A majority of the offensive techniques that are used in Muay
Thai
utilize a student's hands, feet, elbows, and knees to strike an
opponent. In order to bind the opponent for both defensive
and offensive reasons, there is a small amount of grappling that is
used while on one's feet - the clinch.
The clinch commonly occurs when someone gets inside your circle of
defense, inside of
your comfort zone. To execute knees and short kicks from the
inside, the clinch can be very useful. The Thai fighter makes
great use of the clinch, tying up on opponent on the feet then pounding
his stomach, ribs, knees, and legs with brutal knees. Knees are very
popular techniques with Muay Thai, as Thai fighters spend a lot of time
training their strikes - especially knees and elbows.
Although high kicks to the opponents head looks amazing during the
fights, experienced Thai fighters always say that knees and elbows have
a lot more impact, and they do the most damage to the body.
If a Thai fighter is very experienced and has enough power in his
strikes, he can quickly and easily kill someone with his techniques.
In all Muay Thai techniques, two in particular have become very popular
with other styles of martial arts.
The
roundhouse kick
The roundhouse Thai kick is one very useful technique for both self
defense and competitions, proving to be very efficient when it is
executed properly. Thai stylists will execute the roundhouse
kick
by a straight leg and the entire body rotating out from the
hip. The hip is locked shortly before the thrown leg makes
impact with the opponent. If executed properly, the
roundhouse kick can easily render someone unconscious.
The
low kick
The low kick is a common Muay Thai attack, that involves a circular
movement from the stylist’s body to kick the opponent in his
upper shin area. If the low kick isn’t blocked or
defended, it can quickly lead to fight being ended. After a
few well placed low kicks, the opponent will be unable to put pressure
on his legs due to the bruising, and will eventually crumble.
In many other martial arts styles, such as Tae
Kwon Do, stylists use
snapping kicks that are faster to execute, although they have
less power.
Muay Thai on the other hand, teaches stylists to follow
through with kicks, using the shin instead of the foot.
Nearly all of the techniques involved with Muay Thai emphasize movement
with the entire body, which means rotating the hip each time the
stylist kicks, punches, or blocks. These techniques are
slower,
although they are far more powerful that techniques found in Tae Kwon
Do and even Karate.
As a lot of people already know, the training and conditioning found in
Muay Thai is nothing short of legendary for its intensity and
rigorous effort. The training in Muay Thai aims to harden
the weapons used in the martial art to a high degree.
Students who have been training in Muay Thai for many years can absorb
a beating, yet if they land a shin kick it will feel as if you have
just been hit with a sledgehammer.
All in all, Muay Thai is a very dangerous martial art that teaches
punishing blows with very little grappling. Thai stylists are
physical strong, capable of taking an opponent out with just one well
placed strike. Muay Thai is also one of the most well known
and most popular styles in the world today - which is why, if you think
it is interesting, you
shouldn’t hesitate to study it.
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