MIXED MARTIAL ARTS
Mixed martial arts (MMA) as we know it today, evolved from the ultimate fighting championship (UFC) back in 1993. It started out as a test to see which practitioner in their respective discipline would be most effective in a real fight. There were very few rules at the time. What surprised a lot of people, is that it was one of the so called smaller guys that dominated everyone with his style of grappling called Gracie Jiu Jitsu. This dominance continued for the next few UFC events, being won by the same individual (Royce Gracie) proving that it was no fluke. Gradually everyone realised that they needed to cross train in this system. They started to blend this Jiu Jitsu with boxing, a version of Muay Thai kickboxing and wrestling. Thus the term mixed martial arts was born. These 4 disciplines are the main ones now used in modern MMA that we see today. The fighters are now regarded as some of the worlds best conditioned athletes, due to the demands of the sport. You now have the opportunity to adopt some of these fitness principles with myself. They will help you to get leaner, increase muscle, be more athletic and fitter than ever! As a bonus you will also be learning some fantastic skills to boost confidence. Take a look below for a bit of an insight to what you will be learning on your fitness journey with me:
MUAY THAI
Muay Thai is the national sport of Thailand. It is considered one of the most effective striking arts in the world. It is known as the science of 8 limbs. This is because it uses punches, kicks, knee and elbow strikes. Historically it was originally known as the science of 9 limbs, which included using the head as a weapon. It also has a weapon portion, but that is more for the older version of Muay Thai, which was used in warfare. Thai fighters are typically very lean and extremely fit, due to their training methods.
WESTERN BOXING
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Nicknamed the sweet science, there are many styles of boxing, depending on which country you choose to learn it from. The most familiar one is western boxing that you see on TV. It has many more rules and regulations compared to some countries. Some other versions include Filipino boxing (Panantukan) Cambodian boxing and Irish bare knuckle boxing. These arts typically use other weapons on the body rather than just punching. A lot of the movements today seen in western boxing were taken from Filipino knife fighting.
JIU JITSU
Commonly known as the martial art originating in Japan, Jiu Jitsu has evolved more than any other combat system in the world. Along with traditional Japanese Jiu Jitsu, there is now several versions of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (BJJ) which are primarily ground based systems. They allow a small and weaker person to defeat a larger and heavier opponent, either in sport competitions or self defence.
WRESTLING
Wrestling is one of the oldest forms of combat, dating back more than 15,000 years ago. This art consists of lots of take downs, throws, pins and joint locks. Practitioners have arguably had the most success in MMA bouts in recent times compared to fighters more rounded in striking arts.