Muay Thai or normal kickboxing?

[Udyrfrykte]

Hi there, this is my first post on the forums as you might see

Anyhow, 1/2 year ago i started kickboxing. (so i can still change without wasting too much time) Since then i have really been consumed with kickboxing, MA, UFC and the likes.
I'm gonna try become a good MA. In my vacation i train up to 5 hours a day, + i also jog 6-8 km. Basically i want to become good in short time, so any tips would be greatly appreciated (dunno about spelling, i'm norwegian xP).

So to the real question:
Is MT just better than kickboxing? I know MT is like kickboxing with knees and elbows. Is there any other difference? Is there any good reason to stay with kickboxing?
If you can give me some positive sides about kickboxing it would help my decision a lot.


I want to become a good fighter (not just kickboxer) if possible. I'm gonna start brazilian ju juitsu to mix things up.
... and no, i'm not gonna go street fighting like a tough gangsta wangsta. I just want to compete in fight tournaments and defend myself from assaults (I'm a strong guy and natural good fighter, but i've still been beaten up several times when i have been victim for blind violence)
But i go to kickboxing, and it would be a lot of trouble for me changing my club if I'm to go MT (longer to the next training area, and losing a very nice trainer)

And a last question: We can 'skip a belt' when getting our next belt (dont how to say it in english) if we are good at the tecniques and stuff. I didnt do that (2 out of 30 did it). Does that mean i'm not talented at kickboxing and have little chance of reaching a professional level?
I'm better at sparring than techniques if that's of any relevance.

Hope you can answer my questions

[darrianation]

Hi there, this is my first post on the forums as you might see

Anyhow, 1/2 year ago i started kickboxing. (so i can still change without wasting too much time) Since then i have really been consumed with kickboxing, MA, UFC and the likes.
I'm gonna try become a good MA. In my vacation i train up to 5 hours a day, + i also jog 6-8 km. Basically i want to become good in short time, so any tips would be greatly appreciated (dunno about spelling, i'm norwegian xP).

So to the real question:
Is MT just better than kickboxing? I know MT is like kickboxing with knees and elbows. Is there any other difference? Is there any good reason to stay with kickboxing?
If you can give me some positive sides about kickboxing it would help my decision a lot.


I want to become a good fighter (not just kickboxer) if possible. I'm gonna start brazilian ju juitsu to mix things up.
... and no, i'm not gonna go street fighting like a tough gangsta wangsta. I just want to compete in fight tournaments and defend myself from assaults (I'm a strong guy and natural good fighter, but i've still been beaten up several times when i have been victim for blind violence)
But i go to kickboxing, and it would be a lot of trouble for me changing my club if I'm to go MT (longer to the next training area, and losing a very nice trainer)

And a last question: We can 'skip a belt' when getting our next belt (dont how to say it in english) if we are good at the tecniques and stuff. I didnt do that (2 out of 30 did it). Does that mean i'm not talented at kickboxing and have little chance of reaching a professional level?
I'm better at sparring than techniques if that's of any relevance.

Hope you can answer my questions

At first I was going to say something smart ass but since it's you first post here I won't. And welcome.

Anyway, I like Muay Thai.

[Udyrfrykte]

Well, i'm a newbie at MA, did you expect me to sound like a seasoned fighter with seven thousand black belts?

And i might already guess what your smart ass sentence was gonna be, and if it's telling me to search for it because there is previous threads then i might have to go smartass too=|

I'm completely new to kickboxing, and i expect some of you will have experience in MA so you could answer me. "I like muay thai" doesnt help me much=/ If you could tell me why it's better than normal kickboxing it would help lots.

I guess i wont be taken serious because i have only practiced it for 1/2 year.

[gabbah]

I would say the advantage is that you focus more on boxing in kickboxing, while still having a stance that allows blocking of lowkicks and other advatages.
Of course, it varies.. some MT gyms focus more or less on boxing. Boxing is good to know.
Other than that, I would say MT is better because of clinchwork and knees. Those are just invaluable tools. Also becuase the powerful no nonsense kicks.
I've been training kickboxing and I wasted time with flicky kicks at first.. then found the thaikicks. So if you go with kickboxing, stick to thai kicks only, and train boxing for 2 years or something. Then move on to MT and take with you good boxing.
That's my advice.

Oh, and don't worry about belts and shit like that. You will know when you are good enough to deserve a belt, without actually having to wear it. Just train hard and the revards will come.
My club also has gradings and stuff like that which are pretty useless, I have never taken them.

[darrianation]

Well, i'm a newbie at MA, did you expect me to sound like a seasoned fighter with seven thousand black belts?

And i might already guess what your smart ass sentence was gonna be, and if it's telling me to search for it because there is previous threads then i might have to go smartass too=|

I'm completely new to kickboxing, and i expect some of you will have experience in MA so you could answer me. "I like muay thai" doesnt help me much=/ If you could tell me why it's better than normal kickboxing it would help lots.

I guess i wont be taken serious because i have only practiced it for 1/2 year.

I sincerely apologize if I have offended you in any way. I certainly didn't mean too. I think you will get some good replies here shortly.

[Adept]

Well, i'm a newbie at MA, did you expect me to sound like a seasoned fighter with seven thousand black belts?

And i might already guess what your smart ass sentence was gonna be, and if it's telling me to search for it because there is previous threads then i might have to go smartass too=|

I'm completely new to kickboxing, and i expect some of you will have experience in MA so you could answer me. "I like muay thai" doesnt help me much=/ If you could tell me why it's better than normal kickboxing it would help lots.

I guess i wont be taken serious because i have only practiced it for 1/2 year.

Hmm, I see "normal kickboxing" and Muay Thai as one and the same. But I suppose you mean American kickboxing? Difference is in the rules.

The most obvious difference that I can spot from what you see as "normal kickboxing" and Muay Thai is probably the conditioning and sparring. Muay Thai conditioning is one of the toughest. Thai boxers' shin bones are like, hard as crap. When they spar, they go all out. They'll throw like a kick and maybe two punches and spend the rest of the time in the clinch. IMO, I think MT is better than "normal kickboxing."

Hope this helps.

[bjjp]

well i take kick boxing mixed with mt i dont know what you woud call it but w/e.but to me i think mt is better,you get to throw your elbows kness and you body from all the training you do will be rock hard.

[EmptyneSs]

no, you do not want to go all out during sparring. that is a great way to get injured. you want contact and you want to be pushed and challenged, and occasionally you need to feel what its like to have someone really trying to take your head off, but going all out everytime you spar can get you easily injured. getting injured means no training and your hard earned membership money being wasted

plus, you need to understand that sparring is not the same as fighting. sparring is for you to learn. if you are always brawling with your sparring partner it wont allow you the proper space and conditions to try out new stuff and develope strategies and skills. in fact when you are sparring with someone, you need to work with eachother. you shouldnt be trying to kick anyones ass. save that for a real fight. you need to give eachother oppertunies, trying out new stuff, and working on the things you need to improve.

[gabbah]

Yep, I'd like to second what Emptyness said above. Only go full out once in a while.

[jeff5]

My personal preference is Muay Thai, for many of the reasons listed above. Elbows and Knees are devastating for self defense, and the clinch work is invalueable. You also get all the boxing that regular kick boxing does, and I think the kicking in MT is top notch. And yes, don't worry about belts. Belts/schmelts I say! All that being said, if you really like your instructor and are getting a lot of our his classes, I see no reason to change.

[sportmuaythai]

After I trained MT for about three months, I felt MT was the best striking MA. I was ready to bash other striking MAs, particuloarly kickboxing, on various web sites. Since then I've learned some, so no more "this is better than that " rubbish. The truth is I don't know much about kickboxing or other MA for that matter. Is a kick from kickboxing same as an MT round house kick? If you kick like you would in soccer, then bio-mechanically it may not be as powerful as an MT kick. I think what matter most would be if the trainer can connect to you, and if he knows his stuff well to teach you. Fight experience is helpful here. However, I've seen great fighters that don't teach well, and vice versa. I believe you have as much opportunity to compete in KB as you would in MT. About self defense, it's best to learn how to avoid situation leading to a fight. This will most likely save your skin and consequences than any MA. Don't fall prey to false pride.
One word about sparring. Listen to EmptyneSs' advice. Even professional MT competitors don't go all out while sparring. Save that for your padwork.

[chalambok]

Just a small bit of trivia. This week the New York Times had a clue for a 4-letter word: what kickboxing was originally. The answer: Thai. It seems that even as the world has found out judo is a subset of jujitsu, they are finding kickboxing to be a child of Thai boxing.

[Udyrfrykte]

Thanks for all the replies!
I read it as basically MT is better for rl situations and (i guess) fighting competitions like UFC.

Though, the membership price for a 1/2 year in my club is like... 220$.
And as i said, the trainer is very good. We also got norway's two best junior kickboxers in our club (they've won gold every time they've went into a national competition i think) so they give lots of good advices and are really helpful.

I'm gonna do KB for two-three years, then I'm planning to switch to MT. Maybe add in BJJ too.

And yeah, wise words emptyness. I've gotten myself in trouble because of my false pride, that's true. But my city is kinda fucked up (most criminal city in norway), so sometimes someone might start punching you for no reason.
Two weeks ago a 25-30 year old dude punched a friend of mine. I saw it and asked him (not in any angry way either) why he punched him. Then suddenly he headbutts me and starts punching. Note that me and my friend are only 17 years old and i couldnt do anything because his friend held me. Fortunately my brother was nearby and kicked their asses

[gabbah]

Is a kick from kickboxing same as an MT round house kick?

AFAIK, kickboxing has kicks from MT and from taekwondo. Personally I feel that you need the MT kicks most of all. The other kicks are just too weak. If you use those kind of kicks your opponent will run you over. After you have mastered the MT kicks (roundhouse and teep) you can start adding other, less effective kicks to mix your game up.
So make sure your KB gym actually teaches the MT style of kicking and focus on that. In my KB gym they don't do a good job of teaching the MT kick. But they do teach good boxing. In KB you generally box more and kick less than in MT. In MT you would clinch more often when you get to boxing range. So for a real fight I'd say MT is good to know, but boxing is also very good.

If you kick like you would in soccer, then bio-mechanically it may not be as powerful as an MT kick.

I'm not sure I agree with you there. A soccer kick is probably bio-mechanically as good as it gets for kicking a target that is on the ground. They do push their hips forward before kicking the ball, just like an MT kick does. So in fact, I see an MT roundhouse as a soccerkick at waistlevel (the one going straight, hitting at a 45 degree angle). At least their are many similarities. Sure, in the MT kick you will rotate your hips more, because the movement is more horizontal than a soccer kick.

I think what matter most would be if the trainer can connect to you, and if he knows his stuff well to teach you. Fight experience is helpful here. However, I've seen great fighters that don't teach well, and vice versa.

Yeah, this point is VERY important. A good teacher is invaluable!

[sportmuaythai]

I'm not sure I agree with you there. A soccer kick is probably bio-mechanically as good as it gets for kicking a target that is on the ground. They do push their hips forward before kicking the ball, just like an MT kick does. So in fact, I see an MT roundhouse as a soccerkick at waistlevel (the one going straight, hitting at a 45 degree angle). At least their are many similarities. Sure, in the MT kick you will rotate your hips more, because the movement is more horizontal than a soccer kick.

If you do a 45degree kick like you would in soccer, your pad man will certainly not feel the power like if you kick MT style. You have to rise on your toe so you can rotate smoothly while you roll your hip to finish the kick. If you have seen Sepak Takraw game, you'll know what I mean. BTW Sepak Takraw is similar to volley ball, played with the feet, head, knee, and some time elbow and shoulder. It is an official Asian game. The only difference to Sepak Takraw is that MT kicks with the shin mostly.