---

This is the article I wrote for my friend Nat's 'SEA Backpacker' magazine:

Muay Thai for Beginners

After a couple of months of indulgence on the old pancake trail, I was noticed a little extra weight around my midriff that I didn’t remember packing when I left home. In fact, I was beginning to resemble the ubiquitous ‘laughing Buddha’ figures. Well OK, I wasn’t bald and big nippled, but I was developing a bit of a pot belly. Needing some serious exercise and motivation I headed off to one of Thailand’s ‘Muay Thai Camps’.

The camp my friend recommended was catered for farangs and as far as I was aware, all paying guests were foreigners. The vast majority being white males in their 20s and 30s. This did not make it a ‘holiday’ camp however and many successful Thai boxers had trained and taught there. For me, the camp felt like a cross between a Muay Thai and a boot camp, which actually made it ideal for losing my extra tyre whilst learning some Thai boxing skills. At the camp I attended, the classes were divided into abilities from beginners up to advanced. There was also a daily morning yoga class, body fitness class, and a supervised weights gym, all catered for advancing one’s fitness ability in the ring. You could choose to do as much or little of this as you liked. On top of this there was also the choice to have private sessions with a trainer or with the gym’s resident weight trainer (about 600 baht/hour). Conveniently you can pay and attend the classes by the day, week or month. I knew that if I didn’t pay up for a week, I might be inclined to give up after a couple of days. So I handed over 3,250 baht which paid for a week of training and a dorm room on the camp grounds, and worked out as the cheapest training/accommodation option.

The good thing about the camp for me, was that you could take the training as seriously or lightly as suited you, and there was a range of classes and sessions so that you could concentrate more on your fitness or Muay Thai skills as you desired. When I first arrived I was handed a slim information pack of the classes available and left to my own devices. Being a complete novice, I was a little confused about what to go to. But, seeing as it was a Muay Thai camp, it seemed wise to attend the next Muay Thai session, and I set my alarm for 7am the next morning.

The school is used to beginners dropping in every day and the beginners’ class was very well organised to accommodate everyone whilst ensuring we all were given the opportunity to reach our potential. There’s no room for skiving here, and the three hour session is jam packed with scarcely enough time to go to the toilet. Anyone seen dilly-dallying will be given something to do whether it’s practice sparring, some one-on-one with a trainer or bashing a heavy bag. The trainers were amiable and able to have a laugh, however this was hidden behind fierce masks of scowls and barking orders. The worst sadist of the lot was our main trainer; an angry little man I’ll name ‘Wiang’ who rarely let a smile replace his grimace. Everything he said was SHOUTED as though he was constantly irritated. Sessions were littered with barks of “20 PUSH-UPS, then drink some WATER.” If Wiang approached and asked how many press-ups you’d completed, no matter what you answer he’d respond with “Why you LIE? Do 10 more!!” and any cries of innocence fell on deaf ears. Being small and not really knowing what I was doing, Wiang seemed to adopt me as his class pet. However I would have preferred to live without the compliment as he continuously picked on me and mocked my pathetic Muay Thai ability (“Why you no POWER?!!”). Rather than pats on the head, this guy shows his affection with kicks to the back and whacks with his special bamboo cane. He seemed pleased when he noticed that his bamboo whacks had given me a red mark on the back of my thigh. I tried to see the affection in his jest, however by the end I was shuddering at his barks and muttering angrily under my breath. I had to keep reminding myself not to take him seriously. The only alternative would have been to beat him up but this man had been fighting since he was 7 and I couldn’t even beat up a gecko, so I decided to grin and bare it.

Morning training started at 7.30am with a warm up of skipping, jogging around the mats and stretching. Anyone late is made to do 10-50 press-ups or squats depending on how tardy you are and on the boss’s mood. After that it’s 20 minutes or so of copying the trainer in a mirror and practicing technique. Complete novices who don’t have a clue will be taken with a trainer and forced into a ring with a snarling, drooling ex- Thai fighter, gone mad from years of punches to the head. Thankfully he is chained to the corner and a trainer is always on guard to concuss him if he manages to get you in a head clench.** When it’ established that everyone can follow the basic moves and instructions, hands are wrapped up (like proper fighters!) and the gloves are on. The rest of the session was filled with sparring sessions with other students, press ups, one-on-ones with the trainers, shadowing, press-ups, intervals with the punchbags, more press ups, and always ended with 10 minutes in which we were ordered to do “300 sit ups, 100 push-ups.” New comers always assumed this was a joke. Their smiles quickly faded however when they looked around and saw everyone else gritting their teeth and commencing with the command. I don’t think I ever managed to complete this last exercise (I always lost count after 50) although I could see that others were giving it a good try.

I should also mention that there was another ‘activity’ inflicted upon us in the last session, known amongst the students as ‘stomach smashes’. The head trainer chose an assistant to carry a big, hard, heavy medicine ball and smash it onto the stomach of each student whilst they lay with their hands clasped behind their heads and made a variety of noises ranging from quick exhales of breath to cries of pain (and in my case, embarrassingly, a couple of farts). The trainer would command the number to be inflicted (“fifty. Two times!”), whacking the smasher with his bamboo stick and yelling “more POWER” if the guy (or girl) on the floor didn’t seem to be suffering enough. It was also suffering for the chosen ‘smasher’ as not only was it agony on his arms but at after leaving the other class members, curled up in the foetal position and crying silently, it was ultimately his turn to receive smashes from the big boss - and this man did not believe in mercy. He would sit astride the quivering victim, pound him with all his strength and finally punctuate the torment with one final heavy blow in which he used all his bodily weight. If this man hadn’t been trained in Muay Thai as a child, I’m sure he’d have done a good job with a whip and nails in an S&M club.

Apparently these ‘stomach smashers’ are an excellent exercise for strengthening the stomach muscles and preparing boxers for receiving punches to the stomach. However, the majority of us soft westerners deemed it medically unsound. These doubts were ignored however and NO ONE was allowed to ‘sit out’. One girl emitted a cry of pain mid way through her stomach smashes and claimed her rib had been broken. The trainer gave her 20 seconds to rest, and then commanded the rest of the smashes be completed. (Don’t worry, her rib hadn’t been broken, just bruised.) I’m not even sure someone yielding a mammogram would have been granted pardon from the torture, Wiang probably would have said “good for BABY, grow STRONG.”

The training can be gruelling, and particularly takes a little getting used to if you haven’t done any proper exercise for a while and are not used to the humidity. It’s also recommended that you don’t throw yourself into the training too much at the beginning, but rather stick to one main session for the first 2 or 3 days at least. I made the mistake of attending 2 sessions on the first day and I thought my head would explode, though I think this was mostly due to dehydration. You’d be surprised how quickly you adapt however and your stamina increases. I started the school doing ‘girly’ press-ups on my knees (being a girl I got away with it, men are not so lucky: “What you do? You LADY BOY?!!”) but after 5 days I was able to do the majority of press ups the proper way. How proud and strong I felt.

Sometimes it felt as though the trainers (particularly the boss) had no sympathy, but their job is to challenge and push you, so ultimately you appreciate it. The best thing is to suck it up and not to take it too seriously or personally. It can be disconcerting at the beginning when you feel weak and pathetic but most people go through that stage. Keep smiling, have a laugh with the other students (and trainers) and - with the training providing a hearty mix of cardio, muscle strengthening, and of course, Muay Thai technique -- you’ll see yourself improve in no time. You’re not pressured to stay for any length of time, or even do all the sessions once you’re there (although unfortunately for me, my closest bathroom was also next to the beginner’s training area so I was always spotted when I chose to skive class). However, once in a class, there’s no escape and the trainers will push you to your maximum.

There was a mix of students in the beginners’ class, from muscley young men on their testosterone holiday, to old fatties who’d hit the beer and pies for too long. But everyone got along and everyone seemed happy with how quickly their physique and/or Muay Thai skills improved. The good thing is that there wasn’t much else to do in the there but train, particularly as it’s what everyone has gone there for. In the evenings you’ll most likely just have enough energy to shower and have dinner, so all thoughts of drinking alcohol and gallivanting are left for Saturday evening when everyone knows they’ll be able to rest the whole of Sunday.

I lasted 2 weeks at the Muay Thai camp. What can I say? I’m a lover not a fighter. I had also mildly injured my foot - an excuse the Wiang would not accept when I tried to leave training early - so it seemed like a good time to to hang up my boxing gloves and move on to a new destination. Most people were there for a couple of months at least as they were actually serious about the boxing. However there were also plenty like myself who just went for a shorter period to give it a go and get some exercise - from muscley young men on their testosterone holiday, to old fatties who’d hit the beer and pies for too long. Despite the fact that I’m still limping two weeks later from my small foot injury, it was an excellent opportunity to try a new activity (and culturally relevant for once) and I met some really decent people. I can now email home and let my mum know I’ve done those self-defence lessons she was getting on at me about (I think Muay Thai should count). So if you’ve got some time and a little bit of spare dough, I’d recommend you get online and check out a Muay Thai camp near you.


Muay Thai Camp Info and Tips:

‘Muay’ is Thai for ‘boxing’ so “Muay Thai’ literally means ‘Thai Boxing.’ It is a unique form of boxing with its own practices and techniques. People who already have experience in other forms of boxing such as kick boxing, find it a little difficult at first to adapt to ‘Muay Thai’ as the style is different.

I went to 'Tiger Muay Thai' in Phuket, and I'd recommend it. However, this article is just one person’s experience from one camp. Popular camps can be found on search engines, but ask around with locals or check out online forums to find a camp that will suit you.

The basic equipment one needs for Muay Thai is a pair of gloves and wraps for the hands. Mouth guards and shin pads are a bonus but not compulsory. I almost shelled out over 3000 baht for a pair of boxing gloves and wraps, until I discovered that these could fortunately be rented at my camp. Unless you’re keen to take up the Muay Thai longer term, or want a pair of gloves as a memento, find out if you can rent equipment or buy second hand off someone leaving the camp.

Stay clean: You will SWEAT in your sessions like never before. Despite the camp staff’s rigorous cleaning regime of the mats, it was still not uncommon for students to pick up a mild bacterial skin infection. This was pretty harmless but itchy as hell and meant that they were not allowed to train until it had cleared up (so as not to infect anyone else). So get a bottle of detox and clean yourself, clothes and equipment after every training session.

** Ha ha, that’s a joke. The newbies will be taken aside and shown the basic moves so that they understand commands.

---