# Is muay thai unhealthy??



## zoso

At training this week I was doing my first shin-to-shin combos. It feels just completely un-natural. It MUST be bad for your bones surely???


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## wushuguy

http://www.defend.net/deluxeforums/thaiboxing-kickboxing/9714-muay-thai.html

here's an excerpt from that thread

The disadvantages :

could be a developing of shin cancer but the chances of that are sorta like the chances of getting any other cancer I suppose. You can get a bad back, bone calis, split eyebrows, scars, broken toes, broken legs! Muay Thai is only usefull so long as you are physically strong as Muay Thai depends on strength as well as technique and of course there is the risk of death by internal bleeding and broken sternum, but if you dont compete that risk is considerably lower....


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## zoso

I'm not interested in getting in the ring competitively; I'm just in it for the training/learning and some light sparing.

Worryingly on that link someone claims that this sport is a big contributor to arthritus.


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## Rob2109

Good question.
My trainer is 53 and has dodgy shoulders sometimes as he's held the pads for hard hitting fighters for decades. He still takes six 90min training sessions a week as well as private sessions and i think you'd have to go a long way to find a guy his age in better shape.
Competitive fighting is going to take it's toll on you longterm - nowhere near like boxing would, but you can't avoid injuries unless you're superman!
If you enjoy Thai-Boxing then you should carry on as it's very rewarding and the conditioning and fitness level you'll get from it is unrivaled. If you prefer a non-combat martial art there are plenty around. Hope you stick with Muay-Thai though, good luck.


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## egg

This won't help much but being part of Gen Y means having a lot more risks in daily routines than Muay Thai could ever give.
 This includes mobile phones, continuous hours in front of the computer/television, Mp3's, smoking and public transport that just makes fitness level non existant.

In my opinion if the quality of life is going to be shortened by so much already, you may as well live it to the fullest.


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## SensibleManiac

I would say train intelligently and be careful.
Don't put yourself needlessly at risk and know when to take a break, if you're not doing it comptitively then you should be fine.


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## grado

why muay thai unhealthy, can lose weight and keep fit!


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## Akira

Something about multiple concussions over an extended period of time I think.  

How many thais do you see are either punch drunk or in a wheel chair when they get older?  Obviously it's not so bad if you're not fighting competitively..

Actually I've already had the broken sternum..2 months and it's still not back to normal.  I'm waiting to catch up with one of my thai friends who is a doctor, I want to see what her response is to this question.


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## Flying Crane

Any time you engage in repetitive impact exercises for conditioning, you run the risk of developing health problems that don't show up until later in life.  How much later, and how severe, depends on a lot of things, including how intensly you trained, how frequently you trained, how well you took care of yourself between sessions, what specific methods you used, and your individual genetic makeup which affects how your body responds to such things.

Any time you engage in high-impact combative activities, you run the risk of getting an injury, including the type that could become chronic and affect your health in the long run.  As the above, it also depends on a lot of things.

Your training can also bring a lot of good things into your life.  You need to weigh and balance the good against the bad, and make decisions about how much risk you are willing to accept from the process, and adjust your training accordingly.  And then live with the results, whether they are good or bad.  It boils down to your choice.


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