I have heard people say muay thai doesn't have good foot work while I have heard other say it has excellent footwork. What are movements used in muay thaa footwork. Even better are there any drills to practice?
Each Muay Thai gym is different. Some have stronger, more effective footwork than others. There are some gyms where footwork is more of an afterthought. My gym relies very heavily upon footwork.
There are a couple of different drills that I use that focus on footwork...
Jumping Rope- helps students learn to stay light on their feet
Jumping on Tires- helps students develop the muscles to stay on their toes
Footwork Shadowboxing- I occassionally have my student spend a round or two of shadowboxing working solely on footwork. I encourage them to practice changing direction rapidly and explosive movement.
Footwork Circle Drill- students use circular footwork to skip around the ring or designated area in the class. This drill focuses on a couple of different aspects of footwork and body mechanics.
Outside of the above, students are taught to use the correct footwork in the various technique and combination drills that are performed throughout class. I don't just teach students to punch, kick, knee, and elbow. I teach them how to use these techniques in conjunction with proper footwork to put themselves in position to hit and not be hit back.
Khun Kao
muay thai has pretty good footwork, depends more on the coach though. BOxing almost always has good footwork.
I was taught to drill the lines and circles in the same manner as a boxer.
This is 2 circles about 8 feet in diameter joined by 2 lines 15 feet length. You advance along the first line, circle right around the first circle, retreat along the second line and circle left around the second circle. Each step is punctuated by a 2 or 3 strike freestyle combo, then you switch and repeat.
I do also skip, as it helps keep you light on yor feet.
Never done the tyre thing, but if Khun Kao recomends it, it must be good for something.
The tire thing is just for building strength and stamina so that a fighter can stay on his toes while fighting without getting fatigued...
Khun Kao
One thing you should be careful about is too much uneccessary lateral movement. I see a ton of guys do this and walk into a leg kick...which really ruins their whole Muhammed Ali fantasy, lol.
Johnnypayne,
That sounds pretty good, does anyone else do something similar? Also, is there a picture of someone with this set up anywhere?
Cheers,
K2
The Duke Roufus Series on Groundfighter.com has 2 videos on footwork. I don't have those videos, but I have the advanced tapes where he refers to the previous drills.
I like the tapes that I have.
ARRGh Jumping on the tyres..... *fethal position sucking thumb*
i like jumping on tires. its fun.
K2 if you go to most AMA Boxing gyms they work lines and circles, mine are the sizes and configuration because I like them that way, take your kicking range as the radius as this give a good indication of circling static opponent.
ttt
I found that getting tagged in the face and or the legs keeps me moving and light on my feet.