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How to Condition Your Bones for Muay Thai Without Injuring Yourself

In order to be better at Muay Thai or any martial arts in general you must undergo bone conditioning. It is the series of practices that are used to boost your resilience so that you are less likely to get injured in the face of the real threat and while implementing the techniques you know.

Just to make it clear, you can do this without injuring yourself, but you can’t do it without experiencing some pain and discomfort, particularly when kicking with the shins. So, without any further delay here are some things we recommend for martial arts practitioners who want to get stronger without risking injury; as we teach in our Sydney kids martial art, if done correctly and gradually, such conditioning can be safe for people of all ages.

Kick the heavy bag and spar with your friends

For Muay Thai it is crucial that you practice your kicks on a heavy bag each training session. You need to practice an insane amount of kicks, in order for your bones to calcify and increase their hardness. It can be tiresome, it can be boring, but it’s worth it; you will improve your kick’s intensity, your bone density, your endurance and your balance.

Each training session you should do a hundred kicks with each leg, and if you can do more, then force yourself to do more. The thing to remember is not to go full force until you can do so without feeling too much pain. You will create micro fractures that are easily mended, yet the bones will grow stronger with each of these minor repairs. It’s important to be consistent and do this at least 4-5 days a week.

You need to spar frequently as well, since you need to prepare for fights, and to condition other bones of your body, not just your legs. So, in order to get tougher expect some bruises from light kicks to the ribs and hits to the forearms as well, and make sure that you wear your protective gear during these sessions.

Once your bones get sturdier, you can practice without gear, to work on your mobility as well. Sydney martial arts clubs are very good at teaching Muay Thay and overseeing sparring sessions, so you and your kids are in good hands.

Work on your balance

You need to strengthen your muscles so that they can provide you with reliable balance and allow you to properly receive kicks and strikes. After all, you will be doing a lot of kicking and blocking, so you’ll often find yourself standing on one leg. Do heavy squats, box jumps, lunges and cleans to both increase your bone density and to increase your balance; a lot of studies pointed out that weight lifting can increase bone density, so start lifting ASAP!

Increase your intake of calcium and vitamin D

For kids, it is imperative that they take these vitamins and minerals, since their bones are growing, and all good kids martial arts Sydney based trainers will tell you that as well. Additionally, even if you are not growing anymore, in order for your bones to efficiently recover they need calcium and vitamin D.

So it is important that you modify your diet a bit and get as much sunlight as you can, or look for foods fortified with vitamin D. Of course, since you are working out, you should have a healthier diet in general, for the sake of maximizing the effects of your training.

Brace yourself for pain and persevere

Finally, with all of the punching and kicking and sparring in general, you will get a few bruises and it will hurt, but you need to treat your wounds and keep going. Make sure your hands are wrapped properly to prevent sprain or serious injury, and make sure you are executing the technique correctly. Also when you get hurt, you know what to do, ice, heat treatment and some rest. Do not overdo it or continue to do heavy sparring with minor injuries, because you can only make things worse.

Give our BJJ program a go and experience the improvements to all of these fields. It is considered to be an excellent first style where the skills are easily transferable.

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"2018 has been my 3rd year training at ICC. It is by far the best, most welcoming gym in Australia and has a great family atmosphere that makes me look forward to training every single time. I have trained at ICC since I was 15 years old and I’ve made so many great friendships through the gym. All instructors at ICC have a profound understanding of their respected martial arts disciplines and this has been reflected in the success of the competitors on a local and international level. ICC is the gym to train at, no matter what your goal is."

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