The world of Muay Thai is changing. And athletic performance matters more than ever. Gone are the days when Thai fighters had a monopoly on the sport. Today, Western fighters are using sports science and professional training methods to close the gap on their Thai counterparts. If you're a Muay Thai fighter or a [...]
Don't underestimate the importance of discipline in strength and conditioning. It's all too easy to become distracted by what's shiny and new, only to shortcut progress by playing your ace too early... Or, to charge headlong into overuse injury and the frustration of time out of training. You can look at that next block [...]
Technical tips to prevent injuring your foot throwing your low kick! The Muay Thai round kick is one most powerful kicks in martial arts. To avoid smashing your foot to smithereens when throwing your low kick, you must master range, kicking foot position, and tactical set up. Check out the full video for in-depth [...]
Muay Thai strength and conditioning is gaining popularity, but can go off the rails. Damien Trainor cautions that it's important to correctly balance strength and conditioning with Muay Thai training! Done well, strength and conditioning will enhance fight performance, however... Strength and conditioning should supplement Muay Thai training, not replace it. Too many fighters [...]
Most likely, if you ask your Muay Thai trainer what fitness training you should do outside of your Muay Thai sessions, you’re told to simply run a number of times a week, and maybe do a little weight training if you want to… It’s largely down to you. And aside from “do more” when [...]
I was asked about that Pallof Press w/ Perturbation core exercise that Tawanchai was using in my recent reaction video... "Could that be used in a Strength Block in a training program?" When choosing the best core exercise for fighters, it's important to first consider... How far a fighter is away from an important [...]
When it comes to fight warm up exercises, back stage at shows, I often see fighters missing out on truly priming their bodies for explosiveness. Well, today I'll share a two exercise protocol that will amp you up, both physically and mentally in a total of just 8 to 15 reps! [...]
Muay Thai training and Muay Thai as an art has a deep history. And when it comes to the ring sport we’ve all come to love, the period between 1980 and 1995 known as “The Golden Era”, spawned arguably the most talented fighters ever. Names like Dieselnoi, Samart, Jongsanan, and Sakmongkol demand almost superhero [...]
For snappy punches and kicks, Shin Box Switch hip mobility exercises both warm up and challenge hip internal and external range of motion – they're harder than they look! And adding a hip extension movement turns these hip mobility exercises into combined hip strengthening exercises too... Not to mention increasing your ability to use your [...]
When putting together a training plan... Although many fighters and coaches are doing the right things, they organise their training weeks haphazardly and squander the full training effect, or inadvertently cancel out performance gains entirely. At best, this wastes effort. At worst, it burns out fighters and injures them. But, you can apply simple steps [...]
These days, fighter training has become more sophisticated. Coaches, fighters, and hobbyists alike all realise that to remain healthy, injury free and perform their best it takes more than steady runs, bag work, pad work, and sparring. But, what types of sessions are needed? How often should you train? What order should sessions go? [...]
Thoracic spine, or mid back rotation mobility is lacking in 90% of the fighters I’ve tested, from novices to world class pros. In the last episode, I demonstrated how I test and score this. If you scored between 1 to 3, you’re limiting your striking power and have an increased risk of lower back [...]
Solo fight skill technical practice can fast-track your fight ability if it's done well. In this episode, avoid these fight skill pitfalls or risk sabotaging your technical practice and undoing all your hard work! Fight Skills – Solo Session Considerations Further Resources Fight Skills [...]
Using fighter's deload week effectively takes discipline! Recovery is often a dirty word for fighters... However, it’s the difference between year-on-year progress, or a monthly boom and bust. In this discussion with Rolf Eijsink during his coaching call, we explore both my approach to maximising deload weeks, and Rolf's valuable insight too. Use these [...]
Regularly practicing this splits, passive, relaxed stretching routine for fighters will rapidly enhance your kicking flexibility. Splits stretching as shown for just 7 mins, at least 3 times per week, will make a huge difference to your kicking ability at all target heights. Not only will you reach higher targets, like the head, that [...]
Both barbells and dumbbells have their place in a fighters program for exercises like the shoulder press... Either to target specific qualities in different blocks of training, to accommodate shoulder mobility or injury, or simply because of the limited availability of one or the other in your gym! In this video all is explained, while [...]
In the last episode, I explained that consistent effort over the long-term makes the biggest difference to your performance. To achieve that, there’s a common denominator – DISCIPLINE. Discipline is what you need when your motivation has run dry… And it’s exponentially more important! [...]
Fighters instinctively feel that hill sprints boost their fight performance. And mixing these High Resistance Intervals amongst your “roadwork” develops your endurance in a way steady state running can’t. But, not everyone has access to a decent hill. What’s the minimum hill gradient required? And what alternatives to hill sprints are there if you [...]
To become a faster, more explosive fighter you must first become stronger – produce more force. If you can create more force, you can accelerate quicker, hit at higher velocity and do more damage. That’s the mechanics, but we’re biological machines not purely mechanical ones. If we want our strength to transfer into the [...]
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 [...]
