(Entry # 4) Let’s do some Muay Thai now!
I’m still not used to the sleep schedule. Being in the middle of the world means that it is day here when it is night, where I am used to being. Since I took a long nap yesterday, I’ve been up all night. My eyes are pretty cloudy, but I’m dizzy like a schoolgirl from being able to do some Muay Thai today.
One of my favorite sounds is the one coming from the door next to my hotel room. When the sun rises, the Dragon Muay Thai competition team begins training. The sound of shins hitting Thai pads and trainers yelling orders, and fighters growling with each hit is like music to my ears. I could wake up to this every day. Unfortunately, I didn’t ‘wake up’ because I never fell asleep, but it’s a great way to get the blood pumping in the morning.
I got up, made a protein shake, and went for a jog this morning. The only thing I’ve really struggled with since my knee surgery is running. The impact is very uncomfortable and I am very unstable because my quads are not firing. A knee brace helps a lot, so I did it anyway. I have to strengthen my legs so there really is no other option.
After jogging, I took a shower and got ready to go to training by watching some Muay Thai online. I had a couple of hours to burn, so what better way to get in the mood.
I don’t know why he had all this nervous energy, but he was really looking forward to training today.
When I got to the gym, there were many familiar faces, as well as many new ones. The staff is amazing at Tiger Muay Thai. The ladies at the reception are very sweet and friendly. The place is growing like crazy. Reminds me of Las Vegas. Every time I come, they have built a new building and hired a lot of new people. Their fitness programs are really exploding, but I came here for Muay Thai. I just buy a Muay Thai pass and leave the weight lifting for those who want to do good exercises.
The class started with a 20 minute run, followed by some stretching and shadow training. I was quite out of breath just from the run. I’m so out of shape it’s unfortunate.
After warming up, we did some pretty awesome combos for the instructional part of the class. They paired me with a guy named Ash. He’s from Wales. His Muay Thai is Really fine, and our drilling was on point.
Then we did 3 rounds of Thai pads with a trainer. I was Great lucky to have gotten the trainer I did. It has a very slow and measured pace. We really clicked together so I’m going to try to get some private parts out of it.
This was followed by 3 rounds with heavy bags. I can’t lie, I loafed my way through them because I was already beaten, and I knew the sparring was next. Fortunately it worked. I took a second breath and was ready to go.
In my first round, I went with one of the Thai coaches, as we were an odd number of students in class. He is very tall with long legs. He pushed me away, but didn’t try to rip my head off. He was also very good defensively. I threw a 10 hit combo at him and he dodged them all. I caught him multiple times in the round, which usually causes the coach to knock down your block. It was really good and he could have done it if he wanted to, but he didn’t. I’m glad you were in a good mood.
My next round was with Ash. His Muay Thai is really good. We had a very even round, very controlled and fun.
For my final round, I went with a Goliath-sized German named Lucifer. I was pleasantly surprised when we fought because he didn’t go crazy like most German fighters do. It was very under control and we had an incredible game. He had good energy, he threw a lot of solid combos just like me. Fun things.
We finished with a bit of conditioning: knees and punches in the heavy bags until we fell. And with that, I survived my first day back. I’ve decided that I’m only going to do one session a day this first week here, and turn it up to two a day next week, then add a private class for three a day thereafter.
I’m sore as hell and can barely move. Time for a Thai massage and tomorrow again.
