This post will cover how to get better at muay thai fast through with solo training outside the gym.
Granted you will improve and get better at muay thai by not skipping classes and making sure you are in the gym training hard consistently and listening to and following your instructors.
But in this time of movement restrictions and lockdowns getting to the gym regularly can be a challenge.
And this site fijimuaythai.com is focused on training solo and from home due to the fact that there are no gyms or muay thai instructors in my country.
So these are my own tips for how get better at muay thai, outside of the gym and regular live training.
Tip #1 – Follow Online Instruction from Credible Sources
Not being able to get to the gym regularly or not at all due to lack of access in your country or due to lockdowns you need to still be following instruction from a good teacher or instructor.
There are many resources online you can follow and many also teach for free such as those on YouTube.
Check out my recommendations for the best online muay thai learning resources.
If you are just starting out it would be best to build a solid foundation in your footwork and stance first – focusing on these basics alone will help you to improve faster at muay thai.
For more experienced nak muay who want to improve outside the gym – there are also many great resources of online instruction to help you get that extra edge and to present muay thai from a different perceptive or standpoint that can also help you improve greatly.
For example if your gym or instructors focus a lot on kicking, you could seek more online instruction on areas such as clinching to help you improve in that aspect.
Tip #2 – Work on Your Strength Training
You will get a lot of cardio benefits as well as muscular endraucen from typical muay thai training but a dedicated focus on strength training can reall yput you ahead of your training partners and opponents who do not strength training.
Having a muay thai focused strength training plan that actually helps your muay thai game rather than hinders it is crucial so seek out help from a qualified muay thai strength and conditioning coach.
One of the best available resources for muay thai specific strength training is online at heatrick.com
Having more strength can really allow you to dominate your opponent and partners and rag doll them in the lunch.
Having more strength is definitely one excellent way to improve your muay thai outside the gym/academy.
Tip #3 – Improve Your Mobility
This goes beyond regular stretching that is done before or after training muay thai.
You could include regular Yoga sessions as part of your routine or develop a routine from home that involves foam rolling and mobility exercises.
Focused mobility work can really help improve your kicking power and speed as well as for all your other striking techniques through improving your hip mobility.
This is especially so if you work a regular desk job and are sitting most of the day which can tighten and stiffen your hips.
If you also spend a lot of your time in shoes or worse yet work boots with elevated heels you also can suffer from tight and stiff ankles which can affect your movement footwork and ability to push up up on your feet and toes for kicks and knees.
Having good mobility in the hips also allows for stronger and faster blocks and will allow you to move freely with more efficiency so you can actually last longer which increases your endurance and match fitness.
Improving mobility outside the gym is another excellent way to get good at muay thai outside of regular training at your may thai school or academy.
Tip #4 – Watch a Lot of Muay Thai Fights
Watch the latest fights online or on TV from the big stadiums.
Watch muay thai and striking in MMA and the UFC as well as in the various kickboxing associations around the world.
See how high level practitioners move in the ring and what strategies they adopt and apply them to your own muay thai game.
Also watch old fights especially those from the Golden Age of muay thai in the lates 80s and early 90s where many of the best ever nak muay plied their trade.
See how greats like Samart, Somruck and Dieselnoi fought and dominated their opponents and learn from them by watching, practicing and training what they do and how they fought.
Tip #5 – Rest & Recovery
Working a full time job and trying to get to training once of twice a day and then adding in strength training can make it difficult to fully recover from training.
Being able to rest and recover if crucial to give your best at each training session.
This is where rest, recovery and also nutrition play a major role.
Shoot for 7-8 hours of quality sleep per night. This may mean getting to bed early and giving up late nights out with friends and switching off your mobile device which can affect the quality of your sleep.
Even if you can train regularly at your gym and don’t work a regular job you still need to be able to sleep well as well as ‘switch off’ mentally outside of the gym so that your mind and body can rest and more importantly recover adequately so that you are fresh and ready to go for the next session.
Tip #6 Repeat, repeat, repeat.
Hang up a heavy bag at time or shadow box and work on techniques over, over and over again.
This is probably the major secret for how to get good at muay thai fast.
Repeat a technique until it is totally ingrained into your system and you dont even have to think about how to perform the technique.
This comes from breaking down a technique into bits and concentrating and focusing on each part until it becomes completely natural and second nature to you.
Then repeat and repeat and repeat some more.
The same goes for your facovtine combos, drill, drill and drill some more.
This is where he heavy bag will become your best friend and most important training partner.
The heavy bag will always be there and will never get tired and can take a beating for as long as you can keep dishing it out.
Use this to your advantage and repeat, repeat, repeat!
Tip #7 Use Visualization
Visualization is commonly used by virtually all high level athletes across all sports including martial arts.
Use the time before training to visualize what you want to achieve and see yourself performing perfect technique.
Use visualization to perform techniques you are having trouble with to perfect them in your head and then see how it helps you perform them physically.
Often times when you can see yourself performing them with visualization you can make it much more achievable to perform physically.
Use visualization early in the morning after waking to focus on your goals for the week or for the day.
See yourself getting through a good intense training session, eating well and resting – then go and make it happen
But visualizing it first will go a long way to helping you performing it in reality.
The human mind can be a powerful tool to help you get good at muay thai or any other pursuit you wish but you need to train the mind through visualization and focus which translates into physical performance
