During the last few years, more and more people are taking Muay Thai training as an alluring sport that helps them in becoming physically strong in numerous ways. People of all ages take up Muay Thai but fail to consider another important aspect, Muay Thai mental benefits.
Yes, people well up with the mental benefits of jogging, yoga, and other exercises. But unfortunately, there is little to no awareness about the benefits when it comes to martial arts like Muay Thai.
Nothing to bother about as in this article, you will get abreast of the mind-blowing mental boosting benefits of Muay Thai. So, let’s get into it!
What is Muay Thai?
Muay Thai, also known as Thai boxing, is an international sport having its roots in the Thailand military and dates back to the 13th century. When seen in UFC or Bellator bouts, Thai is always a prime component of MMA fighters, in addition to jiu-jitsu. Saekson Muay Thai is famous worldwide due to his Muay Thai techniques.
Art of Eight Limbs
Thai boxing is also known as Art of Eight Limbs because it involves the use of eight body parts in its moves:
- Two hands
- Two elbows
- Two legs
- Two knees
Now, let us jump directly to the benefits of Muay Thai- the mental benefits.
What are The Muay Thai Mental Benefits?
When it comes to discussing the benefits overall, you know very well that Muay Thai is a full-body workout that provides exercise to the whole body. It burns a lot more calories than any other comparative sport. The difference can be easily seen by comparing before and after muay Thai pictures. A single round of 60 minutes burns 1000 calories.
In short, the main physical benefits of Thai boxing are:
- Increased core strength
- Better hip mobility
- Cardiovascular wellness
But that’s not our matter of consultation. Our focus is on the mental benefits; how it helps to make us emotionally and mentally strong. So, here are the prime Thai boxing benefits:
- Major stress buster
- Helps you socialize
- Boosts the mind in problem-solving skills
- Improves confidence and emotional well-being
- Get an endorphin rush
- Improves attention
Let’s shed light on all of these benefits of Muay Thai training separately.
Major Stress Buster
Claiming Muay Thai unleashes your inner warrior won’t be wrong. The training of Muay Thai includes the styles and moves which improve not only your fighting stamina but also your overall health.
It is a perfect way to release stress and anxiety issues. But HOW? Muay Thai results in the release of stress hormones in a very small amount like adrenaline and cortisol- the hormones of adrenal glands present on your kidney. Instead, it releases hormones like dopamine, which are happy hormones.
Muay Thai is a combo of both aerobic and anaerobic exercises that not only boosts the metabolism but also de-stress you. It keeps depression, anxiety, and stress all at bay.
Helps you socialize
You all are social creatures. It is in your genes that you love to interact with other people. Socialising is good for our well-being.
But unfortunately, most sports are played individually, where you feel alone and isolated from the trainer. On the other hand, in Muay Thai Training, you need an opponent to pair up with and learn skills and techniques. So, it develops a sense of community and friendliness in individuals.
This makes people more tolerant socially and professionally. So, even if you don’t come with friends to the gym to Muay Thai, you definitely leave with one.
RESEARCH
Research proves that children who actively engage with other children in games and sports have improved cognitive functions and become well-rounded adults.
Boosts the mind in problem-solving skills
Mind Boosting and strength is yet another mental benefit of Muay Thai training. It helps to boost your mind, strengthen it, and helps to improve your problem-solving skills using and implementing new and new techniques.
Muay Thai boxing is all about handling the attack and strike of your opponent and giving back a more powerful stroke.
Whether your opponent is good at defense or hitting, you immediately come up with a better solution to attack.
So, being stuck in such a situation again and again, and coming up with an instant solution, trains your mind and makes it more active. As a result, you become a better problem solver for the rest of your life.
Improves confidence and emotional well-being
One of the Muay Thai benefits is that it boosts your morale, confidence, and well-being. If you aren’t confident, it will diminish your performance. An unshakeable belief and confidence in yourself give you the power to try no matter how many times you fail. That is what Muay Thai helps you in.
Muay Thai plum, which is one of the most common styles of Muay Thai boxing, makes you confident by using countless striking techniques. Here are the following ways how Muay Thai helps to boost your confidence:
- It helps you to defend yourself. Research showed that 95% of the people who know how to defend themselves have better confidence and improved well-being.
- It provides you with a better body to carry. People with better appearances tend to be more confident.
Get an endorphin rush, and fight depression
Apart from helping you fight depression and anxiety, Muay Thai training is specifically beneficial for your mental health in terms of hormones.
Studies and experiments showed that people who practiced and learned Muay Thai training have a greater amount of happy hormones like oxytocin and dopamine.
In 2013, a study showed that people who started Thai boxing and similar sports had less depression after six months. This may be due to the more release of happy hormones and meditative function.
While other exercises like jogging or brisk walking need almost 20 minutes of activity to release such hormones, a few moves of Muay Thai are intense enough to release them.
Improves Attention
Muay Thai, just like other martial arts, is an attention state training (AST) form. This includes techniques that make attention and focus better. You need to use various styles simultaneously, which requires precision and attention.
Self-defense and aggression
Instead of telling a story, let’s discuss the statistics first.
A study in 2008 asked children between 8 to 11 years to learn Muay Thai and other martial arts, which emphasized self-defense. The results were mind-blowing:
- Level of aggression reduced
- Physical and verbal confidence increased
It trains you how to become calm and remain serene in a certain situation, think strategically and take courage from your opponent. If you want to read more about Self-defense then read here.
Improves Sleep Quality
Yet another benefit is that Muay Thai improves your sleep quality. Yes, training in Muay Thai results in the release of the feel-good hormone serotonin.
Serotonin is not released immediately. Instead, the release of serotonin is after the level of dopamine starts to decrease.
Serotonin regulates your mood, freshens you, and develops a state of well-being. Moreover, melatonin is also released, which smooths your sleep-wake cycle.
Muay Thai vs Karate- The Better One!
Both Muay Thai and Karate are ancient origin martial arts. But when it comes to comparison, Muay Thai is better than Karate in various terms like:
- The strokes of Muay Thai boxing are more than Karate in terms of using clinch elbows and kicking. On the other hand, although the theory of Karate contains all these techniques, we have not found any practical usage of these techniques to date.
- Karate includes only light throws and fast submissions, while in Muay Thai, you use all the boxing techniques, including jab, hook, uppercut, etc. It is a more versatile form of martial arts.
Conclusion
There is no second thought that Muay Thai mental benefits are far more than the physical ones. Without any doubt, we can say that Muay Thai is one of the most combat sports to opt for to get fit both mentally and physically.
So, what are you waiting for? Start learning Muay Thai and get the maximum benefits
