Hi everyone. I just signed up with a gym to start training in Muay Thai boxing. In my heart, I know I want to compete, but I'm not confident I will be good enough since I just got started with all of this. When did you know you wanted to compete? Was it something you were aiming for from the beginning or did it come to you later after months or years of training or did your coach tell you that you should compete? I'm just curious! Thanks for your replies.

Congrats on the first step, Helen!

If you know you want to compete "in your heart", that is your answer. Don't worry about "not being good enough". Competition is a learning experience unto itself, so do it and have fun. You will learn on the fly, as you go to more competitions.

Check this thread for some very good insights:


http://www.fightingarts.com/ubbthreads/s...=0#Post15958019

We were never really FORCED to compete, but, how can I put this?? We were forcefully encouraged to do it. Some schools require it for rank advancement and some don't do it at all.

I think it's good to do though. Especially in the style you're practicing. The competition experience incorporates the adrenaline dump to a certain extent and puts you in contact with different opponents to help you improve. It also does alot to bolster your confidence. When you get to the point where you can say, " I've fougt world class fighters and won, or at least took what they had and survived." it makes it much easier to have confidence in your abilities and deal with that adrenaline should you ever have to use them for real. ( hopefully you never will )

Thanks for the thread Matt. I copied and pasted it in Word so that I have something to keep going back to and reading. I have always looked at competition as being a way of showing how good you have gotten. I have never thought of it as gaining experience, even if you suck at it. Thanks for that! I will aim to compete, even if it's just to gain experience and do something that I love to do no matter how often I win or lose!

Corwin....The school I joined, it's not required to compete. Several people do it for fitness. My husband and I both joined this school to learn and to compete. Thanks for the encouragement. If nothing else, I can compete just for experience. But I think I'll at least wait until my coach tells me she thinks I'm ready.

Far better is it to dare mighty things, to win glorius triumphs, even though checkered by failure... than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy nor suffer much, because they live in a gray twilight that knows not victory nor defeat.

Theodore Roosevelt

i can't express how much that quote has inspired me, hell i still get goose bumbs when i read it.

and ditto on what matt says, competetion is an all around great thing. the morning before my competetions im nervous and thinking about quitting and flying home. but after there done, theres no better feeling in the world then knowing you just gave something your best shot, your honest to go best shot.

i wish you and your husband the best. i hope you both train like dogs and poor your heart out in the ring.

Hey Helen

I'm just a naturally competetive guy. Have been all my life at just about anything I'm involved with. Drives my wife nuts!

Sometimes people start martial arts for one reason and they progress in that direction. Other times they start and end up going in a direction that they had never anticipated.

Don't set too many goals at first. Just relax and enjoy the journey.

The school I train in lets the choice up to you. If you want to compete give it a try. It helps correct your techniques, by that I mean: if you mess up proper technique, you’ll end up getting hurt. You learn by making mistakes right?

You can start competing in our school at the level of 4th kyu. That is in about two years of consistently training roughly two times a week.

Well, my husband and I have been training at our school for two weeks now. We are loving every minute of it. The fighters really are a team. I feel a little intimidated because I would be the only woman on the team, besides one of the coaches, if I decided to compete. I am trying to take it a little bit at a time. Right now I'm concentrating on getting the techniques down. I want to get that whole muscle memory thing going. My husband and I bought protective gear and spar almost every night. I love it! I think I really would like to compete, but I'm just not even close to ready for that yet. Thanks to every one that responded. I was really interested in how some of you got started. I will definitely keep you all posted about mine and my husband's progress. Thanks for the support and good wishes!