Hi there, I currently practise muay thai and enjoy it, finding that it gives me efficient and powerful technique and ability for real world situations. The reason I began was to be able to defend myself in a fight; I am however aware that muay thai is totally striking based. My question, then is what other martial art should I study to gain a more balanced set of abilities? Thanks
Another approach would be to select an art that compliments muay thai rather than opposes it, such as kung fu for example. Which if these would be the better idea?
Don't think "opposes it." Think "fills in the gaps of my other art." Do a striking and a grappling art. It makes you a more complete martial artist.
BJJ is everywhere nowadays, most gyms also have wrestling and MMA lessons too, Go and try out a few classes!
I agree about doing a grappling art. I think wrestling would be good, as the non-gi would compliment the Thai clinch. For something completely different, a weapons art could be good
That's why I asked where the OP was earlier I think there are interesting things to learn from all arts though, picking stuff up for fun is cool too, and knives are a reality in the UK, unfortunately.
I was going to recommend Arnis/Escrima/Kali, the extant Phillipine arts. Very powerful and impressive to add to a boxing regimen, because quite frankly if and when faced against someone with a knife, the better defense is going to be a big stick or something similar. For reference, see DBMA.
Wing Chun, Muay Thai, and Escrima all compliment each other very well. This has to do with being able to adapt to the changes in range as well as the weapons with the escrima. My training started the other way around with a foundation in Wing Chun and then Muay Thai/Escrima being added later. I also agree with the BJJ since those other arts are lacking when it comes to the ground game.
