05/03/2010 12:22:24
gymnag_Rob
Moderator
Posts: 51
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Having been interested in Muay Thai boxing for quite some time, in November 2008 I was able to fulfil an ambition and go to Thailand to train at a professional Thai boxing camp in Bangkok.
Leaving behind an understanding family, off I went for two weeks.
When choosing a Thai gym there are several factors to consider. The first is to understand what it is you wish to gain from the experience, whether it’s improving technique or just getting fitter or losing weight or a bit of both.
The best gyms for technical training tend to be in Bangkok, however some gyms will be busy with their own full time fighters and will have little time to spare on you or may not be geared towards looking after foreigners.
It pays to know someone who’s been and/or knows the camp or failing that do some research on the internet and check out some of the forums out there such as AX kickboxing.
If it’s a bit of holiday and training or just fitness/weight loss your after one of the tourist type gyms will probably suit you better. They are usually situated in resort areas such as Koh Samui or Phuket.
The gym I went to was in Bangkok. The gym consisted of an open training area covered with a large roof to keep the sun off and several rooms for rent on site. The cost of training twice a day and food and accommodation worked out at about £20 a day which can’t be bad.
The day started at 6am with a long slow run round the block. This was about a half mile circuit of which I initially did about 4 laps. The professional fighter’s would do up to 20. This was followed by technique work, kicking the pads for about 5 rounds of approximately 3 to 5 minutes each round. There then followed exercises such as chin-ups, press-ups, sit-ups, light dumb bell work, skipping and jumping on tractor tyres to condition the calf muscles. This was then followed by practicing kicks, knees, punches and elbows on the heavy bag and then clinchwork (a form of stand-up grappling) and sometimes light sparring.
This was usually finished by about 9.30am to 10am.
You would then have your first meal of the day. This for me would usually consist of rice or noodles with chicken/Thai green curry, omelette and coconut ice cream.
At 3pm the training would start again following the same format and finishing about 6pm.
You would then eat again at about 7pm with a similar sort of meal.
This was the routine for Monday to Saturday and then Sunday would be a well deserved rest.
At the end of the two weeks I was fairly tired, but what surprised me was that without the hassle of the day job getting in the way and with a midday powernap, just how much energy I could muster. However I’d recommend getting a reasonable level of fitness before going out in order to make the most of it.
During the first 8 days of my stay I measured my weight every day and lost 8lbs. I assumed a lot of this was water as it was averaging 30 degree heat but on seeing my before and after photo’s I realised I’d lost a lot of fat too.
Before: 
After: 
I continued to lose weight at a slower pace and lost a couple of more pounds over the second week.
Due to things kicking off politically the airport closed while I was there so I gained another week or so before coming back and was put up in a nice hotel free of charge by the Thai Tourist Authority. This was a long way from the original gym so I did a bit more training at another gym nearby just doing the afternoon training session.
I was in a touristy area of Bangkok at this time so spent the rest of the day taking it easy and seeing the sights.
 
 
From a Gymnag members point of view I’d certainly recommend doing a bit of training if on holiday in Thailand or even specifically going on a trip to Thailand to train. The weight will come off and you’ll get nicely toned up too. I think it must a combination of the hard training along with good food.
However unless totally in love with Thai boxing I’d probably go for a trip to one of the usual tourist spots and either do a morning or afternoon session and relax for the rest of the day. If you have family commitments you could always go on a family holiday and train from 6 or 7am to 9 or10am and then spend the rest of the day with the family. For other members of the family who come along there is also plenty of good value Spa type deals there too, or you could mix in jungle trekking or diving activities. You can do as much or as little training as you like.
Cheap accomodation can also be found off site for about £20 a night and good food is also plentiful and a decent meal can be had for around £2 eating out.
The cost of a training session by itself works out at about £6 on average.
You don’t need any previous experience and when I was at the gym there were two lads there who’d not done it before. As well as learning something new they also lost a similar amount of weight as I did. The only thing I’d say is get a reasonable level of fitness first. Ideally some running, kickboxing, circuit training that kind of thing.
When compared to a health farm or similar, getting a cheap flight and a few weeks in Thailand would probably work out cheaper and be far more interesting too. So if you want to lose weight and get fit it’s something to think about.
edited by gymnag_Rob on 06/03/2010
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