Muay Thai Day 1 Part 2: First Class and the Sweat Monster returns!

My first class was supposed to take place at 13:00 with one other student who apparently had already had a fight under his belt and was coming for a more technical training regimen. What actually happened was class began at almost 14:00 with two students one who I can only assume is the aforementioned fighter and a younger girl and it looked like I outweighed both of them put together.

Class began slowly with an instruction on how to stand and face your opponent, during which time it was discovered I was a Southpaw. After which we learned to step, move and stay in guard while we did it. Did a few dodging drills and movement practice for a bit.

The class seemed to be going well, with Master Somboon giving instruction first in English then Thai and with K observing and giving corrections during drills. It'll take a while before I get the hang of keeping my guard up and maintaining balance while moving, but that's what practice is all about anyways.

By this time the crippling Thai heat (which at times is the hardest part about the move) and the constant motion and the new strain of having to keep my guard up all the time made me a walking water monster, covering the floor and any poor sap next to me in sweat droplets. As we did stepping and moving practice I would draw lines and patterns on the mat with the constant trickle of water that followed me.

After a bit of practice Master Somboon stops us and gives us a brief speech on how the first class was usually only forward and backwards motion, but that he was abbreviating our training for some reason. We were now to learn the jab. This practice was a bit harder and as it was the first time I was ever to learn how to throw a proper punch (karate most definitely does not count) I was beyond excited. We learned to how lean and step in cover our chin at all times and how to return to guard. After this we practised in front of mirrors for a few minutes, sweat being flung from my arms with every swing.

After about ten minutes or so of that Master Somboon stopped us again and after describing how trainees used to be taught the jab for a whole day and didn't learn anything new till the next class, which is why were all very honoured when he believed we were ready for the jab-cross-jab (1,2,3) combination. Getting to punch with "the knockout" hand was even more fun than the jab and while we still hadn't actually hit anything but air yet, you could be the potential destructive force behind each swing. We practised the 1-2-3 combo for a while with movement with Master Somboon and K making corrections on our form and stance.

Then again, after a little while of that, Master Somboon stopped us again and told us how on the second day the students learned nothing but the 1-2-3 combo and had to usually wait for any kicks, but since we were doing so well he decided to move up the schedule again! I was pretty used to hearing this statement by now and wasn't surprised, but I was happy to learn my first kick in Muay Thai. It turned out to be the push kick, or teep, and this was the best part because after a little instruction and observation we put in front of the bags and got to finally let loose and feel some impacts. Seeing the massive bag swing in huge arcs after a good kick felt great and the impact was something I'd yearned for since the first day of kid's karate.

That pretty much ended up the class with us hitting the bags for a short while (my sweat was now flying everywhere) and we were given water and sat around chatting for a while, watching Master Somboon play fetch with his two huge dogs and a couple of coconuts.

Just in case anyone was wondering if my posts will become one big training log of muay thai classes have no fear! If that statement worries you because you particularly like training logs and have been bored with most of my other writings then you are safe! I am moving all my training logs and musings to http://traininginsurat.blogspot.com/