Muay Thai gaining in popularity as fitness mantra
Print Edition
Wearing boxing gloves and shin guards, Wang Yuchen, a 9-year-old student from southwest China鈥檚 Yunnan Province, repeatedly throws punches and kicks at boxing pads in his coach鈥檚 hands.
Wang has been practicing Muay Thai, a kickboxing style that is known for strikes with fists, feet, elbows and knees, in a gym located in downtown Kunming, the provincial capital, for over a year.
鈥淚 used to catch colds frequently, but not so much after I practiced Muay Thai, and my athletic performance at school also improved,鈥 said Wang, showing off his newly developed muscles.
Wang was accompanied by his father Wang Jian, a 36-year-old man who has been practicing Muay Thai in Kunming OngBak Muay Thai & Boxing & MMA gym, or OngBak gym, since 2018.
鈥淚 became interested in Muay Thai after watching the Thai martial arts movie series called 鈥極ng Bak,鈥 which is the origin of this gym鈥檚 name,鈥 said Wang Jian, adding that now he has become healthier, more energetic and has a good grasp of self-defense skills.
According to Wang Jian, they are not the only father and son to learn Muay Thai in the gym, which offers an opportunity for parents to enhance interaction with their children and for children to make new friends outside of school.
Founded in 2016, OngBak gym, one of the first Muay Thai gyms in Kunming, has seen it become a new favorite fitness event among residents in recent years. It has a membership of 1,200, among which some 400 are active members.
鈥淕enerally speaking, men come here to practice Muay Thai so as to boost their masculinity, while women come to seek a slim body,鈥 said Zhu Jinqiu, the head coach who runs OngBak gym.
鈥淎s for children, practicing Muay Thai can help build their physical strength and mental toughness. That鈥檚 why more parents are turning to Muay Thai.鈥
鈥淧racticing Muay Thai doesn鈥檛 mean that we tend to resort to violence. When dealing with conflicts with others, we will restrain ourselves rather than act on impulse,鈥 said Lou Liping, a 39-year-old female white-collar worker who started to practice Muay Thai in 2016.
For Lou, what started as a way to relieve stress from work has become an indispensable part of her life.
Lou鈥檚 opinion is in perfect accordance with the values of Muay Thai that Zhu wants to convey. By teaching Muay Thai techniques, Zhu expects everyone who practices the martial art to become gentle and powerful.
Zhu, 37, has noticed that an increasing number of Muay Thai clubs have been sprouting up in China鈥檚 major cities.
鈥淎s more and more citizens become passionate about Muay Thai, there are tremendous opportunities for the sport to develop in China,鈥 Zhu concluded.
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