# Worried



## kitsune (Apr 29, 2006)

Hi everyone. I'm new here, but I have a few questions. My boyfriend has decided that he wants to fight professionally, and he's thinking of Muay Thai which he's tried before, or something simular.

So my first question is what should I expect? In attitude and everything, aside from him always training, should anything change?

And how do your girlfriends/wives/whatever handle it?


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## Sam (Apr 29, 2006)

He's decided he wants to fight professionally - but he's a COMPLETE beginner? 

Might just be a phase.

He shouldn't really change in any negative ways, assuming he's generally a good guy to begin with. Definitely expect to hear about his training a lot. I've also noticed that a lot of beginners tend to go through an "I am god, I can take on anything, my martial art can kill your martial art" phase... that isn't healthy and his instructor should kill it immediately. 

Expect him to try to get you to train, too.

Some normal "Side Effects" but are not necessarily in every person (and not limited to):

Confidence
Strength
Agility
Humbleness
Focus


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## kitsune (Apr 29, 2006)

Thanks. But as for him being a beginner, he's a beginner when it comes to professionally fighting, but he's been fighting his whole life. That's why when he tells me he wants to start fighting professionally, I believe him.


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## Carol (Apr 29, 2006)

kitsune said:
			
		

> Thanks. But as for him being a beginner, he's a beginner when it comes to professionally fighting, but he's been fighting his whole life. That's why when he tells me he wants to start fighting professionally, I believe him.


 
What if there was a man that wants to get married?  He has dated women before.  He thinks he would like to marry a girl that likes to read, but he has never dated a girl that likes to read before.  He is thinking about walking in to a bookstore, finding a single girl, and proposing marriage to her.

What about a girl that likes to sing?  She has sang in her church choir most of her life.  She has never played the drums, but she has decided that she wants to be a professional drummer.  

Are these smart things to do?

Kitsune, if it were me personally, what would bother me about your boyfriend's decision is not that he wanted to be a fighter or be in the Arts.  What bothers me is that he wants to make that kind of commitment even though he has accomplished aboslutely nothing in Muay Thai.

There is nothing wrong with getting married, or being a professional drummer, or being a professional Muay Thai fighter.

But there can be wrong times to make those decisions.  

A martial artist will face many pivotal choices in their life.  Each one must be chosen wisely. 

Wishing you good luck and good fortune  :asian:


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## kitsune (Apr 29, 2006)

I completely understand what you're saying. In fact, I'm not very happy with his choice either, but I cannot tell him what to do. He's spent his whole life street-fighting, so he has decided that fighting is what he wants to do even though I've suggest he continue to pursue a career in art.

Since it's obviously something he wants, and I'm tired of fighting with him, I have nothing left to do but support him.

However, I do want to hear from people about his chances about making it because I think they're slim, but I'm no expert in Martial Arts. He's had injuries from fights previously and really messed up his right hand by breaking a lot of knuckles. He is also turning 22, which makes him semi-old compared to other people going into Martial Arts.


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## Carol (Apr 30, 2006)

Your instincts are good Kitsune, his chances are nearly zero.  He does not have the fighting skills to stand out (as he as has never fought Muay Thai before) and he does not seem to have the smarts and analytical skills to manage the aspects of his career that don't involve hitting people.

Does it mean that he can't do anything commercial with his art?  Not necessarily.  Muay Thai is a growing sport, and is getting a lot of attention with how tough the fighters really are.   It may be an art where he can find a professional home teaching in addition to fighting.  But, fighting and teaching are two completely different skill sets.

The best thing he could do for himself at this point in his life is go to college.   Not everyone likes to hear that...even less like to do that.  But, it's his call.   That's just my opinion though.


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## Kenpo_man (May 1, 2006)

Fighting professionally in muay thai is VERY different than street fighting. He will want to find a good gym and start training yesterday. He should do a lot of amateur matches long before he jumps into pro fighting because the pros are a whole different breed of human. If he wants to explore muay thai, tell him to save up and go train in a muay thai camp in Thailand. As for crash courses, that's probably his best bet and he'll discover very quickly just what it takes to fight as a pro.


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## kitsune (May 1, 2006)

I figured as much Carol and Kenpo. But he can be very stubborn, so it isn't easy to sway him and make him see what I or others see. Hopefully I can convince him not to fight, he can do other things with his life, as it is he's injured enough and complains about how old he feels when he's barely 21.


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## Kenpo_man (May 1, 2006)

kitsune said:
			
		

> I figured as much Carol and Kenpo. But he can be very stubborn, so it isn't easy to sway him and make him see what I or others see. Hopefully I can convince him not to fight, he can do other things with his life, as it is he's injured enough and complains about how old he feels when he's barely 21.


 
Regardless of whether he fights or not, he could study muay thai at a good reputable club. You wouldn't have to worry about him getting in the ring unprepared because a good Kru would never let him unless he was ready. If the kru gives the go ahead, it would be for an amateur match which though intense, is not as brutal as a pro match. Tell him to sudy at a good gym, that's reality check enough to deter him if anything will. What I don't suggest is pushing him away from it. If he's like me it will just set his mind to do it no matter what. Support him and slip the cautionary bits in when he's not paying attention.


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## Odin (May 2, 2006)

As long as he joins a good camp i dont see what the problem will be,his kru will never put him into a fight he wont be prepared for and in all honesty it will take at least a year's training before he will be allowed to fight regardless of how good he gets and infact I reckon with in a month he'll relise how unready to fight he is......another thing is that in muay thai your not just thrown into the ring to fight a kru or anyone they can think of,camps match thier fighters against people that are on the same level,so he'll should never have to fight someone that miles above his experience level.

I understand what your saying,my girlfriends says the same thing all the time....infact she has refuse to watch me when I fight!.....hey man i dont like shoes but i watch her shop!!!!


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## Slihn (May 5, 2006)

kitsune said:
			
		

> Hi everyone. I'm new here, but I have a few questions. My boyfriend has decided that he wants to fight professionally, and he's thinking of Muay Thai which he's tried before, or something simular.
> 
> So my first question is what should I expect? In attitude and everything, aside from him always training, should anything change?
> 
> And how do your girlfriends/wives/whatever handle it?


 

Hi, I am in the same dilemma with my wife(well more like she is in that dilemma with me;Im the thai boxer).Ive been doing Muay Thai for about 2 years now,and I want to fight in ameture tournaments soon.Even though my wife doesnt like to see me get hit,she knows that Martial Arts is my life and she is very supportive and that helps me out alot!

If he is going to be fighting pro;realistly you should know that he will mostly likely deliver(and put out) a great deal of punishment.In fighting pro he will be faced with seasoned Muay Thai fighters who are really trying to knock him out(not trying to scar you,but this is the reality of Thai Boxing);but on the bright side,fighting Pro can really improve his skills as a fighter and (inspite what you may hear about) most Muay Thai fights(In Eurpoe or in the States) do not have catasophic endings(they mostly actually end in TKO or decision.


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## Sagat (May 9, 2006)

I wouldn't be worried if I were you. If he starts training he'll soon see just how good you have to be to fight pro. Although Muay Thai is great for the street it is still very differant in many ways. If he's had little to no experiance in Muay Thai then I assure you he has a LONG way to go before fighting pro. If he starts training at a good club it can only be benificial for him. He'll soon realise that there's much more to Muay Thai than simply throwing a punches,kicks,knees and elbows.


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