REALFIGHTING

Muay Thai for Self-Defense Requires an Exceptional Coach!

Self-defense has become more complicated these days. A street attack can likely be weapons based, perhaps with multiple attackers and street thugs have more experience in the fight game — some are even experienced in MMA. Defending yourself can also lead to a civil or criminal case against you. Simple self-defense skills are not enough anymore, learning how to fight can elevate your game.

I think most people realize that you need both striking as well as grappling skills to be a well-rounded fighter. For passive or covert aggression I prefer to use grappling. When applying a restraint or a submission, especially at a public venue, there’s much less of a chance of being charged with assault.

However if someone is overtly and aggressively attacking you, then by all means you are justified in striking him commensurate with the level of force he’s applying; and striking affords us a quick reply!

The only two striking disciplines I feel worthy of mention are boxing and muay thai. Both are excellent, however, I personally prefer muay thai. It has a distinct advantage in that the shins, knees and elbows are simply much more devastating than punching alone.

Muay thai is not only used in sport fighting but is also a great adjunct to self-defense training as well as fitness. The benefits of muay thai for self-defense are obvious; with concerted effort most individuals can be fully prepared for unarmed confrontations well within one year! The caveat is that many muay thai instructors teach it in one dimension – that is, for the sport! For self-defense purposes, especially for older students the instructor needs to be cognizant of tailoring the course work to suit their goals.

Inasmuch as muay thai is now popular internationally, not all instruction is standardized nor of high quality. The general thinking by the public is “if this guy trained and fought in Thailand, then he must be a pro,” not necessarily true! Many amateur fighters train and fight in Thailand but never get anywhere close to an official championship bout.

Official muay thai fights are held by the two main organizations, and all legitimate and professional fighters belong to one of these organizations, they are: the WPMF “World Professional Muay Thai Federation” and the WMC: “World Muay Thai Council” http://www.wmcmuaythai.org/ and

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Professional_Muaythai_Federation

Some of the very best muay thai outside of Thailand is in Holland and France. Unfortunately in the U.S. muay thai is lacking somewhat in top talent. It’s mainly because of the dozens of factions and associations and numerous amateur instructors representing themselves as professionals. There are however a few good training centers such as Fairtex and Master Toddy’s among others.

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention one of the top muay thai fighters and coaches in North America, Mehdi Pouroskoui. A gifted coach, he has fought and trained fighters for 17 years, and owns and operates KB-ONE Muay Thai, the premier muay thai academy in Vancouver B.C.

Among the pantheon of the world’s top 4-5 muay thai fighter’s (along with a few from Holland) he is one of the select handful of non-Thai fighter’s in the world who have beaten the Thais on their home turf – not once but on several occasions. He is also one of the few Westerners to have fought an official muay boran match in Thailand. No one in the Americas has come close to his record. Mehdi retired from professional fighting in 2009 and devotes all his time to coaching now.

Mehdi has expanded his muay thai clinics to Toronto and New York, and is planning to teach several clinics a year in these two cities. He recently held a muay thai workshop at the Vamos Bros. Jiujitsu Academy in Long Island. Interestingly, he taught one workshop that offered useful and functional takeaways to students of different levels and different interests. Mehdi will present several seminars in Toronto and NYC this coming October.

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Muay Thai for Self-Defense Requires an Exceptional Coach!