Why do Muay Thai fighters wear Anklets?

DwarfMesomorph · 07-02-2009, 09:35 AM

Why do Muay Thai fighters wear Anklets? How did this tradition start?
For me, they absorb sweat and remind me to get up on my toes.
Is that the reason others use them?

brad_mn · 07-02-2009, 09:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DwarfMesomorph

Why do Muay Thai fighters wear Anklets? How did this tradition start?
For me, they absorb sweat and remind me to get up on my toes.
Is that the reason others use them?

I wear one one my left ankle because I have rolled it badly (3rd degree sprain) in the past. So it is for support purposes while standing on one leg. As far as if it is a tradition and when it started, I don't know. All I know is that at 34 years old, I don't heal as fast as I used to!

gotobread · 07-02-2009, 09:43 AM

How does decorative ankle jewlery absorb sweat?

Oh, you mean ankle supports.

gotobread · 07-02-2009, 09:45 AM

Okay; jokes aside, you are definitely wearing supports for the wrong reasons. Absorbing sweat?? Really??

brad_mn · 07-02-2009, 09:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gotobread

How does decorative ankle jewlery absorb sweat?

Oh, you mean ankle supports.

I guess I just assumed that was what he meant, maybe he did mean "anklet" in a literal sense!

Dogmeat · 07-02-2009, 09:46 AM

I'm a bit of a pansy - I wear them because sometimes my technique gets sloppy and my foot slaps against the thai pad.

(and yeah - in your 30s you want all the support you can get)

pailum117 · 07-02-2009, 10:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DwarfMesomorph

Why do Muay Thai fighters wear Anklets? How did this tradition start?
For me, they absorb sweat and remind me to get up on my toes.
Is that the reason others use them?

Okay, more than likely you're talking about ankle supports. They're worn to give support to the ankle (crazy right?)

No, they're not intended to absorb sweat and reduce slipping, infact I think they often make it worse. The only other thing you could possibly be thinking of is the PRAJIED and it's not worn around the ankle but the upper arm; it's a buddhist charm/prayer that's meant to protect the fighter against danger, as does the MONG KON which is a prayer scroll worn around the head.

leftlegkicker · 07-02-2009, 10:54 AM

They are for support. Parts of your body where there are a lot of bones, or where several bones/joints connect are susceptible to injury when impacted. Athletes use things like taping or braces to reinforce those joints for greater support. This is why some athletes wear knee braces, why boxers tape their hands, and why kickboxers wear ankle braces.

DwarfMesomorph · 07-02-2009, 11:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gotobread

How does decorative ankle jewlery absorb sweat?

Oh, you mean ankle supports.

Uhhhh..... google "Muay Thai Anklet" 3,500 hits. I can assure you that i did not post them all.

"You are using them for the wrong reason."
How can you determine why i should use them?
When sweat is running down my leg, it goes into the fabric instead of onto my foot thereby absorbing sweat. When there is sweat already on the ball of my foot, I wipe it off onto the other foots "anklet" or "ankle support".
They also make my flatfooted stance more slip prone thereby reminding me to get up on my toes.

They never felt like they would protect squat under impact from a kick or a misplaced step. Kinda' like a headband as headgear.

Thanks to those who sincerely tried to answer my question.

**Matt** · 07-02-2009, 11:35 AM

As mentioned above, I'm pretty sure you mean ankle supports. They help prevent you from rolling your ankle, which I did once while playing basketball. I ended up with a cast on my leg for a couple months.

Never got used to wearing ankle supports for muay thai though, it felt like they restricted my range of motion or something.