Muay Thai Gear You Must Have
Written by Amine Ballafrikh
December 2nd, 2023
As a Muay Thai world champion and head coach of Atlas Muay Thai, I keep hearing this question: "Coach, what kind of gear should I get?"
So, here are some of my recommendations based on my experience in the Muay Thai world (I don't get paid or sponsored by any of these brands).
Authentic Muay Thai shorts serve a purpose: they are worn very short to enable the legs to move freely when throwing kicks. Some people may feel self-conscious at first, but once you realize that everyone in your gym wears them, you'll blend right in.
Start with a pair of 16-ounce gloves. These are utility-purpose gloves for pad work and partner drilling. In the long run, you want multiple styles of gloves: sparring, lighter gloves for specialty training like pad work, and pure bag gloves that are lightweight and generally do not have velcro straps.
You will generally want the longest hand wraps possible if your teacher knows how to wrap hands traditionally (Thai style). Shorter wraps will not allow you to create a knuckle pad out of part of the hand wrap. If you hope to train more than three times a week, you will generally need three pairs of hand wraps to wash them and use another pair the next day.
I recommend that you get shin guards soon after starting training, though you can start without them. A good pair of leather shin guards is a must to protect yourself during partner training and sparring. The brand you purchase will depend on your level of comfort and your style preference. Do not go for the cheap option. If you take care of them, all you need is one good pair of shin guards that can last you a couple of years.
This is a must-have, whether you want to do sparring or not. You always want to practice with a mouth guard to protect that shiny smile.
These are not a necessity, but they give ankle support and definitely stop any kind of rubbing from the bottom of shin pads if you wear them a lot. They also provide a visual of where not to strike while doing Thai-style kicks. If you're wearing the ankle wrap, you can tell yourself to strike above the wrap into your shins, which is the proper way.
And those are my recommendations! Shoot me an email if you have any other gear questions.
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