In the most comprehensive guide available for entry into the fast-growing sport of Muay Thai kickboxing, personal trainer, Thai boxing coach and experienced fighter Chad Boykin leads you through every aspect of the game. Whether you long to test your mettle in the ring or simply get in the best shape of your life, this book will show you how. With clear, instructive photos and descriptions, Boykin demonstrates the conditioning exercises that provide the foundation for the power and speed of Muay Thai. Then he takes you step by step through the brutal elbow and knee strikes, punches, clenches and kicks that form your offensive arsenal, plus the blocks and evasion techniques that will confound your opponent. Training drills teach you to flow from one move to the next with accuracy and confidence. A veteran of the ring, Boykin gives novice fighters inside information on what to expect and offers advice on fighting styles and strategies. Whether you've been participating in kickboxing for years or are new to the sport, this book will give you the edge you need to succeed.
Customer Review: It Was Alright...
While this book does have some good information, and lots of photos to demonstrate techniques, the author doesn't even actually seem to demonstrate that he realizes any difference between muay thai and kick boxing. All in all, i would rather not have bought this book, but am not terribly upset that i did. So, not a terrible buy, but don't expect too much.
Customer Review: Terrible
The author spends the entire introduction claiming how Muay Thai is the most effective self defense martial art out there. But in doing so, he turns a condescending attitude towards every other martial art. He says that Hollywood makes 120 pound women believe that they can defend themselves with "windmill" punches. Yet the author, himself, is the one who succombs to the myths surrounding other martial arts.
So he believes other martial arts like Tae Kwon Do and Karate are useless because all they teach is flashy movie moves. But this only goes to show that the author has absolutely no idea what the other arts teach authentically. TKD and Karate do not emphasize 720 degree jump spinning monkey kicks to protect oneself. In fact, the first thing you learn in a TKD or Karate school is to punch and to defend yourself against a punch. Just because all these Hollywood and Hong Kong movies utilise flashy moves does not mean that other martial arts teach that this is the way to defend yourself in a real fight.
Kickboxing has its limitations just like any other art. If you get grabbed and thrown by a judoka, what are you going to do? Does kickboxing teach you how to fight from the ground?
If you're a Brazilian jiu-jitsu artist and you get into a fight with more than one opponent, what are you going to do? Slap on a submission hold while a guy comes up from behind you and stabs you? Instead of proclaiming that he and his style of fighting is the best, the author should really think about what he's saying. Style bashing (as it is commonly known in the martial arts circles) only shows ignorance.
I haven't seen this author defend himself in a street fight or fight in a no holds barred tournament. But I have seen Tae Kwon Do and Karate guys defend themselves perfectly in a real life street fight against multiple opponents and in one on one situations. And these are gripes I have about just the Introduction! The rest of the book was pretty useless. He says that the book is about conditioning and techniques. The conditioning section only consists of pictures of a guy lifting weights... all I can say is that it was completely useless.
No effort to tell how much weight to use, how many sets, how many reps, and workout schedules? I know how to lift a dumbbell and do a bench press. I don't need this guy's book to show me a picture of it. And the techniques section was very basic. If you have even seen a kickboxing competition, you will probably learn more from just watching it than from the useless (!@$&) this guy shows.
This book is a definite waste of money written by an egotistical ignoramus who wants to sound like he is the best fighter in the world and knows everything about fighting. Yet he can't even put together a simple book on anything useful about kickboxing. Don't buy unless you really want to waste your money. There are much better books on Muay Thai on Amazon. Actually, any other book on Mauy Thai on Amazon is better than this one. I was duped into buying this based on all the other favorable reviews on Amazon. But now I know that they must have been left by the author or his friends. Or by people who have never trained seriously in Muay Thai or any other martial art. More Information
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