Muay Podcasts

Your work life and fight life are in conflict. I know you feel the clock is ticking, that you’re running out of time when it comes to finding out how far you can go in Muay Thai. It was true for me, and it’s true for everyone – regardless if they compete or not. We all have a “bucket list”, and although Muay Thai is on there, you feel that your wor…

A new podcast featuring Hosts Kru Neil and Edwin Lopez, co-owners of Muay Thai Kickboxing Gym in North Hollywood, CA. In Episode 6, a surprise MMA Champion stops in to discuss his experiences fighting! Follow Kru Neil and Edwin Lopez on Instagram: @mtkgymla @kruneilofficial @realedwinlopez #muaythaisavedme #mtk #mtkla #mtkgym #mtkgymla #fight #fami…

A new podcast featuring Hosts Kru Neil and Edwin Lopez, co-owners of Muay Thai Kickboxing Gym in North Hollywood, CA. In Episode 5, the duo interviews member Kat Checa, as she discusses how Muay Thai pushed herself to another level and how she found love because of it! Follow Kat Checa on Instagram: @Mexikat Follow Kru Neil and Edwin Lopez on Insta…

Losing a fight by doing too much? Paul Banasiak shares that losing his Glory debut fight taught him to not over-effort... That it's important to balance risk and reward, and that doing more or going harder in a fight doesn't necessarily equate to bigger, better results. Be aware of the "glitches" you suffer by overthinking instructions and losing y…

When scheduling your weekly training plan for fighters, although many fighters and coaches are doing the right things, they organise their training weeks too haphazardly to get the full training effect or inadvertently cancel out performance gains entirely. At best this wastes effort, at worst, it burns out fighters and injures them. But, you can a…

A new podcast featuring Hosts Kru Neil and Edwin Lopez, co-owners of Muay Thai Kickboxing Gym in North Hollywood, CA. In Episode 4, the duo interviews member Robert Brown, as he talks about how Muay Thai made him a better father and took his fitness to another level, Follow Robert Brown on Instagram: @gorgeous_robert Follow Kru Neil and Edwin Lopez…

A new podcast featuring Hosts Kru Neil and Edwin Lopez, co-owners of Muay Thai Kickboxing Gym in North Hollywood, CA. In Episode 3, the duo interviews member Orlena Kastning, as she goes into how she got into Muay Thai and how it saved her life. Follow Orlena Kastning on Instagram: @orlenakastning Follow Kru Neil and Edwin Lopez on Instagram: @mtkg…

These days, fighter training has become more sophisticated. Coaches, fighters, and hobbyists alike all realise that to remain healthy, injury free and perform their best it takes more than steady runs, bag work, pad work, and sparring. But, what types of sessions are needed? How often should you train? What order should sessions go? Organising your…

A new podcast featuring Hosts Kru Neil and Edwin Lopez, co-owners of Muay Thai Kickboxing Gym in North Hollywood, CA. In Episode 2, the duo interviews fighter and trainer Martin Duarte, as he dives into how he got into Muay Thai and how it saved his life. Follow Martin Duarte on Instagram: @martydmtkg87 Follow Kru Neil and Edwin Lopez on Instagram:…

A new podcast featuring Hosts Kru Neil and Edwin Lopez, co-owners of Muay Thai Kickboxing Gym in North Hollywood, CA. In Episode 1, the duo interviews fighter and trainer David Trujillo, as he dives into how he got into Muay Thai and how it saved his life. Follow David Trujillo on instagram: @avo_trujillo Follow Kru Neil and Edwin Lopez on Instagra…

A final Muaythai Hour for the year that was 2022!Από τον Sy Nadji

Some pre fight rituals boost confidence and performance, while others hamper it! Having established an understanding of why rituals and superstitions speak directly to your emotional mind in high-stakes situations to boost confidence and performance in part 1... In this episode, we lever this understanding to pick the best rituals and personalise t…

The evidence is in. Pre fight rituals boost confidence and performance, fact! Pre fight superstitions and rituals are an inherent part of all combat sports, and are baked into the culture of Muay Thai. From Pra Jiad arm bands, Mongkhon headgear, lucky amulets, and sak yant tattoos, to wai kru and ram muay dances, modern day Muay Thai still carries …

Solo fight skill technical practice can fast-track your fight ability if it's done well. In this episode, avoid these fight skill pitfalls or risk sabotaging your technical practice and undoing all your hard work. Further notes and resources at https://heatrick.com/2022/11/11/fight-skills-technical-practice-part-1-group-sessions/ And make sure you'…

When it comes to fight skill technical practice, repetition is key. And group sessions present challenges for individuals looking for technical practice opportunities to fast-track changes in their fight skill habits. In this episode, I discuss my approach for fast-tracking technical practice in group sessions, both as a coach, and a fighter taking…

There’s a difference between feeling tired during fights and being tired… Competing as a fighter is stressful, and the cocktail of neurochemicals and hormones this dumps into your body drastically affects how you feel. Especially early in a fight career, nervousness, anxiety, or even all-out fear, will leave you feeling exhausted without even exert…

Even elite pros require methods for coping with pre fight nerves. And it begins with accepting how you really feel, before adopting strategies to manage that pre fight anxiety when it crops up... And it will! Every fighter has nerves before a fight. If they didn't, they can't perform their best. However, it's important to manage your nerves so, you…

Are you strategically pacing yourself to win fights? Armed with an understanding of how to use a heart rate monitor to determine your own unique training pace, you can not only boost your fight fitness… But crucially, learn how to strategically pace your efforts during a fight to produce the best tactical effect. Just add your own style and technic…

Using fighter’s deload week effectively takes discipline! Recovery is often a dirty word for fighters… However, it’s the difference between year-on-year progress, or a monthly boom and bust. In this discussion with Rolf Eijsink during his coaching call, we explore both my approach to maximising deload weeks, and Rolf’s valuable insight too. Use the…

Regularly practicing this splits, passive, relaxed stretching routine for fighters will rapidly enhance your kicking flexibility. Splits stretching as shown for just 7 mins, at least 3 times per week, will make a huge difference to your kicking ability at all target heights. Not only will you reach higher targets, like the head, that may have not b…

Fighter mental strength training isn't only about what happens on the pads or in sparring. Mental strength is built over the long-term from the habits you repeat each day. In reality, everything you do is an opportunity to either cement the identity of someone who either: 1. Avoids challenging situations or circumstances or gives up before finding …

Both barbells and dumbbells have their place in a fighters program for exercises like the shoulder press... Either to target specific qualities in different blocks of training, to accommodate shoulder mobility or injury, or simply because of the limited availability of one or the other in your gym! In this episode all is explained, while I share pa…

Discipline is needed when your motivation has run dry, and it’s exponentially more important! Fighters must build real discipline in order to become the best they can be. In the last episode, I explained that consistent effort over the long-term makes the biggest difference to your performance. To achieve that, there’s a common denominator – DISCIP…

Do you know the difference between optimal and peak performance for fighters? Too many fighters don’t, and it’s costing them! I see many pro and hobbyist fighters alike, rightly working incredibly hard in their training, but mistakenly believing that every session must push them harder than the last. “Go hard or go home” has its place. However, thi…

Fighters instinctively feel hill sprints boost their fight performance. But, are there alternatives to hill sprints without a hill? Mixing these High Resistance Intervals amongst your “roadwork” develops your endurance in a way steady state running can’t... And in this episode I’ll break down exactly what hill sprints do for your endurance, how to …

For fighters, strong doesn't mean fast. Although strength is the foundation of speed, the human body responds differently to various weight training loads & speeds. Yes, to become a faster, more explosive fighter you must first become stronger – produce more force... If you can create more force, you can accelerate quicker, hit at higher velocity a…

To become a stronger fighter, you must use resistance training correctly... Historically, old-school fight coaches claimed that weight training makes fighters big and slow. But that’s only true if you use resistance training poorly. When used in the right way, weight training can either make you much stronger WITHOUT getting any bigger, or both big…

Understanding exactly why a big fighter isn’t always stronger is crucial for fight performance. It explains why some fighters perform well in their weight class and others don’t, and informs how you can best train to dominate your weight class too. As we’ve seen in the previous two videos, it’s speed that kills! However, the ability to generate the…

Continuing our look at who hits harder, now we consider fighters in different weight classes and the effect this has on the physics of striking! The last episode, “Fat Loss: Who Hits Harder, Big Or Fast?” created some fantastic points of discussion. And shone a light on some areas of confusion too. In this episode, I’ll take key elements from Adam’…

When it comes to fat loss, ever wondered who hits harder, BIG or FAST? Toni did when he asked… “I have a question regarding weight loss and punching power. Let’s imagine we have 2 genetically identical fighters…Muay thai fighter 1 weighs 90 kg but is physically less muscular and fat.Muay Thai fighter 2 weighs 78kg but is physically fitter, has more…

Fighters burnout all the time. And to optimise both long term fight performance and health, and to peak on fight night, hobbyists, amateurs, and pros alike must learn how to balance high intensity fight training with adequate recovery... We all have a training “Goldilocks zone” that boosts our performance without sending us into either overtraining…

Combat sports have so many athletic qualities and technical and tactical skills demanding attention, that training opportunities are inexhaustible! But is fighter performance training healthy? In truth, the objectives are different when either training for optimal health or training for peak fighter performance – even if both walk hand-in-hand for …

Fighter training and work life balance is one of, if not THE biggest struggle for fighters living and training outside of Thailand. It's also a struggle for western fighters training long-term in Thailand too, and affects hobbyists and pro fighters alike, regardless of location. In this episode, Iman Barlow, winner of 19 world titles, shares what s…

Even many pro fighters don’t understand the real secret of how to use the hips in punching technique – because it can seem counter intuitive. But grasp this and your punch power will sky rocket. Once you understand how the correct hip mechanics can transfer maximum force to your rear hand punching technique, you’ll win by KO far more often! Video v…

One thing’s for sure, fighters training with sore muscles is part of Muay Thai – especially when you head out to Thailand to train! But… Is muscle soreness the sign of a good training session? How can you avoid being too sore? Should you train if you’re really sore? How can you reduce muscle soreness the quickest? There’s quite a bit to unpack on t…

Why a lower body activation exercise for strength and conditioning for fighters? Activating the right muscles to efficiently create movement patterns in both strength and conditioning, and a fighter’s technical skill training makes a huge difference to your movement economy and ultimate strength and power levels. And many fighters struggle to “feel…

There are a ton of different reaction training methods and an ever-increasing crop of reaction training devices… And for fighters, they’re NOT all created equal. Some methods really only function as warm-up or movement activities, whereas others can develop Saenchai-like reflexes in the ring! In this episode… which reaction training methods will ma…

It's critical a fighter's corner team understands how to coach fighters between rounds... It not only makes the difference between winning or losing a closely fought fight, but can make or break a fighter's performance entirely. Although there are certainly best practices, such as keeping your instructions to the bare minimum and focusing only on t…

Sy has gained a considerable amount of 'size' since he had that photo with Lamnammoon 3 years ago 👀💪Από τον Sy Nadji

Live cross from Songkran this episode! 💦Από τον Sy Nadji

Many fighters and coaches misunderstand just how much Muay Thai training is really needed to achieve the best performance possible. Generally, Thais don’t understand how to program progressive training. They throw everyone into largely the same regimen, regardless if they’re beginners or seasoned pros.⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣⁣And those that can’t keep up, or become …

Andy ages like a fine wine 🍷👍🏻Από τον Sy Nadji

Let's talk about Will Smith for an hour 🖐️Από τον Sy Nadji

The trio is finally back together to talk all things Muaythai, and there is plenty to talk about as usual!Από τον Sy Nadji

2/3 of the podcast discuss Muaythai after being ghosted 👻👻Από τον Sy Nadji

Welcome to the Jiu Jitsu hour!!😲😲 Muaythai, MUAYTHAI HOUR!Από τον Sy Nadji

Why is there typically more shouting during strikes in Muay Thai TRAINING than in fighting? In this episode, I’ll share my thoughts on this specifically, and on breathing during Muay Thai in general... Full show notes including links to downloads and further resources here: https://heatrick.com/2022/02/06/why-more-shouting-in-muay-thai-training-tha…

20 episodes!! To celebrate we are only going to waffle on about Muaythai for 45mins on this episode of the Muaythai hour(60 mins)!Από τον Sy Nadji

This week on the Muaythai Hour we have a chat with the great and powerful Mark Pease from Strikeforce MuayThai Gym in Queensland!Από τον Sy Nadji

Let's chat about Muaythai for 57 minutes!Από τον Sy Nadji