Muay Thai: Why it’s the BEST full body workout
Why MUAY THAI is the Best Full Body Workout You Can Find
In your on-going search for an efficient and results oriented workout you’ve probably already tried High-intensity interval training (HIIT), a handful of boot-camp type of classes, with some body pump or even run-of-the-mill boxing thrown in. If you are looking for a total mind and body workout, what you need to try is Muay Thai.
Never heard of it? Let us bring you up to speed on Muay Thai and how this comprehensive mind-body workout offers immense health benefits.
Muay Thai is considered the national sport of Thailand. It’s usually described as the art of 8 limbs because it utilizes the fists, elbows, knees, and shins. Also known as Thai Boxing, Muay Thai is both a martial art and a combat sport. It has been around for hundreds of years and originated on the battlefield. It was used in actual combat by soldiers that lost their weapons and therefore had to fight their enemies hand-to-hand. It’s both a practical and straightforward martial art without a lot of fancy moves that would turn off a beginner or practitioner.
How Muay Thai provides a full body workout.
While the history of Muay Thai is interesting, what is more impressive is that Muay Thai is often considered one of the best full-body workouts due to its unique combination of physical conditioning, technique training, and mental discipline. Here are the physical benefits of practicing Muay Thai:
Cardiovascular Fitness: Being a mix of both aerobic and anaerobic workout, Muay Thai is a type of martial art that offers both strength and endurance. The anaerobic training involves intense and continuous movement, including punching, kicking, elbowing, and kneeing. The aerobic portion includes running, jumping rope and shadow boxing, drills, and sparring, challenging your cardiovascular system and improving endurance and overall cardiovascular fitness. This develops stamina and strength that is required for the optimal functioning of the human body.
Strength and Muscle Tone: Practicing Muay Thai requires engaging various muscle groups throughout your body, including your arms, legs, core, and back. Regular training helps develop strength, power, and muscle tone. Techniques such as punches, kicks, knee strikes, and clinching require exertion of force, leading to improved muscular strength and definition.
Flexibility and Agility: Muay Thai involves a wide range of dynamic movements and techniques that enhance flexibility and agility. The repeated execution of high kicks, swift footwork, and defensive maneuvers helps improve joint mobility, overall flexibility, and body coordination.
Core Strength, Stability and Great Abs: Muay Thai training heavily engages the core muscles, which play a crucial role in generating power and maintaining balance during strikes and defensive moves. It entails twisting, using kicks, and repeated use of your knees and shins. Through repetitive movements and exercises, your core muscles, including the abdominals and lower back, are strengthened, leading to improved stability and posture. A typical session will include shadow boxing, kicking on the bag, jab-cross combos, skipping knees, and, clinching your partner. All of these movements will tone up your abdomen. Additionally, as you are striking hard on the pads and bags, you will be developing quick fibers which in turn will burn fat and build the abdominal muscles.
Fat Burning and Weight Loss: The high-intensity nature of Muay Thai training makes it an effective calorie-burning activity. It can help increase your metabolic rate, leading to weight loss and fat burning. The combination of cardio exercises, strength training, and interval-based workouts in Muay Thai can contribute to improved body composition and increased calorie expenditure.
Mental Focus and Discipline: Muay Thai training requires mental focus, discipline, and concentration. Learning and executing complex techniques, drills, and combinations require mental clarity, quick decision-making, and the ability to adapt to various situations. Regular practice can enhance mental resilience and improve overall cognitive function.
Stress Relief and Confidence Building: Engaging in Muay Thai training offers an outlet for stress release and an opportunity to channel your energy constructively. The physical exertion and the focus required during training can help reduce stress, anxiety, and tension. Additionally, as you progress in your training and acquire new skills, your self-confidence and self-esteem can improve. Strongly believing in oneself is what makes the core of confidence. Studies prove that when one exercises, the stress hormones like adrenaline and cortisol witness a drop in their levels and at the same time, our body begins to produce endorphins – which are known mood elevators. As a matter of course, regular exercising is recommended for those facing stress and depression in their lives. When you start believing in yourself, you tend to exhibit great levels of confidence. Muay Thai gives you all the necessary boosts to make you feel good about yourself. As Muay Thai not only trains your body but mind too, you will develop spontaneity, both in reflexes and in decisions, and become the best version of yourself. This naturally makes you brim with confidence no matter where or who you are.
Additionally, Muay Thai is unparalleled when it comes to self-defense. While no one envisions themselves in a situation where self-defense is needed, it sure is nice to know you have the understanding and training of the appropriate moves should they be warranted. Muay Thai training helps you develop those necessary self-defense tactics that will help you in facing real-life encounters. With the strategic use of 8 limbs and body strength, you can give your enemy tough competition and might be able to catch him off-guard by your presence of mind and quick response. According to experts, within a span of six months of training, an average person will learn the required skills to defend oneself.
One question we often hear is whether Muay Thai is a dangerous sport? The answer is absolutely not, if your objective is to be fit and you are doing it for fun as a casual student with all your pads and safety gear on, then you are at a minimum risk.
If you are interested in trying something new and discovering the Muay Thai comprehensive full mind-body workout, take a look at our schedule and find a class convenient for your schedule. We look forward to seeing you On the Mat!