<h5>In Shanghai, The Muay Thai fever is heating up dramatically. </h5>
In a review network to enter the "Muay Thai" search, Shanghai to provide Muay Thai classes in the boxing gyms and fitness centers page by page down, there is a feeling of not turning the head; according to the "distance priority" query, the reporter's location (near the sixth hospital) within 2 kilometers, there are 11 fitness places where Muay Thai is taught; within 2 kilometers of the reporter's work place - the reporting group, there are 12 fitness places that teach Muay Thai.
It is the female white-collar workers in Shanghai who are driving this boom - after work, meeting to "fight" seems to be becoming a way of life for more and more female white-collar workers.
In the world of fighting, Muay Thai, which is known as "500 years undefeated", has always been known for its tough playing style. What kind of story is this fierce martial art from the ring to the fitness place, combined with the "female white collar"?
The reporter chatted with 2 female trainees, 2 Muay Thai instructors from Thailand, and 1 boxing gym owner.
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30 years old+, realize your dreams
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On October 2, Rub participated in the season organized by the Muay Thai Gym and won the competition
Muay Thai has been learning for more than 1 year, and the biggest change in rubbing is two points: one is to lose 20 pounds, and the other is to have a better temper.
Now when I encounter people who are in line, the reaction of rubbing the most is: plug in, no big deal. Before learning boxing, whenever I see someone who is in line, rubbing will feel "a fire rise in my chest."
"Maybe it's because punching is very happy, a person is happy, and he will be more tolerant of others." I felt that I was much less angry than before. ”
I learned boxing for more than a year and lost 20 pounds of rubbing
"Happy" is the result of rubbing, when I first learned Muay Thai, rubbing was aimed at losing weight.
There are thousands of ways to lose weight, why muay thai?
Speaking of which, this is still a story of "30 years old + realizing dreams".
"Photography" and "Learning To Boxing" are two of the items on rub high school 'wish list'. "I've loved photography since I was a kid, because my father was a photographer, so I fiddled with cameras from a very young age, thinking that when I grew up, I would do photography as well; boxing was because I thought it was cool, maybe my personality was a bit like a boy, and I was always fascinated by cool things." 」
The dream of photography has come true. Born in 1987, He studied photography at university and became a photojournalist after graduation. As for the dream of learning boxing, it was shelved, but it has not been forgotten.
At the end of 2018, Rub found a realistic motivation to achieve her dream - weight loss. At that time, she was 161 tall and weighed more than 120 pounds, and she called herself "Fa Fu's Washboard", "At the beginning, it was not Muay Thai, but boxing, just in 'Super Orangutan', where there was a boxing class that was learned with the appointment." ”
Usually rubbing would go two or three times a week, but after 2 years, she didn't lose weight.
"It may be the relationship between the group class, and the amount of exercise is not enough." So she thought of "more brutal" one-on-one personal lessons. Considering that her leg ligaments were good, she decided to learn Muay Thai.
The ligaments in the legs are good, so I chose to learn Muay Thai
Boxing and Muay Thai are two different martial arts. Simply put, the former uses the upper body, and the latter "uses both hands and feet".
"I'm the kind of person who can split a fork at will, and my feet can be lifted to a higher level than my head, so I decided to learn Muay Thai and use my legs to the advantage."
At the end of June 2020, Rubbing officially learned Muay Thai and finally "thinned" as he wished: he lost 20 pounds in one year.
I lost a lot of weight and exercised a lot!
Usually, rub 2-5 personal training sessions a week, "see if you can make an appointment, and if you can make an appointment, you can go to more." ”
A personal training class of 1 and a half hours, "the beginning of the warm-up exercise, first jump rope, short 3 minutes, long 10 minutes; then air strike, that is, do not wear a boxing set to practice boxing, practice for 3-5 minutes; then practice target, generally practice for 1 hour; finally actual combat for half an hour, and play against the coach." ”
Rub with a Muay Thai instructor
Because of the "unambiguous" practice, injuries are commonplace. After more than 1 year, rubbing the right index finger fist peak has turned black, "Here is often broken, some students are more serious, all rotten, but applied ointment, bandages to continue practicing!" ”
He also injured his legs and wrists, and had a fracture in his big toe.
When practicing boxing in December last year, the big toe of the rubbing was injured because of the force of bending and landing on the ground, "At that time, that hurt... I'm not a crying person, but the tears couldn't help but flow down at that time. ”
Later, the whole foot was swollen out of shape, but before the swelling subsided, rub and ran to the Muay Thai gym to practice, "The hand is not injured, the other foot is not injured, continue to practice!" ”
Muay Thai has become an integral part of rubbing life
So tired, so painful, so hard, but still persevered. "It's fun because of boxing! If I didn't really like it, I don't think I would have been able to stick with it at all. Rubbing sometimes I can't help but sigh, "How much I love Muay Thai!" ”
<h2>The 49-year-old "sister" fell in love with Muay Thai</h2>
Zhang Jing, 49, is one of the rare "older students" in the Muay Thai gym, and all the students in the gym, as well as the coaches, call her "sister".
Once, a Thai coach asked another Thai coach, "In Thailand, someone as old as my sister would definitely not come to learn to punch." You say, why did my sister still come to play Muay Thai? ”
"Because Muay Thai is fun!" For Zhang Jing, who has more than 10 years of fitness experience, this answer is not a joke.
Although there were nine out of forty, Zhang Jing practiced Muay Thai unequivocally
In 2009, when her daughter was in the second grade of primary school, Zhang Jing changed her "job", "I used to work in the banking and insurance department of AIA Insurance, but later because the children were not picked up, and the home was going to be renovated, she simply resigned and became a full-time housewife at home." ”
"Work" hours are also reversed, "I used to be busy nine to five, now after 4 p.m. and weekends are my working hours." ”
During the daytime "no work" time, Zhang Jing is mainly used for fitness, "I don't like to go shopping for clothes, I don't like to make cafes and drink afternoon tea, and I'm not interested in punching in and taking photos at Internet celebrity attractions... You say, what do I spend my day time for? Let's go to the gym! I've always loved sports and can also lose weight. ”
Almost all the sports in the gym, Zhang Jing has tried to practice for a while, "running, cycling, practicing equipment, jumping group exercises..."
When jumping group exercises, Zhang Jing liked the fighting course "body combat" the most, and felt that it was very fun to fight. However, the gym's group exercises, the teacher will teach a new routine a month, playing a little too addictive.
It just so happens that a friend is learning Muay Thai and recommends Zhang Jing to try it too. So in June last year, Zhang Jing walked into a Muay Thai boxing gym near her home.
After the first class, Zhang Jing found that this was exactly what she wanted to learn, and bought 60 classes on the spot.
Zhang Jing found it fun to play Muay Thai because she didn't know what would happen with the next punch she punched
"It was fun, no routine at all! Too many changes! I've been working out for over 10 years, and I've practiced so many sports, many of which are cookie-cutter, repetitive, monotonous exercises, and I've never encountered anything more interesting than Muay Thai. ”
Students who practice in boxing gyms can be divided into two categories, one is "casual practice", and the other is to want to fight boxing well.
Zhang Jing belongs to the latter category. If the appointment can be made, from Monday to Friday, "not going to work", Zhang Jing will basically go to the boxing gym every day to punch, "If I can't make an appointment that day, I will run an 8-kilometer step." ”
For those students who want to practice Muay Thai well, the requirements of the coach will be higher, "Muay Thai is a boxing that requires hardship and takes time to practice well." If the coach sees that you want to practice well, you will not be so ruthless. Once, I was dropped by a coach for a lesson. ”
Injuries are also inevitable, "especially when the movements are not standard at the beginning, the most vulnerable injuries are the most, and the toes and insteps are the most injured." You don't know how hard the coach's knees are, and kicking their toes into their knees is like mentioning a stone! ”
In June this year, Zhang Jing (first from right) participated in a competition organized by the boxing gym and won the summer points competition
But compared to the fun she got in Muay Thai, Zhang Jing felt that these were nothing, "the more I played, the more I liked it." You never know if the opponent will punch straight, hook or swing the next time, and that's a fun sport. ”
Because of the good physical foundation laid by more than 10 years of fitness, for the 1 and a half hour high-intensity Muay Thai personal training class, 49-year-old Zhang Jing currently feels completely acceptable, "although it will also be tired and breathless, but I feel that there is no problem." ”
But she also knows that she can't help the old, "Wait until one day I am seriously injured, the doctor suggests that I can't fight anymore, I will give up." 」 Until then, let's keep fighting like this. ”
Zhang Jing has always been curious about life, she laughed, "I don't feel like I'm 49 years old." ”
"I bought more than 500 lessons!" When laughing and talking about this, the 49-year-old "sister" can't hide her love for Muay Thai.
<h2>Female trainees in Shanghai are more serious than female trainees in Thailand</h2>
Walter, a Thai coach who has been teaching Muay Thai in Shanghai for more than 4 years, was impressed by the female students in Shanghai.
Walter, 32, began learning Muay Thai at the age of 9 and ended his playing career at the age of 24 before teaching Muay Thai at a boxing gym in Thailand. After teaching in Thailand for almost 4 years, I came to Shanghai.
Walter has been teaching Muay Thai from Shanghai for over 4 years
"After teaching in Thailand for 4 years and teaching in Shanghai for more than 4 years, I feel that the female trainees here are more serious than the female trainees in Thailand, come to the boxing gym more frequently, and practice harder and harder."
The same is that whether in Thailand or Shanghai, there are more female students, "like the students I teach now, female students account for almost 70%, basically white-collar workers." ”
Another thing that is the same is that female students who learn Muay Thai are basically aimed at losing weight and shaping.
Suta, a 36-year-old Muay Thai coach, has been teaching Muay Thai in Shanghai for more than 3 years. When teaching boxing in Thailand, Suta had many star trainees. Many celebrities choose to practice Muay Thai because of The remarkable "fat reduction and shaping" effect of Muay Thai.
"Learn Muay Thai to lose fat quickly, shape is good, because when training, you have to practice punching, kicking, elbowing, knee punches, etc., the whole body will move, so the overall shaping is better, and it will not be trained into a large muscle piece by piece." There are also muay thai legs will not be thick, the more practice the better, which is why many female students choose to practice Muay Thai. Suta said.
Suta's students in Thailand have many star students
Although the vast majority of female trainees are aimed at losing weight, after people lose weight, there are not a few who practice boxing.
"The more people practice, the more they like it." Suta said that now his trainees are basically white-collar workers, "during the day often sit in the office for a day, after work here to punch feel very venting, very cheerful, some students who do not sleep well, said that after boxing to sleep particularly well." There are a lot of old students in our Muay Thai gym, and even some have been practicing for more than 10 years, or because they like it, otherwise they wouldn't have played for so long. ”
In Walter's view, the biggest charm of Muay Thai is that "learning is endless", "Muay Thai is impossible to learn, to do a good job of action, all kinds of details have to be practiced, and each coach's style is different, good at the action, skills are also different, so some students will change coaches to continue to learn after a while... Each technique, each stage, brings different fun. ”
<h2>Now, it's fashionable to play Muay Thai</h2>
Shanghai's largest Muay Thai gym, FeiYi Tiger, has witnessed the rapid expansion of the Shanghai Muay Thai fitness market in recent years.
Zhao Liwei, deputy general manager of Feiyi Tiger, told reporters that when the first Feiyi Tiger Muay Thai Boxing Gym was founded in Shanghai in 2004, "the members are basically foreigners." ”
It wasn't until 11 years later that Fei Yi Tai Ge opened a second Muay Thai gym in Shanghai. But since 2015, in 6 years, Feiyi Tiger has opened 11 new boxing gyms, and the number of stores in Shanghai has reached 13, "such a scale, not only in Shanghai, but also in the country is one of the best." Zhao Liwei said.
According to Zhao Liwei, nearly 60 coaches of Feiyi Tiger are all from Thailand
2015 is obviously a watershed year for the development of Feiyi Tiger. "Not only our Feiyi Tiger, but also the fitness venues where Muay Thai is currently taught in Shanghai, almost half of them came out after 2015."
In this regard, Zhao Liwei explained that this is closely related to the rise in the popularity of sports events since 2015.
In the second half of 2014, the executive meeting of the State Council deployed to accelerate the development of the sports industry, and explicitly cancelled the approval of commercial and mass sports events, "After the liberalization of sports events, many fighting events have been held, and more and more people know Muay Thai." I remember talking about Muay Thai in 2007 and 2008, and many people's first reaction was, 'Tai Chi?' Now it's basically not like that. ”
Celebrities have played a role in fueling the waves.
In recent years, Victoria's Secret supermodels have posted videos of Muay Thai, and Yao Chen and others have also joined the camp of practicing Muay Thai, and practicing Muay Thai has become a fashionable thing.
In Zhao Liwei's view, this is also the reason why there are more female students than male students learning Muay Thai. "Women are more sensitive to fashion and fashion. When Muay Thai becomes a cool, stylish form of fitness, it's easier to attract women. ”
Zhao Liwei said that many female trainees carry a bag with a fist sleeve hanging from the bag, which looks fashionable and cool
According to Zhao Liwei, the total number of feiyi tiger students is currently about 20,000, and the ratio of male and female students is almost 3:7, "mainly female white-collar workers aged 30-40, accounting for more than half of the total number of students." ”
Judging from the current market demand, Zhao Liwei told reporters that Feiyi Tiger will open more new Muay Thai gyms in Shanghai.
"There are more and more new students, and the old students will continue to practice, and from a deeper point of view, it is also because Muay Thai has charm." I read a research report on what kind of fighting sports are most attractive. The conclusion is that this fight meets three requirements: practicality, aesthetics, and cultural heritage. Muay Thai is exactly these three things are satisfied: very practical - weight loss and shaping effect is remarkable, practice to a certain extent, but also self-defense; aesthetics - Muay Thai can be very beautiful, well-trained students really cool and handsome; cultural heritage - Muay Thai is the essence of Thailand, is a very popular sport in Thailand, and is also an important part of Thai culture and history. Many of our students here fell in love with Thai culture because of Muay Thai boxing, to learn Thai, learn to cook Thai food, and life has opened up a new aspect. ”
Source: Thoughtful