Martial arts are gaining more recognition than ever for their range of fitness benefits. As kickboxing, muay thai and other training styles go mainstream, people are aware that it’s not all about fighting. These sports can also help you build strength, boost your confidence, and most of all, they’re fun to do!
Muay Thai and Kickboxing are both martial arts that are perfect for fitness and self defence. Kickboxing incorporates more standard punches and kicks while Muay Thai involves elbow and knee strikes. Muay Thai is more forward and aggressive compared to the fluid and defensive motions of kickboxing.
Muay Thai and kickboxing are both excellent full-body workouts for improving cardiovascular health, boosting metabolism, burning fat, and enhancing physical strength. Although Muay Thai and Kickboxing are similar, there are a few differences you should know if you need to choose one for your fitness routine.
Both options are excellent ways to enjoy working out, but it might be hard for you to choose which of the two martial art forms is the best option for you. It’s a good thing that this article will look deeper into Muay Thai vs Kickboxing—so you can choose which one suits your needs best.
What is Kickboxing?
Kickboxing is a fast-paced workout that combines fighting techniques like boxing, kicking, evading, circling, head weaving, and a lot more. It is a very intense workout that involves aggressive movement—which provides a great cardio workout.Â
Kickboxing involves full-body movement, including:
- Jabs
- Crosses
- Uppercuts
- Hooks
- Knee strikes
- Roundhouse kicks
- Side kicks
- Back kicks
- Front kicks, and a lot more
This range of movements means kickboxing challenges all your muscles, just like a well-designed circuit training or HIIT workout.Â
Kickboxing classes will involve warming up and cooling down, as well as stretching techniques that will get you ready for an intense workout session.Â
You can either choose to attend different types of kickboxing classes, whether you want to learn the martial art and spar with opponents, or just make use of the movements for working out in a non-contact way.Â
Where Does Kickboxing Come From?
Kickboxing originated in Japan. It is a hybrid martial art consisting of punching and kicking elements that use some karate and Muay Thai techniques. It was invented by a Japanese boxing expert that came across Muay Thai and incorporated some of its strikes into boxing—and so, kickboxing was born.Â
What is Muay Thai?
Also known as Thai Boxing, Muay Thai is a martial art or contact sport that utilises stand-up striking and clinching techniques. It involves the use of eight limbs, which are fists, elbows, knees, and shins.Â
For fitness, Muay Thai provides an excellent physical workout that involves the entire body. It has body-sculpting effects and training sessions include a range of physical activities, such as jump rope, kickboxing, shadow boxing, and more.
Because it involves a lot of movement, muay thai training is an excellent aerobic exercise—but not just for your body, but for your mind as well. It is a great exercise that improves self-discipline, and it is excellent for real-life encounters if you need to learn proper self-defence and countering skills.
Where Does Muay Thai Come From?
As the name implies, Muay Thai originated in Thailand. It’s one of the styles that inspired modern kickboxing, and it has a deep history in Thai culture. It dates back several hundreds of years, and it was essentially developed as a form of combat that allows you to use any part of your body as a weapon. Of course, that was the old days before it became a competitive contact sport – you’ll now find Muay Thai classes for women, men and children.Â
What are the Differences Between Kickboxing and Muay Thai?
The first difference between Muay Thai vs Kickboxing is the striking system. Muay Thai uses an eight-point striking system that involves the use of fists, elbows, knees, and shins. While kickboxing only uses the fists and shins, with the occasional knee.Â
The second difference is how the fighters move and attack. Kickboxing is way more aggressive, as it involves striking and defending. It is a more high intensity workout when you get into a ring with an opponent, because you will need to circle and move around a lot to find an opening. The movement involves a lot of head movement, weaving, and circling—highly similar to what’s involved in boxing.
Muay Thai is more of a mental battle. It involves clinching, and a lot of waiting for an opening until your opponent can strike.Â
Kickboxing, in general, requires fluidity in movements. Because it is more aggressive, it involves more footwork when setting up attacks. Muay Thai relies on counterattacks more to find an opening to strike.Â
With that being said, Muay Thai is more straightforward but relies on really powerful blows. At the same time, kickboxing has more artistic moves, which is excellent for working out.Â
Muay Thai vs. Kickboxing: Which is a Better Workout?
Both disciplines provide a good work out, whether you are looking for a good cardio workout, building strength, or toning your muscles. Here are some of the differences between kickboxing and muay thai in terms of which is better for your fitness goals.
Cardio
Because sparring in the ring with kickboxing involves a lot of evading attacks, fancy moves, and footwork, kickboxing is a better aerobic exercise for improving cardio and increasing your heart rate.
Muay Thai often uses less footwork in comparison, however, that doesn’t make it a bad choice for cardio. Because it involves a wider variety of strikes and kicks, it makes for a great cardio workout.Â
However, neither style is as cardio-intensive as a full circuit training class or HIIT workout. If you’re really looking to max out your heart rate, you may need to include other training styles in your exercise routine. Â
Building Strength & Muscle
Muay Thai involves more powerful strikes, which means it is better for building strength. If you want to achieve and develop muscles, Muay Thai might be a better choice because it involves heavy lifting, less movement, and giving powerful blows.Â
But that doesn’t mean you cannot build strength with kickboxing. It’s just not as efficient compared to learning the fighting techniques of Muay Thai. Both are excellent for building muscles, but because kickboxing involves more cardio, it might be better for toning instead of gaining bigger muscles.Â
If you’re aiming to build strength or muscle, you’ll want to incorporate some targeted strength training into your routine as well.Â
Muay Thai vs. Kickboxing: Which is Better for Beginners?
Kickboxing might have more fancy moves, but it is a much more accessible sport compared to Muay Thai. Muay Thai is a more complete martial art that involves clinching, the use of knees, and elbows—making the moves and discipline a lot harder to learn for beginners.Â
On the other hand, kickboxing offers non-contact classes for a cardio workout, which would be a lot perfect for beginners. With a kickboxing background, you might even learn the fundamentals that could help you learn Muay Thai in the future.Â
If you’re looking for a training style that’s as accessible as possible, women’s boxing for beginners is generally easy to learn, and may give you an idea if martial arts training is something you’re interested in.Â
Muay Thai vs. Kickboxing: Which is Better for Self Defence?
Muay Thai is the better choice if you want to learn how to defend yourself against attackers in the real world. That’s because Muay Thai is a complete martial art that involves a lot of discipline. Instead of attacking first, you’ll need patience and strategy in waiting for the opponent to attack—which makes it better suited to self-defence.Â
Interested in how muay thai can help you stay safe? Learn more about Muay Thai for women and whether it’s the right workout style for you.
Related Questions
Is Kickboxing Safer Than Muay Thai?
Both of these martial arts are contact sports where you can potentially get hurt, but cardio kickboxing is much safer since it is a class that teaches the moves without actually getting in the ring with an opponent. Both, however, are safe in a controlled environment that is not competitive, considering you are wearing all the protective gear.Â
If you’d rather avoid contact sports altogether, consider alternatives like HIIT or circuit training for the strength and cardio benefits (minus the punching and kicking)
Is Muay Thai or Kickboxing Better for MMA?
Because MMA involves a lot of clinching, Muay Thai might be a better choice. But because kickboxing involves aggressive attacks, footwork, and other fancy moves—it is also effective in MMA fighting. If you can learn both, that would definitely give you an edge. Both Muay Thai and kickboxing have their place in MMA, and having a firm understanding of both will only improve your performance.Â
How Do the Kickboxing Stances and the Muay Thai Stances Differ?
Muay Thai stances need to be much looser, because of the types of strikes within the martial art. In comparison, kickboxing more closely resembles traditional boxing stances, keeping your core movements tight, minimising openings for your opponent to strike. In comparison, the more open stances of Muay Thai leaves a lot of openings, which balances out the powerful and precise strikes.
Disclaimer:
This article is published for general informational purposes only. It does not constitute medical advice and does not take into consideration your individual circumstances, medical conditions or abilities. Always consult a medical professional before beginning any program of exercise. A fitness industry professional can provide personalised advice to suit your needs.Â
