Muay Thai Kickboxing

Muay Thai, a martial art which has its origins in Thailand, and allows punches, kicks, knees and elbows, is becoming increasingly popular in the UK. It encourages discipline, respect and spirituality, and so promotes both mental and physical well being. However, due to the nature of all contact activities, the risks of injury can be high.

The level of skill of each individual will affect how much contact work they are allowed to do, for example, beginners are seldom allowed to participate in any contact until they have shown sufficient skill in their techniques, and even then they will be required to wear appropriate safety equipment, and be closely supervised. Professionals use full contact, wearing only mouth and groin guards and boxing gloves.

Published data has shown the most common injuries for martial artists are sort tissue trauma, haematomas and lacerations. Fractures are also relatively common, due to the large forces used. Research has also shown that about 60% of martial arts injuries go unreported, which is surprising when you consider that an injury can result in over a month off training in some cases.

Over 80% of martial arts injuries are soft tissue related, such as lacerations and sprains/strains of muscles or ligaments. The most common area for injury tends to be the lower limbs.

What can you do to reduce injury risks?

• Warm up thoroughly, both cardiovascular and stretches, before training. Please see our section on warm up and stretching.

• Ensure you are training at the appropriate level - trying to progress yourself too quickly may expose you to injury.

• Break up your training routine, to incorporate regular changes of activity to reduce the chance of repetitive strain injuries

• Make sure your general fitness level is at a sufficient level to train at the level you chose.

• If you are new to Muay Thai, introduce yourself slowly - you will find yourself using muscles that you have not used before!

What to do if you sustain an injury

As already mentioned, most common injuries sustained during Muay Thai are soft tissue injuries. The immediate and usually most appropriate treatment for these types of injuries is a couple of days of R.I.C.E (Rest, Ice, Compression and Elevation). If your condition doesn't improve after a couple of days then come and see us for a thorough assessment.