never been in Thailand.

Unless you are fluent in Thai, this will usually result in you being taken to a gold store or a massage parlor or just a hotel. If by some incredible luck you actually FIND a camp that is set-up for Thai fighters, most likely you will not even be accepted (that is 100% true for female athletes), or you will spend the next 3 month kicking an old bag, sleeping in a hot room with no windows, water or toilet facilities. If that is your idea of a great Thailand vacation combined with excellent Muay Thai training, don't hesitate to follow these advises. It is not that Thai Camps do not like foreigners, but they are simply not set-up for Western minimum standards and since Thais are very shy, you will be most likely left on your own for the most part. This has been documented and experienced by some of the most famous Western Muay Thai fighters, that came to Thailand not knowing better.

As discussed in the Muay Thai History and Development Page Muay Thai Teachers have always played a significant role in Muay Thai. Part of the pre-fight ritual is to honor the teacher, Wai Khru which means bow or pray to the teacher. Muay Thai trainers have to play a crucial role. One of the most important and often overlooked or down played is the importance of speaking at least 1 language, mostly English. Also trainers need to be able to communicate well and not be shy to correct students. Unfortunately this is normally not the strength of ex Thai fighters. When joining a Camp you should make sure that trainers have a good command of English, that the camp is set-up to facilitate good communication and most of has a successful track record in training Westerners. Whether the teacher has 100 or 300 fights or what his win/loss ratio is, is actually irrelevant.

Communication skills, English language skills by the trainers, combined with effective and accelerated training programs with good, western standard facilities is the key for a great Thailand experience. If you worry about any price differences, the price structures are nearly identical between Thai and Western standard camps, perhaps you pay a bit more for a nice bungalow, but a mini bar, TV, DVD player and your own bathroom is usually worth it.

Myth about Muay Thai training in Thailand #2

A Muay Thai camp should be located in an isolated part of rural Thailand, away from the beaches, mountains and exciting nightlife, that is where you find the best trainers. I have traveled extensively through Thailand, attended way more than a dozen camps and while there are some good camps located in Northern Thailand, lack of Thai language skills and general isolation from all Western amenities is usually a depressing experience. Personally I found that the TOP 3 camps in Thailand and perhaps in the world are all located near/in either major city such as Bangkok or in popular tourist destinations such as Ko Samui, Phuket and Chiang Mai.

Our Instructors:

What is so special about our instructors and training system:

1. We have 7 full time trainers and 2-3 fighter trainers , we only accept a maximum of 25 students at a time , that's a ratio of 3 students per teacher maximum.

2. 80 percent of our teachers are fluent in English, have worked many years abroad, well versed in "Western" culture.

3. Many camps claim to have this or that Lumpini or South Thailand champions with hundreds of fights, OUR teachers have all registered and WMC/IFMA recognized Titles by world sanctioning bodies and have worked, trained and fought at International events (Hongkong, China, Singapore, Dubai, Bangkok, Russia, Kazakhstan) just to mention a few. Most of the evens have ben televised and we will be more than happy to show you their fights.

4. We have 3 customized programs (see training section) and we emphasis conditioning training with specific sparring sessions, meaning that you will leave in the best shape of your life, while learning Muay Thai at YOUR pace. CONDITIONING is key to Muay Thai, many fighters with over hundred fights have been defeated by a well conditioned western fighter with less that 10 fights.

English speaking, registered with the proper national and international sports authorities good communication, combined with a dedicated and young staff, while living in a secluded, but highly comfortable and modern accommodation is our key to success.

                                          Phuket Muay Thai Trainer Team

                                      (At the filming of the Contender Asia, with Mr. Fox, the Producer)

Myth about Muay Thai training in Thailand #3

Women are not allowed to train Muay Thai, Muay Thai is too difficult for Woman:

In the 1970's an incident involving a popular female TV announcer, who climbed into the ring at the Lumpini stadium dealt a temporary setback to female Muay Thai. In Buddhist countries woman are not allowed to come in contact with monks (and the other way around), since the monks bless the rings and mongkols prior to any fight, it was rumored that the presence of a female had angered the spirits guarding the ring. Thais are very superstitious and after the in accident with the announcer, the next half dozen or so fighters in that ring were injured by cuts. Coincidence? Most likely, but it lead to a ban on Thai female fighting. Of course this being Thailand, it was not too ,long that female bouts resumed, but only at the end of every event, as not to offend the anyone or any spirit.

Most Thai camps will not allow females to participate, in the rare event that they do (and even in some Western camps) there are separate rings for woman and man.

"Poon"

One of our long time customers, at only 5" and 50lb's she still delivers lethal kicks.

Swedish WMC World Champion

Not in our case! We believe that everyone should be treated equally and given the chance to being able to access the same resources.

Interestingly enough, due to the absence of Thai female fighters the Western woman started to dominate the Muay Thai scene, so a few years ago it was decided that the Thai government would focus on female fighters again and make sure that they were no being outdone.

                     King Cup Winner Nutawat                                           Singapore 06 Sandy (right) (PMT)

Due to its excellent aerobic conditioning the popularity of Muay Thai and Kick boxing has soared amongst woman. Thai bo was adapted to be a fusion of Thai boxing and Aerobics exercise. Also female Muay Thai fighting has reached quality levels, to a point where many fights are being televised and there are some excellent fighters being developed, specially from Australia and Britain.

                 Thai World Champion 55kg                                Swedish World Champion  60kg

Amateur Muay Thai has also benefited from an influx of woman , as was evidenced during last years large IFMA event in Kazakhstan where there were dozens of excellent female bouts. While training can be difficult, we found that most woman that try Muay Thai for the first time come back for more. Married couples that come to our camp usually start out with the man coming for the Muay Thai and the woman signing up for a cooking course or a Thai massage course. More often than not, the woman put aside the cookbook or the massage lotion and join in with Muay Thai, as it is truly a sport for all, young and old, male and female

Beautiful Boxer Preview

and in the case of Nong Toom, the famous transsexual fighter from Chiang Mai sometimes man turn into woman, but still enjoy the physical benefits if Muay Thai.