Joe, the owner of one of the earliest Muay Thai gyms in Singapore, reveals how it got started.
Muay Thai is a hard martial art that is growing fast in popularity. Most MMA fighters employ it as their weapon of choice when striking, or at least employ some principles of it. Known as the “Science of Eight Limbs”, Muay Thai employs punches, kicks, elbow strikes and knee strikes thereby allowing for eight points of contact.
With the many Muay Thai gyms in Singapore, BXG is one of the gyms that was around before Tony Jaa made Muay Thai famous (Tony actually employs Muay Boran, the ancestor of modern Muay Thai). I sat down with Joe one day, the owner of BXG and asked him how it all started.
HS: Hi maybe you can start by telling us more about yourself?
J: Hi, I’m Joe. I’m 36 this year. I started Thai boxing when I was 24 years old. I’ve been operating this gym close to 8 years.
HS: So how did you get interested in Muay Thai?
J: After my National Service, I was looking for a way to keep fit. I found the usual activities of running and hitting the gym very monotonous. So I was looking to take up a sport. I was always interested in martial arts and so I came across Thai Boxing. At the time Thai Boxing was relatively unknown and I found the training regime very intense, which was the main attraction to me. So I got into the sport rather quickly.
HS: Where did you train at in the beginning?
J: Initially, my training was at First MuayThai, which was located at Big Splash at East Coast. When I first started out in Muay Thai, there were only two gyms; Hilltop and First MuayThai. I heard that the training at Hilltop was held outdoors, and trainings started at 4:30 in the afternnon, and due to my job, I couldn’t make it. So I went to First MuayThai after work and I liked the atmosphere, and so I signed up with them.
HS: So how many fights have you participated in?
J: So far in total I have been in six fights.
HS: So how long were you training before taking part in your first fight?
J: My first fight was an amateur fight. I had been training for a year and a half before that.
Joe (in red) in a match
Image courtesy of http://www.bxgfitness.com
HS: So how was your training like before the fight?
J: I trained twice a week for normal training. When I decided to participate in a fight, I attended trainings three times a week and subsequently four times a week. Everything was the same; running, skipping, shadowboxing and padwork. For sparring, the coaches gave me more tips; like what to do and how to counter etc.
HS: So how were you feeling before the fight?
J: Basically for my first fight and all my other fights, the feeling is the same. A few days before the fight, I will feel anxious, and unsure of what will happen in the ring. But once I step into the ring, everything just goes blank because you’re already in the ring. But before that; even hours before the fight I will keep thinking of the fight.
HS: So have you sustained any injuries during your trainings and fights?
J: Well you get the usual injuries; but I didn’t get any inquiries from the amateur fight as you are well protected by the pads and all. But you will get the usual injuries from a full Muay Thai rules fight. My legs especially, were very bruised. Straight after the fight when you leave the ring you feel ok, but an hour later you can’t even stand or walk.
I’ve never fractured my ribs before, but of course they will feel bruised. I once fought a fighter from Holland years ago; he caught me with a high kick to my chin and he tore my lip and I had to get six stitches. That would count as the only serious injury I had.
HS: So how do you train your shins? Because Muay Thai fighters are renowned for their hard shins.
J: Talking about this, a lot of people have misconceptions about this. As we know a lot of people have their own ways of training their shins. For the more old-fashioned fighters, they would like kick hard objects, or use hard objects like wood to rub it against their shins to desensitise their shins. But for me and my other trainers, all we do is to kick the bags, pads and do more sparring. After awhile your legs will get used to it.
I feel the best way to strengthen the shin is to constantly add pressure to it; you can’t hit something hard because the impact is too great and you might get injured or worse, get a hairline fracture. And you will miss training because of that. I feel kicking the bags is a good way; the bag is hard enough with regards to the pressure on your shin while being soft enough to not injure your shin. You can vary the strength with which you kick the bag.
HS: So from picking up Muay Thai and going on to participate in some matches, what made you decide to open up your own gym?
J: It all started when First MuayThai’s lease was ending and the owner decided to move somewhere else. They couldn’t find a suitable location and rumour had it that they were going to close the business. At the time, I was very into Muay Thai, and I couldn’t imagine life without training and I felt it was a waste to close the business just like that.
As I wanted to continue with my training, I saw it as an opportunity as there was a growing trend for Muay Thai. And there was also a change in the profile of the trainees joining Thai Boxing. It used to be a lot of gangsters and school dropouts who were interested in Muay Thai, but we saw a lot of professionals who were interested in the sport; people like bankers and lawyers. And what these professionals were looking for was a proper environment to learn Muay Thai, like qualified trainers, proper facilities ; as most of the gyms were run by secret society affiliates and some were rather run down; and so these professionals were turned off by the environment. So my training partner and I saw it as a chance to open a gym with the proper facilities and qualified coaches to appeal to the crowd.
The weights area in BXG
HS: So is the current facility your first location?
J: No, the first location was over at the Big Splash, when we took over First Muay Thai. We liked the old place as we were familiar with it. We were there for three years until Singapore Land Authority decided to revamp the area and so all the tenants had to move out. So we have been here at our current location for four years.
HS: So any obstacles you faced in setting up the gym?
J: We faced the usual obstacles new business owners face; we had a hard time to advertise our gym. Not many people knew of our gym and we had a hard time for the first few months to attract new customers. But our reputation grew through word of mouth after the first few months. But the biggest obstacle I faced was that during the first six months; as business was slow but constant, the profit wasn’t great and my partner decided to pull out.
That was a big blow, as we shared the business 50-50. And he was a trainer as well, so when he pulled out, I not only had to operate the gym alone, but I had to buy over his shares. At one point I really wanted to give up, but my wife encouraged me and asked me to give it a try, and so I continued on with the business. So at the time my old trainer, Joy, was also looking for a job, so I hired him. We have been working together for like ten years now.
HS: So how do you keep fit nowadays?
J: Well besides training the students, I will do my usual routine of going for a run in the morning and hitting the bags after that. I don’t do much sparring anymore, except to train the students. And I’m currently training in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu; as I wanted to take up a new martial art, so this helps to keep me fit as well. And every year without fail I will take part in half marathons or full marathons. Actually Joy and I took part in a triathlon two years ago.
Joe practicing BJJ
HS: So do you have any plans to participate in any more fights?
J: I haven’t been fighting for the past two years, and there aren’t many opportunities now. My focus is more on the students; I found it difficult to dedicate time to my students while preparing for a fight.
HS: People have this notion that Thai boxing is violent and dangerous, so maybe you can clear the air about this?
J: People have this misconception because they do not understand it. Thai boxing is a fighting sport; boxing and Taekwondo are both fighting sports as well, so there is no difference between the sports. Just that Thai boxing allows the use of knees and elbows, so the rules for Thai boxing are different. And because of the physical requirements for Thai boxing, the trainings are very intense and even if someone comes to us to learn Thai boxing as a means to improve their fitness, it will help them greatly.
It doesn’t mean that if you take up Thai boxing you have to fight; you have to compete. I have students who have practised Thai boxing for years; their skills are good but they don’t compete. To fight or not is your own personal choice; whether you would want to take it to the next level. And Muay Thai has a set of recognised rules; it is in the SEA Games, an official sport. So people recognise it as an official sport, and thus there is better regulation, better referees and rules to protect the fighters.
And if you’re wondering what BXG stands for (even I don’t know, and I train there!), Joe enlightened me; Boxing, Exercise, Gym.
For those of you interested to up your level of fitness or keen to learn muay thai, you can visit BXG’s website at:
http://www.bxgfitness.com
Following source extracted from:http://fitnesssutra.com/article/602/an-interview-with-joe-from-bxg-muay-thai.html ( Hafeez )
The match where Joe faced his Senegal opponent
