Hey all, I took muay tha for 6mths in the past. Anyway, I want to get back in to it. Im contemplating though if I should train muay thai again. The other 2 options I have in mind is Boxing and Aikido... What do you guys recommend? I don't want to get ripped ripped, I want to have a thick bulk and know some good self defence in case I ever run in to a fight or whatever. For the above reasons, I was thinking Boxing is good for me but I don't know too much about Aikido and heard very good reviews about it.. I also heard Boxers are usually better fighters than thai boxers if a street fight ever happened, then again this can be argued for ages and ages so let's keep this out of it. What are you opinions guys? thx
I don't see how choosing any of those arts will get you "thick bulk." That is more an issue of strength training. I am a big fan of MT, so I vote to stick with that if you want a standup art.
Thanks for the opinions. Abbut the thick bulk, I probably threw that in there b/c im not exactly educated on the other arts. I know TB is tons and tons of cardio so it will be hard to keep a thick bulk unless you eat 24/7 (which I can't really do) then again im assuming that boxing has less cardio. Ignore the thick bulk bs I wrote completely
Also do you guys think training an art 2-3 days a week and training at the gym for muscle mass 4 days a week is a bit too much on the body?
boxing is proabably the most demanding cardiovascular wise, most boxing gyms will push you really hard.
boxing has just as much emphasis on cardio as muay thai does. and I assume anyone who told you that boxing is more effective in a street fight compared to thai boxing is probably a BOXER. my Muay Thai coach was a pro boxer before he got into muay thai, and all of his knockout wins were from straight right hands. it all comes down to this: do you want to focus on primarily punching?...then go for boxing. if you want to work on a variety of stand up strikes, go for muay thai. if you want to wear hakama and toss around uke's, go for aikido.
I am trying to do the exact thing you are doing right now and for me it is tough. I have a very busy schedule so getting everything accomplished is quite difficult. I put on about 15lbs before I started training MT last summer/fall. The key to gaining muscle mass is to EAT lots of quality whole foods, proteins, good carbs, and lifting weights.. You will be burning off a lot of those calories training MT so you will have to compensate for that as well. I highly suggest checking out a bodybuilding forum for advice if you want a good physique. What are you measurements now? Ht, weight, etc? What is your diet like? ie: what is a typical day for you? Diet is key to gaining muscle mass. The last thing you need to ensure is LOTS of sleep. Try and get 8 hours a day to allow your muscles time to repair and grow. I train MT 2-3 times per week so a lot of the time I end up doing MT and weight training in the same day. If you can split them up that is great.
i'll put it to you like this if you want to know how to dodge & block punches and throw them faster and harder than anyone else. if you want to be in the best shape and be able to actually be confident in your stand up skills against anyone take boxing if you to dance around throwing leg kicks take muay thai. muay thai is a staff, boxing is a sword
as long as you don't take akido you'll be able to defend yourself in a streetfight, id pick the better school, as in the one that has produced more champions.
In my oppinion muay thai would be just as good as boxing if not alittle better for self defense and such. Think about it, you get into a clinch throw two knees and thats the fight. Boxing is good but at a decent MT gym they will focus on boxing as well. My gym does lots while your a noob.
Go learn some dirty boxing. look for a good Aiki-jujitsu or Ju-jitsu program geared towars sel-defense or look into Filipino arts they seem good for self defense. where u located
Aikido has some very good principles that are often hard to execute in real life situations (unless you're very good at it). Boxing and Thai boxing will do you about the same amount of good in a street fight. Boxing may be a bit better since most people will only punch in a fight and boxing is better for defending against and countering punches. I would also recommend you learn the basics of a ground fighting martial art such as wrestling or jiu jutsu since most fights end up on the ground.
says the man who cant walk anymore due to leg kicks. :wink: Boxing is incomplete without muay thai, in any other situation, outside of a purely boxing situation.
boxing is incomplete but i think it's more effective (makes more sense) and is highly specialized in an area of fighting that is most important for ending a fight quickly and with the least amount of effort. once a boxer gets within punching range it should be an easy lights out. thowing punches at a boxer you have about as much of a punchers chance as a striker vs a grappler if you arent a boxer. i'm a biased retard what u gonna do :wink:
How often in a boxing match do you see the fighters get tangled up and clinch?...Depending on the fighters, pretty often right? if youre close enough to punch, youre in entry range for a clinch. Most boxers instincts either go to fighting out of a clinch, or just holding and waiting for the ref to break them up. They are not used to someone initiating and KEEPING a clinch. As I said before, my Muay Thai coach started as a pro boxer, and all of his KO wins in Muay Thai fights have been from straight right hands. I will tend to agree that hand techniques are a very important, if not THE most important part of a stand up fight, but what happens if the other guy is proficient in boxing, and he knows how to kick, knee and elbow you too?.... Boxing is about the best art out there if you want to work on your hands, but it is still one-dimensional. a good thai boxer also trains in boxing, as it is beneficial to his sport to do so....boxers have no need to train in muay thai for the sake of his sport...but if he were to compete in MMA or Muay Thai, he wouldnt get to the top of his skill level without cross training. its apples and oranges really....thats why I dont really believe you can say that "THIS is better" or "THAT is better"
Given fighters of equal caliber and equal weights, boxer loses to MT fighter 8 or 9 times out of ten (open rules or street scenario) IMHO. MT just gives you more tools to work with. All the strikes of boxing plus kicks, knees, and elbows. Personally if I'm going into a fight, I want all the tools I can get at my disposal. Another issue with boxing and the street is that some of the purely sport aspects of boxing do not transfer well to the street. Boxers do a lot of hiding behind those big gloves to block and absorb punches. You don't get that on the street. Bobbing, weaving, and slipping is not the same in MMA as in boxing as well. Nor is the clinch. As to Aikido, near useless for the street IMO. I've seen too many Aikido practitioners with a couple years of experience unable to execute anything useful against Joe Average in a non-staged scenario.
my friend did aikido for 10 years (he says) and he talked about how they watch the different sections of the body and showed me this retarded stance when your have your left forearm in front of you horizontally while your right hand is cocked by your side karate style. then he said if anyone punched he would move his forearm up and down deflecting the punch..
I'd say the boxing or MT. Leaning more for the MT. I looked at a couple of Aikido schools before I started training. I just do it for fun and the exercise. The Aikido schools I looked at seemed good and had good reps but they were to structured for me. I mean all the bowing no talking while the Sensi was there. A whole lot of don't talk unless spoken to by someone higher ranking. And a ton of rules and procedures for everything. I'm too old try and stubborn to deal with that. Not a knock on respecting a school/dojo, just not for me.
