Muay Thai Workout

So I decided to swtich things up a bit and in this entry of the “Muay Thai training journal”, I’ll talk about, yup .. you guessed it – Muay Thai training.” Perhaps you were hoping for more stories about crazy Thai chicks and ladyboys but don’t worry, I’m sure I’ll have a lot more to talk about in my future entries as I apparently have a leader of some “firm” after me but more on that later. This entry is about the training..

What’s nice about coming out to Thailand to train is that other than these entries, I really have nothing else that I HAVE to do. I can focus entirely on my workouts without all the distractions I had back in Canada. No selling my life away via a job that I hate, no long commutes to the gym in the middle of winter – nothing at all. The only distractions I have here are the sexy Thai girls hollerin’ at me when I walk by, and that’s not entirely a bad distraction to have.

I’ve been trying to get 3 workouts in a day. I got sick a couple weeks ago and since then, I’ve had to cut one of my workouts out. Even now, I find myself caughing up flem and spitting it over the ropes in between rounds. Before I got sick, here’s how my typical day of training was lookin’..

Muay Thai Workout #1 – Swimming (Early Afternoon)

A major selling point for the condo I’m currently renting was the fact that it has a huge swimming pool. I decided to replace the long distance road work that the Thai’s do for swimming laps. Typical Muay Thai workouts consist of jogging upwards of 20km everyday. With me weighing about 91 KG’s at the moment, that sort of long distance running would be way too hard on my joints. Swimming is low impact and it provides me the opportunity to do functional, Muay Thai related movements such as knees and shadowboxing against the resistance of the water.

Muay Thai Workout #2 – Muay Thai Training (Late Afternoon)

This is when I’ve been going to Scorpion Gym and doing a typical Muay Thai workout. The late afternoon Muay Thai training consists of 3-5 rounds of skipping, 3-5 rounds on the heavy bag, about 10 minutes of stretching, 5 rounds of pad-work (3 rounds of Muay Thai and 2 rounds specifically for boxing). From there I’ll work some push-kicks on the heavy bag and to finish up, I try to get a few rounds of live sparring in. Whether or not I get to spar basically depends on who’s in the gym while I’m there and how busy the trainers are.

There’s 2 large rings at Scorpion. The ring on the left hand side is manned by Somphot (240 fights with 160 KO’s) and the right to the left is manned by “Whit”. Both trainers (who also happen to be brothers) offer something unique so lately, I’ve been rotating back and fourth between the two. Somphot is very technical. Rosalie (the gym owner) was telling me about how experienced, professional Muay Thai fighters will come in to train with Somphot and he breaks down and critisizes their technique to the point where they feel like the on-lookers in the gym will think they’re beginners. No matter how good you think you are, a few rounds of pad-work with Somphot will humble you pretty quick.

With that being said, while the first few rounds can be frusterating, at about the round 3 mark, you literally feel as though you’ve improved drastically within the last 6 minutes. Based on his instruction (if you can remember it all), you’ll kick the pads and when you hear the loud impact of your shin smashing against his leather fairtex pads and his praise of approval, “good man!” – something just clicks. Here is a quick video I took of Somphot working with one of the active fighters at Scorpion (I never caught his name) but apparently he’s currently a #2 ranked fighter at Ratchadamnoen stadium in Bangkok.

“Whit” on the other hand isn’t as technical and because he spends less time correcting your technique, he pushes a much quicker pace. While I’m doing pad-work with “Whit”, I usually find myself leaning over the ropes trying to catch my breath – oftentimes in the middle of the round.
Somphot for technique and Whit for conditioning. It’s always good to work with as many trainers as you can as each will offer something unique. Throughout my time here, I imagine I’ll be working with about 50 trainers so they way I see it – if each trainer can teach me even 1 new little trick/technique, I’ll become pretty well versed in the art – which is obviously the goal.

Muay Thai Workout #3 – Strength Work (Late Evening)

If the Thai’s spent even half as much time on weightlifting and strength-work as they did on long distance running, they’d be unstoppable. In my opinion, they run way too much for a sport that impliments 3 minute rounds. Long distance training can be beneficial for sports of high intensity, short duration bursts however, you also have to train specifically for explosive power if you want to have, well .. explosive power – which is pretty important in a sport where you’re trying to KO people.

It’s 12:19am right now and I’m about to head to the gym. That’s the nice thing about this place is that it’s a 24hr city. I also get the entire gym to myself since working out isn’t exactly a top nighttime priority for the people that come here. Rather, most people in Pattaya spend their evenings in the bars, drinking with the ladies. The lifestyle that most people fall into here isn’t exactly the healthiest. However, I’ve actually managed to stay away from the alcohol lately. If I go out, which I do simply out of boredom, my drink of choice is either water or orange juice.
There’s some really nice gyms here as well. California WoW gym is perhaps the nicest gym I’ve ever seen but the membership was a little too pricey. I just got a membership at Tony’s gym just off walking street. It’s got everything I need and they’re always playin’ good music in there. Check the photo..

For my workouts, I try to focus on the usual, compound / multi-joint / fight-functional exercises that I feel will translate well over to Muay Thai. I do a lot of plyometrics (clapping push ups etc.), maximum strength work (low reps, heavy weight) for those KO shots and of course, some endurance work as well (high reps, medium weight, quick tempo).

With the core being the “strength center”, I try to implement a lot of rotary movements to increase the power of my punches. I got most of the core exercises I use from the combat core manual.
I’m heading down to Phuket to live and train at Tiger Muay Thai in a few days and I’m pretty sure they have the giant tractor tires and sledgehammers there so I’ll that’ll make for some good workouts.

From my understanding, they also have a supplement shop and a strength and conditioning program so it’s nice to see that some of the camps here in Thailand realize that Muay Thai specific strength workouts can be more than just push ups, pull ups and sit ups.

Nutrition

Eating healthy is both cheap and easy here. When I went to Issan, the girl’s grandmother was there and at 98 years old, she seemed perfectly healthy and surprisingly energetic. I guess that’s what happens when you breathe only clean air and eat only natural, unprocessed food. You know, the “organic” stuff that we pay top dollar for in our home countries.

I found an awesome Thai resteraunt where I’ve been getting about 80% of my meals. A plate of chicken/rice and a bowl of soup on the side runs me 30 baht (about 97 cents). The same resteraunt also serves a chicken/rice/vegetable combo for the same price. Looks good, doesn’t it?

One thing I’d recommend to people who are coming here to train – bring your own supplements. They’re way more expensive here. So, since I haven’t splurged on a protein powder, I just throw back a few chocolate milks after my workouts at Tony’s gym. Chocolate milk has both the sugar and protein that your body needs to replenish depleted glycogen stores, trigger an insulin response and of course, start the muscular recovery process.

Next Entry

Since I’m leaving Pattaya in only a few short days, my next entry will profile some of the random, out of the ordinary scenes and photos that I’ve been able to capture throughout my time here. I’ll also give you an update on the situation with the girl I lent that money too. Things certainly took an interesting twist today..

Stay Tuned.

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3 Core Exercises for MMA Performance

Support can mean a lot of things. But when we are talking about supporting an active life that is free from injury, we are specifically referring to a strong set of abdominals. Developing the muscle groups that support, stabilize and engage movements of the torso including; the rectus abdominis, the internal / external obliques, the transverse abdominis and the posterior chain including the upper back and lats, along with a the knowledge of how to properly prepare to pick up an external load, is essential to being able to stay injury free and engage in an active lifestyle. This load could be your children, a dumbbell or barbell at the gym, a grocery bag, a box or anything else you need to move in a busy day.

Let’s discuss three torso developing movements that require muscle endurance and bracing proficiency. These exercises can be quickly and easily incorporated into your training at home or in the gym and will develop someone’s ability to “support” not only their own bodyweight but an additional load.

Planks

Planks are where you get into a push-up position but instead of on getting set on your outstretched and locked arms, you will setup with your forearms resting on the ground. You are facing downward with your back is rigid, your glutes are tight and your torso is braced. You will hold this position for a set length of time. 30 seconds to 1 minute is good and 2 minutes + is great. There is also a variation where you are braced on your side and preventing lateral flexion. You will roll up from the standard plank position to your side, still resting on your forearm which is now perpendicular to your body. Your top foot will be resting on your bottom foot. This variation will target your obliques more specifically. Other options include bridging and weighted bridging variations.

Overhead Walks

You will start this exercise by locking two dumbbells, two kettlebells, a barbell or two milk jugs filled with water (if you are working out at home) overhead in an outstretched position. Your arms should be next to your head and the implements will be fully locked overhead. Now, you will go for a walk. In a straight line, zig zag pattern or even in a figure 8 pattern. With each step, you will have to adjust with the sway of the movement and against the weight of the implements. This will force you to brace your torso to remain rigid and unwavering while you are moving. This movement is excellent for anyone, independent of your personal goals, as it teaches dynamic stabilization. You will also find breathing to be labored and your mental toughness will go through the roof.

Farmers Walks

The farmers walk has long been a staple in strongman contests. Because they load athletes while they are moving, strength coaches are now realizing their direct carryover to improving bracing, deceleration and absorption abilities. Farmers walks can be done with the athlete carrying a variety of objects including kettlebells, rocks, sandbags, dumbbells and even farmers implements. The idea is to load up each of the athlete’s hands with a weight and get moving. You can travel for a certain distance or for a specific time period. To make the movement harder, drop one of the weights and only have the athlete loaded on one side of their body. This increases the demand to remain rigid and unwavering while the athlete is in motion.

Try these exercises out to jump start your workout and improve your overall strength. Creativity when you’re not at the gym will go a long way in helping you achieve your goals and remain injury free.

About The Author

Jim Smith is a Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist and an expert trainer who writes for Men’s Fitness and the Elite Q/A Staff. Jim has been involved in strength training as a performance enhancement specialist for over 8 years and has worked with athletes from various sports who compete at various levels. He has published articles about his unique training style and innovative methods for many prominent strength and fitness related sites. He is also the authored of three renowned strength manuals. For more innovative training solutions, visit
Combat Core Manual