To become a stronger fighter, you must use resistance training correctly... Historically, old-school fight coaches claimed that weight training makes fighters big and slow. But that’s only true if you use resistance training poorly. When used in the right way, weight training can either make you much stronger WITHOUT getting any bigger, or both [...]
One thing’s for sure, delayed onset muscle soreness is part of a fighter’s training – especially when you head out to Thailand to train! But… Is delayed onset muscle soreness the sign of a good training session? How can you avoid being too sore? Should you train if you’re really sore? How can you [...]
Bryan Popejoy has found himself at the forefront of American Muay Thai since the 1980's, literally involved from Illinois in the East, through Arizona, to California in the West. His experience both as a Muay Thai fighter himself (in the early "Wild West" period of American Muay Thai), and as [...]
A lot of fighters are using heart rate monitors these days, to allow them to train at the right intensity fin their cardio sessions. And I love using monitors in my programs too... Join the most informed Muay Thai performance community out there! Subscribe Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/donheatrick [...]
My background is mechanical design engineering. I spent 18 years designing, prototyping, testing and developing video camera mounting products – from tripods through to robotic television camera pedestals. Serving companies like the BBC in the UK and ABC in the US. And when you’re an engineer, you very much work [...]
by Don Heatrick @donheatrick Fighter training intensity is something to respect and use appropriately. It's easy to be misled by the majority of training montages and highlight videos shared around of pro fighters. It's important to realise that these snapshots are not what all of their training looks like. If it was, they'd be [...]
How do you test for maximum heart rate? This question came up in response to my review of the sports science methodologies being used at Petchyindee Muay Thai in Bangkok... Keeping it short and sweet, here's my favourite approach to testing for maximum heart rate (so you know what percentage of maximum you're really [...]
Don’s Winning Fighter's Principle Quick Coach’s Chat EP. 03 Featuring Manachai and Yodchai filmed at the Yokkao Training Centre in Bangkok. Head over to my YouTube channel and subscribe to get all the latest videos as soon as it goes live every Saturday. Don's Winning Fighter's Principle Video Transcript: I'd like to share with [...]
Coach's Quick Chat Episode 1: When a Fighter Says They Do Strength and Conditioning Featuring Singdam, filmed during performance testing at the Yokkao Training Center in Bangkok. Head over to my YouTube channel and subscribe to get all the latest info as soon as it goes live every Friday. Video Transcript: When a lot of fighters say [...]
This weeks post is in response to a coach's request at one of my seminars. He wanted a "finisher" to stick on the end of his Muay Thai training sessions. Here's the brief: 10 - 15 mins in duration to go on the end of 2 or 3 Thai boxing classes a week kept simple [...]
Having just watched current Lumpinee Champion, Pakorn, win the Yokkao -63.5kg World Title at the Yokkao 11 event in Bolton, England, I thought I'd share a closer look at one of the pre-event promotional videos released by Yokkao. The video shows Pakorn undertaking strength and conditioning training at CrossFit BK in Bangkok, in preparation [...]
Do you want to increase strength and power, while torching body fat too? Here's a two-sessions per week programme (used on non-consecutive days) that not only improves body composition, but also builds athletic ability. Each session consists of two circuits; firstly a short plyometric power circuit (speed), and secondly a power (speed-strength) and strength-endurance metabolic [...]
This video post details the Muay Thai metabolic workout example described in the Muay Thai Metabolic Training article. If you missed it, make sure you also read this article so that you understand how to structure your own workouts. Further Resources Muay Thai Metabolic Training Functional Strength & Hypertrophy Routine for Muay Thai Fighters [...]
This short, intense alactic capacity interval session aims to improve the ability to maintain explosive power for extended periods – perfect for fighters. The objective is increase the maximum capacity of the alactic system by increasing the amount of stored phosphocreatine. The interval session consists of a 15-second flat-out burst of punches, kicks, elbows [...]
