A Muay Thai training camp can be exciting and motivating. This is where you will be able to get deeper knowledge about the art of fighting, strengthened with routines that will help you reach your goal of becoming an accomplished martial artist.
However, there are some things that anyone going on this trip should know before they head out. One mistake many people make when packing for a camping trip is not knowing what they should bring.
You’ll be training on average 5-6 times per week and 2-3 times daily. You’ll be training for about 2-4 hours each time. To ensure you are ready to perform at your best, you must keep your body in top shape. One way to do this is to pack the proper supplies for your Muay Thai camp.
So let’s break down some most important things you must pack before going to a Muay Thai camp.
Table of Contents
Essential Muay Thai Camp Fighting Gear
What do you need? Here is a list of the essential Muay Thai gear you should take with you to your training camp:
Muay Thai Gloves
Fairtex BGV1
Handmade in Thailand.
- Made of Leather
- Perfectly designed for Muay Thai
- The leather version might be too hot in humid weather
Venum Elite
Designed in Thailand but made in China.
- Internal double-stitching construction
- Made of Faux leather
- Leather might peel off after a few years
There are plenty of options in the gloves section for Muay Thai fighters. You can go for Venum, Fairtex, or Twins Special, and most of their gloves are perfect for Muay Thai.
For sparring sessions, it is necessary to have bigger gloves for safety reasons. For example, if you are more than 155 pounds, you need at least 14 OZ gloves for sparring, and if you are heavy and your punching power is high, you might also need 16 OZ.
For pad work, you can have 10 or 12 OZ, depending on which size you prefer. However, smaller size means faster hands and less effort on arms, so your hands will not get tired easily.
I prefer Venum because the quality is almost the same, but they have excellent offers online, and sometimes you can get them at a 50% or 70% discount.
I have Venum Elite Boxing Gloves and used them for sparring and pad/bag work. However, having a second, smaller pair would be better.
16 OZ gloves can get you tired pretty fast at a high-frequency training schedule. The smaller gloves can give you a small break during pad/bag work. Therefore helping you to recover a bit faster.
Best Muay Thai Gloves for Your training camp here
Shin Guards
Shin guards are necessary not only for sparring but also during the drills. If you want to improve your technique, you need to throw punches and kicks fast and hard in sparring and drills. A nice pair of shin guards will make your kicks less dangerous and painful for your sparring partner.
I also trained Muay Thai without shin guards before. However, I wouldn’t recommend it. It is hazardous to your partner and can also be dangerous to you.
There are several kinds of shin guards. However, I prefer Fairtex Competition Muay Thai shin guards because they are light and provide excellent protection for your shins. Comfortable and will last a long time. They’re not the cheapest option, but they’re worth every penny.
For additional protection, you can also use elbow pads. I also have the Fairtex elastic elbow pads that I always wear while sparring or doing pad/bag work.
Headgear
You can’t protect your head and face without proper headgear. Head protection is also critical during drills and sparring because you can get hit hard. With headgear, you will have less chance of getting a concussion after a solid strike.
Headgear is something that should fit snugly, so it doesn’t come off easily, but it also stays out of your way when you spar or drill.
Fighters do not like to use headgear. It feels uncomfortable. I wasn’t using it too, but I realized that the damage caused by not wearing headgear will not be visible today but in a few years.
Some fighters who didn’t wear headgears suffer from severe brain injuries or mental problems later in their lives.
I highly recommend wearing proper headgear, especially if you are inexperienced or your sparring partner is a bit more experienced and is throwing some strong kicks.
You can get Venum Elite Headgear, one of the best options on the market.
Muay Thai Shorts and Training T-shirts
I highly recommend having at least four pairs of shorts and T-shirts. Training twice a day requires two pairs of shorts and T-shirts. You can not wash and dry them between sessions because you need to rest.
I mostly washed all my training clothes in the washing machine at night after a few days of training. I let them dry all night, and they’re ready to go in the morning.
It might not be the best option for taking care of the clothes, but trust me, after a long day of Muay Thai training, the last thing you would want is to do laundry. Most likely, you’ll fall asleep early (as you should).
Also, wear fighting shorts and a t-shirt without zippers or pockets, which might hurt your training partners. Their fingers could get stuck in your clothes.
Wearing a t-shirt is important during the training because nobody wants to be splashed by your sweet during the workouts, so it is also respectful to wear a t-shirt during training.
Mouthguard
Mouthguards are also essential because they protect your teeth and keep them in place during training. However, it would help if you considered that not every mouthguard would fit you after only a few weeks of using it.
Having standard quality boil-and-bite mouthguards is enough and great for sparrings. Still, try to choose the ones with more protection, and make sure they fit you well and do not annoy you.
I have used several mouthguards and had problems with several of them. They were uncomfortable, and sometimes the breathing wasn’t optimal. Make sure that when you’re shaping your boil-and-bite mouthguards, you do it right.
If you want to get fancy, you can get a customized mouthguard. That’s probably the best option long-term. However, for most people, the boil-and-bite mouthguards are more than enough.
Ankle Wraps
It is not necessary to wear ankle wraps, but I enjoy wearing them; it can also prevent many mini injuries.
Support from ankle wraps is enjoyable; you are kicking harder and can put more effort into the work.
Muay Thai is a tough sport, including hard sparring, bag work, and drills. You can injure your ankles anytime, so having one or two ankle wraps to provide extra support to your ankle will be good.
Handwraps
I recommend having at least two pairs of handwraps. I have four of them during the camps because when I am all alone and train twice a day when I need to cook healthy food and rest between the workouts, it is hard for me to wash them and dry them simultaneously.
Because of that, I have four pairs of them and wash them every couple of days at night.
Knee/Elbow Protection
Knee and elbow protections are needed if you do Thai Boxing sparring sessions or pad/bag drills. In sparring, some competitors will knee you in the midsection or knee you in the head. Knee pads are a must for your safety.
I had a bad experience once when one of my training partners knee me hard in the stomach during sparring and hurt me badly. It was just painful. He had no protective gear.
I think knee/elbow protection is a must thing during sparring sessions. It is also nice in pad/bag drills because your knees/elbows will start to hurt if you do 100+ strikes; therefore, you might need some knee protection to keep your knees healthy.
Additional Stuff You Might Need in Muay Thai Camp
Additional Stuff You Might Need in Muay Thai Camp
Some things are not essential for a Muay Thai camp but might come in handy. Here’s my list of extra stuff you might want to have while in your camp.
Foam Roller
While you will have a lot of training at the camp, there are some days when you can’t work out. One of these days is going to be your free time. Therefore, it is better to stay away from the gym on these days and have additional training at home. The foam roller will help your muscle recover and bring more power to your next training session.
A Large Water Bottle
A large water bottle is handy for your training at the camp. Since you will be training more than five times per week, you need to stay hydrated. Thus, if your camp doesn’t provide water, you should bring a water bottle with you to stay hydrated at all times.
Training Shoes
Do you know how much time you spend running around the camp? During any training session, you will be running so much. Therefore, it is vital to have a lightweight and comfortable training shoe that won’t harm your feet during such long training periods. My favorite shoes are the Nike Free Rn 2018, which are lightweight, very good-quality shoes.
I’m into minimalist shoes. Therefore my running shoes are pretty flexible and have little to no padding. I like it this way because I enjoy feeling the ground when I lift or run. However, if you have Achilles tendonitis or a low arch these shoes might not be the best.
If you need something with more padding, a cool design, and durability I liked the Adidas Ultraboost 20.
Supplements
As I already mentioned, you will train more than five times weekly. Therefore, it is good to use supplements like Omega 3 and protein powder to help your body recovers faster and build muscle mass.
Eating the right food while on a Muay Thai camp will also help you get healthy quickly. Therefore, you should never forget to eat good food and take supplements during your training camp.
I like to take creatine while I am training Muay Thai. Creatine is great for increasing strength and power and improving the recovery rate of your muscles. BCAA’s (branch-chain amino acids) also help a lot. These products together make your muscles recover faster and stop muscle breakdown.
A Training Journal
While you are in your Muay Thai camp, it is important to keep a training journal to analyze your progress. It can be frustrating going to the gym every day with no clue about how your progress is going. It can also be easy to get bored with this if you don’t know how much progress you are making.
A simple structure you can use for your journal is trying to answer the following questions in each entry:
- How did I feel today?
- What did I learn that was new?
- What was my biggest mistake today?
- What do I want to improve next time?
You can also add some general notes answering more training questions.
- What was your pre-workout?
- How was your sleep that night?
- Have you had enough energy?
- Is any old injury bothering you?
Add as many variables in your notes as you need to keep track of your progress.
A Massage Ball
Muay Thai is a challenging sport requiring a lot of muscle work. Therefore, you will need to spend more time working with your muscles and increasing the blood circulation in your body. A massage ball is one of the best tools for this and can help you with muscle rehabilitation and tension relief.
Always remember that a massage ball is not to be used as a replacement for an actual massage. It is just a portable alternative that you can do alone.
Foldable Yoga Mat
This is an additional tool that you can use to make your muscle recovery process even faster. Yoga helps with better blood circulation, and it is also suitable for flexibility. Therefore, this can be a great addition to your Muay Thai training camp kit.
Big Workout Backpack
This is a must-have item that you will use most of your time at the camp. Therefore, it is important to pick a backpack that can hold all your equipment and supplies. You can put your water bottle in the side pockets.
I also use a smaller one for my shoes, socks, etc.
Muay Thai Camp Essentials Packing Checklist
- Muay Thai Gloves x2
- Mouthguard
- Handwraps x2
- Training shorts x 2
- Training t-shirts x 5
- Shinguards
- Headgear
- Ankle wraps
- Gym backpack/duffle
Extras
- Large water bottle
- Training journal
- Pain ointment
- Massage ball
- Foldable yoga mat
- Supplements
Final Thoughts About What To Pack For Muay Thai Camp
As you can see, you don’t need a lot of things to train Muay Thai. However, all these items are beneficial for your camp.
Besides these items, some other things will help you stay healthy during your training camp – sleeping clothes, medical supplies, nutritious snacks, small towels, and so on. Therefore, having most of them with you is good when you go to the camp.
What do you think about items? Would you add anything else? Please let me know in the comments.
Until next time and train hard!
