My first Muay Thai Class

**FCTKD** · Posted On: 3/15/2005 2:28pm

I'm not sparring yet, but yes. My back is sore today. Not used to leaning so far back with the knees and kicks. Again though this was my first class. There were 3 groups, intermediate, advanced and a huge group of beginners. The intermediate guys (mostly girls) were off doing a wack load of Thai pad work while the beginners were working the wavemaster.

**Khun Kao** · Posted On: 3/15/2005 5:47pm

In regards to the 'snap' kick and side kick, it depends on the Muay Thai gym. You guys have to remember that Muay Thai evolved into a single sport from many different Thai bare-knuckle fighting systems. Different schools/gyms/camps used different techniques.

I have had two Thai coaches and have been taught a few of these 'older' techniques. The coaches are quick to point out that they don't work that well in the ring except as a kind of 'surprise' tactic, but they still teach them nonetheless. Both coaches teach the Side Push Kick (which is a variation of a traditional side kick designed to work in the ring), the Back Push Kick (again, similar to the traditional Back Kick but designed to work in the ring), and one of them teaches a variety of snap kicks (though the snap kicks use more hip in them than the snap kicks I learned when studying traditional martial arts)

Just my $.02

**DiscoZ** · Posted On: 3/15/2005 6:48pm

Yes.

Technically, the teep is meant to use the hips for reach and for power as your objective is to jab a bit but mostly use for pushing away.

TCTKD - You should not be leaning away too much on the teep, only what is natural and you should definitely not be leaning away on the roundhouses.

**FCTKD** · Posted On: 3/15/2005 11:13pm

Yeah mostly the knees I was leaning back. Aren't you supposed to lean away from your RH in muay thai?

**alex** · Posted On: 3/16/2005 1:56am

not for a low roundhouse, but I usually lean back a bit for higher kicks.

**Mayhem** · Posted On: 3/16/2005 4:28am

This is his first MT lesson. It is quite possible that his interpretation of the techniques is not correct (esp coming from a different background).

My MT school focuses on ring fighters. You begin skipping and padwork immediately. There were several instances of people vomiting because the got pushed so 'hard' in their first lesson (they are directed to the sink out the back).

This seems to sort the men from the boys. :icon_blac

**Khun Kao** · Posted On: 3/16/2005 7:59am

"Aren't you supposed to lean away from your RH in muay thai?"

Depends on the gym. Some teach to lean away, some don't.

**DiscoZ** · Posted On: 3/16/2005 8:28am

Originally Posted by FCTKD

Yeah mostly the knees I was leaning back. Aren't you supposed to lean away from your RH in muay thai?

Not the way I was taught, m8! You lean in to throw your weight into it. Otherwise it is just an ineffectual tap with a shin.

Someone else posted that this was your first class and thus you might not be picking up the concepts the right way, I forgot that!

MY first MT class, they kicked my ass harder than the other guys it seemed. First three classes, one would get a personal trainer who would assess you and then kick your ass accordingly --since I am/was a weightlifter too, they decided that I must be fit. We started pad and skip work from day one.

Check out Kru Senanan, Sit Yod Tong and Kru Mark Dellagrotte --I went to Sit Yod Tong in Boston (not the one in Pattaya, although I want to go there one day, maybe next summer).