Street Applicable? Money? Time?

[Jim16]

Hey,

I've been considering taking up Thai Boxing, but I wanted to make sure that it is very street applicable. Also in how long would it become street applicable. And are the physical benefits superior to just regular weightlifting/cardio? Also how much on average is it to take Thai Boxing, are there any necesary items that you need to buy before hand like gloves, shorts, ect ect.

Thankyou, Jim.

Edit again: Just realized there was a thread on it being street applicable. Sorry for the inconvenance(sp?).

[iamraisen]

im not sure if the health benifits are superior to an equivilant time doing a proper workout but it is a good and muay thai instructors usually work you very hard ad have a good warm up. here in sunny stoke-on-trent its £3 a lesson but i dont know how much it is elsewhere.
i know its already been said but it is most definately street applicable. there isnt that much to learn but it didnt flow nicely till about 6-9 months for me.

[MuayKiDo]

Hy Jim. I think Muay Rhai definently has that 'street value'. The lessons are great for improving your condition. But ff you want to get buff fast, i suggest you go with the weight lifting.
Compared to other MAs Muay thai should have street value after a relatively short period of training. But then again, will you be emotionally prepared? I mean, some people just beat the crap out of others without a day of training. But i think you know best what your capable of (i'm talkin' bout guts and stress handeling here), so thats not relevant here anyway.

I don't know were you train, but i can weight lift all i want after the boxing class for the same money (it's a combined gym). Maybe you can also do both? (depends on what you value most: gaining muscle, stamina or 'fighting skills')

About the training equipment, it depends on how intensively you will train. On avererage, the more you train, the more you will benefit from better (expensive) equipment. Maybe you can barrow the boxing gloves from your training school for the first lessons.
I paid about 45 dollars for my gloves (2 years and still lasting in resonable condition) and 20 dollars for shin pads (same, but i don't use them anymore).

Notice that I used them only once a week during the first 1 and a half year.I hoped this helped you somewhat, surely others will come to give advice. Good luck! ;)

[Jim16]

Thankyou for the replies,


For me, my main goal is for fighting skills. I was curious of the physcial benefits because it seems like Thai Boxing is very rigorous. Also, I live right outside of chicago, and I looked up a school that only seems to be about 10 minutes away in skokie. The instructor being Rick Sollo. I just wanted to get an idea of prices, so I could compare yours to his. Thanks again.

Jim

[nicolo]

Thankyou for the replies,


For me, my main goal is for fighting skills. I was curious of the physcial benefits because it seems like Thai Boxing is very rigorous. Also, I live right outside of chicago, and I looked up a school that only seems to be about 10 minutes away in skokie. The instructor being Rick Sollo. I just wanted to get an idea of prices, so I could compare yours to his. Thanks again.

Jim

If you're looking for no-nonsense, highly effective skills that you can pick up in a short time that would be good in an unarmed stand-up mano a mano situation, then perhaps muay Thai is a good choice. I stress the word UNARMED. That being said keep in mind it is still a pure "traditional" art and fighting inside a camp/school/ring is drastically different from fighting in real life. You can literally pay with your life if you develop a false sense of security and bring your "dojo" techniques against a real attacker. Many combative arts need to be tweaked and modified in order to be deemed street applicable. While muay Thai techniques can be brutal, the style that is commonly taught today is still a ring sport and will not address everything under the sun in a street scenario. Muay Thai isn't a magic pill. It will not address mass attackers, blunt/edged weapons, groundfighting, guns etc. For that purpose, JKD Concepts instruction might be more suited for you and the natural curriculum these days do include Muay Thai and other reality based styles (ie Krav Maga, Haganah) as one of its courses. Don't expect to be turned into an invincible machine overnight. Muay Thai may not promise you the proper mentality, physical stress conditioning, skillset, brains, sheer guts and luck that is involved to survive a harrowing life and death street situation. For that, I suggest you speak with a policeman, bouncer or soldier that has come across close-quarter situations.
You will, however, get incredibly fit from the training alone, namely increasing wind, stamina, endurance and aerobic/anaerobic conditioning. Not to mention honing your skills and using your body as a weapon. However such benefits are the result of hard work and dedication so be prepared. Bulking up is best left to the individual and for street scenarios, muscle is quite important. However, you should also strike a fine balance between bulking up for cosmetic purposes versus developing lean performance muscles for fighting.
Prices vary but here in NY, I've seen many fees go as far up as near the $150-$200 mark. Of course, if that camp is the only one closest to you and you have no other option, you're a bit railroaded. You should take a look and sit in on some classes. See if it's what you want.
You'll probably require at least a jump rope, shorts, shirt, hand wraps and bag gloves. These are usually purchased through the school or on your own and are not terribly expensive.

[Jim16]

I like to be the best at what I do. Its just how I am, its one of the reasons im looking into this as much. I want to make sure its valuable before I put all my time and effort into being the best I can be. And one of the major benefits that I wanted out of the training would to hold my own in a "streetfight" using fists. No weapons, and I know there are other variables that could effect the situation so im just saying hypathetically. I dont mean taking 5 men down, just holding my own to the point where I can leave without him following me or leave by getting enough time by running away. Also how much time practicing would it take before you can get into a begineer ring? months, year?

Thanks again, appreciate the replies- Jim

[Jim16]

Also, one of my good friends is a boxer. Not thai boxing, but has one the amatuer golden gloves in Chicago and seems to be somewhat good at what he does. And told me that if you want a brutal technique that will take down your enemies the best thing is Thai Boxing. Just wondering how well that holds up?


-Jim

[nicolo]

Your friend's pretty much right. Thai boxing is effective to a point where even a smaller fighter can pummel someone larger into submission (well against a somewhat clueless fighter that is). But like I said, there are many many other ranges and facets to a streetfight. You should also explore other areas as well. The time it takes to develop good functional ring tactics and skill should be directly proportionally to your speed and understanding of the material. Usually 2 - 2.5 years of consistent study is a good amount of time and experience but that's all dependent on how well you do. Can't always put a definite time period for that.

[AAAhmed46]

muay thai is simple and powerful.....................a good MT kick boxer can break a knee effortlessly.

[MuayKiDo]

I agree with Nicolo here. It takes about 2 years before you can enter the ring for a beginner match (depends on how intense your training is). But then again, there is also enough sparring during regular training to prepare yourself for a 'streetfight'. I am glad that your purpose is to use Muay thai for 'getting out' of a street fight, not getting 'in' one. :cool:

I don't know about prices outside Holland, but I pay about 40 dollars per month for 2 times a week training. I can also fitness before and/or after training for that money.
Also, if you really want to prepare for 'the street', do visit other schools that teach about grappling and (getting out of) joint locks (like Brazillian jiu jitsu). It 'll be a good ad onn to your Muay thai training. However, it will cost more so it's up to you again Jim!

I hope that you will find what you're looking for. :)

[Jim16]

Another question - For MT do you get to spare right off the bat with a partner? Also this may be an odd question but one of you said that you could break a knee or leg effortlessly eventually. Im personally not one that 'likes' to fight, but if circumstances where to come to that, and you did do that to someone in self defense couldnt they sue the **** out of you? I know this is more a legal question but im just curious heh.


Also - Will a diet be recomended?

Thanks again much appreciated - Jim

[nicolo]

How is breaking a knee indicative of how good a Thai boxer is? I think can get similar results by stomping hard into the joint. It's an anatomical target you could say, just like me punching and breaking a nose or a shooting a finger jab into your eyes. Not everyone has the same pain tolerance and responsiveness to a technique. A knee stomp may not even faze some opponents.
With the law these days (well in my state at least), you'd better have a really good reason for using a technique, especially when he's laying in a pool of blood and you're standing up. Courts don't take too kindly to scenarios like that, especially if you're a martial artist with 10 belts. Martial arts are viewed in the same light as deadly weapons. There are some rules along the lines of levels of reasonable force and if you exceed that, it could spell headache and maybe jail for you. One disadvantage of muay Thai is that it's a hard hard hard style. There are no simple compliance techniques like joint locks to disable an attacker without brutalizing him. A knee or elbow perhaps to deal with an aggressor up close. Plus, you're not a woman so you can't play the rape card. When police arrive they see two combatants so you will get thrown to the ground and cuffed. And yes it does stink when a mugger comes back to sue your ass in court. Thank the lawyers for that. Word of advice, run away and never ever stick around.

Just eat a well-balanced meal - greens, fruits, grains, meats. Lay off the alcohol and greasy fast foods, junk foods, etc. Before training, I like to load up on the complex carbs. Pretty self-explanatory.

[AAAhmed46]

Okay okay, sorry i brought up the knee thing. But come up, its a skill that could come in handy.