[The MYRMIDON]

i have 1 of 2 choices to make......one gym that teaches kickboxing/thai boxing for mma and muay thai and another gym that focuses on traditional muay thai........both gyms have quality instructors, both have faught and both have trained in thailand.....both instructors know eachother and promote the growth of the sport in the province.....both instructor have trained with the same thai instructor.......
what's better to train in? traditional muay thai or muay thai with a twist of takedown defense?

[adavis]

What do you want to apply the skills toward? Sounds like win win either way to me.

[The MYRMIDON]

it is win win........but what is better, in being complete?
how do the fighters from Holland do it....which way do they go?

[phaderlanx]

well... if you plan on doing thai boxing only, clearly the one that trains traditional thai boxing would be better.

If you plan on maybe competing in mma sometime the other would probably be a better place to start. what does "complete" mean for you specifically?

From everything ive seen, thai boxing and standing mma are like two completely different styles of stand up, but that doesent mean you cant apply what you learn to different aspects of each style. make sense?


The answer seems kind of obvious, are you asking/implying something else?

EDIT- also, the gym itself. the people, instructors, location, atmosphere all play a role in choosing a gym. They both sound quality in terms of knowledge. this aspect is often overlooked, and shouldnt be.

[The MYRMIDON]

Originally Posted by phaderlanx

well... if you plan on doing thai boxing only, clearly the one that trains traditional thai boxing would be better.

If you plan on maybe competing in mma sometime the other would probably be a better place to start. what does "complete" mean for you specifically?

From everything ive seen, thai boxing and standing mma are like two completely different styles of stand up, but that doesent mean you cant apply what you learn to different aspects of each style. make sense?


The answer seems kind of obvious, are you asking/implying something else?

EDIT- also, the gym itself. the people, instructors, location, atmosphere all play a role in choosing a gym. They both sound quality in terms of knowledge. this aspect is often overlooked, and shouldnt be.

complete for me means a complete muay thai game, clinchwork, and street techniques etc...not just muay thai for the ring, but if i want to compete i can

[phaderlanx]

for a complete "muay thai" game then the muay thai gym is the place. If you would ever be interested in 'crossing over' then the other gym might offer more in the way of groundwork.

imho muay thai is a very complex sport/art. its easy to learn the basics, but doing it well, not so easy. mma is even more complex.

just pick the gym that seems most appealing in terms of the people there, the location, etcetera.

[LeroyBrown]

Originally Posted by The MYRMIDON

complete for me means a complete muay thai game, clinchwork, and street techniques etc...not just muay thai for the ring, but if i want to compete i can

My MT instructor was taught by a traditional Thai instructor. He, in turn, teaches MMA due to his extensive submission wrestling, BJJ, boxing, and San Shou competitive background. I chose him due to his experience in all of these facets of these martial arts.

For my training, he combines western style boxing with MT. The result is that my stance and fighting tactics are similar to those of the Dutch fighters. Any type of MT training is beneficial, but I believe that you may be happier with the MMA teacher's approach to training and style. If you ever plan to make yourself a more well-rounded fighter (BJJ, submission wrestling, etc.), this may make your transition much easier.

[The MYRMIDON]

i also forgot to mention that i train bjj elsewhere with a blackbelt from BTT.......i might want to fight mma but i want to fight amateur muay thai first