MUAY THAI GEAR GUIDE

Juan Cervantes’ Muay Thai Gear Guide

UK number 1 Juan Cervantes walks us through his essential Muay Thai gear guide

Aside from being a Muay Thai coach at Northern Kings in Newcastle, England, Juan Cervantes competes at the highest level both at home and across the globe. Juan fights full Muay Thai rules and Enfusion Kickboxing rules, making him an expert when it comes to what you need. Here’s what he has to say in his Muay Thai gear guide.

Basic Muay Thai gear guide

At the most basic level, what you will need to train in Muay Thai or Kickboxing is a good pair of gloves and a good pair of shin pads (shin guards). Get decent quality, as you get what you pay for. One pair of gloves is good for everything to begin – a bigger pair, as you will need them for sparring and padwork. Get decent shin pads for sparring, as you will inevitably kick someone on the knee or elbow by accident.

As you start progressing, you will need a gum shield (mouth guard) for sparring, hand wraps to support your wrists as you start punching harder, and a groin guard. You might want some more authentic Thai shorts, as they will give you better range of movement for kicks and knees.

Intermediate to advanced Muay Thai gear guide

Once you start competing you will probably need more than one pair of gloves. Juan uses a pair of 10oz for the pads and bag, and a pair of 16oz for sparring. You might want a head guard, as well. Muay Thai in the UK and USA is progressing well under the amateur rules of IFMA and practicing with a head guard will set you up for that. Elbow pads will help you train the elbows in the clinch – obviously you can’t go full power, but you can gesture them.

You will also want to get your own pads, classic Thai pads and a belly pad are the most useful.