Tiger Muay Thai, Day 2, Part 2
Alright. I have a charged computer, I've had dinner (though not a shower), I'm in bed checking Facebook and covered, COVERED I tell you in Tiger Balm, and let's see if I can muddle through a real post.
Every part of my body hurts. Literally, every part. I think that these guys invented new muscles just so they could make them hurt.
It's truly an amazing environment. All of the trainers seem to capture the best aspects of Thai people, insanely skilled and wearing a wicked smile at all times. They are evil and sadistic, in the best possible way.
The design of the camp and my accommodations are all pretty Spartan . . I have a white-tile, white-walled room (that's a decent size), with a small fridge and a fan (also a TV, though I'm basically too exhausted to use it when I'm in my room. Yes, there are ants and bugs and lizards, but I did choose the budget room. We exercise in bare feet. The beginner's space is a large tin-ceiling'd rectangle with a rubber floor, rings on either side, and punching bags surrounding one of the perimeters.
They call me (all the girls, actually) "Sassa". She's apparently the #1 female champion of Muay Thai in Thailand, though I haven't been able to find out who it is. The trainers promised me that they'll bring in a photo soon. There are two other girls in the class besides me, and Australian named Linda, 40's, and a seasoned boxer in the Western style. The other is a tall and gorgeous lady from an as-yet-unidentified-European-country named Zora, with dark curly hair, a bright smile, and totally didn't hold it against me when I kinda freaked out during sparring on the first day. Both the girls have great senses of humor, and I'm incredibly glad for their presence. The boys of the class are a mixed bag, mostly Brits, some seasoned fighters with insane bodies and tribal tattoos, some are rather unfit tourists who came along with their friends. It's comforting to note that even the insanely tanned-and-toned set find the training sessions brutal.
From many points in area, we can see the Big Buddha of Phuket looking down on us. Beyond one of the tinned walls at the back, there is a gorgeous forest. It's quite breathtaking, if you can get beyond the cement and rubber floors of the gym, and the cloud of testosterone that hangs like a fog over everything.
Today (as we did yesterday) we had to do 200 sit-ups and 100 push-ups. When some of us started slacking, one of the lead trainers (Peter) put on a boxing glove. He caught my eyes and then walked over to a bag.
He pointed to the bag, then pointed to me, then yelled "You!" And punched the bag several times. Hard. Then he came over, straddled my knees, and started counting off my sit-ups. After each count, he would punch me in the stomach (not hard enough to hurt, but it wasn't exactly fun!). When I proceeded to instinctually shield my stomach from these blows, he would shout out "No! Take away!" After I had done twenty punch-crunches, he proceeded to torture everyone else in the class--- the other trainers joined in too.
The trainers all are heartily amused by the fact that I yell back, and occasionally punch back.
At hour 3 of our training session, we went on a 2km JOG. Being as pasty and unfit as I am (not to mention the poor knees and giant breasteseseses), I had to walk a good deal of it. Some of the trainers were following behind in a scooter (some were running alongside us). When I had to stop and walk, one of them would grab my arm and say, "No, Sassa!! Stay with me!" and then tell the scooter driver to speed up, while still holding my hand.
You have to understand the humorous manner in which all of this is done. It's not cruel, it's not pushing someone beyond their limits, it really is done with the intention of making sure everyone in class gets to reach their full potential. We are kidded, constantly, yes, but no one is really teased, no one is treated unfairly. When someone is hurt, or truly exhausted, the trainers will always stop and check in with that person to make sure they're okay. But when we give up in the middle of an exercise, or walk when we should be running, or half-ass our kicks, I know that one of the trainers is going to be behind me shouting, "Never tired, Sassa! Always strong!" Or, more frequently today, "Why Sassa? Why you stopping? Always going, always keep going! Always strong!"
The constant mantra of "Always strong!" is fantastic for my soul right now.
There's a blissful kind of anonymity here too. Everyone is friendly, but no one is really here to make friends. After the sessions everyone is too tired for much conversation. It's kind of perfect. I'm in hardbody heaven AND I don't have to talk to anyone.
The food isn't amazing, but it's nutritious and exactly what one needs after a hard session. Lots of stir-friend chicken, vegetables, and rice. I'm drinking water like nobody's business.
I really look forward to posting as my time here goes on. I can't believe this is only day 2. Part of me wishes I'd only booked a week here, and could spend the other week sunbathing on Ko Phi Phi, and part of me wishes I had planned on staying a month.
This is so, so good for me. Painful, absolutely, but so, so good for me.
Always strong!!
Every part of my body hurts. Literally, every part. I think that these guys invented new muscles just so they could make them hurt.
It's truly an amazing environment. All of the trainers seem to capture the best aspects of Thai people, insanely skilled and wearing a wicked smile at all times. They are evil and sadistic, in the best possible way.
The design of the camp and my accommodations are all pretty Spartan . . I have a white-tile, white-walled room (that's a decent size), with a small fridge and a fan (also a TV, though I'm basically too exhausted to use it when I'm in my room. Yes, there are ants and bugs and lizards, but I did choose the budget room. We exercise in bare feet. The beginner's space is a large tin-ceiling'd rectangle with a rubber floor, rings on either side, and punching bags surrounding one of the perimeters.
They call me (all the girls, actually) "Sassa". She's apparently the #1 female champion of Muay Thai in Thailand, though I haven't been able to find out who it is. The trainers promised me that they'll bring in a photo soon. There are two other girls in the class besides me, and Australian named Linda, 40's, and a seasoned boxer in the Western style. The other is a tall and gorgeous lady from an as-yet-unidentified-European-country named Zora, with dark curly hair, a bright smile, and totally didn't hold it against me when I kinda freaked out during sparring on the first day. Both the girls have great senses of humor, and I'm incredibly glad for their presence. The boys of the class are a mixed bag, mostly Brits, some seasoned fighters with insane bodies and tribal tattoos, some are rather unfit tourists who came along with their friends. It's comforting to note that even the insanely tanned-and-toned set find the training sessions brutal.
From many points in area, we can see the Big Buddha of Phuket looking down on us. Beyond one of the tinned walls at the back, there is a gorgeous forest. It's quite breathtaking, if you can get beyond the cement and rubber floors of the gym, and the cloud of testosterone that hangs like a fog over everything.
Today (as we did yesterday) we had to do 200 sit-ups and 100 push-ups. When some of us started slacking, one of the lead trainers (Peter) put on a boxing glove. He caught my eyes and then walked over to a bag.
He pointed to the bag, then pointed to me, then yelled "You!" And punched the bag several times. Hard. Then he came over, straddled my knees, and started counting off my sit-ups. After each count, he would punch me in the stomach (not hard enough to hurt, but it wasn't exactly fun!). When I proceeded to instinctually shield my stomach from these blows, he would shout out "No! Take away!" After I had done twenty punch-crunches, he proceeded to torture everyone else in the class--- the other trainers joined in too.
The trainers all are heartily amused by the fact that I yell back, and occasionally punch back.
At hour 3 of our training session, we went on a 2km JOG. Being as pasty and unfit as I am (not to mention the poor knees and giant breasteseseses), I had to walk a good deal of it. Some of the trainers were following behind in a scooter (some were running alongside us). When I had to stop and walk, one of them would grab my arm and say, "No, Sassa!! Stay with me!" and then tell the scooter driver to speed up, while still holding my hand.
You have to understand the humorous manner in which all of this is done. It's not cruel, it's not pushing someone beyond their limits, it really is done with the intention of making sure everyone in class gets to reach their full potential. We are kidded, constantly, yes, but no one is really teased, no one is treated unfairly. When someone is hurt, or truly exhausted, the trainers will always stop and check in with that person to make sure they're okay. But when we give up in the middle of an exercise, or walk when we should be running, or half-ass our kicks, I know that one of the trainers is going to be behind me shouting, "Never tired, Sassa! Always strong!" Or, more frequently today, "Why Sassa? Why you stopping? Always going, always keep going! Always strong!"
The constant mantra of "Always strong!" is fantastic for my soul right now.
There's a blissful kind of anonymity here too. Everyone is friendly, but no one is really here to make friends. After the sessions everyone is too tired for much conversation. It's kind of perfect. I'm in hardbody heaven AND I don't have to talk to anyone.
The food isn't amazing, but it's nutritious and exactly what one needs after a hard session. Lots of stir-friend chicken, vegetables, and rice. I'm drinking water like nobody's business.
I really look forward to posting as my time here goes on. I can't believe this is only day 2. Part of me wishes I'd only booked a week here, and could spend the other week sunbathing on Ko Phi Phi, and part of me wishes I had planned on staying a month.
This is so, so good for me. Painful, absolutely, but so, so good for me.
Always strong!!