Four Ways to Practice Muay Thai

Hey guys here are some tips for you to practice your Muay Thai skills. There are 4 ways that you can practice your Muay Thai skills.  One way is through shadowboxing.  This is a good way to practice your technique, flow and footwork.  Make sure that you move 360 degrees and that you also work your defense.  Be mindful of your chin position, how high your hands are and the placement of your elbows; basically be mindful of your stance.  A lot of people use the mirror to shadowbox.  The mirror is a good tool, but just make sure that you are using it to get some feedback on your stance and technique.  Too many times I see guys shadowboxing, flexing their muscles, more concerned with their looks than their technique :) Bag Work is also another way to practice your Muay Thai.  There are so many bags to practice your various tools and skills.  You are better off to ask an instructor for their help when selecting the bag.   When working the bag always be mindful of your stance.  It's great to smash away on the bag, working your power, but you do not want to sacrifice your stance, guard and technique.  The bag should not be flying all over the place; that usually means you are "pushing" the bag versus penetrating the bag.  Make sure to eventually work up to combinations, simulate your defense and work your footwork. A third way to train is with pad work.  Again you can use various pads for your training.  Again make sure to keep your technique and stance sharp and perfect.  Pad work is a great way to fine tune your defense.  Just make sure that you have a decent pad holder.  Pad holding itself is an art form.  The pad holder's job is to place the targets in such a way as to simulate appropriate targets, test the student's defense, work some foot work, and provide a good workout.  Sometimes it can be a lot of fun holding pads, maybe too much fun, and it's easy to get carried away with trying to "kill" the student by hitting them with the pads and by pushing the cardio to the extreme.  Remember, anyone can train someone to the point of exhaustion, but pad work should be about putting all of the tools together. As a pad holder always consider wearing groin protection :) The last way to train your Muay Thai skills is with crossfighting.  This is when you do select drills on each other.  This is not sparring.  Make sure to wear the proper protection.  The goal is to work proper range, accuracy, timing, footwork and flow.  Sometimes you should work power, just make sure to keep the ego in check before it turns into a full fledge sparring match, or worse an actual fight. Hopefully I've given you some ideas to help you improve your Thai boxing skills.  Remember, sometimes less is more.  Practice a little bit every day and you will reach your goals-Kru Joey de Los Reyes