My first introduction to Muay Thai was by my husband, via the action movie Ong Bak starring Tony Jaa. This was one film among dozens he owned in the “martial arts” genre and began not unlike most of those I’d already seen. Indeed, Tony Jaa demonstrates a battery of Muay Thai movements (perhaps many are in fact Muay Thai Boran), reciting the name of each technique as he performs it. About 15 minutes into the movie his training is put to use against an attacker who is dropped to the floor by Tony Jaa’s inverted knee strike in less time than it takes the mind to comprehend what the heck that was that the viewer just witnessed. I had never seen anything like it and I wanted to see more.

I tested out several different gyms, finding myself dissatisfied at each one. I was disappointed by the generality of instruction, feeling frustrated that I could not receive the individual attention that is much needed for beginning students. Female students were uncommon and almost never my same size, making sparring a difficult endeavor. I am very serious about Muay Thai and quite often – at numerous gyms – my sincerity was not met by other students, many of whom came to class in the interest of aerobic exercise, or sometimes a means of self-defense.

I found Master K on the internet and began taking private instruction. Within only a few weeks my body had begun conforming to the proper positions and my power improved immeasurably. As I have progressed, the instruction has become more serious, while maintaining a candid and joyful atmosphere. Get the move right; have fun.

Progress in Muay Thai is not difficult to gauge. With each step forward I feel a remarkable sense of achievement and can actually experience the change in my body. Progress can be minutely incremental. There are no kata in Muay Thai and so advancement is not a matter of mastering one move to be given the next. Rather, I find that I am still mastering a punch, still tweaking the nuances of the knees and elbows, etc. Progress can be the dawning realization that the foot should be turned just so for a kick and suddenly my power is increased two fold without nearly any extra effort on my part. For someone of my size, every tiny bit of power counts and so Muay Thai is the ideal combat sport, providing immense power to the smallest of frames.

Under Master K’s instruction I have experienced a great change in my vision of Muay Thai. He is excited about bringing Muay Thai to women and understands that there is no barrier or hurdle for the female fighter. I am quite small and may have difficulty finding someone my size to fight when that time comes, but I now know that I want to fight and Master K has made me confident and givem me skills so that I can fight. Muay Thai is an art that stands on its own. Because the power of Muay Thai comes from the core, the explosive strikes enable even the smallest frame to be devastating. My rapid progress with Master K in the past few months excites me to the possibilities in achievement for the years to come. I have almost forgotten those first movements witnessed in the stunts of Tony Jaa, replacing my awe with the strong front kicks and relentless forward marching of Muay Thai champ Buakaw, or Muay Thai-trained female fighter Gina Carano.

There is a beauty of Muay Thai that should never be masked. With Master K I am learning a classical Muay Thai – an endless Muay Thai – that is beautiful and dangerous. It feels good, it looks good, and it kicks butt.