Heatrick Muay Thai Strength And Conditioning

The world of Muay Thai is changing. Athletic performance matters more than ever. Gone are the days when Thai fighters had a monopoly on the sport. Today, Western fighters are using sports science and professional training methods to close the gap on their Thai counterparts. If you're a Muay Thai fighter or a coach who wants to stay ahead of the curve, then you need to check out this episode. In it, we explore the latest trends in Muay Thai training and how you can use them to improve your own, or your fighter's performance. We cover everything from sports science to skill training to the changing landscape of Muay Thai professionalism. By the end of this episode, you'll have a better understanding of what a Muay Thai professional really is and what it takes to be a world-class athlete. So what are you waiting for? Check out this latest episode now! Further notes and resources at https://heatrick.com/2023/05/26/new-era-of-muay-thai-unlocking-athletic-performance/

Don't underestimate the importance of discipline in strength and conditioning. It's all too easy to become distracted by what's shiny and new, only to shortcut progress by playing your ace too early... Or, to charge headlong into overuse injury and the frustration of time out of training. You can look at that next block of training, but don't touch! ;) Further notes and resources at https://heatrick.com/2023/05/19/the-importance-of-discipline-in-strength-and-conditioning-for-fighters/

The Muay Thai round kick is one most powerful kicks in martial arts. To avoid smashing your foot to smithereens when throwing your round kick, you must master range, kicking foot position, and tactical setup. This episode shares in-depth thoughts on getting these aspects right! Further notes and resources at https://heatrick.com/2023/05/12/technical-tips-to-prevent-low-kick-foot-injury/

There's even more to motivation than you think... Winning by knockout is the best feeling in the world. Seeing the referee standing over your opponent waving off the fight, you feel almost immortal. But, in a well-matched fight, anything can happen. In an instant, one mistake can render you helpless – all your hard work cancelled out. Nothing else can be done at that moment. But in the hours, days, weeks, and even months after the fight, things can feel very different. It doesn’t matter who you are, your motivation and determination has been severely tested. A seed of doubt is planted. “Have I got what it takes? “Can I come back from this? “What does everyone think of me now?” Some fighters bounce back more determined, while others spiral downward, disappearing from competition, and maybe stopping training altogether. And while it’s important to recognise when we’re being our own worst enemy, there are also external factors that can make a huge difference to our motivation to come back stronger than

Taking action is only half the battle. Your REASON for taking action is just as critical, and can either kill your determination off completely, or ignite your motivation along with your results. If you want to stay in the game long enough to find out how far you can really go, you must get under the hood of motivation and figure out which of the 6 types you rely on the most, and if there’s a better way to motivate yourself and become even more determined… Further notes and resources at https://heatrick.com/2023/04/21/fighters-theres-more-to-motivation-than-you-know-part1/

Those in Muay Thai, especially at the highest level, know that the public perception of fighters is wrong. Kevin Ross is a fighter. He may have retired from competition, but he IS a fighter. For him, Muay Thai is not just a ring tool, it's really a life tool.... It makes you face your struggles in a way the world tends not to, and you come out different on the other side. Not violent. Not aggressive. But, calm, and confident. Further notes and resources at https://heatrick.com/2023/04/07/kevin-ross-the-public-perception-of-fighters-is-wrong/

Most likely, if you ask your Muay Thai trainer what fitness training you should do outside of your Muay Thai sessions, you’re told to simply run a number of times a week, and maybe do a little weight training if you want to… It’s largely down to you. And aside from “do more” when you have a fight coming up, there’s little guidance and rarely any structure. And this is a problem for the majority of Muay Thai trainers. It’s leaving students with only a basic athletic foundation and no hope of levelling up over time, let alone peaking performance for a fight if the student competes. So why does this happen? It’s largely because those traditional Golden Era Muay Thai methods are still aspirational to most coaches, even if things should have moved on and improved… Further notes and resources at https://heatrick.com/2023/03/31/the-problem-with-your-muay-thai-trainer/

As fighters become more experienced, we must understand how to coach them so they don’t become stale. Experts in any field are ruthlessly good at the basics. What marks the best apart from the rest, is their ability to revisit and resharpen their foundational practice. It’s vital that those at the top of their game recognise both that skill is perishable and can migrate over time, and that merely training for your next fight is limiting your progress too. In this episode… Professor Tony Myers, both a world class Muay Thai coach and an academic researcher in sport psychology, shares valuable insight into what makes good fighters great, and keeps them great! Full show notes and further resources at https://heatrick.com/2023/02/24/how-to-coach-experienced-fighters-professor-tony-myers/

What is authentic Muay Thai training now, and has it evolved for the better? Muay Thai has a deep history. And when it comes to the ring sport we’ve all come to love, the period between 1980 and 1995 known as “The Golden Era”, spawned arguably the most talented fighters ever. Names like Dieselnoi, Samart, Jongsanan, and Sakmongkol demand almost superhero status. They were highly skilled and incredibly tough! Nostalgists will claim today’s fighters couldn’t stand with The Golden Era greats. And may even consider this as evidence that the training methods back then were superior too. But, what does this mean for your training? Further notes and resources at https://heatrick.com/2023/02/10/what-is-authentic-muay-thai-training-now-old-school-vs-new-school/

Your work life and fight life are in conflict. I know you feel the clock is ticking, that you’re running out of time when it comes to finding out how far you can go in Muay Thai. It was true for me, and it’s true for everyone – regardless if they compete or not.  We all have a “bucket list”, and although Muay Thai is on there, you feel that your work life inevitably gets in the way of your fight life. And you may hate to admit it, but even family and friends crowd out your fight training too!  The biggest challenge in becoming the best you can be at Muay Thai, is how consistently you can train. And this is compounded when you pick up an injury or simply don’t seem to recover well. “If only I didn’t have to make a living and I could train full time!” But, even pro Muay Thai fighters have to work to make ends meet – a full-time income from just training and fighting isn’t there (yet).  And even then, the truth is a big chunk of your week is tied up with making a living, regardless if you're a Mua

Losing a fight by doing too much? Paul Banasiak shares that losing his Glory debut fight taught him to not over-effort... That it's important to balance risk and reward, and that doing more or going harder in a fight doesn't necessarily equate to bigger, better results. Be aware of the "glitches" you suffer by overthinking instructions and losing your flow! Further notes and resources at https://heatrick.com/2023/01/20/paul-banasiak-losing-a-fight-by-doing-too-much/

When scheduling your weekly training plan for fighters, although many fighters and coaches are doing the right things, they organise their training weeks too haphazardly to get the full training effect or inadvertently cancel out performance gains entirely. At best this wastes effort, at worst, it burns out fighters and injures them. But, you can apply simple steps to design weekly schedules that ensure training is efficient and effective – maximising results while consuming less time and energy, reducing overuse injuries, and increasing the amount of time for Muay Thai skill practice – or family and friends if you’d prefer! I’ll share these steps with you now, and show you how to use them. Further notes and resources at https://heatrick.com/2023/01/13/scheduling-your-weekly-training-plan-for-fighters-part-2/

These days, fighter training has become more sophisticated. Coaches, fighters, and hobbyists alike all realise that to remain healthy, injury free and perform their best it takes more than steady runs, bag work, pad work, and sparring.  But, what types of sessions are needed? How often should you train? What order should sessions go?  Organising your training week, whatever your level of commitment to Muay Thai, can be daunting. However, it doesn’t have to be... Let’s run through the steps I use with clients to create your most effective weekly training plan.   Further notes and all the resources mentioned at https://heatrick.com/2023/01/06/scheduling-your-weekly-training-plan-for-fighters-part-1/

Some pre fight rituals boost confidence and performance, while others hamper it!  Having established an understanding of why rituals and superstitions speak directly to your emotional mind in high-stakes situations to boost confidence and performance in part 1...  In this episode, we lever this understanding to pick the best rituals and personalise them, while avoiding those that could inadvertently sabotage you! Further notes and resources at https://heatrick.com/2022/12/09/how-pre-fight-ritual-boosts-confidence-performance-part-2/ If you like the look of my X-Martial t-shirt in the video, you can get yours, and help fund this channel (we get an affiliate payment) by clicking here: https://www.xmartial.com/?ref=D0i7eQ6a

The evidence is in. Pre fight rituals boost confidence and performance, fact!  Pre fight superstitions and rituals are an inherent part of all combat sports, and are baked into the culture of Muay Thai.  From Pra Jiad arm bands, Mongkhon headgear, lucky amulets, and sak yant tattoos, to wai kru and ram muay dances, modern day Muay Thai still carries many of the ancient Siam superstitions and rituals from its battlefield origins thousands of years ago. But what are these fighters onto? And how can seemingly irrational pre fight rituals boost confidence and competitive performance? Further notes and resources at https://heatrick.com/2022/12/02/how-pre-fight-ritual-boosts-confidence-performance-part-1/ If you like the look of my X-Martial t-shirt in the video, you can get yours, and help fund this channel (we get an affiliate payment) by clicking here: https://www.xmartial.com/?ref=D0i7eQ6a

Solo fight skill technical practice can fast-track your fight ability if it's done well.  In this episode, avoid these fight skill pitfalls or risk sabotaging your technical practice and undoing all your hard work.  Further notes and resources at https://heatrick.com/2022/11/11/fight-skills-technical-practice-part-1-group-sessions/ And make sure you've seen Part 1 of this video here: https://heatrick.com/2022/11/11/fight-skills-technical-practice-part-1-group-sessions/ And if you enjoyed this episode, hit subscribe to stay up to date with our latest Muay Thai performance tips every Friday!

When it comes to fight skill technical practice, repetition is key. And group sessions present challenges for individuals looking for technical practice opportunities to fast-track changes in their fight skill habits. In this episode, I discuss my approach for fast-tracking technical practice in group sessions, both as a coach, and a fighter taking part in a class too. Further notes and resources at https://heatrick.com/2022/11/11/fight-skills-technical-practice-part-1-group-sessions/

There’s a difference between feeling tired during fights and being tired… Competing as a fighter is stressful, and the cocktail of neurochemicals and hormones this dumps into your body drastically affects how you feel. Especially early in a fight career, nervousness, anxiety, or even all-out fear, will leave you feeling exhausted without even exerting yourself! But, I’ve found there can be a disparity between the sensations you feel, and the performance you can produce if you can override them. From the top down, emotion affects posture. And from the bottom up, posture affects emotion. If your training has built good postural habits, then despite how tired you feel, you may well not look it! Don’t assume because you feel tired, and are facing an exhausted-looking opponent, that you look just as exhausted during the fight too. Show notes and further resources at https://heatrick.com/2022/11/04/feeling-tired-during-fights-isnt-the-same-as-being-tired/

Even elite pros require methods for coping with pre fight nerves. And it begins with accepting how you really feel, before adopting strategies to manage that pre fight anxiety when it crops up... And it will! Every fighter has nerves before a fight. If they didn't, they can't perform their best. However, it's important to manage your nerves so, you don't become overwhelmed. In this episode, the pre fight process is mapped out, and personal tools are deployed to make sure you perform your best. Further notes and resources at https://heatrick.com/2022/10/28/tips-for-coping-with-pre-fight-nerves/

Are you strategically pacing yourself to win fights? Armed with an understanding of how to use a heart rate monitor to determine your own unique training pace, you can not only boost your fight fitness… But crucially, learn how to strategically pace your efforts during a fight to produce the best tactical effect. Just add your own style and technical ability! By training at your maximum sustainable work rate, and learning when you’re either over or under this, and by how far, you can strategically time your biggest efforts for the greatest impact. And keep yourself safe and recharged when it’s needed too. Shownotes and further resources at https://heatrick.com/2022/10/21/strategically-pacing-yourself-to-win-fights/